Close Obsession (The Krinar Chronicles 2)

“Sure, why not?” Korum poured a cup for himself as well. “Let me show you our swimwear.”

Leaving the kitchen, he walked toward the bedroom, sipping his shake. Mia followed him, curious to see what a K version of a bathing suit was like.

Entering the room, he placed his cup on the commode and headed toward the closet. Pulling out what looked like a tiny scrap of white fabric, he laid it on the bed and said, “This is what our women typically wear.”

Mia stared. “Uh . . . I don’t see how that would fit me.” Her parents’ Chihuahua, maybe, but definitely no one bigger than that.

He laughed. “The material is stretchy. Try it on.”

Still dubious, Mia put down her own shake and approached the bed. Picking up the material, she carefully examined it.

“It goes on over your head,” Korum said. “Here, take off your robe, and I’ll show you how to put it on.”

“Okay,” Mia said, untying the robe and dropping it on the bed. She was completely naked underneath, and she could feel the heat of his gaze as it traveled down her body. When his eyes came back up to her face, they were almost purely gold in color. Mia’s breathing quickened, and she could feel her nipples tightening, her body responding to his need.

She heard him take a deep breath, as though inhaling her scent, and then he said huskily, “Here, this goes on like this.” Stretching the bandana-like piece in his hands, he lowered it over her head, letting go when it was securely sitting around her hips. His fingers brushed against her stomach in the process, causing her to feel all warm inside again.

Her lips slightly parted, Mia stared at him, unable to believe she could want him again so soon.

“Don’t look at me like that,” he said, his voice sounding rough. “I promised you an outing this morning, and that’s what we’re going to do.”

Mia flushed. “Of course.” This was ridiculous; he was turning her into a nymphomaniac. Surely, it couldn’t be normal, to want someone like that all the time.

Trying to distract herself, she looked down at the bandanna-like piece of cloth. To her surprise, it had stretched to cover her torso, turning into an unusual one-piece swimsuit. The fabric looped between her legs, concealing her pubic region and the center of her butt, then ran up the sides of her ribcage and lightly cupped her breasts, hiding the nipples from view. Like all K clothing, the material adhered to her shape perfectly and seemed to be sitting on her quite securely despite the fact that there were no ties of any kind to hold it up.

The overall effect was incredibly sexy, Mia realized, and her cheeks turned pink at the thought of leaving the house like that. “Is that all I’m going to wear?” she asked, looking up at Korum.

He shook his head. “No, you would also wear this on top,” he said, handing her what looked like a basic white sheath. “You can take it off when we get to the beach.”

Mia wriggled into the sheath and walked over to the mirror to take a look. It seemed like a simple tube-top dress, just made of some thin and clingy fabric. Not all that different from a coverup one might wear on a Florida beach.

“You can put on these boots,” Korum said, handing her a pair of grey knee-highs. “Since we’re going on foot and you don’t like insects, these might be the best option for you.”

Willing to wear anything to minimize exposure to Costa Rican creepy-crawlies, Mia pulled on the boots. Casting one last look at her reflection in the mirror, she picked up her smoothie from the commode. “I’m ready.”

“Let’s go then.” Grabbing his own cup, Korum led her out of the house and into the green jungle outside.

The first place Korum showed her was a beautiful grotto with two mid-sized waterfalls. The water fell from a distance of about twenty feet into a small, shallow pool and then drained into a small river. On the side of the river, there were a number of large rocks, and the grass looked soft and green. A very inviting place to just relax and read, Mia decided, noting the grotto’s location.

After the waterfalls, they walked over to another, larger river – an estuary draining into the ocean. According to Korum, it was an excellent place to view the local wildlife, including various species of birds and howler monkeys. “That sounds fun,” Mia told him, and he promised to take her on a boat tour one of these mornings.

Following the estuary west, they finally arrived at the beach. As Korum had warned her, the surf was quite healthy, with reasonably sized breakers pounding against the shore. In the distance, Mia could see some people – likely Krinar – enjoying the ocean as well, but the area around them was completely deserted.

“We only have about thirty minutes at this point,” Korum told her. “After that, I have to get to the trial.”

“Of course,” Mia said, grinning. “How about a quick swim then?” And without waiting for his response, she pulled off her boots, wriggled out of her sheath, and ran toward the ocean.

He caught up with her immediately, swinging her up into his arms before she could get so much as a toe into the water. “Gotcha,” he said, his eyes filled with warm amusement.

Mia laughed, the feeling in her chest lighter than anything she’d experienced in recent weeks. Looping her arms around his neck, she told him, “Okay, but now you have to go in with me. And if the water is too cold for you, I don’t want to hear any complaints.”

“Oh, a challenge?” he said, raising one eyebrow at her. “We’ll see who complains first . . .” And holding her in his arms, he strode decisively into the waves.

Shrieking with laughter at the sudden immersion into cool water, Mia held her breath as a big wave covered their heads. She could feel the strong pull of the current and realized

that Korum was likely right about the potential dangers of swimming by herself. With him, however, she felt completely safe; he could obviously resist the drag of the water with ease, his Krinar strength more than a match for the surf.

The wave receded, and Mia rubbed her eyes with one hand, trying to get the salt water out. When she finally opened them, Korum was looking down at her with a strange smile.