Sugar, Butter, Flour, and Love

Chapter Forty

He leaned back, checks flushed and his lips wet as he stared into my eyes. "Let's do more of that later?"

I licked my lips, my eyes fixed on Trace's plump mouth. "Please."

Trace unbuckled his seatbelt and the snick reminded me that I wasn't glued to my seat. Once we got out of the car we found Manny and Marisol talking at the entryway of the beach house.

"Finally awake?" Manny called out in a voice that was a little too knowing for my liking. He'd definitely seen our not too subtle kissing. "Get dressed so we can head to the beach. Me and Mari are gonna load up the car. I have some sandwiches in the kitchen for you in case you're hungry. Don't get distracted."

I coughed. "I won't get distracted."

Trace patted me on the back. "I'll keep an eye on him, no worries."

Manny snorted. "I bet you will, T."

It didn't take long for us to get ready, but I was still surprised when I saw Trace in his swim trunks. They were shorter than I expected, reaching about mid thigh and exposing the musculature of his meaty thighs. And Trace had wonderful thighs... His swim shorts were blue with small yellow bananas on them. When my eyes roved up his body I saw his sculpted chest, his impossibly distracting nipple piercings and a small, yet satisfied smirk on Trace's face. The other half of his face was taken up by a dark pair of sunglasses but that did nothing to make him look anything less than mouth wateringly hot.

"I like your shorts," I said quickly, feeling my face burn even after I'd said it.

"Aw, thanks, baby. I like your shorts, too. They make your ass look—"

I missed the rest of Trace's sentence because of the loud blaring of honking. Manny was obviously getting impatient.

"Wait, what did you say?" I asked Trace as we made our way outside.

His laughing was easy and carefree. "Nothing I won't repeat later. Now come on, let's go the beach."

#

There were sparse clouds riddled across the sky but it did nothing to temper the intensity of the high heat. The golden rays grazed across the white golden sand and made the blue waters sparkle. The waves flowed and ebbed, leaving the sand dark and nearly muddy with every rising tide. There were dozens of families and many other groups spread across the sand, and even more in the water. There were buoys to stop people from going too far but no one had ventured quite that far.

The lifeguards were high up on their chairs, watching the people in a way that was almost bored.

Most people were simply sun bathing on the sand or playing with frisbees, beach volleyballs or sleeping.  The four of us had found a place high up on the beach that was pretty far removed from everything. But it was a good spot because we could have a semblance of privacy amongst everything that was happening. It was also nice to know that if Trace wanted to be affectionate it wouldn't be easy for people to stare.

So far though the three of us had gone in the water a few times before Marisol and Manny went over to the volleyball court and I hung out with Trace.  it was fascinating to watch the sun glint across Trace's smooth muscled frame as he lay on the beach towel under the large umbrellas me and Manny had set up. Of all things Trace could be doing, he was reading. He refused to go into the water because he'd said he was worried about water and sand getting into his prosthetic. But he seemed content to sit under the shade and read.

A part of me wished Trace could come in the water with me but I knew just him being there was a big step. A few people had been staring at his prosthetic but most people caught themselves and looked away. I wondered if Trace reading was so he wouldn't notice people looking at him. It was only then that I took a good look at the book in Trace's hands.