Total pages in book: 76
Estimated words: 70574 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 353(@200wpm)___ 282(@250wpm)___ 235(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 70574 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 353(@200wpm)___ 282(@250wpm)___ 235(@300wpm)
“You sure?” he asked. “You don’t look sure.”
“I’m sure,” I answered flatly. I was actually only sure that I was probably going to die a virgin.
“Okay, then…if you’re sure,” he answered as he pulled his T-shirt over his head and slipped out of his baggy gym shorts.
I swallowed down a gulp when my eyes landed on the extra tight, extra short swim trunks he had on. They weren’t speedos like mine. They were black instead of pink. They looked fucking fantastic and I’d never in my life been more envious of a piece of fabric. That motherfucking lycra fabric was rubbing up against everything I wanted…while I was forced to stand next to Eli, staring at his junk like a complete and utter sex-starved idiot.
Which was painfully close to being accurate.
“Off with the booty shorts, angel. Show me those pretty pinks again,” he said. “I nearly swallowed my fucking tongue when I saw those this morning. Damn, Ari. Are you trying to give me a heart attack?”
I grinned. “Well…you are older than me; we probably need to worry about the old-age thing.” His words had made me feel brave and special, so I pulled my shirt off and the booty shorts quickly followed. I heard a few whistles. Eli silenced them with an icy glare, though.
When I started to lie down on the lounge chair, Eli made a no-no sign with his finger, stopping my motion immediately. “First of all, you’re going to pay for the old man comment. Between your birthday spanking and that comment, you may be sitting on pillows for the rest of the cruise. Secondly, and most importantly, I’m gonna need you to lie on your stomach, not your back.”
“Why? Did my front get burned yesterday?” I asked, looking down at my chest and stomach. I didn’t see pink or red staining my flesh, but did notice that while I wasn’t ripped and muscular like Eli, my body was lean and without fat. There was just a hint of abdominal muscles beginning to show since I’d started working out with Seth and Baker. Looking around at everybody else, I realized I had nothing to be ashamed of, but I still felt like I didn’t really fit in.
“No, your front didn’t get burned yesterday,” Eli answered quietly. “I’d just really appreciate the view of your backside while we sunbathe. I mean, fuck, Ari, you do realize the back of your speedos is nothing more than pink lace, right? How the fuck could you expect me not to want to gaze at the lace-covered globes all damn day long?”
His voice sounded like a sexy growl and my body soaked up the admiration like a sponge. While I loved that he wanted to look at my ass, I didn’t want to appear too overly zealous, so I tried for a nonchalant shrug and said, “Sure; if that’s what you want.” Actually, it was a win/win situation for both of us. He could, with my wholehearted approval stare at my ass all damn day long as he’d said, and I would be able to hide my growing erection.
I was careful not to touch any parts of the chair Eli hadn’t patiently covered with towels as I spread out, ass-up, onto the lounge chair. Since it was still early in the morning, the sun wasn’t too bright and offered just enough sultry warmth to make it feel like it kissed every inch of me. If all the nerves in my body, especially those leading to my dick, weren’t buzzing with arousal, I could probably drift off for a nice morning nap. As it was, I couldn’t think of anything except how hard my cock was getting and how exposed my ass was. The lace certainly didn’t offer much coverage. Thankfully, my skin wasn’t overly sensitive to the sun. While I’d never surfed or even swam in the ocean on more times than I had fingers, I had the surfer-boy image down naturally. Well, I had until I dyed my hair. The sun-kissed blond was now hidden beneath the darker shade. Did Eli hate it? He didn’t seem to mind.
Why? Why was I so fucking insecure?
More than anything I wanted to be a person who was strong—brave enough to take what they wanted, when they wanted it, and how they wanted it. Instead…I waited.
Chapter Six
Eli
The day was slightly overcast, and the ocean breeze was perfect to cool what sun managed to peek through the fluffy clouds, but my skin burned like I walked through fire. Every damn inch of me—fire. Every thought inside my head—fire. At least an hour had passed since I slowly rubbed sunscreen over Ari’s lean body, but my hands still felt that same burn that plagued the rest of my body. I’d given up trying to do something to hide my boner because, fuck it to all, there was no way to hide that monster, and it wasn’t going to go away any time soon—not as long as my eyes were glued to Ari’s lace-covered ass cheeks.