Page 25 of A Shore Fling

NINA

W ell, that was unexpected. I rest my forearms on the cool wood. His warm hands skim along my outer thighs, moving higher.

“Spread your legs wider for me,” he murmurs, his voice husky.

I comply without hesitation, feeling exposed and vulnerable in the most delicious way. My heart races behind my ribcage as his fingers trace teasing patterns up the sensitive skin of my inner thighs.

“You’re so fucking beautiful like this. So sexy.” I may not be able to see the hunger in his eyes, but I hear it in his tone and feel it in the way he touches me.

The edge of the table presses against my hips, and my palms flex against the flat surface when I feel his hand brush against my most sensitive area.

Then he’s touching me, his fingers exploring with deliberate slowness that makes my knees weak.

I bite my lips to keep from crying out, but a soft moan escapes when his fingertips sweep over my clit.

“Goddamn, you feel incredible.” I hear the strain in his voice, like he’s struggling for control.

I push my ass back into him and whisper, “Please.”

Fabric rustles behind me before I feel the heat of his body pressing closer. He rubs the head of his cock back and forth against my entrance before he presses forward. He enters me in one long thrust, pausing when he’s buried to the hilt.

I fall forward, my torso flattening on the table as Travis starts to move.

The angle is different like this, and I feel every thick inch of him stroking inside me.

He begins slowly, each thrust deliberate and deep.

I clench around him, gasping as his cock rubs that magical spot inside me.

The table creaks beneath us, the sound mixing with our heavy breathing and soft moans.

“You like this?” Travis growls out the question.

“Yes.” I barely manage to speak.

His hands grip my hips tighter, fingers digging into my flesh, as he pulls me back against him with each thrust.

“Travis,” I gasp.

“I know, baby. I feel you getting close.” One of his hands slides around, finding my clit, his fingers circling the sensitive bundle of nerves with just the right amount of pressure.

Tension builds inside me, the familiar coil of heat tightening with each thrust. My legs shaking, I grip the edges of the table to anchor myself as pleasure overwhelms me. His grip on my hips tightens as his strokes become erratic, and then seconds later he follows me over the edge.

We stay like that, both of us fighting to catch our breath. With his chest pressed against my back, I feel his pounding heartbeat, and I know mine is just as accelerated.

He slips from me and says, “Don’t move.” I hear him step away, and then he’s back, gently wiping between my legs with paper towels.

He tosses them in the trash, and when he returns, I rise onto my toes, pressing a kiss to his soft and supple lips to show him how much I appreciate his sweet gesture.

What’s meant to be brief turns into more when his arms slip around my waist, pulling me close.

Our tongues dance together leisurely, neither of us in a rush to part.

When we finally draw back, Travis sends me a rueful grin. “It seems I can’t get enough of you.”

“I know what you mean. Also, we just gave a new meaning to ‘chew and screw.’”

He barks out a laugh. “I’ll never think of that phrase the same again.”

I lean back in the zero-gravity lounge chair and close my eyes, basking in the tranquility of my surroundings.

Travis’ home is closer to the shore than my rental, and the salty scent of the ocean and the sounds are that much sharper.

And I’ve been here a lot, just as he’s spent an equal number of nights at my place.

“Hey, do you want a burger and a hot dog?” Travis calls out from across the deck, where he’s manning the grill.

“Yes, please.” My eyes remain closed, but I’m smiling, which I do a lot these days because of him.

We’ve been spending all our free time together for the last couple of weeks.

I can’t believe it’s already the second week of August. I feel like a giant clock is ticking down the time I have left here.

With how well everything has been going between the two of us, I try not to think about what will happen at the end of this month.

But sometimes when I’m alone, it’s impossible to fight off the feeling of dread, and I briefly allow myself to wallow.

However, when Travis and I are together, I focus on the present and make the most of every second we share.

“What do we have here?”

My eyes snap open at the sound of Reed’s voice. But he’s not alone. Jordan and Drew are behind him with Willow and Ginger in the back of the group. Willow rolls her eyes at me, letting me know this invasion wasn’t her idea, but I already figured as much.

Travis points toward Reed’s house. “Go back.”

Reed grins, continuing across the deck. “Aren’t you happy to see us, bro?”

Travis shakes his head. “Not at all.”

“We could smell the meat grilling, and it made us hungry,” Drew says, moving over to stand next to his oldest brother.

Travis barely glances at him. “I’m cooking for Nina and me.”

“Are you sure you don’t have enough for the rest of us? I mean, you are the grillmaster of the family,” Drew says.

Travis points at Drew with the spatula. “It’s about time one of you fuckers acknowledged that.”

“So will you feed us or not?” Jordan asks.

Travis grunts, then reluctantly grumbles, “I’ll throw more burgers and dogs on.”

I snicker to myself, knowing it was inevitable he’d agree. Especially with Drew buttering him up, and then Jordan came in with his get-to-the-point manner.

Willow and Ginger sit down in a couple of blue rocking chairs. “What’s up, girls?”

“Not much.” Willow sighs. “I had a hellish day at the garage.”

“Oh no, what happened?” I ask.

“I had to fix an electrical system issue, and it’s my least favorite thing to do.”

“That sounds complex,” I say.

“And tedious,” Ginger adds.

Willow waves away our concerns. “Don’t mind me, I’m just whining.”

“You’re allowed to whine,” I say. “God knows I’ve done my fair share of complaining to you about my job.”

“When do you have to head back to New York?” Ginger asks innocently, and I feel my stomach drop.

“The end of the month,” I say, trying to sound casual even though the words taste bitter. I see Travis’ hand pause for just a moment before he continues arranging more food on the grill. The silence that follows is heavy, and I’m grateful when Reed breaks it.

“Travis, these burgers better be worth us interrupting your alone time with Nina.”

Travis just grunts, and the rest of us laugh.

I’m thankful for Reed’s interruption, but the question about New York lingers in the air between Travis and me like a foul odor. We’ve been carefully dancing around the topic, pretending our time together doesn’t have an expiration date.

“So, Nina,” Jordan says, plopping down in the zero gravity lounger next to mine. “Has my brother been behaving himself?”

I smile. “It depends on what your definition of behaving is.” I glance at him with a raised eyebrow. “I bet your definition is a lot looser than mine.”

He grins, nodding. “Oh, no doubt.”

Travis appears with a plate of chips and dip, setting it on the small table between the two lounge chairs. Jordan reaches for a chip, and Travis slaps at his hand. “Where are your fucking manners? Ladies go first.”

I wink at Travis. “Thanks, honey.” I take a chip, dragging it through the dip and then popping it in my mouth.

He winks back. “I’ve got your back.”

“I know you do.”

Jordan waits until Travis returns to the grill to grab a chip. “You know, I’ve never seen my brother like this before.”

“Like what?”

“So protective and so in love.”

My eyebrows lower, wrinkling my forehead. “Did you forget he was married before?”

“No, I didn’t. He and Jessica got together when they were too young to know any better.”

“Maybe so, but you don’t marry someone unless you love them,” I point out.

“I’m not saying he didn’t love her, but he shows his love for you in ways he never did before.”

“I think you’re misreading his feelings for me,” I tell him.

He shakes his head. “I know my brother.”

The idea of Travis being in love with me sends a flutter through my chest, but it also fills me with a sense of panic. Love makes leaving so much harder.

“Jordan,” I start, but he holds up a hand.

“I’m only saying what I see. And what I see is my brother is happier than he’s been in years.” He takes another chip, crunching thoughtfully. “The question is, what are you going to do about it?”

Before I can answer, Travis turns around with a platter full of grilled food. “Food’s ready,” he announces, and we all migrate to the outdoor table.

“These are perfect,” Willow says after taking a bite of her burger.

Travis beams with pride. “Thank you. There’s nothing better than a grilled burger.”

“Except a grilled steak,” Jordan corrects.

Travis nods. “I’ll agree that, on the whole, steak is better. But sometimes you just want a juicy bacon cheeseburger.”

After dinner, we gather around the large stone firepit that Travis and his dad built.

I love sitting out here with him. It’s so peaceful, and we’ve had some fantastic discussions about everything from our favorite songs to whether aliens live under the ocean or not. We’re both undecided on that one.

“Nina, I meant to ask you when you have time to help me with choosing some merchandise options,” Reed says.

“Just let me know what works for you, and I’ll be there.”

“What merchandise? Jordan asks.

“Nina helped me come up with a plan to reach a wider demographic of customers, and I want to start implementing it,” Reed explains.

“You work for your family’s business, right?” Drew asks.

I nod. “Yep.”

“What’s the name of the company? Would we know it?” Jordan asks.

Well, shit. So far, no one has made the connection between my last name and our brand. Looks like that’s about to change.