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Seth bit back his chuckle at her apparent nervousness. Although he wanted Courtney comfortable with him, he liked that he made her nervous. God knew she had him in knots.
“Yes, of course.”
She turned her back to him. He stood, glad she couldn’t see the tent forming in his trunks. He squirted the lotion into his hand, then just stood staring. She lifted her hair off her shoulders, leaving her back bare except for the tiny string that ran just under her shoulder blades.
She shifted, studying him over her shoulder. “Everything okay?”
Swallowing, he nodded. “Everything’s good.”
It’s just suntan lotion, he chastised himself. How many times had he done the same for someone else? Only, he couldn’t remember ever doing it for someone he wanted the way he wanted Courtney. Definitely not for someone he wanted and wasn’t supposed to want.
The moment his hands touched her skin, he knew he was a goner. Her skin was warm and smooth. As he rubbed the lotion into her skin, his fingers ran over taut muscles. He lost himself in the feel of her body under his hands. Although he was only supposed to be applying lotion, he began massaging the tight muscles between her shoulder blades. He didn’t even notice what he was doing until a soft moan floated from her parted lips. Snapping back to the reality of their situation, he noticed Ashley and Zack watching them from the water. Zack’s smug expression warned Seth of a future ribbing. But it was Ashley’s expression that gave Seth pause. Her bright eyes were narrowed, concern etched on her features. Although she’d teased about the older woman telling Courtney she’d know when she was ready for sex, maybe Ashley didn’t think she was ready yet.
Letting go of Courtney’s shoulders, he stepped away. “I think you’re good.”
She dropped her braid to swing over her shoulder. “Thank you.” A smile turned her lips up.
Maybe she hadn’t seen Ashley’s concern. Or maybe she didn’t care. He didn’t know and right now he wasn’t sure he had enough blood in his actual brain to figure it out.
She turned, lifting on her toes in a move that made her breasts bounce in the bikini top. “Do you need me to return the favor?”
There was nothing he’d like more than to have Courtney’s lubed hands running over his bare skin, but he couldn’t do that here. He’d never been arrested before, and he didn’t want to start with public indecency in a foreign country.
He shook his head. “I’m good. I sprayed some on before we got on the boat.” Which was a necessary lie to remain sane. At least until he could gauge her feelings about him and get her back on the cruise ship, preferably alone.
“Okay.” She headed to the boat’s ladder. “You coming?”
Did she have to say it like that? Because if he kept watching her in that bikini and having to touch her, he might be doing just that in his trunks like a damn teenager.
“Yeah.” Turning from her, he stripped off his t-shirt and dropped it next to her dress. Something about the sight of their discarded clothes lying next to each other made his blood pound in his veins.
Was Gertrude right? Would Courtney know when she was ready to take the next step? Because he had no doubts he was ready now.
* * *
Courtney squealed as Ashley jumped away from the stingray, splashing water into Courtney’s face. Their guide had shown them how to hold the bits of shrimp so they could feed the stingrays without getting their fingers nipped, but every time one swam close to Ashley she freaked out.
“They’re not going to eat you,” Courtney offered. “Their mouths are like this big.” She made a small circle with her thumb and pointer finger. “They’d never fit you.”
Ashley’s eyes narrowed. “They have those stinger things. You know that’s how that crocodile guy died, right?”
Courtney rolled her eyes as Zack and Seth snorted. “These are tame,” she tried to explain. “You’re probably more likely to get hurt because you keep snatching food out of their way than you would if you’d just stand there and give it to them.”
Zack’s light brow lifted, and a smirk pulled one corner of his mouth up. “Yeah, just stand there and give it to them, Ash.”
Ashley splashed him. Courtney turned away to avoid another spray of water in her face. Seth had placed his hand in the water and a stingray was nibbling at his fingers. His lips were turned up in a smile and his dimples bracketed his mouth. A mouth that she couldn’t stop thinking about. Although she already knew how his lips felt against her own, she couldn’t help but wonder how they’d feel on other parts of her body. At the thought of him trailing kisses down her neck, her nipples puckered. Seth chose that moment to turn to her. His eyes latched onto the pointed tips in much the same way she wished his mouth would. The grin melted from his face, and his eyes grew dark with a molten look that threatened to ignite her bikini bottoms.
“Have you done this before?” she asked for lack of anything better to say.
He shook his head, but the unfocused look in his eyes made her wonder if he’d even heard her question.
She shifted from one foot to the other. “You seem to be a natural.”
“I’m sorry.” Seth shook his head. “What are we talking about?”
Smiling, she pointed to the stingray slicing through the water around them. “You seem to be a natural around the stingrays. Ashley keeps squealing, and I can’t get them to actually take the food from my hand.” She held up her shrimp.
Seth blinked, wading through the water toward her. “Here.” He took her hand in his, positioning the shrimp like the guide had showed them, then wrapped his hand around hers to hold it in position. Stepping behind her, he bent his knees so they both went lower in the water.
