Close to Perfect (26 page)

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Authors: Tina Donahue

BOOK: Close to Perfect
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He looked as if he wanted to argue, but at last gently pressed his lips to hers, then danced through the number and those that followed. He carefully matched her every move in the tango, the merengue, and salsa until their flesh was heated and moist.
Through it all, their gazes remained locked, their bodies obedient to the music and each other's need.
It was an intoxicating moment that no liquor or drug could match.
As the last dance ended and the other couples whistled and applauded, Tess remained in Josh's arms, her gaze on his.
“Enough?” he asked.
“Only of this.”
It was exactly what he had been waiting to hear. His expression was all male, intent and definitely dangerous.
Tess's skin tingled. “Where do we go from here?”
“Back to my world,” he said. “Now, I have a surprise for you.”
Chapter Fifteen
T
his was definitely getting interesting.
Josh was driving even faster to his surprise than Tess had to the club. He was so intent, he didn't seem to notice her fingers running down the side of his leg.
Maybe if she unzipped his fly he'd notice that.
Tess restrained herself. Before this night was over she was going to taste and touch him as much as she wanted. There was no turning back now.
As her gaze traced his handsome profile, his strong jaw, his shoulders and legs, she wondered if they were going back to the country club. Maybe there were guest rooms there, after all. Not that it mattered. Tess wanted him so badly, she was prepared to enjoy him in the backseat of the car if that's what he wanted.
At last, she asked, “Are we getting close?”
He kept his gaze on the road, but did smile. “It's just ahead.”
Tess looked over her shoulder and couldn't have been more surprised. “We're going to a marina?”
“That's the only way to get to my yacht.”
“Get out.” She turned to him. “We're making love on your yacht?”
Josh finally looked at her. He seemed confused. “We're going to be making love?”
Tess laughed. She slapped his arm, then quickly sobered. “We better be.”
He grinned. “If you insist.”
Tess could hardly contain herself as they entered the private marina. Her gaze swept the largest of the boats that only movie stars or drug lords could afford; many of the names suggesting their owners' occupations. One baby was called
The Idol
, another
Addiction
. Then there was
Over the Rainbow
,
Shameless
, and
Lady Lust
.
Josh parked close to that one.
“Thanks,” Tess said as he opened her door and helped her out. “What did you name your boat?”
“You'll see.” He led her away from
Lady Lust
.
To the left, lively music and loud laughter came from the marina restaurant where a party was in full swing despite the hour.
Here, a few couples were still up and talking quietly on the decks of their boats, while others were in the cabins below, with those muted nightlights dancing across the water.
As she and Josh walked hand-in-hand, Tess lifted her face to the scant breeze. The night was surprisingly clear, yet steamy; the air sweetened by the sea and the scent of their bodies.
At last, Josh gently squeezed her fingers. “There she is... the very last one.”
As Tess looked, her lips parted. The boat was a startling white with a dark blue line running along its side. It was possibly a hundred feet long, but sleek and sensual, its curved lines designed for superb performance, just like its owner. “Wow.”
“I like her.”
“Who wouldn't?” Tess tried to make out the letters on the back but they were still too far away. “What did you name her?”
There was hesitation in his voice. “
The Dreamer
.”
Tess looked at him. “What the guys called you after your first job in construction?”
Josh seemed embarrassed. “I wanted to show them and myself that I wasn't a complete idiot.”
“Believe me, you have. Let's go.”
He laughed as she pulled him to the boat. Finally, Josh held back. “Not so fast, remember?”
How could she when he was pulling her into his arms?
Tess pressed her mouth to his ear and whispered, “How do we get on it? Do we jump? Is there a rope we can climb?”
Josh's chest rumbled with quiet laughter. “The only thing you'll be climbing tonight is me. You knew that at that stupid dinner, which just dragged on and on, and while we danced, which I honestly enjoyed. So, why are you in such a rush now?”
They were finally at the end of their journey and had so little time. In a very few hours, everything would be over. Not that Tess wanted to think of that now. Running her fingers over the soft hair at the nape of his neck, she murmured, “Once you're exhausted I swear I'll go slow. I don't want to kill you.”
“You are too kind.” He playfully slapped her butt, then eased away. “Let's go.”
Once Tess had removed her heels and they were on board, Josh took off his shoes and socks, then brought her into an area he called the pilothouse. To her surprise, he left the lights off, got into the captain's seat and started the thing.
Tess stopped looking at the leather bench to the right that might have worked for making love. “We're leaving?”
“You do want to be alone, don't you?”
She went to his chair and sat on the arm. “You'll be there, right?”
Josh lifted his gaze from her right breast resting on his shoulder. “Wouldn't miss it for the world. What I meant by alone is without the possibility of paparazzi or anyone else.”
Tess nodded, even as her heart started to fall. Since the publication of that other guy's picture, there hadn't been any paparazzi. Since that shopping trip at Kiki's, there hadn't been any obnoxious fans. As Alan had predicted, Josh was yesterday's news and a dethroned hunk.
A little over a month ago, before they had met, Tess wouldn't have believed that she would have missed the paparazzi or that she could feel so sad. “Good idea.” She cleared her throat and made her voice light. “Do you want me to drive?”
He smiled. “I want you to relax and conserve your strength for what's to come.”
“You should be doing that. You're an old fart, remember?”
Josh laughed, then slipped his arm around her waist, keeping her steady as he steered the boat away from the dock. “You really want to help?”
Tess ran her fingers under his collar. “I can't let you do all the work.” She leaned over and traced his ear with her tongue.
He trembled, then sighed. “You need something to keep you busy.”
“Okay.” She ran her other hand down his flat belly to between his legs, then cupped and fondled his balls.
Josh inhaled so sharply, he briefly choked. “Not that—not yet.”
“You're making this awfully hard.”
He slid his gaze to her, then pulled Tess onto his lap, holding her around the waist with one strong arm, while steering the boat with the other. “See that screen to the left?”
Tess looked. “Yup. You need cable or a satellite dish, the reception's lousy.”
“It's a night vision display, not a TV. I use it so I don't hit anything.”
Tess looked from that grainy black-and-white picture to the outside, surprised at how much detail the display had picked up, clearly showing that this area was fairly deserted. “Cool.” She wiggled her butt into his erection. “Do you have X-ray vision, too?”
His breath was hot against her ear. “Will I need it?”
She turned her face into his and murmured, “Not tonight.”
Josh kissed her cheek, then got right back to business. “Now this is what I want you to do.”
He wasn't talking sex, but as his voice rumbled in her ear and his stiffened rod pressed against her buttocks it seemed pretty damned close. She was to be his first mate, watching the screen to make certain they “didn't bump into anything.”
“But each other,” he finally added.
“Then I'll have to watch you.”
“You want to get there or not?”
“Where?”
“You'll see.”
Tess looked from him to the display, then outside as they cleared the slip and headed across the water. The sea was a rippling black mass with no end in sight, the sky sprinkled with stars, the air a heated caress.
As intimate as the club had been, packed tight with all those dancers and lovers, Tess felt swallowed by the night, protected by the dark.
“How you doing?” he asked.
“I could be more comfortable.”
Josh loosened his arm. “Better?”
Tess turned her torso into him until her right breast caressed his chest. “Much.”
Josh flicked his gaze at her, then looked back to the instruments, mastering the boat as easily as he had mastered the land.
He really belonged here, while she was no more than a temporary visitor.
Still, Tess was grateful for tonight as she simply gazed at him.
“You're supposed to be watching that screen, not me,” he said.
“You're more interesting.”
Josh worked his mouth around so he wouldn't smile. “Okay, you win.” He brought back his arm, releasing her. “Go ahead and play, I'll do all the work.”
Tess got off his lap and hunkered down by the chair. “I'll do some of it later.”
“Promises, promises; what are you doing?”
“Do you really have to ask?”
She had already unbuttoned his trousers and unzipped his fly, and now worked her fingers past the opening in his briefs to his hot, stiffened rod.
“Holy shit, stop!” Josh inhaled deeply, then nearly moaned. “Tess, I mean it! You're going to have to stop!”
“But you said I could play.”
“Not with me. At least, not until we're anchored.”
“To each other?”
He laughed, then moaned, then begged, “Behave, please, at least for a little while.”
Tess stroked his cock one last time, loving its stiffness and heat, then pulled her hand out of his briefs and zipped him back up. “Okay.” Pressing her fingertips to her face, she inhaled deeply, then moaned to his musky scent.
“Are you going to wait for me or not?”
“Sorry.” She sniffed until his scent was gone, then sat in the chair next to his and looked out at the water.
As the minutes ticked by, the area became increasingly deserted until Tess finally saw that they were the only ones on this part of the water. At that point Josh cut the engines. A short time later, he announced that they were anchored.
“We're here?” she asked, getting out of her chair when he left his.
“Yup.” He took one last look at the instruments, then hauled her into his arms, letting her kiss him, since Tess already had her tongue in his mouth.
When she was finally through, she asked, “Where's here?”
Josh leaned against the back of his chair, momentarily limp from her kiss, then gave her the location in longitude and latitude.
“Oh, right, now I see.”
“No, you don't, but you will. No more playing around. From here on in it gets serious and you get naked. Come on.”
Taking her hand, he went to a cabinet and got a beach towel.
She asked, “What's that for?”
“You'll see.” He led her onto the deck that barely moved with the gentle flow of the water.
Okay, this was unexpected. Tess turned into the soft, warm breeze, letting it pull her hair away from her face. “We're not going to one of the rooms downstairs?”
“You mean the cabins that are below?”
“Probably. We're not going there?”
“When we can make love up here?”
Tess followed his gaze to the forward deck, then lifted her face to the moon. It hung heavy and low in the sky, sending gauzy threads of light to the water that slapped gently against the boat.
That was the only sound. It was so very quiet, Tess felt compelled to speak in a lowered voice. The shouting and moaning would come later. “This is a nice surprise.”
“You like?”
“Oh, yeah. It's—What's that?” Her gaze had paused on a fire on a beach that was only a short swim away. “I thought you said we were going to be alone.”
“Wouldn't have it any other way.”
She pointed at the fire. “They might.”
“That's for us... later.”
She looked over her shoulder at him. “You own that fire?”
Josh smiled. “And the beach and the land beyond it.”
“How'd you do that?”
“Just negotiated a price that I thought was—”
“No.” She laughed. “I meant, how'd you get that fire going? You've been with me the entire—” Tess abruptly stopped, then thought back to that dinner, the call he was on while she was dancing with every guy at their table. “You called someone while we were at that dinner to set this up.”
“It pays to have a good staff.”
She arched one brow. “And confidence that this would happen.”
“I could say the same for you and our night of dancing.” Josh held the beach towel to his chest, then put out his other arm as he gently swayed his lean hips.
Hmmm.
“You're still not as good as me. But don't you worry; I fully intend to teach you a thing or two in the next couple of hours.”
Before Josh could even think to comment on that, Tess turned and padded toward the forward deck. As she did, she unzipped her gown and pushed it off both shoulders.
That garment fluttered in the breeze as it slid to her waist, then over her hips.
At last, she stopped, allowing it to puddle at her feet.
Holy shit.
Josh locked his knees so he could keep standing. She was nude, except for a frilly garter on her left thigh. A red garter that made her taut, moon-washed flesh appear even paler.
He moistened his lips, but forgot to swallow as his mind kept dancing around the same thought.
She had been fucking nude beneath that dress all night? She hadn't even worn a thong?
His gaze followed the curve of her calves, the perfect lines of her thighs, that unbelievable garter, her plush buttocks and sleek back, and finally her face as Tess looked over her shoulder at him.

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