Below Deck

“Aren’t you supposed to be over at St. John with everyone else?” I asked irritably, crossing my arms in front of me to give me something to do with my hands before I’m tempted to stalk around the counter and yank the front of her dress down so I can see just how perfect her tits really are.

“I am,” she replies with a shrug. “I just couldn’t handle any more family time today. I needed a break. That, and I was starving and I knew no one would let me grab anything to eat on the island since they have tons of shopping to do. Dinner was amazing, but it just wasn’t my thing.”

The way she sneers the word shopping and the annoyed look on her face gives me pause, but before I analyze the fact that she doesn’t seem to share the same money spending addiction as the rest of her family, I open my mouth and more asshole comes out.

“Really? A five-course dinner that included lobster risotto and filet mignon wasn’t your thing? Not fancy enough for your tastes?”

I regret the sarcastic words as soon as they leave my mouth, but it’s too late to do anything about them. Marcel mutters something else in French under his breath while giving me the evil eye, and Mackenzie lifts her chin and stares at me defiantly, her eyes sparkling with anger.

“Actually, it was too fancy. I asked Marcel if he had anything a little simpler I could whip up myself, but he insisted on making it for me.”

She points to the plate in front of her that I hadn’t noticed when I walked in here, too consumed with lust and rage and all sorts of emotions I didn’t know what the fuck to do with.

“A cheeseburger and french fries?” I ask in shock, staring at the half-eaten burger and only a few fries left on the plate in front of her. “You wanted a cheeseburger and fries instead of lobster and filet?”

She huffs at me in irritation and mirrors my pose, crossing her arms in front of her. Which just pushes that spectacular cleavage up even more in the sinful dress she’s wearing, and my mouth waters with the need to run my tongue over the soft mounds.

“Yes, why is that so hard to believe? When I was little, my dad and I had this thing we’d do where we always ordered a cheeseburger and fries everywhere we went and make a list of the places that had the absolute best so we knew which places we wanted to go back to,” she explains, a soft wistfulness taking over her face and replacing her frustration with my attitude.

I overheard her and her dad talking about something like this last night night after dinner, but I was doing my best to pretend like Mackenzie wasn’t there and didn’t hear all of their conversation.

“So, who was at the top of the list?” I ask, against my better judgment.

I don’t want to know these “normal” things about her. She needs to remain out of reach and out of my league, not turn into a regular, everyday cheeseburger and french fry loving woman.

She smiles at me, and God dammit, if it doesn’t light up this entire fucking room and make my heart beat double time.

“Well, it used to be this little diner in Pennsylvania, but I’m pretty sure Marcel has them beat.”

Marcel, the little fucker, has the nerve to blush and smile and says something to her all sweet and soft in French. She looks away from me to return his smile, and there she goes again, speaking a few little words in that foreign language that makes my dick want to jump right out of my pants and into her gorgeous mouth.

I want to tell Marcel to go the fuck away so I can close the distance between us, lift her up and slam her ass down on the counter. I want to be alone with her so I can push between those gorgeous thighs of hers and ease some of this pain in my balls.

But I can’t do that. And it just pisses me off.

“You need to go back up to the guest quarters where you belong, before you get that fancy dress stained. I’m sure it cost more than what I make in a year, and I really don’t feel like giving up half my paycheck to have it cleaned for you.”

Silence. Complete silence fills the room and, once again, I want to take back the shitty thing I just said, but it’s too late now.

I watch as she keeps the smile on her face while she turns to Marcel and asks him if she can take the plate up to her room so she can finish her dinner there. He nods quickly, picking it up and handing it to her before she leans in and gives him a kiss on the cheek.

I keep watching, unable to move or say a word when she walks around the counter, her body brushing against mine when she moves through the small doorway to the stairs that lead back up to the guest area. The smell of coconut coming from her skin is so delicious that I have to bite down on my bottom lip to stop myself from leaning down and licking her bare shoulder, which I’m sure would earn me a smack across the face after the way I just spoke to her.

“For your information,” Mackenzie suddenly says from behind me, making me turn my head and look back over my shoulder at her while she glares at me, clutching the plate so tightly in both hands that her knuckles are white. “This dress cost $19.99 and it was from Target.”

She turns and begins walking up the stairs, but not before shouting one last thing over her shoulder.

“Baise juste à côté!”

Marcel laughs loudly, and I stare at her ass as she stomps up the stairs, waiting until she disappears from sight before I turn back to him with a questioning look on my face.

For the first time in the four years I’ve known the man, he speaks to me in accented English.

“She just told you to fuck right off. I really, really like her.”