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CHAPTER THIRTEEN

RYLAN

The sound of waves crashing against the shore, not a hundred feet from where Rylan slept in Cameron’s arms, slowly woke him. Rylan smiled at the familiar sound, already used to the ocean after two weeks living in the beach house on Ewa Beach on Oahu. He blinked his eyes open and took in his surroundings.

At first, he noticed his head rose and fell with the rhythms of Cameron’s deep breathing as he continued to sleep. Sometime the night before, he must have shifted down the bed until his head lay on the man’s taut stomach.

The night before, Rylan teased Cameron with his mouth and hands. His lips touched almost every inch of Cameron’s golden skin over the hours of his exploration, savoring each time Cameron sucked in a breath or moaned when the sensations became too much. And taking him apart, inch by glorious inch, had his body buzzing with the heady feeling he was Cameron’s first. The first to worship his body, the first to kiss him until they were panting, and the first to take Cameron’s hard cock into his mouth and have him explode down his throat.

He smiled at the memories as the crescendo of the birds grew louder and the distant sound of cars invaded their little island paradise, letting Rylan know the island was coming to life and it was time for them to wake.

Although he would have loved to stay in bed all day and repeat his exploration of Cameron’s body, there was more of the island to see. On their many trips exploring the beach and the surrounding towns, they had discovered delicious food, wonderful people, and perfect weather, even when it stormed in the afternoon.

But it was Cameron who’d made him feel comfortable the moment they arrived. Rylan thought New York City was exciting, but the laid-back tempo of the island fit them more. It allowed them time to spend every day together, talking about their lives and their dreams, but also sharing their favorite books, movies, embarrassing stories, and careers their young minds had come up with as children.

“A ballerina?” Cameron seemed more intrigued by the idea.

“That was one of my childhood dreams. And don’t knock it. I loved how graceful they were whenever they moved and I liked the strong men. I imagined myself being lifted in the air like that. What did you want to be?”

“What didn’t I want to be? Let’s see, astronaut, firefighter, professional football player, cop, at one time I even thought about driving a garbage truck. After that, there was professional chef, an airline pilot, and a video game creator. What are your others?”

“Well, I thought about being a beautician, then a make-up artist for the movies, and after a backup dancer or choreographer for rock stars.” Rylan smiled as he remembered all the dreams he had when his mom was still alive. She encouraged him to do anything he wanted, and those sentiments always stuck with him.

They never ran out of anything to talk about and Rylan understood on a primal level that Cameron was the one man he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. Since the first leg of their flight from New York to San Francisco, Rylan had gone over Cameron’s words in his head many, many times. He hinted at his feelings, but Rylan knew he needed to find the right words to express them before he admitted anything. And Rylan was nothing but patient.

But it hadn’t stopped them from exploring their attraction. He loved when Cameron pulled Rylan close and kissed him. Sometimes their mouths explored for hours, other times the kiss was heady and devouring and they both pulled back breathing hard. He learned how much Cameron enjoyed kissing and Rylan melted into his arms every time.

They hadn’t progressed to sex, but exploring Cameron’s body, mapping out every indent, muscle, and scar left Rylan craving more of him. And he loved when Cameron touched him. A small brush of his knuckles against his cheek, his face burrowed into Rylan’s neck as he held him close, and Cameron’s mouth pressed to his skin all left him feeling loved.

Rylan never knew such pleasure existed and the more they touched, the more Rylan realized Cameron’s pleasure mirrored his own as they learned different ways to drive each other wild.

The first time they made love would be mind blowing.

They were in no hurry. He sensed they hadn’t because the act intertwined with an admission of their feelings for each other. Until then, as long as he had Cameron, happiness lived inside him.

“What are you thinking about down there? Come to think of it why are you so far away?” Cameron lifted Rylan and moved him on top of his body.

Rylan chuckled and crossed his arms on Cameron’s chest, laying his chin down on his hands.

“Morning.” Cameron leaned in and kissed him.

When they pulled back, they were both breathless and Cameron’s smile made his heart skip a beat.

“Morning.”

“I’ve been thinking.”

“About what we should do today?”

Cameron gave him a shy smile before he nodded. “It ties in, yes.”

Unashamed by his nudity, Rylan shifted upright on the bed until he sat cross-legged, giving Cameron his full attention. His heart beat a little faster when Cameron traced his naked body, and the man had expressive eyes. Whenever he turned his attention to Rylan, he almost had to pinch himself because Cameron wanted him.

But he wanted to know what the other man planned, so he reached for a pillow and plopped in on his lap, breaking Cameron’s perusal. Rylan laughed at his boyfriend’s expression. It moved from disappointed that he’d been denied the view and transformed into excited.

It was Rylan’s turn to stare as Cameron moved to mirror his position across from him and let out a disappointed sound when he reached for a pillow and covered his lap, leaving Rylan no time for his examination.

He gave Rylan a smile before he reached over and cradled his hands. Cameron scooted forward until their knees touched before he glanced up.