Player Loves Curves Box Set #4-6 by Hope Ford
Naomi
Neil is so sexy,fit and confident. He’s nothing like the guys my mom would usually pick for me. I swear when I thought about today, I was sure it would be a man that wanted to talk about his three ex-wives all night. I am a little surprised that he avoids answering what he does for a living, which maybe is his one downfall, because from everything else, the man is too good, too fit, too perfect.
He’s such a gentleman, even turning away so I could undress into my bathing suit. When he does finally look at me, the appreciative look he gives me makes me feel bold. I drop my arms and step to the side of the boat, ready to jump in. He grabs on to my arm, stopping me. “Not yet. Trust me, I don’t want to cover you up, but I do want you safe.” He reaches under a seat and hands me a life jacket.
I stare at him in awe. Is this guy for real? He holds the jacket out for me and I slip my arms through the holes. He turns me to him and tightens it around me, buckling the straps together. His musky, clean scent fills my nose and I can’t help but think there has to be something wrong with this guy.
He holds on to my jacket and I look up at him. He looks deep in thought, and I wonder if he’s going to kiss me. He has that look about him. And just as I’m questioning myself, if I’m really going to let him, he releases his hold on me. I try not to let my disappointment show.
“Am I good now?” I ask him as he tightens his own jacket.
“Yeah, you’re good,” he says, and the deep timbre of his voice tells me he’s talking about more than just my life jacket. I turn away from him and jump into the lake, because he’s right: suddenly, I’m really hot right now.
I come up out of the water just as he jumps in. I swim away, trying to put some distance between us, but it isn’t long before he comes up right behind me.
He continues our conversation from before. “So, what do you like to do with your time off?”
I ignore the fact that he never answered me. “I like to read and travel. I don’t have a lot of free time. Even when I’m out of school for the day, there’s still papers to grade and lesson plans. I do travel in the summers, though.”
“Who do you travel with?” He’s treading water beside me, looking at me expectantly.
“Well, I usually go by myself. Sometimes I have a friend go with me, but she’s with someone now, so I don’t know if she’ll get to go this summer,” I tell him before leaning back and pushing away from him. The waves keep bringing us closer and closer and before I reach out for him, I know I should put some more distance between us. When I right myself and we’re a few feet apart, I ask him, “Do you like to travel?”
He swipes his hand through his hair, shaking the water out of it. “Some. I travel a lot for my job.”
I’m about to ask him again what he does for a living when the sound of motors fill the air. He swims over to me, grabs my arm and pulls me closer to the boat. The noise is so loud, I don’t even question him. I let him pull me. Within seconds, five teenagers go by, driving way too fast on jet skis. They are much closer to the boat than they are supposed to be, I’m sure. If Neil hadn’t pulled me in, we no doubt would have been hit.
“Are you okay?” he asks me, brushing the hair off my face while his other hand is around my waist.
Nodding my head, I turn and watch the teenagers drive off and then back to him. “Thanks for saving me. That was close.”
His forehead is creased in a frown. “Yeah, too close. C’mon, let’s get back on the boat.”
He helps me up and then follows me. I start to go for my bag, but he hands me a towel and I dry myself off before wrapping it around me. The boat is rocking and he wraps his hands around my forearms to help me to my seat. His hold burns into my skin and I shoot my eyes up to his. He looks almost angry the way his jaw is tight. He takes a steadying breath and mutters, “Well, I think we’ve had about enough. What do you think?”
I want to tell him no, but I just nod my head at him. He takes care of the anchor, starts the boat back up, and turns it back around toward the marina. “I’m sorry. I bet you never thought you would almost get yourself killed going on this date today.”
I just laugh, even though I am still a little shaken up. “It wasn’t your fault.”
He hands me his phone. “Can I get your number? I would like to take you out again.”
I look between him and his phone before taking it from his hand. I don’t answer him, but I do put my number in. I’m still trying to figure all this out. I don’t know a lot about him, but the fancy boat, clothes and just the way he carries himself tells me that we don’t have a lot in common. I start getting dressed and I have to acknowledge the fact that I don’t want this date to end. When I turn back around, he’s got his life jacket off and his shirt back on.
As he pulls into the marina, my phone dings. I dig it out of my bag and find I have a text from my mom. She probably wants to gloat about how good she did picking out my date. But I do have to give it to her. She did good.
* * *
Neil
I can seeit the minute she looks at her phone. The women I’m used to being around would laugh it off and forgive me for anything. But not Naomi. She’s no dumb bimbo. She isn’t going to laugh this off and I realize that I’m a little worried about how this is going to pan out.
She drops her hand and looks up at me with distrust in her eyes. I look away, focusing on docking the boat. I can’t stand to see that look in her eyes. “Who the hell are you because you’re certainly not the blind date I was set up on. Is Neil even your name? What the hell is this? Should I call the police or something on your lying ass?”
As soon as we’re docked, she’s grabbing her stuff and trying to get off the boat. I tie it off and chase after her. Damn, what a temper. And so direct. I try not to get caught up in the sway of her hips and finally catch up with her. As soon as I touch her shoulder, she stops and jerks away from me. “Don’t touch me.”
I hold my hands up in surrender. “Okay, I may not be the guy your mom set you up with to go on a date, but I am the guy who just gave you a nice afternoon out on my boat, right? I didn’t try anything untoward, did I? I mean, you and I had a great time, right?”
She just shakes her head. “Not the point. You lied the entire time. Are you some kind of con artist or something?”
Nope, she’s not easy to redirect either.
“My name is Neil Fox. I was supposed to meet some friends here but they’re assholes and you… well you are beautiful, fun, and interesting. I didn’t see your blind date around and thought, why not go on a blind date? You know?”
She juts her chin out at me and I try not to smile. Her feistiness is sexy. “No. No, I don’t know. You can’t just go around stealing other people’s dates and pretend to be someone you’re not.”
Frustrated, I blow out a breath. What can I say? I can’t let her walk away. I soften my voice and move closer to her. “I never pretended not to be myself. I didn’t tell you anything that is untrue, except the part where I pretended I knew you and I were going out on my boat today.”
She folds her arms across her chest and shakes her head. “Why not just ask me out and tell the truth from the start?”
“Honestly? You want the truth?” I ask her, and when she nods her head, I tell her, “Because I knew just looking at you that you were different than most women I know. I didn’t want to pass up the chance of getting to know you.” I want to tell her that I think she’s hot as fuck, but from the stubborn look on her face, I know that wouldn’t go well. “Look, I had a good time with you. I’d like to go out again.”
I hold my breath, hoping she’ll give me another change to be truthful with her.
