Page 24 of Give Me More
He knew his sister had spoken to Grace but when he asked Grace about their conversation, she’d only told him about the parts that were related to the feud or his family. Nothing about their breakup, even though RJ was certain that would’ve been one of the first questions Riley asked. His sister had been really upset when he’d announced that Grace was gone. So much so that he’d been tempted to reach out to Grace just for the purpose of telling her she needed to talk to Riley, but he hadn’t. And in time, just like him, Riley had moved on without Grace. Now his sister looked almost elated anytime she saw the two of them together.
“Are you calling me a distraction?” she asked without even looking at him.
The way she was able to control her feelings, whether it was desire to have sex or tension about their past, was unnerving to him. He was certain she was feeling the pain of withdrawal the same way he was. Last night when he’d been sitting on the balcony in her room, he’d caught her staring at his crotch. His dick had never gotten so hard so fast, but as soon as it did, she looked away.
“No, I’m calling this weird sexual truce we seem to have initiated a distraction.”
She paused then and pushed up from the sand to sit back on her legs. “What are you talking about?”
“I think you know.”
She shook her head.
“Okay, look, neither of us was ever known to give in to our circumstances. So why are we tiptoeing around each other now?”
“What would happen when it ends?” she asked.
He had and hadn’t come up with an answer, or rather he hadn’t come up with an answer he wanted to accept.
“Let’s have dinner tonight,” he said. “Not a meeting to discuss the story. Just dinner at seven, you and me. I’ll make all the arrangements.”
She looked skeptical. “Are we going to talk about this at dinner?”
He shook his head. “We’re going to have a nice meal like we used to do. I miss that.” He’d also missed times like this, when they were just doing stuff together. Sure, he wasn’t going to like the sand that was already sneaking into places he didn’t want to think about, but he wasn’t going to lie about enjoying being with her.
“Yeah,” she said with a slow nod. “I do, too. But I’d really like to win this sandcastle contest first.”
They both grinned. Competitiveness, ambition, tenacity—all traits they shared. “You’re right. Let’s do this.”
And do it they did. An hour later they were being crowned the winners for their underwater castle with all the intricate aquatic life that Grace had managed to design. RJ let her take the gift shop sandcastle they were awarded as a prize. When she went off to an interview with Major and Maurice, he returned to his room to make plans for tonight.
Grace stepped up onto the yacht, the balmy evening breeze blowing her hair and the light material of her full skirt.
“Good evening,” RJ said as he stood from the table at the far end of the deck.
“Good evening,” she replied. “We’re having dinner here?”
“Yes.” He came closer and took her hand, leading her toward the table. “Dinner and a sunset sail. You still like to watch the sunset, don’t you?”
“I love to,” she answered softly. She’d dated RJ for a year and a half and in that time, she’d been on the Gold private jet and had attended numerous A-list parties, from LA to Milan. RJ had given her pearls for her birthday, couture gowns for Christmas, and commissioned artwork for their first anniversary. She’d been privy to fine things, but she’d never been on a private yacht to watch the sun set in Saint Lucia.
“I heard it was beautiful out here on the water, so I wanted to make sure you had a chance to see it before you leave.” He held out a chair for her and she sat down.
It was silly—her legs were a little wobbly and butterflies danced in her stomach as if this were her first date. Not just with RJ, but ever.
“You look really nice,” she said, fighting for some semblance of calm. And it was true. He’d changed from the swim trunks and tank top and now wore dark brown linen pants and a matching button-front shirt.
“Not nearly as nice as you,” he replied.
She glanced down at the hunter-green wrap dress she wore. A good portion of her leg was visible through the side slit and she eased the material over to cover it, suddenly feeling more than a little exposed.
“What are you doing?” she asked when she looked at him again. “This seems like more than just dinner.”
The table was covered with a white cloth, and plates with gold rims were set next to sparkling silverware and crystal glasses. A bottle of wine was sitting inside a silver ice bucket; two long white candles were lit and centered.
Everything was set almost identically to the way it had been the night he’d proposed to her.
“What is this? Why’d you do all this?” She was already standing to leave, but RJ stood, too, touching a hand to her arm to hold her still.
