Ruin (Ruin 1)

“Sure.” I went over to the table and sat facing the windows.

“So.” Wes rubbed his hands together. “You ready to knock some more things off that list of yours?”

I took a sip of juice and nearly cried. It was the perfect mixture of sweet and pulp. “We gonna go bungee jumping on Thanksgiving?”

“Nah.” Wes put some of the roll in his mouth. “We

’re going to skinny dip.”

I choked on my juice.

“Of course, we can’t do that in broad daylight. After all, what would Melda say? Swimming lessons first, nakedness second.”

“I’m almost afraid to ask what third is.” I didn’t chance looking at him and losing my composure. I mean, I hadn’t kissed a guy before him.

“Kiersten,” he purred, his lips close to my ear. “You mean to tell me you don’t know what comes after being naked?”

Oh. My. Hell. Somebody open a window. His hand grazed my arm as he chuckled deeply into my ear. My body was tense with nervousness and anticipation as his hand made its way up to my shoulder and then he cupped my neck pulling me closer so our lips were nearly touching.

“Cranberry sauce.”

“Wh-what?” I shook my head. “That comes after being naked?”

Wes’s eyes lit up. “Of course, I mean that is how you wrote the list right? Or am I missing a few in between?” He tapped his fingers against his lips. “Maybe I have it mixed up, but I’m pretty sure you still haven’t done that.”

I shook my head no, not trusting myself to speak.

“Then it’s settled.”

“Right.” My voice was hoarse. “Swimming. Naked. Cranberry sauce.”

“SNC.”

“Awesome, like a code.”

Wes pulled back and popped some more food into his mouth. “Exactly.” He reached into his pocket and then his gaze furrowed for a few brief seconds before he pulled something out and kept it in his hand.

My eyes were trained on his hand as he kept it clenched tight.

Weird.

I turned my head and looked back out at the Puget Sound.

“So…” Wes’s hands were both empty as he braced himself on either side of my chair, his hands massaging my shoulders. “What do you say we eat some more breakfast and then go get ready for a morning swim?”

“Is it going to be cold?” I asked like a five-year-old not wanting to take swimming lessons.

“Heated pool,” Wes answered. “Besides, it’s not as if you won’t have me to warm you up.”

“Probably shouldn’t be doing any warming when we’re naked.”

“You sure about that?” His hands froze on my shoulders. Holy crap, what was I supposed to say?

“I mean, that’s wilderness 101, naked bodies rubbing together to create heat, friction—”

“Good thing we aren’t in the wilderness.” I laughed, trying to kill the sexual tension that was making me want to turn around and throw myself at him.

“I’d say it’s a pity.” Wes’s hands left my shoulders. I almost slumped over onto my plate but kept my body rigid. “Need a suit? I can grab you an extra if you do.”