Sailor Proof by Annabeth Albert
Chapter Twenty-Two
Arthur
“Are you and Derrick going to make up?” Ingrid asked after breaking up a kid battle over who got which stick for roasting marshmallows. We were in charge of s’mores distribution again, and after such a long day, the kids were even more rambunctious than usual.
“What?” I played dumb and handed out another pair of graham crackers. “We’re not fighting.”
“Yes, you are. You didn’t sit together at dinner, and he keeps giving you these long puppy-dog looks.” Ingrid deftly intervened before Seth and Vince could spear each other.
She had a point. I’d seen Derrick coming my direction and quickly slid into the last seat at Aunt Sandy’s table rather than wait to sit together. I was perfectly aware I was acting petty, and I still didn’t entirely understand why I was so upset. And weirdly, knowing Derrick had noticed and might care buoyed my mood. “He does?”
“Definitely.” Grinning at me, she flipped her braid over one shoulder. “You should put him out of his misery and forgive him for whatever tiff you guys had.”
“It’s stupid anyway,” I admitted. Even trying to rationalize in my head, it seemed ridiculous. My fake boyfriend was too good at defending my honor, and I took issue with his enthusiasm. Yeah. Anyone would laugh at that beef.
“Even more reason to let it go.” Ingrid apparently didn’t need the full explanation to dispense advice as we handed out food to the last of the line. “Okay, I think that’s all the kids.”
“And hey, now we’re out of chocolate.” I held up the empty box. “Guess there’s none for us.”
“Yes, there’s some for you.” Derrick appeared in front of us almost as if I’d summoned him. And he held out a small paper plate. “I made you one.”
“You did?” I didn’t move to take the plate even as Ingrid made an awww noise. “Why?”
“Because you were so busy with the kids, I figured you might miss your chance.”
That got another awww from Ingrid, who made a show of cleaning up the picnic table and leaving Derrick and me to stare awkwardly at each other.
“Oh.” I went ahead and accepted the plate even if I didn’t fully understand what he was after here. I ate the s’more, mostly because it felt rude to not, but I was more interested in figuring out what Derrick was up to than the treat.
“And I didn’t want to miss my chance to apologize.”
“Oh,” I said again. A peace offering. I was the one who had stalked off and given him the cold shoulder, and he was still the one to say sorry first. I should be the one lamenting missed chances, not him. He truly was perfect. And maybe it was all for show or to practice being a decent boyfriend, but warmth spread across my chest nonetheless. “You don’t have to apologize.”
“Yeah, I think I do.” His mouth twisted as he exhaled hard. “I let Calder and the match get in my head, and sucked all the fun out of playing for you.”
“It’s okay. It’s just a game.” I could say that now, even though it wasn’t. It was never simply a game with this family, and that was most of my issue. I stepped away from the table to avoid the kids zooming around.
“Yeah, but that’s what I forgot.” Derrick followed me into the shadows. A short distance in front of us, the fire glowed bright, and one of my uncles strummed a guitar. Derrick pitched his voice low, giving us the illusion of privacy even surrounded by others. “I’m so used to Calder taking every bet so seriously that I forgot that there are plenty of other ways to have fun.”
“Not everything has to be a competition.” I might as well tattoo that on my chest for all the good it seemed to do around here, but Derrick nodded sympathetically.
“I know.” Moving slowly, he put an arm around my shoulders. I had plenty of time to move away, but I didn’t. His warmth and nearness felt almost as good as his understanding. “I’m sorry.”
“Me too. I’m sorry I ignored you. I’m not even sure why I got so miffed.” I leaned into his embrace, feeling my tension drain away by the second. Ingrid was right. Fighting was dumb. And she didn’t even know the half of it like how little time we had left together. Derrick didn’t want to miss his chance and neither did I. “You’re a good coach. The kids loved you. It’s more that I hate letting my brothers pull me back into old patterns where winning is the only thing that matters.”
“You matter.” Tone solemn, he tipped my face toward his with gentle fingers.
“Thanks.” My voice was all husky now, anticipation gathering low in my belly. Forget winning. What mattered was maximizing my time with Derrick, cramming as much kissing and good feelings in as I could. His words, though, did underscore how good he was at saying exactly what I needed to hear at the perfect moment. Not for the first time, I worried that perhaps he was ruining me for all other guys.
“You have some chocolate on your cheek...” He swiped at my cheek with his broad thumb. “Right here.”
“Thanks.” I shivered way more from his touch than from the rapidly cooling night air. I wanted to kiss him in the worst way, but there were a few too many people close by for more than a quick peck. “You want to see something cool I found?”
“Absolutely.”
“Grab a flashlight.” I gestured at the box full of assorted lights on the picnic table. We each scooped up one and crept away from the fire circle, the strains of an old folk ballad following us into the shadows of the forest. Rather than heading toward our cabin, I ventured the opposite direction, toward the lakeshore, bypassing the rocky beach near the main camp in favor of taking Derrick to a narrow inlet.
We weren’t that far from camp, but it felt like our own private cove, and above us the moon hung low, casting a magical glow over the spot.
“See how pretty this is in the moonlight?” I’d discovered it earlier, wandering around aimlessly after dinner, and sharing it with him made me bouncy, all my earlier weighty thoughts gone.
“Yeah. It really is,” Derrick agreed, but he was looking right at me, not the water. The back of my neck prickled.
“And it’s private.” I looped my arms around him, trying to anchor the buoyant feeling inside me to something concrete and real. Being around him made me New Year’s champagne levels of giddy, but he was also so grounding that I wanted to squeeze him tight and never let go.
“Private enough for this at least.” Kissing me softly, he took all the magic of this spot and magnified it, made me more than a little tipsy on him and the moment.
“Private enough we could skinny-dip,” I teased as we broke apart before I kicked my hiking sandals off.
“Hell no.” Derrick shook his head as I dipped a toe in the water. “I’m all about letting you have fun, but that lake is cold!”
“Says the sailor.”
“We’re generally warm and dry, thank you very much.” His laugh was far warmer than either the water or the night air, so I flicked some water his direction simply to make him laugh more. “I did so well in basic training that I had a chance to try for SEAL training or sub school after that, but the SEALs had way too much frigid swimming for my tastes.”
“So you’re saying you’re chicken...” Trying to bait him further, I shrugged out of my shirt, tossed it to him. “Bet I could dare you into trying it.”
“Thought we were going to leave competitiveness behind, have more fun.”
“Exactly.” I waded back over to him, pulling him close. “Have some fun. Live a little.”
“Oh, I’m living.” Eyes full of a wonder I wasn’t sure I’d ever seen before, he kissed me so tenderly that a shudder raced through me. If I’d been composing a soundtrack for us, this would be the moment where the music swelled to something epic and rich, a melody to return to over and over. This was the sort of kiss that a lot people probably lived their whole lives without, and the composer in me ached to capture the moment. And the human part of me simply ached period. It wasn’t even a contest any longer. I was ruined for anything less than Derrick, and I kissed him back with a desperation I hadn’t known I possessed.
“Damn.” He was breathing as hard as I was when I finally let him up for air.
“See? No way can I be cold with kisses like that, even in the water. Come play.” I tugged him toward the water, but he resisted.
“Let me take you back to the cabin, warm you up even more. We can play there,” he coaxed, pulling me farther away from the shore.
“Tempting.”
Reeling me in, he kissed me before waving a finger at me. “Sound carries out here, and we don’t need an audience when I make you scream.”
“Promises, promises.” Sighing, I put my sandals and shirt back on because the water really was too cold for the fun he was offering. Warm cabin was starting to sound pretty good, even if I still wanted to bottle the moonlight up.
“Race you—wait.”Derrick stopped mid-tease, sucked in a breath.“Sorry. Not a bet. Walk with me back?”
He held out a hand, and that was it, the last piece of my resistance gone. I melted like a chocolate bar in the presence of a perfectly toasted marshmallow. I was a goner for this man, and I didn’t even care anymore. Anyone would melt in the face of such sweetness and be happy with their fate.
Smiling up at him, I grabbed his outstretched hand and started to run, dragging him along with me until he started to run too, and then we were dashing through the night. Laughing, we skirted behind the cabins to avoid people walking back from the fire circle, then sped up again to bound up our porch and stumble into the cabin.
“Wasn’t that more fun?” I asked him as I locked the door behind us. “Not racing?”
“Yeah, it really was.” Still holding my hand, he leaned in for a soft kiss. After flipping on the fireplace, he tried to steer me toward the bed. “Now to warm you up.”
“No, you don’t.” I mimicked both his stern tone and finger wag from earlier.
“No?” He raised his eyebrows.
“You keep focusing on me, which is awesome—”
“I agree.” Smiling seductively, he again tried to topple me onto the bed, but I hadn’t grown up with three brothers for nothing. I knew how to use his forward momentum to reverse our positions, so that I was the one pushing him down.
“But I want a turn too.” As soon as he hit the bed, I straddled his thighs, claiming him as my prize. “I think we’ve both waited more than long enough for that.”
Holding his face in my hands, I kissed him soundly until he made the most gorgeous sound of surrender, kissing me back but letting me control the contact. Still drunk on him, I kissed him over and over, exploring his lips and mouth until we were both groaning.
“Okay, you win,” he said breathlessly as I nipped at his stubbly jaw. Him clean-shaven and in a dress uniform was quite spectacular, but I also loved him all rumpled in vacation wear and too busy having fun to shave.
I poked him right in the center of his chest. “No, we both win.”
“Absolutely.” His eyes were glassy as he tried to pull me in for another kiss. “Damn, you’re hot when you get all bossy.”
“Yeah? If you like that...” Sitting back slightly, I yanked at his shirt. Chuckling, he made a show of being extra-docile and helping me undress him until that magnificent chest and all his golden skin and acres of muscles were all mine.
“You too.” He didn’t stay compliant long once naked, pushing my T-shirt up, eager grin erasing my exasperation.
“I’m focusing on you.” I batted his hands away.
“Yeah, well, more of you to look at is for me.” Winking, he tried again for my shirt, and this time I let him because flattery would get him everywhere. But as soon as we were both naked, I pushed him back on the bed and sank to my knees in front of him. My scrapes and bruises from the earlier fall protested a little, but I carefully kept from wincing. I wasn’t going to let Derrick or a few bumps distract me out of this, not this time, but hurrying up did seem prudent.
Leaning in, I stroked my hands down his chest and dropped a kiss on his firm abs, right next to his straining cock. And all of a sudden, my stomach wobbled, unexpected nerves making my voice as unsteady as my touch. “I want all of your tips on how to do this right.”
I’d fantasized about this so much that I dug my toes into the rug, trying to ensure that this wasn’t a dream. Also, fantasy me was good at this, but real me was feeling every opportunity I’d missed to gain experience. But Derrick simply laughed and trailed a finger down my face.
“At this point, you could literally blow air on it, and it might be enough.” His eyes were dark and glittery as he gazed down at me. And he got major bonus points for not suggesting that I didn’t have to do this. I did. Even as I laughed along with him, my need only grew.
“Ha. Like this?” Puckering my mouth, I exhaled like I was trying to extinguish a candle, feathering my breath over the length of his cock. The first few times we’d fooled around, he hadn’t let me have nearly enough time to explore how good his thick length felt in my hand. I rectified that now, stroking him as I continued to blow lightly, using air to caress him along with my fingers until he was breathing hard and fisted a hand in my hair.
“Enough teasing,” he growled.
“But it’s fun,” I said right before I licked a long stripe from root to tip. His sharp inhale told me I was on the right track, and I licked more, discovering what spots made him moan. He kept his hand in my hair, not pushing but subtly guiding me in a way that made my own cock pulse. Experimenting, I went from licking to openmouthed kisses to sucking.
“Fuck. Yes. More,” he urged as I took more of the shaft in my mouth. The heavy weight of him on my tongue was even more arousing than those fantasies of mine, and I hummed happily as I started a slow slide back and forth.
“Mmm.” Gripping his base firmly, I kept myself from going too far down, setting a shallow rhythm that earned another low groan from him.
“Okay, I think you’re a ringer. No way are you—” He cut himself off with a pained noise as I tried adding some tongue action to my sucking. “Fuck. Do that again.”
I pulled back enough to grin at him. “Maybe I’m just a quick study.”
“Knew you were a genius.” He leaned back on his elbows. His enjoyment probably had more to do with a lengthy dry spell than any skill on my part, but the praise still emboldened me, made it easier to go faster, take more.
“Yeah. That. So...”
Reducing the big bad chief to babbling nonsense was an endorphin rush on par with a ten-mile run. “Good?”
“God, yes.” He kept rocking his hips toward me, and his thigh was tense as a boulder under my other hand. But then he shuddered and used his hand on my head to still me. “Wait. Too close.”
Oh fuck yes. No way was I backing off now. “Gimme.”
“Damn. You want... Yeah. Okay. I’ve tested twice since...fuck.”
Laughing softly at his inability to finish a sentence, I redoubled my efforts, and simply knowing he was close was arousing enough that I had to move my hand from his thigh to my cock. Not stroking precisely, but the pressure of my grip was exactly what I needed to reach a place I usually only found in making music, a zone where time ceased to have meaning and where my actions seemed driven by something larger than myself. It was a place where I could give myself over to my instincts, trust that they’d be enough to get us both there.
Every moan and curse from Derrick pushed me higher and higher until I was moaning too, sounds muffled by his cock and somehow sexier for it.
“There. Right there.” Some invisible thread of control snapped for Derrick, and his body bucked, chasing my mouth as everything got frantic and sloppy until he was climaxing and so was I. Coming with oxygen at a premium was a new one for me, made the peak that much sharper and the edges of my vision blur as I shot all over my fist. Those same instincts of mine that got us to this place made me reflexively swallow as Derrick too shuddered and shook. The salty, slightly bitter flavor was enough to coax one last spurt from my cock before I released his cock.
“Fuck.” He flopped back against the bed. “Can’t feel my legs.”
“Good.” Too spent to even laugh, I rested my head against his thigh.
“You’re awfully smug. Damn. That was something else. Come up here so I can return the favor.”
“Too late,” I groaned as I wiped my hand off on my T-shirt before collapsing next to him on the bed.
“You came from that?” Rolling to his side, he peered down at me. “Wow.”
“Yeah, well, it’s your fault.” My face was hot, more self-conscious than I would have thought. Trying to cover that, I made my voice flirtier. “You turn me on too much. But give me a few and I’ll take you up on the offer.”
“You’re incorrigible.” He gently tickled my side, but he didn’t say no. Win. With a repeat on the horizon, I felt less embarrassed about coming so fast.
“Lots of lost time to make up for.” I winked at him even as my back tightened. It wasn’t so much about making up for what I hadn’t gotten around to in the past as wanting to squeeze every drop out of today, get my fill of Derrick fantasies before it was too late. But focusing on our agreement to keep things light was far preferable to admitting how much I was dreading parting.
“Hey, it’s raining.” Derrick motioned over at the closed window. The curtains meant we couldn’t see the rain, but the soft plink of raindrops on the windowpanes and the roof echoed through the room.
“Maybe this means we’ll actually get to sleep in.” I stretched, trying to outrun my more melancholy thoughts, get back to the happy, sexy place Derrick seemed to be in.
“Always look on the bright side.” It was the same advice I’d often given, including to him. Tomorrow’s problems would be here soon enough. Choosing to live for tonight was only smart. Might as well ensure as many magical moonlit memories as possible.
