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The water in the bucket comes flying at us, and I move just in time behind Thor’s body to be shielded from the onslaught.
“I’m going to get you, kiddo,” Thor yells as he dives for Orion. The two of them wrestle around before Thor walks into the surf carrying Orion.
I’m watching the exchange and can’t hide my smile. Chase plays with Orion like this, but lately he’s been more focused on Laya and not able to. Orion needs this.
They both come back to where I’m standing at the edge of the waves and are laughing. Orion calms and looks up at Thor.
“Are you mad at my mom again?” he asks as he stands there with his little hands on his hips.
“Never, my man. Just telling her how beautiful she looks,” Thor says as he wraps a hand around my waist and pulls me into his wet body. He’s in board shorts and a button-down that is open and now soaked from playing in the water.
I try to avoid looking at his sexy chest, but I can’t stop myself. I want to touch it, to slide my fingers along the muscles. I watch as droplets of water slide down to his happy trail. I hear a growl and look up at Thor. He’s watching me. His eyes are dark and stormy with desire. His facial hair has grown longer and thicker since I last saw him. I want to rub my hands across it too.
Dang, I just want to rub my body all over his as if I’m marking him as mine. It turns me on that he called me his. He’s jealous of other men looking at me, and that heals a part of my soul. The part that has been called fat and unsexy for so long. I’ve fought that voice and learned to like who I am, but it hurt that he might think I wasn’t pretty or sexy. That I wasn’t worthy of him. He says those are all lies and he never said that.
“Want to have lunch with us? Mama made meat and cheese sandwiches.” Orion looks up at him, and again I regret my decision to keep our son from him. He looks so much like his father.
“Sounds good to me.” Thor holds out a hand to Orion, who takes it. I go to move away, but he keeps his arm around me, tightening his fingers as he moves with us to our umbrella.
“You can sit in my chair, unless you have one.” Orion looks around.
“No, I didn’t bring one.”
“You don’t come to the beach often, do you?” Orion asks as if it’s the weirdest thing to not have prepared for the beach.
We sit down and eat the finger sandwiches I made with turkey and muenster cheese. Both are Orion’s favorites.
* * *
Thor
I sit here enjoying the sandwiches Briar made and watch as my son talks animatedly about how he’s going to have surfing lessons later today. I loved wrestling and playing with him in the water. I missed so much of his life, and in this instant, I swear to never miss another moment.
I turn to look at Briar, and again my chest tightens, not just because of how sexy she is but because of all the bruises. I can see the ones that line her ribs and stomach. A perfect boot print is on her thigh. She put a skirt on to cover her lower half, but her sexy breasts are barely contained in the bikini top she’s wearing. Her stomach is tan from being in the sun. I see a glint of sparkle at her belly button and realize she has a piercing there. She also has numerous tattoos along her body. I want to read the script printed along her rib cage, but the ties to her bikini top cover it partly. She is nervous, I can tell because she keeps fidgeting with her skirt, trying to cover herself more. It kills me that she’s been told she isn’t sexy when she’s a goddess, as far as I’m concerned. Another thing I swear is to get her pregnant again so I can be there through the whole pregnancy, seeing her body change as she carries my baby. It’s a messed-up thought, but I don’t care. I want it as much as I want to keep them both. I want to move them into my home to protect and keep forever.
As I sit here with them eating sandwiches and fruit salad, I think about why I moved toward her when I did. It killed me that other men were looking at her curvy body. Even now, I’m upset they can see her.
She turns, and the band of her bikini top lifts slightly as she reaches into her bag. I can completely see the words marking her skin. “Beautifully Broken” is in script along her ribs near her breast. There are embellishments, and I realize a man was that close to her breast. The plastic fork in my hand snaps, and she turns to look at me. Her eyes flare wide.
“Mom says you need to not force the fork into the pineapple, or you’ll break it,” Orion offers, and I smile and nod at him. “Mom, it’s time,” Orion says, and I see an islander making his way toward us.
Orion jumps up, and Briar stands too. I’m up and following. When she stops in front of the guy, who is shirtless and tattooed, I wrap an arm around her and pull her into my body.
“Hey, Liko, this is our friend, Thor.” Orion introduces us.
I reach out to shake his hand, but he holds a fist up instead. I bump it and wait until he and Orion are making their way to the water’s edge to shake my head.
“Are we going with them?” I ask as Briar turns to head back to the umbrella.
“No. Liko has been teaching him for a while now. I trust him. Plus, the guards won’t let anything happen.” She waves, and I turn to see the guards I clocked earlier. I was glad to see them with her but upset by how far back they were.
“Why are they so distant?”
“I don’t want Orion to know about them or worry.” She takes a seat and then pulls out a tablet from her bag. She clicks away before she slips it back in.
“What does he think happened to you?”
“He thinks I slipped and fell.” She pauses for a moment, and I watch as emotions cross her face as she works through something. “Why did you come?” she asks me as her hands play with her skirt again.
