Four Good

“Are you wearing sunscreen?” Jonathan asks.

“I put some on earlier.”

“You probably need more. Do you have some with you?” When I fish the tube out of my bag, he holds out his hand. “Want me to get it?”

“You wouldn’t just be using it as an excuse to touch me, would you?” I tease.

21

Lose my footing

“Safety first,” he says, in a mock official tone. “I wouldn’t want your skin to get sunburned.”

“Of course,” I say, mimicking his tone as I hand over the lotion.

I have no idea where Jay is, or whether or not he’ll be able to see us, but it’s my birthday, I just enjoyed a delicious cupcake, and now I’m going to enjoy having this handsome man’s hands on my body.

I’m a pretty strong person, but apparently not when it comes to resisting the Hayes brothers. It’s not my fault Jay decided to come along today.

Jonathan coats my arms first, his big hands smoothing up and down the sides of each arm, and up and around my shoulders. It’s possibly the slowest application of sunscreen in history, the heat of his hands melting the cream into my skin as he lingers in every area.

When he gets to the back of my neck, it turns into a full-on massage, his thumbs pressing along each side of my spine and smoothing down over the muscles there.

“You feel tense,” he says, his mouth close to my ear.

“Really?”

“I know a good way to relieve tension.” His hands slide back down my arms, his knuckles grazing the sides of my breasts.

“I know you do,” I say, twisting to the side to squirm out of his grip. God help me, I know. “We can’t do that, especially not here.”

With a wicked grin on his face, he reaches for my feet. “I was talking about a foot massage,” he says, as he tickles me.

I squirm again, and attempt to tickle him back, but after further attacks and counterattacks, I end up tucked under his arm in an embrace.

“I hope you’re having a good day,” he says, leaning back against the cushions, and bringing me along to rest against his chest.

“I definitely can’t complain.” I stretch my legs out and tip my head back, savoring the warmth on my face.

“Is it strange … having your ex here with you?”

“Strange is a good word,” I say after a moment. “I truly never thought I’d see him again.”

We’re both quiet for several minutes. Anticipating others joining us at some point, I gradually shift back to my own cushion, but we stay in close contact, with the sides of our bodies pressed together.

“Are there good spots for surfing around here?” Jonathan asks out of the blue.

The sun had been lulling me into a sleepy mood. I open one eye and look over at him. “Yeah, surfing is pretty popular in the summer months.”

“Do you surf?” he asks, sounding hopeful.

“Me? No, I mostly just hear about it from customers at the bar.”

“How about paddleboarding?”

“That looks like fun, but no, I’ve never tried it. I don’t think I’d have the balance for it.”

“It can be tricky,” he says. “Let’s see … parasailing?”