Page 59 of Passing Ships
“What way?”
“Like you want to slice him open and crawl inside his chest.”
I wrinkle my nose. “You watch way too much Dateline—you know that?”
“Maybe, but you know I’m right,” she insists.
“I like his cock. That’s it,” I tell her.
“Yeah, well, that might be where it started, but that won’t be where it ends. He’s the one. Finally, my beautiful friend is going to fall in love,” Avie sings.
I ball my hand around a lump of sand and toss it at her. “Hush. He’s good in bed. I enjoy the things he does to my body, but no falling will be done,” I insist.
She sputters as she brushes the damp grains from the front of her suit. “Oh, why not? Just think. If you did, then one day, we could be sisters for real.”
“We are sisters. I don’t need to lose my mind to make it more real,” I state.
“True. But you like him,” she says, her playful tone turning sober.
I shake my head and glance away from her assessing eyes.
“Look at you. You’re glowing. Lennon Harraway has you glowing.”
She’s like a dog with a bone.
“What happened to this is a bad idea, stay away from my future brother-in-law, promise me things won’t get awkward?” I ask.
She shrugs. “That’s before I knew you were falling in love,” she cries.
I roll my eyes. “You’re a hopeless romantic.”
“No. I’m a hopeful romantic. And you could use a dose of that. You don’t have to be logical and stoic all the time, suppressing that hopeful part of you. It’s okay to fall sometimes. Especially if there’s a big, strong, handsome, willing man to catch you when you do,” she says.
“Ugh, I don’t need a man to catch me. I can catch myself.”
“Who said anything about needing? Need and want are two very different things. I know you don’t need one. But it’s okay to want one. Especially that one,” she says, her finger coming up to wave in Lennon’s direction.
My eyes follow hers to where he is standing at the ocean’s edge. His swim trunks slung low on his hips, clinging to his athletic thighs as the surf laps at his feet. His sun-kissed skin glistens with a light sheen of salt water, accentuating the definition of the muscles in his shoulders. His dark, tousled hair is damp and he casually runs a hand through it, pushing it back from his handsome face. His gaze is fixed on Sebastian and Leia who are playing in the waves, a quiet strength in his expression as the sunlight reflects off the water, casting him in a golden glow.
“Why especially that one?” I ask, breathlessly.
“Because he’s the total package. Hot, handsome, and dependable.”
I cut my eyes back to her.
“Dependable? You’re right; that is hot,” I say with a laugh.
“You know what I mean. He’s the kind of man who could make life better.”
“I’m not looking for a hero to come along and save me. I can save myself. But if the right sexy deviant came along and wanted to ravage me on the regular, I guess I’d be open to that,” I divulge.
She grins.
“Don’t do that,” I say as I wave a finger at her goofy expression.
“I can’t help it. I’m just so happy. I want you to experience love on this level one day. You shouldn’t have to live your life in savage mode all the time. You should be with someone who makes you feel safe enough to bring out your soft side. Because I know you have one.”
I roll my eyes then because she starts to tear up.