AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Not a good idea, her mind warned.
Her body didn’t care though. She hadn’t felt this relaxed and comfortable in… ages. So much so she couldn’t actually remember the last time. She’d spent ten years on the go, trying to meet everyone’s expectations.
She heard the flip of the bottle cap and braced herself for the squirt of cold lotion. Seconds passed, then Oz’s hands settled on her upper back, the lotion warm from his hands as he smoothed it across her shoulders and down her back.
Oz seemed to know just where to press, and she bit her lower lip to keep from moaning when he found tight pressure points and rubbed until her muscles eased. By the time he’d finished applying the sunscreen to her back, neck, and shoulders, she felt like she’d melted into a pile of trembling goo.
And she’d thought she was relaxed before?
“Want me to do your legs?”
Yesss. “N-no. Thank you.”
“My pleasure.”
The low timbre of Oz’s voice revealed more than it disguised, and she realized he still sat beside her on the sand. “Would you… Do you need lotion?”
Maybe she was playing with fire, but seeing as how they were there alone, it was the kind thing to do. Neighborly.
“Yeah. Thanks.”
Devon reluctantly pushed herself to her knees and knelt on the towel, grateful her sunglasses and hat hid her face somewhat.
She started on his neck at his hairline and then applied the lotion with efficient motions meant to get the job done quickly. She tried hard not to notice the muscles bulging in his arms and shoulders, the lean ridges of his back.
Unlike his version of lotion spreading, she didn’t seek out pressure points or let her hands linger. “There,” she said, having to stop and clear her throat when the word emerged silent the first time. Thankfully he didn’t see how much touching him… “Done.”
She turned and settled herself on the towel once more, applying more lotion to her legs to give herself breathing room and enable her to keep her head down, eyes focused.
“Do you ever think about it?” Oz asked.
“About what?”
“You. Me. If we’d gotten married, we’d have celebrated our tenth anniversary in June.”
The waning sunlight still held eighty-five-degree heat with the breeze, and she blamed that on the fire scorching her face as the images of what-if pummeled her. Ten years of marriage. Of birthdays and Christmases—kids? “I… Not really,” she said. “Since it didn’t happen, I haven’t given it much thought.”
It was a lie. Whenever she’d thought about kids and settling down, Oz’s face often appeared in her mind’s eye.
And when she thought of marrying Ted?
She’d wanted nothing more while in New York, but after her time here… the more she thought about it the more her unease grew.
“Have you selected a date for marrying Ted? Are you having kids right away? Getting a house in the suburbs?”
“Can we talk about something else?”
“Most brides-to-be love sharing the details,” he said.
“With their ex-fiancés?” she asked. “Seems a little cruel.”
“Maybe. But we’re friends now, so you can tell me anything.”
What was his deal? Why did Oz want her to tell him about her relationship?
Unless… “Maybe we should be getting back.”
“Tired of the quiet?”
