Best of 2017

“Um, no.”

“Well, then, I guess we’re lucky they still have two copies, or I’d have to fight you for that one.” My eyes must bug out, because his face lights up with a huge grin. “Relax, I’m kidding, but if you say they’re the best, I’m going to buy one for my sister. She loved the vampire one.” His crystal blue eyes shimmer at me as he talks of his sister. He pulls the second copy from the shelf and takes mine from my hand. “Come on.”

We head to the front counter and he hands the saleswoman our books. She smiles at us.

“Will that be all, sir?” she asks as she scans the two copies.

“Yes.”

“That will be twenty ninety-nine.”

I reach for my purse.

“Nope. My treat.”

My whole body turns to him, my eyes wide. “You can’t buy me a book.”

“Sure I can.”

“But—”

He looks so serious—insistent. So I agree.

“Okay.” I nod.

He pays and we walk to the exit door.

We arrive at the restaurant sometime later. It’s a darling little bistro, with only a few tables inside. Most are outside overlooking the boats in the marina. After the hostess hands us our menus, I lean over and smile at him.

“So, what do you want?” I ask and a grin curls up the side of his face at my comment. “For lunch, Preston.” He winks this time and I just sigh. “Can’t take you anywhere, can I?”

“Fine, fine. I’ll have the tuna. What about you?”

“Caesar salad.”

“Well, that’s an interesting choice,” he says and I tip my eyebrow at him.

“Meaning . . .”

“Well, every time we eat, you manage to order the item with the most sugar or calories on the menu. I assumed you would get something a bit crazier than a salad.”

“Hey. I eat stuff other than junk,” I whine and his smile broadens. “I do.” He lets out a laugh and I pin him with my eyes “I do.”

“Okay, then. What’s your favorite food?” I fold my arms across my chest and let out a dramatic huff.

“Fine, you’re right.” His lips part into a big grin at my response.

“Not everything you like is junk. You do like me.” He smirks and I shake my head, but I can’t hide the giant grin lining my face. This Preston is playful, and a part of me wishes we could live in this fake world forever. Unfortunately, I know we’re on borrowed time.

“I do like you.” I nod in agreement.

“I like you too, probably more than I should. But when I’m with you, everything fits together. Everything makes sense.” We both grow quiet.

“So, you obviously have been to Newport before. Do you come here a lot?” I say, essentially changing the subject.

“Not anymore. Growing up in the city, my family had a house in the Hamptons where we spent our summers, but when I was older, my friends and I from high school spent a week in the summer here.”

“So, you travel a lot?”

“Honestly, not so much. Between my volunteer hours at the hospital and the private practice—”

“Wait, you volunteer there?”

“Oh, yeah. I though you knew that. I do a few hours a week volunteering with patients.” I sense there is more to the story than he is letting on but I don’t pry. “What about you? Did you travel?”

“No, never.”

“Because of your mom?”

“Yeah.” He nods and it’s comforting to realize this man knows me and understands. “I always wanted to travel, but Mom always came down with something right before we were scheduled to go. As amazing as Richard was, his company was just taking off, so I never traveled. By the time I got to college, I concentrated on studying and graduating. So really, the only place I have ever been is nowhere.”

“Well, now you’ve been to Newport, Rhode Island.”

“And it’s my favorite.” I don’t say that any place with Preston would be my favorite, but from the way his trained eyes assess me, I think he knows.

“Where would you like to go? If you could go anywhere in the world, where would it be?” With you? Anywhere.

“I love history and architecture, so I’d have to say anywhere in Europe. Being a huge Jane Austin fan, I would love to go to England.”

“You would love it.”

“You’ve been?”

“When I was in college I was a theater major. So me and . . .” He pauses and swallows. “Sloane and I went to see the Globe Theater.”

“Wow. That must have been amazing.”

“It really was.” He looks as if he’s lost in a dream or a memory. With a shake of his head, he rights himself at the very same moment the waitress appears and takes our order.

A little less than thirty minutes later, my plate is empty. After Preston pays the bill, he cocks his head to the right.

“Now, what do you want to do?”

“Go back to the hotel?”

“Do you want to see the beach?”

“No.”

“The lighthouse?”

“No.”

“What do you want, Eve?” I tremble at the way he says my name.

“You. Only you.” He looks down, his chest rising and falling with his rapid intake

of breaths.

“You have me,” he whispers so low I can barely hear him. For now.

WHEN I LOOK AT HIM, I lose all reason.

I want him to devour me.

Body, mind, and soul.

And that’s exactly what he does the moment we enter our cottage.

My body quivers as I wait. The anticipation of his touch is almost too much for me to bear.

I’m intoxicated with desire. I rip off my clothes and stand naked before Preston. Taking slow steps, I make my way to him and run my hands down the soft T-shirt covering his chest. When I make it to the hem, I lift it to expose his torso, and then pull at his belt, I work to free him, but he stops my hand.

“Patience.”

“I can’t. I need you,” I beg, but he shakes his head at me.

“I want to take it slow. I want to savor every touch, every taste, every feel.” My brain wants to scream No, don’t savor it, because I know what that would mean, but I don’t say anything. My eyes will betray me. So I stand and stare and watch as Preston’s eyes sweep the length of me.

His lips trail down my torso. When he reaches my breast, he captures my erect nipple into his mouth and nips and tugs at the peak with desire. Pulling away, he moves further down my body as my hands pull at his unruly hair.

I need his lips. I need his mouth on mine.

Sensing my urgency, he moves back up my body and kisses me. As our tongues tease one another, his hands continue to explore, parting my swollen flesh and sliding inside. I gasp at the sensation, panting heavily as his fingers pump in and out of me. When he pushes his digits up, my inner walls clench around him. My head thrashes back and forth as I reach my climax. Preston continues his ministrations until my orgasm crests and peaks, and then he removes his fingers and pushes me down onto the bed. I watch through hooded eyes as he undresses then crawls up my body and starts to tease my entrance with his hard length.

“God,” he groans out as he inches himself in. “I want to burrow myself inside you. I want to be so deep, I don’t know where you end and I begin.” His movements are excruciatingly slow. My own body is so desperate for more that I push my center up to fully impale him inside my still quivering body.