He eyed Snack Mountain with some doubt, prodding her Japanese mix dubiously. “Is that even edible?”
She dropped onto the bed beside him. “It has omegas. Omegas are good for you.”
He shuddered. “Give me chocolate any day. Dried fish is the kind of shit you eat after the apocalypse hit and the survivors have looted all the good stuff from the gas station.”
“Cheerful.” She popped another handful into her mouth.
Reaching over, he grabbed the Snickers bar from her stash. “This, on the other hand, is a snack. A good one.”
“If you say so.” Too much sugar for her.
“Are you sure you’re a girl?” He eyed her suspiciously as he peeled back the wrapper and proceeded to devour her candy.
“You would know.”
“True.” He polished off the candy bar and reached for a second one.
Picnicking on the bed was strangely intimate and almost as much fun as the sex. Well, not really, but it added a side of sweet to her savory. Gray was good company. He asked her about working as a trauma surgeon and what it was like living in San Francisco. She couldn’t help but notice, though, that he didn’t volunteer any information about himself. Granted, she hadn’t asked for his résumé before she’d jumped his bones, but there had to be a story that brought this man to this place. Whatever it was, he wasn’t in a sharing mood.
“Are you done eating?” He set his bottled water on the bedside table.
Deflection? Or deliciously horny intentions? Because she could be done with the right incentive.
She looked at her champagne bottle. Definitely empty. So...yes? She set it down.
“Why? What did you have in mind?”
She landed on her back. Damn, she hadn’t even heard him move, but she saw him now as he swung himself over her.
“Because I’m not done with you yet,” he said, his hands coming down on the bed on either side of her face, his thumbs stroking over her cheeks like he couldn’t get enough of her. And...just like that, she lost interest in snacks. “I’m a fast learner. Want to see what else I think you’d like?”
Yeah, she absolutely did. Thank God she’d stocked up on condoms, because it appeared her fantasy night wasn’t over yet.
8
FANTASY ISLAND HAD one restaurant, a fancy seaside bistro perched on wooden piers over the calm lagoon. The establishment had a palapa roof, but was otherwise open to take advantage of the sea air and breezes. Since the staff baited the waters regularly, it also came with a couple of lazy sharks and schools of brightly colored tropical fish waiting for their next handout. The wildlife was good, although the white tablecloths and four-hundred-piece tableware setting were definitely out of Laney’s league. She was more of a spork kind of gal. She survived on sandwiches and coffee from the hospital vending machine, or carnitas from the taco truck if it was Friday.
Had survived, she reminded herself. That job was gone.
Ashley high-fived her as soon as she sat down at the table. “You got some.”
Maddie made a face. Her nose was peeling from a recent sunburn. “That has to be one of the crudest phrases ever.”
The waiter slid a tray of appetizers in front of them. All-inclusive, she reminded herself. Prepaid. She should live it up before she had to go back to the real world and microwaved Lean Cuisine meals. Not that there was anything wrong with frozen dinners, but the extra five thousand calories in the stuffed mushrooms staring up at her begged her to indulge. And it wasn’t willpower week.
Ashley didn’t look concerned about her word choice as she forked up a large mouthful of salad greens. “Look at her face and tell me I’m wrong. She’s rocking the post-coital glow look. Do you want me to dress it up?”
What was she supposed to say? Because right now what she felt was a combination of awkward and excited. Holy smokes, she’d actually done it. She’d picked a fantasy and made it come true with a hot stranger. Just remembering last night, she wanted to run back to the massage cabanas or employee housing, find Gray and do it all over again. Which she could. If she wanted to.
Right?
The deal hadn’t necessarily been for one night only. Seeing Gray again, both naked and fully clothed, wasn’t off the table. She wanted to kiss him, touch him, learn what had brought him to this island.
Okay. She also wanted to have sex with him. Lots and lots of sex, followed by the rest of the night curled up in bed. Gray had stayed the night, not slipping out until the sun was about to come up, and it turned out the man was as good at snuggling as he was at sex.
Maddie pointed a fork at her. “Crappy phrasing aside, was he any good?”