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“You know, Greyson, numbers have always been my thing,” I said with a small smile that seemed to confuse him. “Give me quantitative data and efficiency metrics all day long. But you know what I don’t give a damn about? Something as silly as our age difference. And if you’re that concerned about it, maybe you should keep your distance for the rest of the week.”

With that, I walked away with my shoulders back and head held high. To hell with pining after a man who cared so much about an age gap that didn’t really mean a damn thing.

Chapter Seven: Greyson

Istood in the sand, watching Heather walk away and feeling like I’d just been sucker-punched. And it was my own damn fault.

I should have gone to Heather’s room last night.

I knew it almost immediately, and a night in bed with an aching erection just made the regret burrow deeper. It was the whole reason I came to the beach today. I had a great view from my bungalow, and I didn’t swim, so there was no real reason to go out while Audrey and Christine were snorkeling. But I couldn’t stand to stay in my bungalow alone, fantasizing about Heather and cursing myself for getting so freaked out by our connection. So, I came to the beach for some fresh air and a distraction.

Of course, that didn’t work out since I spotted her walking along the shore right away. I didn’t even hesitate to follow her this time, which told me more about my strong desire for her than anything else.

It was overpowering my reluctance to get close to her.

But when she asked what held me back, I didn’t want to admit that I was freaked out by my feelings for her. That would just make me sound crazy. Or pathetic.

Probably both.

And I wasn’t lying about our age difference being a factor. When I found out how old she was, I immediately thought that the years between us were too much. But if I were honest with myself, I had to admit that it was less of an issue for me now that I’d gotten to know her a little. She was mature and smart and interesting.

And sexy as hell, I thought, my eyes locking onto her backside as she walked through the sand. Her pink sundress was short, falling just below her full ass and showing off toned legs that I wanted to feel wrapped around me.

Yeah, I made a big mistake last night.

Watching her walk away with her words about keeping my distance still ringing in my ears, I clenched my fists and ground my teeth together. Frustration like this was normal on the football field, but this was a different kind of game, and I’d already fumbled the ball.

The sound of a child’s laughter came from nearby, reminding me where I was, and I yanked down the hem of my T-shirt, hoping it would help hide my erection. The last thing I needed was to walk around a beach full of people with a hard-on tenting the front of my khaki shorts.

It was probably best to just head back to my bungalow and take care of this problem since I still had about an hour before Audrey and Christine were supposed to be back from snorkeling. The image of Heather’s short skirt flaring out as she walked away was fresh in my mind, and I knew I’d be thinking about that while I stroked myself off.

I started to make my way toward my bungalow, walking fast but trying not to draw attention to myself. My cock pulsed with need, and I knew I should’ve just masturbated last night. But every time I thought about it, the image of Heather’s disappointed face would flash in my mind. The way she looked just before the elevator doors closed made guilt wrap around me like a suffocating blanket, and I didn’t feel like I deserved the privilege of beating off to relieve the sexual tension.

I still didn’t, but I wasn’t strong enough to stop myself anymore. Just a few minutes of conversation with Heather standing in the sunshine, the ocean air blowing her pink-streaked hair around her head and her kissable lips right there for taking, and I was a man undone.

“Kelsie!”

The shout drew my attention to a volleyball net set up on the beach away from the water. The man who yelled was rushing toward a woman lying on the sand, looking dazed. There was a different man kneeling next to her, looking horrified, and I figured there’d been some kind of collision. I’d seen it happen often enough on the football field that it was easy to pick up on. At least this was probably low-impact. I’d seen bones snapped in half in the NFL.

There were several people gathered on each side of the volleyball net, watching as the man who shouted picked the woman up and started to hurry away with her toward the resort. But my eyes locked onto Heather, who was standing right next to a woman who looked exactly like her, except her hair was completely brown.

I tried to remember if Heather mentioned having a sister, but nothing came to mind. That just made me realize how much I wanted to know more about her, and as the group broke up, apparently deciding not to keep playing since one of their friends was injured, I headed toward her.

By the time I reached Heather, the game had broken up and she was standing alone, drinking from a bottle of water. Her eyes were closed as her head tilted back, and little water dribbled from the corner of her mouth, trickling over her chin and down her long neck.

I’d never been envious of a fucking drop of water before, but it seemed that Heather brought out a side of me that was primal and a little ridiculous. And I was done fighting it.

“Heather,” I said, my voice a nearly unrecognizable rasp. Had I ever wanted a woman this badly?

Her eyes popped open, and she lowered the water bottle, looking at me in surprise.

“You do know that the last thing I said to you was that you should keep your distance, right?”

“That was never going to happen.”

Her narrowed eyes assessed me, as if she was trying to solve a particularly confusing math problem. Understandable. I didn’t know what the hell was going on with me, either.

“You know, I’m still twenty-nine. Haven’t grown any older in the last fifteen minutes.”