Page 173 of I Dreamt That You Loved Me

“And you think that’s better than sex on the beach?”

He gave me a look. “Is that an option?”

“I mean…yes?” My gaze dipped to his board shorts. “You seemed like you were up for it.”

Gabriel looked at me for a minute, considering. “As tempting as that offer is, when we have sex, it’s going to be in my bed and it’s going to last all night long. All. Night. Long.”

My skin flushed with heat. “That sounds…ambitious. Do you have some kind of new superpower you haven’t told me about?”

“I’ve been waiting years for this. I don’t want a quickie on the beach,” he scoffed. “So how about that swim?”

I looked at the ocean dubiously. It was completely dark now except for a silver moon. What if we got carried away in a riptide or attacked by a shark?

“I won’t let anything happen to you,” Gabriel said. “Promise. But you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do,” he assured me. “If you don’t want to, it’s okay.”

The lure of danger had always appealed to Gabriel more than it did to me, but whenever I’d let my inhibitions go, I’d always felt a thrill. Like when I rode on the back of his motorcycle. Or when I used to join him on the roof (with the notable exception of that last time). Or that one time we had sex in an alley. It was liberating.

I knew I didn’t have to do it. I was mostly immune to peer pressure. But when I looked at the ocean again, I had the sudden urge to dive under the waves and float on the saltwater, weightless.

My mind made up, I stripped down to my underwear and bra. It was a simple cotton set, lilac, and covered more than my bikini. It wasn’t even that sexy, but Gabriel was looking at me like I was dressed in Agent Provocateur.

I’d always loved that about Gabriel. How he always made me feel so beautiful.

“Let’s do it. Let’s go swimming.”

He took off his T-shirt and tossed it on the blanket like he was throwing down the gauntlet.

I ran and he chased. The water kissed my ankles when he caught me around the middle and lifted me off the ground. I squealed with laughter as he charged into the water, holding me aloft.

It was up to my waist now. “Are you using me as your shield to ward off the waves?”

“You’re my life preserver.”

I didn’t have time to respond because a wave was about to crash over our heads. We dove in. It was like taking a plunge in an ice bath. No wonder the surfers wore wetsuits. When my head emerged, I gasped for breath. “Oh my god, it’s freezing in here.”

“Nah. It’s at least seventy degrees.”

Okay, but it felt a lot colder than the air. “I’m the kind of person who wears sweaters in air-conditioned restaurants. I’m always cold.”

“I’m always hot.” He wrapped his arms around me. “See how that works?” He kissed my salty lips and we floated on our backs, holding hands, but after a few moments of feeling weightless, a wave snuck up from behind and pummelled us.

“Are you okay?” he asked, but he was laughing as he pulled seaweed out of my hair.

I had seawater streaming from my nose, but I was laughing too. “I think I drank a gallon of seawater. I’m done.”

By the time we trudged up the beach, I was shivering, and my teeth were chattering, but my skin tingled.

Gabriel pulled his hoodie over my head and I threaded my arms through the sleeves, burying my nose in the collar. It was soft and faded and smelled like him. Woodsy and spicy.

“That felt great,” Gabriel said, rubbing my arms to get the circulation going again. “Thanks for going along with it.”

We trekked back to the house, leaving a trail of sand and saltwater in our wake.

Now that I was warm and cozy in his sweatshirt, I was happy I did it.

I felt soalive.

I was all set to walk through the front door when Gabriel grabbed my hand, led me around the side of the house, and tugged me into the outdoor shower. It smelled like cedar wood and his body wash.