He smiled, knowing he was turning her on. God, this is fucking hot. That flimsy tank top needs to go. The more she moaned, the more he wanted this good girl. Within seconds, he succeeded in peeling the thin blue material off Maggie’s damp skin and tossing it onto the dock.
He slid his hand to the waistband of her shorts touching the sensitive skin below her navel. A roaring sound filled his ears, and his entire body shifted to the left and then jerked to the right. Maggie clutched at his shoulders as they jerked back and forth once again. The entire floating dock was bouncing over wave after wave that seemed to appear out of nowhere.
“What in the hell?” He looked up, bracing one arm on the dock and wrapping the other securely around Maggie’s waist to steady her. “Dammit, boat wake,” he muttered under his breath, looking off to the right at the shiny silver speedboat zooming toward the cape. “Stupid ass ding-batters in their souped-up fiberglass race cars with outboards. No respect for the water. That damn Denny Zeal and his Z Power Boats guzzling gas and ruining the waters around here.”
Maggie jerked away from his embrace, rolled left, and reached for the discarded tank top.
He let her go, and readjusted to a sitting position. “Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you. Just two things I take seriously—respect for the water and well, you know …’’ He watched with appreciation while she pulled the tank top over her head. “That—what you were doing to me.”
Maggie blushed a deep red and looked away, out over the sound where the island morning had revealed itself in all its bright, sunny glory.
“Maggie,” he said, looking over his shoulder at her. “You know what would have happened if that boat hadn’t sped by?”
She nodded. Yeah, he thought so. She was ready for him. Right here on this pier. In broad daylight.
Two
Reid
Reid turned to face her, and shifted her so she was in his lap. He ran a hand through her hair, guiding her head so she was looking into his eyes and resting his hand at her shoulders.
He couldn’t seem to keep away from those bronzed bare shoulders. What are you doing, man, he asked himself, taking in her sweet scent laced with a hint of jasmine. All he knew was every time he got close to her, his thoughts went a little haywire, and for once, he wasn’t focused on calculating the size of wood planks or where the next dollar was coming from. He just wanted to keep inhaling this fragrance and hearing her laugh.
“It’s daylight. We’re practically in the middle of the sound,” he said. “More boats are gonna be whizzing by in moments. As much as I hate to say it, this probably isn’t the time or place. The whole island will be talking about us by noon.”
“I’m tired of being a good girl.” She pouted. That almost did him in. He never wanted to test out a statement like that before, but he was aching to see if it was true. “But I guess you’re right. This island is small, and I don’t want to make the wrong impression—even if I don’t know that many people. The ones I’ve met so far seem nice, and I wouldn’t want them to think badly of me. Not that you’re bad or anything. I didn’t mean that. Definitely—not bad.” She shook her head and blushed again.
Reid gave her a half smile and placed a delicate kiss on her nose. He laughed. “Not to mention what you’d do to soil my reputation. I am one of the island’s favorite sons, you know.”
Maggie extricated herself from his arms and rose to retrieve the cardigan at the corner of the dock. She turned and asked him, “How cold is the water?”
“Thinking about going for a swim?” Reid said, rising to his feet and strolling over to stand beside her. “Not too bad actually. These hot summer days have brought the water temperature up lately.”
“Too bad,” Maggie replied. Reid laughed.
“Tell you what, good girl,” he said, looking down into her blue eyes. “I really do need to take off and finish my swim. Then get to work on the boat. Can I give you a call, and we can get together later?”
She nodded.
“I want to hear more about this plan of yours,” he said. Then he leaned down and brushed his lips against her forehead before executing the perfect shallow dive into the sound. He didn’t produce even the slightest splash as he went under the blue-green depths and emerged, breaking the surface about fifteen feet away. Reid offered her a wave good-bye and started swimming toward home from the direction in which he’d emerged at daybreak.
Three
Maggie
Maggie watched as the last ripple stilled and Reid was out of sight.
Had Reid actually said those terrible things about her father? He hated Denny Zeal, owner of Z Power Boats and five other sporting businesses.
Oh my God. This couldn’t be happening.
She had never seen him look so angry or speak so harshly. Normally, Reid was the laid back, happy-go-lucky type, and after weeks of a constant flirty banter, she knew his serious side usually took the form of silence. She thought back to their first meeting at the clambake. She never gave him her last name. The island was so casual, and it didn’t seem important until now.
She could still feel his kisses on her swollen lips, and the lingering vibrations where his hands had caressed her breasts and legs. This morning seemed like the absolute worst time to fill Reid in on who her father was.
At least one thing was resolved. She was sure Reid wanted her as much as she wanted him—at least physically. He seemed to have bought her no entanglements proposal.
Maggie headed down the pier, back toward the house, with visions of a future meeting with Reid swirling in her head. She couldn’t wait to tell Blair every last detail of what had transpired, and get her friend’s take on how to deal with the revelation about her father.