Eternal (Seaside 4.5)

I nipped her lower lip then pressed her against the closest wall, ready to strip off her jeans and lay claim to what had been just out of my reach. “If I eat two fish, what do I get?”

With a sultry grin, she leaned up and whispered in my ear. “Use your imagination.”

“My imagination tends to be graphic.”

“Good.” She winked. “Mine too.”

“So maybe I’ll eat three just to be safe.”

“Depends on how many surprises you want in the next few hours.” She lifted her shoulder and examined her nails like she didn’t care what I did.

I freaking downed the rest of the cup of fish — swallowed them whole — then almost died a slow death as the taste of fish permeated my mouth.

When I looked up through teary eyes, Alyssa had her phone pointed in my direction, laughing.

“Tell me—” My voice was hoarse. I had to hit my chest to keep from gagging. “Tell me it’s just a picture and not recording.”

“Say hi to your Instagram followers,” she said cheerfully.

I flipped the camera off.

She frowned.

I forced a smile then gagged again. “The things I do for sex.”

“That’s the best part, Dem.” Alyssa laughed. “You were getting it within a few hours regardless. Duh, we’re getting married.”

“But…” I shook my head. “…I thought this meant I skipped ahead a few steps, like when you get the free-pass card in board games.”

“Name the board game, and I’ll say yes.”

“Er, shit.” I was a total blank. “Monopoly.”

She gave me a thumbs-down. “But look on the bright side! You made me laugh and, honestly… taking me back here, one of the most romantic things you’ve done in the last few days. It’s where we argued, made out, talked—”

I nodded my head. “It’s where I fell for you.”

She giggled.

“It’s where my obsession with those eyes started,” I whispered. “It’s where I decided I wasn’t going to go another day, live another second, without learning everything I could about my taffy girl.”

“And so the whore married the pimp,” she teased.

“I’m the whore in this scenario, aren’t I?”

“Well, I’m the supplier, so technically, I’m the pimp, right?”

We both burst out laughing as an elderly lady walked by us and glared like we were sitting in church talking about prostitution.

“Clambake.” I held out my hand. “Then tomorrow…”

“Married.” She clenched my fingers and let out a happy sigh.

CHAPTER TWELVE

Alyssa

DEMETRI DANIELS. WHAT THE heck was I going to do with that guy? He freaking ate three raw fish for me, all because I wanted to laugh. Well, that and he thought he was somehow getting sex out of the deal, which begged the question: Where the heck did he think I was going to strip and let him lay claim to my naked body? Next to the seals?

Yeah, that just screamed prison before the vows.

Not that people would expect anything different. I mean, it was Demetri we were talking about. Somehow I doubted my parents would be keen on bailing me out of the slammer because my fiancé and I skipped the vows and got naked in a public forum.

I threw on my cream sweater and white skinny jeans and slid on my tan flip-flops just as a knock sounded at the door.

“Come in.”

Kiersten and Saylor both came through. One had coffee in hand; the other had a protein bar.

“What’s this?” I pointed.

Saylor was the first to speak. “Trust me. You’re going to need the protein.”

“And the hydration.” Kiersten winked and shoved the coffee into my hands.

“Because…” My eyes squinted together. “…the clambake’s gonna take a lot out of me?”

“Right,” they said in unison.

“I don’t know you guys well enough to say this, but…” I looked between the two of them. Both had flashes of guilt. “…you look like you’re up to something.”

“Us?” Again in unison.

I crossed my arms. “What’s going on?”

Kiersten laughed. “Well, it’s a secret. The guys actually won’t tell us, but I could have sworn Gabe said something about killing his new friend.”

“Progress!” I nodded. “He called Demetri a friend?”

“If Demetri doesn’t murder him in his sleep first,” Saylor pointed out.

I laughed. “At least Wes can referee.”

“It’s what he’s good at,” Kiersten agreed. “Making sure everyone stays sane. He’s like a walking Prozac.”

Another knock sounded at the door.

“What?” I called.

It opened.

Demetri walked in, his grin huge. “Ready, babe?”

“Sure… I’ve got coffee and a protein bar, all before our dinner… Anything you wanna tell me?”

“Oh, you know…” He shrugged a muscled shoulder.

The man looked edible in his dark long-sleeved Henley and ripped jeans. For some reason, the fact that he was wearing flip-flops had my entire body ready to launch at him. Yeah, it was a good thing we weren’t waiting that much longer.

“…just that this is going to be the best night of your life.”

Kiersten winced. “You mean better than tomorrow night, the wedding night?”