Page 14 of Marc (Men of Forbidden Temptation #2)

MARC

The problem with fake dating is that you don’t have the same benefits as you do in a real relationship.

In a real relationship, I’d give in and kiss her whenever I wanted or playfully grab her ass when she walks by.

But with Staci, I can’t.

I look over to the other side of the bed, where she is still sleeping peacefully. I place the notepad on my pillow, letting her know that I am going to the beach to workout.

After the long, sleepless night with a raging boner, I could use the workout. And the temporary distance from her.

Sure, she might have initiated a kiss with me twice, but yesterday she was emotional, and I didn’t want to use that to my advantage.

I slip the room key into my pocket, tuck my towel under my arm, and quietly shut the door behind me before heading to the stairs.

The cardio will be good to help get my heart rate up.

I stand on my tiptoes to stretch my calves for a few seconds before jogging down the stairs.

Since most people tend to take the elevator, I have the stairwell to myself. I continue to jog through the parking lot and around the building as I make my way towards the sand.

When my heart is pounding and my breathing becomes ragged, I walk out onto the sand and pick a spot that is far away from the water, as well as far from other people.

I stretch my arms out to the side and make circles with them for a few seconds before dropping to the sand to do push-ups.

Digging my toes into the sand, I bend my elbows as I lower myself towards the sand. When I am a couple inches from the ground, I push myself back up into my starting position.

I repeat the motions and let my focus brush all thoughts of Staci to the back of my mind.

Down and up.

Down and up.

I don’t have a certain number of pushups I want to complete. I want to keep going until my muscles are too exhausted to hold my weight.

As the sun warms and rises in the sky, more people stake their spots on the beach .

Women stare and gawk at me as children build sandcastles.

Out of the corner of my eye, Staci’s bright pink bikini gets my attention. She has a dress on top of it, but it’s white mesh and completely see through.

I really don’t see the purpose of wearing it, but it makes her happy, and she looks sexy as hell in it, so who am I to complain?

She takes off her sandals and walks towards me with her camera hanging around her neck.

As she gets closer to me, she frowns when she notices several other women that are continually staring at me from their chairs on the beach.

I used to feed into the attention and let it be the encouragement I needed to keep on working out, but today's workout is all about letting my sexual desires out in a healthy way.

Staying a little way back, she snaps a few pictures of me and watches as I continue to press into the earth.

How many of these have I done?

If I had to guess, I’d say close to a hundred.

They aren’t helping in the slightest. My muscles burn with exertion, but watching Staci out the corner of my eye has my dick hardening all over again.

I stop my pushups and stand. Our gazes lock as she lowers her camera just enough to look at me over the top. “This is supposed to be a vacation, not work.”

Her gaze moves to my sweat covered muscles as she walks the rest of the way over to me. “Says the one that is currently out here working out. I’m not the one that is working.”

I point to the camera that is currently in her hands. “You brought your camera down here.”

As her gaze lowers to the camera, a grin forms on her face.

“People take photos of their vacations all the time. Besides, this is more than just work. This is my passion.”

“But you are taking pictures of me, your client, not the beach and ocean.”

She shrugs. “The beach is in them. Plus, you are not just my client, you are also my boyfriend.”

Her statement catches me off guard and I end up stammering. “W-wh-what?”

I pull my arm over my head and stretch to have something to keep my mind off my emotions. As I stretch the other arm, I close my eyes for a moment and let the sun soak into my skin.

Staci spreads her towel out next to mine and says, “Well, fake boyfriend, but people think we are really dating and on vacation right now, so I need to play the part and take pictures of you.”

My heart beats faster, and it’s not from my workout. I don’t mind playing the part, but deep inside, I know my heart wants more.

It always has.

Since the first moment I walked through her studio doors and locked eyes with her, my heart was a goner .

My stomach knots as I imagine life going back to how it used to be where I only talk to her when I have a photoshoot.

I don’t want that life back.

Of course, I don’t want her ex harassing her, but I don’t want her to have a reason to not hang out with me either.

Staci has lit a flame inside of me I don’t want to extinguish. A flame full of passion and emotion. A flame only she can control.

A tight feeling clenches at my chest that can’t be described. It almost feels like I am really falling for her.

Would falling in love be the worst thing to happen right now?

I finish stretching my arms and say, “I’m used to you taking my picture, so snap away.”

Laughing, I playfully strike one of my best poses.

She lifts the camera to her eye and snaps a few pictures of me.

I tower over her, but she doesn’t let it deter her. She tilts the camera towards the sky and takes a few more before letting the camera fall back down around her neck.

Her gaze moves to my biceps. “So, are you done with your workout, or do you have more to do?”

With her around in a skimpy bikini, there’s no hope of me getting out all of my sexual tension. “I just finished and was going to head back inside to shower and eat. ”

Seeing a frown on her face, I add, “Unless you want to hang out here and relax in the sun for a little while longer.”

She narrows her eyes as she contemplates the two options.

When her stomach lets out a loud growl, I chuckle, and she says, “Food sounds good.”

Reaching down, I grab her hands and pull her up into a standing position. Our chests brush against one another for a moment before I take a step back.

I pick up our towels and follow her back to the hotel lobby. The elevator is packed, so we have to squeeze in like a can of sardines.

Neither one of us speaks until we are back in our room.

I place the beach towels on the edge of the bed. “I’ll take a quick shower and then we can order some food.”

“Take your time.”

She places her camera on her end table as I grab some clothes and head into the bathroom. As soon as I close the door behind me, I realize I didn’t give her a chance to shower first.

I fling the bathroom door open and walk back into the open room. “Hey, I should have asked if you wanted to-”

My voice cuts off and I freeze in my spot as my gaze wanders over her near naked body.

Her bikini top is laying on the bed in front of her and her hand is pulling at the string on her hip .

I might have dreamed of something like this happening, but never in a million years did I ever think it would come true.

Neither one of us speaks. My gaze is locked onto her perfectly round breasts.

Her nipples harden the longer I stare at them.

I know I should look away, but I can’t, as my blood has decided to go straight to my cock.

She gulps loudly and I’m finally able to break my gaze off her exposed breasts. As our gazes lock, she blushes bright red before the realization hits that she’s standing topless in front of me.

Breaking my gaze, she reaches down and grabs her cover up, pulling it against her chest to conceal her exposed breasts.

I know if I look down, I’ll be able to see through the mesh, but I keep my gaze locked on her face.

After I regain some composure, I am the first to speak. “I’m sorry.”

Pushing the embarrassment to the side, she looks back at me and shrugs. “No big deal. It happens. Now, what were you saying?”

It takes a minute to get back to my original train of thought. “Would you like to shower first?”

“Oh, umm, I was just planning on showering when I got home later today.”

That makes sense since we will be back home in a few hours. “Right. Well, I’ll be just a few minutes.”

When the bathroom door closes once again behind me, I stare at my reflection in the mirror.

How did I let that happen ?

Of course, she was going to be changing. I was supposed to be showering.

Groaning, I turn the water on hot and take my time washing my body to avoid another embarrassing disaster like that again.

My mind tortures me by keeping the image of Staci’s perfect breasts on replay.

I knew she was sexy as hell and I’ve seen her in her bikini, but my God, I wasn’t expecting that.

The way her nipples hardened as I stared at them has my dick bouncing.

Damn it.

I can’t go out there sporting an erection. Turning the water to cold, I stand under the icy stream for a few moments before turning it off.

I dry off and get dressed, hoping Staci is changed when I get out there.

Well, I wouldn’t complain if she was still topless, but for the sake of my heart and dick, I hope she’s clothed.

Cautiously, I grab my clothes and toiletries and open the bathroom door. All the hot steam escapes through the open bathroom door as a knock sounds on the hotel door.

I look towards Staci and raise an eyebrow. She walks around me to the hotel door.

“I’ll get that.”

I nod my head and head to my side of the bed to throw my clothes in my bag.

She opens the door and says a few words, thanking someone before carrying a tray of food and coffee to the bed.

“You ordered food for us?”

“Yeah, I hope that is alright. Since we had pancakes yesterday, I figured eggs were the better option today.”

She really is the perfect woman.

“Thank you. Eggs are perfect, especially after my workout.”

Our gazes stare at one another. Her eyes twinkle as if she is remembering our encounter prior to my shower.

Her face blushes a deep shade once again. “Okay, can we promise each other that it won’t be weird between us?”

I pour our coffees and hand her a cup. “Why would it be weird?”

She narrows her eyes and gives me a pointed look. “Because of earlier.”

She averts her gaze to avoid having to say more.

“What happened earlier?”

The corner of my lips curls up into a smile as she lets out an annoyed sigh.

She crosses her arms in front of her chest, unintentionally pushing her breasts together. “You’re going to make me say it, aren’t you?”

I tighten my lips together to fight back my smile. “Say what?”

Her eyes close for a second. She takes a deep breath and glares at me. “Fine. I’ll say it. You saw my boobs. ”

The smile I was fighting back bursts into a grin like the Cheshire cat. “Yeah, I did.”

She tries to fight her own smile from forming, but the wider I grin, the harder it is for her to stop it.

“You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?”

She tries to keep an annoyed tone, but I know she isn’t as annoyed as she wants to appear. Her matching grin is all the proof I need.

“Maybe just a little. Come on, you’ve seen me nearly naked many times before and we are fake dating, so it was bound to happen.”

Not to mention after two kisses that I had to back away from.

“Yeah, you’re right.”

I wait until we are situated with our plates of food before speaking again. “Plus, they are really nice. Nice and big. Pillowy.”

She swings her arm and smacks mine while letting out a laugh. “Oh, shut up!”

I smile and take a bite of my bacon. “I’m just speaking the truth.”

We eat in silence, each of us consumed with our own thoughts.

When we are finished eating, she stands and asks, “Are you ready to head back home?”

My gaze goes to the windows. “Would it sound girly if I said no?”

I’ve loved this miniature vacation with her. I’ve loved talking with her, eating with her, and sleeping next to her .

“Not at all. It was a very nice and much needed vacation.”

“When was the last time you took a vacation?”

She thinks for a moment. “It’s been forever.”

“Then I will make sure we do this more often.”

Her face lights up. “That sounds perfect. Let’s head home.”

I carry our bags down to the car as she checks out.

The drive back home is quiet. I keep the music low as Staci leans her head back and closes her eyes.

I use this time to think about the past couple of days. Feelings have bubbled to the surface.

The kiss and the blatant ogling from both sides have to mean something. But I have to remember her rules and guidelines for our fake dating.

After this agreement is all said and done, I want to be able to continue to have a friendship with her. That is what we are, aren’t we?

Friends can kiss and ogle one another.

Friends can even share a hotel room and sleep in the same bed.

But friends are always platonic, and my thoughts have been everything but platonic.

I pull in front of Staci’s house and look towards her front door. Anger builds in my chest as I glance at her house.

“Uh, Staci? We’re here. You might want to get your phone and call the police.”