“Pfft,” I scoff. “Age is just a number. It’s not important,” I add, waving a dismissive hand. “Besides, I happen to find older women extremely sexy.”
“Oh,” she says, huffing out a laugh. “So you’re saying I am older?”
“You brought it up,” I say with a laugh. “But like I said, I’m not the one who cares about it.”
She turns back to the horizon, shaking her head again as she holds a hand up to shield her eyes from the sun. “So cocky,” she whispers.
Leaning closer, so my mouth is by her ear, I say, “Extremely sexy.”
She turns, jumping a little as though she doesn’t expect me to be so close. I don’t pull back, instead staring into her gorgeous brown eyes before mine drop to her mouth. A mouth I would very much like to kiss.
“I don’t think so,” she murmurs, and I’m not sure if she’s still referring to my offer to warm her up or my comment about her being sexy.
“I do,” I tell her, knowing I’m referring to both.
She scoffs, her cheeks flushing as she turns away from me, murmuring, “Not a good idea.”
“What’s not a good idea?”
She takes a deep breath, letting it out slowly as she pushes her hands through her long brown hair before twisting it into a knot at the back of her head, securing it with a band from around her wrist. As soon as it’s done, I want to pull it loose, watch as her hair falls down around her shoulders and back. I want to run my fingers through it, wrap it around my fist as I use it to pull her head back so I can kiss my way down her neck.
Fuck.
I don’t know what it is, but I really want this woman. I want to change her mind about me and us, and whatever it is she thinks is a bad idea.
Stepping closer, I gently brush my knuckles against the back of her hand as I ask again, “What’s not a good idea?”
“I was talking to myself,” I tell this ridiculously hot guy standing in front of me.
My eyes float over his body, all tanned and toned. Water droplets glisten on his skin, moving slowly down his torso and between the lines of every cut muscle of his abs.
He’s the epitome of a surf god, his board tucked under his arm now as he steps closer to me, so close that I can feel the heat of his body.
Trying not to look at him, trying not to make it obvious that he’s stunning, I crane my neck to look out at the ocean over him, but I fail to distract myself. While the ocean is gorgeous, the view of this shirtless man wins out, and my eyes dart back to him.
“Do you make it a habit of talking to yourself?” he asks, his tone playful and flirtatious.
I laugh a little, and it feels good. It’s the first time I remember laughing since this disaster with Sean. Not only does it feel good to laugh, but it also feels good to be standing here in the sunshine instead of the frigid cold winter of New York. The snow is probably piling up, the wind whipping through the streets, sending chills over all the commuters on the sidewalks.
But here, even though the water is cooler than I expected, it feels like I’m on vacation. Like this isn’t where I’m choosing to start my life over.
“I don’t, but I need a reminder,” I say, feeling my lips pull up into a smile, a smile that feels genuine. This interaction has me feeling all sorts of things I shouldn’t be feeling.
That’s why I’m here. I’m taking a break from dating and from men and relationships. Leaving is giving me an opportunity to focus on myself, away from all the noise of Sean and his shit. Getting away from my sister and friends and their opinions on the situation and leaving all those people who said Sean and I would never make it.
I hate that they were right, and I really don’t need to hear about it.
That’s why I left like I did. Turned my phone off, packed my clothes and boarded a plane to Maui. I haven’t turned it back on since I got here.
It was either Alaska or Hawaii, and I’m not a fan of snow, so here I am, standing on the most beautiful beach I’ve ever seen with a man who should be completely off-limits.
“You need a reminder of what?” he questions, cutting through my thoughts. I’ve been a scattered mess ever since walking in on Sean fucking that woman.
“That I’m taking a break from men,” I tell him, sounding far more assertive than I ever have. I was so used to just going along with whatever Sean wanted, letting him call my career a hobby, letting him run our life because he was the one with the money.
Almost like I never felt good enough for him, like I was always trying to prove I was worthy of his time and his love.
Well, fuck that. No more.
