Page 85 of Off Plan
“Ahem. I don’t require your commentary. Do I tell you how to doctor people, Loafers?”
“No.” He pushed his lips together. “I beg your pardon. Pray continue.”
I rolled my eyes but dropped my tour-guide narration voice. “I mean, looking back, how fucking stupid were their families not to realize Jacob and Resolute had to havesomesource of income? The soil here is shit for farming, and they didn’t have enough land cleared to make money anyway, but every once in a while, according to Resolute’s diary, they’d take a trip off island and ‘trade for supplies.’ He just never mentionedwhatthey were trading. Plus, they arrived long after the time when you could just stick a flag down and say ‘mine.’ Florida was a Spanish territory at the time, and they had to have paid some serious bribes to someone in order to stay. And then paid again, when it became a US territory. And probably again when it became a state. There’s no record of any of that, but it just makes sense.”
Mason nodded, a little frown between his eyes.
“Anyway.” I propped my foot up on the arm of the chair and sat sideways, facing him. “Kids grew up. All but one stayed on the island, and they subdivided the land. Jacob’s wife died young, but he never remarried. He lived to be seventy-something, which was nice and old back then, and died in his sleep, easy peasy. And that’s when the story starts gettinginteresting.”
“It’s already interesting.”
“Yeah, but this is the part with…” I paused dramatically. “The ghost.”
“Of course.” Mason nodded slowly. “I mean, it needed only this, really. I’m assuming this is the malevolent spirit you mentioned the day I met you?”
“Did I?” I ran a hand over my forehead. “Wow, I really wanted you to get off this island, huh?”
“Yeah, and why was that?”
I dropped my hand and eyed him. “Why did I want the hot, straight guy to leave the island, instead of staying and making me insane with lust? I don’t know, Loafers. Guess.”
Mason grinned. “Awww. But now you’re so glad I stayed.”
I pursed my lips. “Marginally.”
“Entirely!”
“Occasionally. Mostly when I’m getting my dick sucked.”
“Always! Even when I change the radio station in the car.” Mason stood and leaned over my seat, and his mouth wasright there, so I took it, wrapping my hand in his shirt and yanking him forward to sprawl awkwardly on my lap.
“You are determined to destroy this polo,” he said. He moved his leg slightly so he was facing me and nuzzled my neck. “Go on, then. Malevolent spirits?”
“Seriously? Now?” I ran my hands up his thighs to cup his ass. “With you distracting me? Nuh-uh.”
We hadn’t explored much sexually beyond oral sex, which was fine—seriously, whowouldn’tbe satisfied with blow jobs?—but that didn’t mean I hadn’t thought about it. I was committed to taking thingsslow, but when I’d run slick fingers over his taint the last couple of times I’d blown him, his eyes had glazed over with want, which made keeping my promise really difficult. I wanted to show the maneverything…especially when he planted his dick this close to my dick.
“Not sure why you’re so distracted,” he teased. He mouthed at the tendon between my neck and shoulder.
“Really?” I squeezed the ass I held with both hands. “You can’t imagine?”
He pulled back slightly. “Okay, fine. New plan. Spirits, then more distractions. Go.”
“I enjoy your plans.”
He cocked his head to one side, waiting.
“Spirits.Right. So, Jacob Godfrey died with very little money to his name. He left a will with his best buddy, Resolute, as the executor. He left his land to his kids, with the stipulation that he didn’t want any of it to be sold off. He wanted Whispering Key to stay within the two families. And he told Resolute Goodman to make sure his family was cared for.”
“Fair enough.” Mason’s fingers played with the hair at the nape of my neck, and I pulled him tighter.
“By all accounts, Resolute went a little crazy not long after that. Started walking the island at all hours of the day and night, according to some letters his wife wrote. Claimed Jacob visited him in his sleep. Talked with anyone who’d listen about how Jacob was the best of men and deserved a better friend than Resolute had been to him.”
“Hmm.” Mason’s brow furrowed, and I felt the urge to kiss the wrinkle away, but I manfully resisted it.
This thing between me and Mason was notthat. It was time to start instituting some boundaries I should have put in place weeks ago.
“Resolute died of a fever just a few months later, and in his ranting period near the end, he was obsessed with Jacob Godfrey. Named every rock and tree on this island after him. Wrote a whole long confession in his diary about stealing the treasure from theEsmereldaand how he and his BFF Jacob had split it.” I toyed with the hem of Mason’s shirt, lifting it just a few inches so I could feel his skin under my palms. “A treasure he claimed he’d hidden in—”