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“This never gets old.” Will stares up at the moon, his face full of awe.
“Well, it is new for me, but I could see how you could say that.” I marvel at the way the lights reflect off the water and how the soothing crash of the waves lulls my nerves.
“You’ve never been to the beach?” Will turns to look at me, but I keep my gaze fixed on the crashing waves.
“No, this is my first time.” I look at him from the corner of my eyes and he looks a bit awed as he stares at me.
“Then we better make it memorable.” With those words, he shrugs out of his suit coat and throws it to the sand. He moves onto his tie as I stare at him wide eyed. When he begins unbuttoning his shirt, he flashes me a devilish smile. “Are you going to join me?”
“What are you doing?” I’m blushing and not entirely sure I want to know what he is up to.
“I thought it obvious. I’m going skinny dipping.” He throws his shirt to the sand and stands before me completely bare chested.
“I’m not going skinny dipping!” I cry, feeling a little too distracted to really sell my outcry.
“Why not?” He loosens his belt, and I’m really struggling to keep my eyes on his. My cheeks burn as I try to stay coherent.
“We are at your ex’s wedding reception!” I say, pointing to the lights of the party up the hill.
“Live a little Hannah.” Is all he says as he lets his pants drop to his ankles. He smirks at my slack jawed expression.
“Fine, but I’m keeping my underwear on.” I grumble, shooting Will a threatening look.
“That takes a bit of the fun out of it, but I guess I’ll play by your rules.” Will says with a shrug.
I hop around, trying to keep my balance as I struggle to unbuckle my heels. When I finally have both off, I reach around to the back of my dress. I had to contort my shoulders to zip myself into this dress, and now with my arms twisted behind my back, I fumble with the zipper, unable to make it move.
“Can you help with my zipper?” I ask nervously.
“Gladly.” His hands are at my back as soon as I turn. My skin heats despite the cool night air as he deftly unzips my dress. His hand lingers on the zipper for a second before he steps away. I quickly turn back around and give him a serious glare.
“I swear, if you make a single joke about my underwear, I’m stealing your clothes and leaving you here.” I hold my dress to my chest and look him in the eye so hopefully he can see how serious I am, but, of course, he ignores it.
“Now, why would I make a joke about your underwear? Wait, let me guess! Are they branded for your sorority?” He looks pointedly at where I hold my dress up and raises his brows.
“No, they are practical. They are boring.” I slip out of the dress and try not to blush as I stand in front of him in nothing but my nude bra and underwear.
“I don’t think boring is the right word for it.” He lets out a low whistle as his eyes go down my body and back up again.
“Shut up.” I run into the waves to escape the heat of his gaze. I gasp as the cold water hits my legs and my skin breaks out in goosebumps. The shock of cold water chases away any lusty thoughts I may or may not have had seeing him standing on a moonlit beach in nothing but his expertly fitted boxers.
Will wades out until he is past the crashing waves, and I follow him until the water is at his shoulders and I’m lightly treading. We are silent as we stare at each other, and it is odd to be so comfortable as we openly study each other. I don’t know what he is thinking, but I’m thinking it would be way too easy to fall for Will Whitmore, not just for his looks, but because no one else has challenged me like he has. He makes me angry, he annoys me, he questions me and through it all I still come back because no one else makes me feel like this, like I would be content to just be as long as he is by my side.
“I had bought a ring.” Will says breaking the silence.
“What?” I tilt my head, not following his statement.
“I was going to propose to Samantha before she cheated. I wasn’t ready yet, but it is what she wanted, so I bought a ring and was going to propose to make her happy and that’s when I saw the texts.” Will lets out a breath and though his words are heavy, his expression looks lighter than ever before when talking about Samantha.
“Did you tell her?” How could he bear being at the wedding of someone he had once planned to marry? The good thoughts I had about Samantha at her reception fled. He had loved her, and she had wrecked him. Tears prickle at my eyes, and I wish that I could erase that pain from him.
“No, I was so angry, and I couldn’t bear to be any more embarrassed by the situation, so I returned the ring and told no one.” He looks out at the dark horizon, and for once, he doesn’t seem detached, just at peace.
“Am I the first person you’ve told?” I move closer to him until I feel my feet brush his legs as I tread water.
“Yes.” He doesn’t look away and I feel the weight of what that means as he stares at me, hiding nothing.
“Thank you for sharing that with me.” I wrap my arms around his neck in a hug and he holds me around my waist, nothing between us but cold water. We stay locked in that hug, but when Will notices my teeth chattering, he suggests we get out and go home. I don’t argue, as I can no longer feel my hands and feet. Rather than put my dress back on, Will lends me his dress shirt to wear. It barely covers my butt, but it is better than ruining the nicest dress I’ve ever owned.
