Chapter eleven
[Seychelle’s POV]
His lips were gentle as they slowly pried mine apart. His warm lips shot heated bolts of electricity from my lips and down my body. It made my heart stutter and warmth pool in my lower stomach as my toes curled once our breaths mixed together. The moment his tongue pushed past the boundaries of our lips and licked mine my hand shot up to his shoulders for support. How long had I known Ray for? Not that long... and yet one stroke of his tongue and I lost the ability to stand on my own two legs.
He wound his arms around my waist and pulled me hard against him. Every muscle of our fronts were touching and my neck had begun to strain from looking up. Suddenly he scooped me up and crashed us against the wall while my legs took a mind of their own and wound around his trim hips. A knot of tension was growing low in my stomach and my whole body jerked as he ground his hardness against me.
My eyes suddenly flew open.
What happened? I sat up quickly making the bed sheet fall from my shoulders and quickly scanned my surroundings. How did I get home? Where was Ray? It suddenly dawned on me that I was dreaming of kissing Ray... it wasn’t real. I groaned in frustration and fell back into my soft bed. It felt so real! I was so sure I kissed him last night!
“Ergh... My mind is playing tricks on me” I mumbled to myself. I shivered slightly when the wind from outside blew around the house and stretched like a cat hearing my back crack. I noticed I was still wearing my sundress and as I stood up from my bed I tugged the straps over my shoulders and let it fall to the ground. I felt a little cramped and restless after my dream so I donned a plain black bikini and a surfboard before heading back down to the beach.
As I walked down the sandy dunes my eyes scanned the remnants of last night’s bonfire. I couldn’t help the smile that pulled at my lips as I remembered the events. Laughing and hanging out with Ray felt so easy, almost as though we’d known each other for years instead of a few weeks. The pile of burnt black wood sat on the sand and I knew later on it would be cleaned up. No one liked a dirty looking beach.
The sun was peeking out of the cracks from the cloudy sky giving off a purplish-grey hue to the clouds and I didn’t hesitate to run into the cold water and splash through the waves before throwing my board down and paddling out deeper. This was what I lived for, the open ocean and nothing but freedom. Obviously the reality of hard work, bills and a broken house came rushing back as soon as I stepped back onto the shore but out here... out here I could let go of all my problems and concentrate on nothing but the lapping of waves and the wind kissing my face.
There was a lack of waves this morning so I settled for lying on my back on the board as I stared at the seagulls squawking above me just letting the water rock me gently. “It’s quite nice out here when I’m not rescuing unconscious beauties” a deep, familiar voice spoke from beside me.
I smiled and then blushed as the memories of last night’s dream came rushing back. “Good morning Beast” I smiled not looking at him.
“A very good morning Beauty” he chuckled. Finally looking over to him my breath hitched when I realised his face was just beside my board and his eyes were watching me intensely. Oh how I wish last night’s kiss was real! He swam a little closer and placed his forearms on my board, resting his chin on top, “Last night was fun”
I blushed, “Yeah definitely. I think I fell asleep at the beach or something... I woke up this morning with no idea how I ended up in my bed” I frowned, “Did you bring me home Ray?”
“Yeah, I did” he suddenly looked uncomfortable, “You don’t regret last night do you?”
I thought about it for a second. Last night... oh! The fight! “Regret last night? I’m pretty sure those kids deserved getting a little beating considering their attitude” I shrugged my shoulders, “Plus it was kind of hot seeing the angry side of yours”
He chuckled but looked confused, “Yeah I guess. But I was actually referring to after that”
I was getting so confused. I flipped over onto my stomach feeling the goosebumps spread over my skin as the wind hit the new wet part of my skin, “To be honest, I’m a little confused as to what happened last night. I had some pretty vivid dreams last night and don’t know quite how to separate what was real and what wasn’t”
Ray laughed louder this time. “Want me to remind you?” he had a cheeky expression and his eyes sparkled with mischief.
“Uh... okay?”
Suddenly he tipped my board over flipping me into the water with a cut off shriek. I spluttered as I broke the surface of the water and laughed uncontrollably hitting him with my fist playfully. He grabbed my wrist pulling me closer to him and held me between his body and my surfboard as his lips came crashing down. Oh my God! All the oxygen in my lungs came rushing out as my legs tangled with his. His lips controlled the kiss, pushing a little deeper with his tongue.
Oh wow. Oh wow, wow, wow!
Just as quick as he was to kiss me, he was pulling away and I found myself leaning forward to stay connected that little bit longer. My vision was a little blurry and I took a second to clear my throat and gather my wits. “Ah” I croaked. I cleared my throat again, “No... no I do not regret that”
He leaned down to peck me softly once more and let go of the board pushing himself a little further away. “Good... I don’t either”
My body was so hot. It was burning from the inside and the cold water around me did nothing to ease the heat spreading from inside me. “Can I as you a question?”
“Sure”
“Did we only kiss the one time last time?” I knew it sounded a little odd, but I really needed to distinguish the difference between reality and my dream otherwise I’d make a complete fool of myself.
He gave a confused laugh, “Yeah just the once...? Because someone fainted. I have to say though... I am pretty flattered by your reaction” As if to match the heat in my body my face lit up and now both my body and my face were hot and flushed. Though for two completely different things! “Why?”
“Oh... no reason” I quickly answered. I looked at the sun in the sky and knew I needed to get to the gym soon. I’d lazed about yesterday and I needed to get back to reality, money for groceries didn’t come for free. “How’s your leg?”
I saw him shrug and lean back letting his body partially float and giving me a teasing look at his hard torso everytime his body bobbed a little higher than the water. “Getting better. I really need to up my training though so I can get back into shape before my fitness test to get back to the Air Force”
Two things flew through my mind once he stopped talking. The first was ‘back in shape’?! Ray was by far the most fit and ruggedly ripped man I’d ever seen in my life and to think that he considered himself unfit now was laughable. The second thought was that he still wanted to go back to the Air Force. Why shouldn’t he? He had told me before that it was his life and a kiss or two or three from me shouldn’t change his mind. Not that I wanted him too.
“You know, I am a personal trainer who owns a gym and has credentials for deep tissue massage” I threw him a dry look. “I can help you, you know” His lips pulled back and shot me a brilliant dimple flashing smile that had me manually telling myself to breathe.
“I might just take you up on that offer then Seychelles” We stared at each other, I guess just soaking in the other’s looks and presence but as the silence stretched on I was the first to break eye contact and cleared my throat.
“Well, you know where I am Ray. I think I should in now, I forget to check how many sessions I have today and I’m sure there’s more paper work to be done” Ray nodded and together we paddled and swam back to the shore. He walked out first and jogged over to my towel only to jog back and wrap it around my shoulders.
The small gesture surprised me and touched deeply for some reason. The little things he did to make me feel more comfortable felt so out of place simply because I was used to taking care of myself. I dried myself off and he did the same but instead of parting ways as I thought we would, he picked up my board and walked along with me back to my house.
“So, if you have any spare time today I might just take you up on that personal training offer and uh... deep tissue massage afterwards if that’s okay?”
“Yeah, sure definitely!” I wasn’t sure why I sounded so keen. “I’ll have to just check my schedule today once I get to the gym”
“I’ll head there in a bit then” He smiled. He leaned my board against the side of my house and stepped closer to me. “I don’t know what it is about you Seychelles... but, you seem to be a magnet to me” He towered over me and I pressed my back against the wall, he smelled of apples and sea salt and while that seemed like an odd mix, it was heady and hypnotising.
I could see he wanted to lean down and kiss me again, hell I wanted him to! But he closed his eyes tight and clenched his fists before backing away and smiling politely to me. “I’ll catch you later Beauty” With a wink he turned around and walked back down to the beach.
Damn, but that was a beautiful sight.
I sighed and turned to walk inside my empty house. After a shower and a quick breakfast I was out the door and started the engine to my car before driving down the driveway. As I drove through town I gazed at the smiling couples, both young and old, and wondered if there was a chance I could have that with Ray. I laughed and shook my head, there was no point.
“He’s training to get back into the Air Force, you idiot” I murmured to myself, “He’s freaking asking for your help to eventually leave this town. There’s no point in even trying for a relationship with him” But there was no harm in dreaming about one.
Ray was every woman’s dream. He was sweet, kind, loving, generous and honest. He loved his family and his country enough to risk his life in the Air Force and it didn’t hurt that he was devastatingly handsome with a smile and body to die for. Sex on legs... very long and powerful legs. He blushed at compliments and yet could fight several people at once. In the short amount of time I’d known him I’ve seen different sides to him and I liked every single one.
I arrived at the gym and parked my car in its usual spot before walking inside. Naomi was spinning around on her chair and blowing a bubble with her gum. “Morning Mimi” I laughed.
“God Shell, I’m so bored!” she whined.
I couldn’t help rolling my eyes, “Well then do something. I’m not paying you to be bored”
She stuck her tongue out at me but continued to spin around anyway. In reality, I didn’t need a receptionist five days a week. The only reason why I hired her for that many days was because she desperately needed it. She was a few years younger than me but I knew that she’d gone through much more than what some other women do in their life. So when she refused to stop begging me for a job, despite my own financial issues, I hired her for five days a week and have never regretted it since. I walked to my office, greeting the regulars on my way there, and dumped my bag onto the ground before scanning my schedule.
I had a session in an hour and another two just after lunch. I mentally noted it down then grabbed Ray’s file out to search for his number. I bit my lip and stared at his number before saving it into my own cell phone, I mean... we were friends after all. It wasn’t creepy... I sat back as I listened to his dial tone and waited for him to pick up. He didn’t answer, instead it went to voicemail and I felt a little disappointed when I left him a message instead of talking to him. I told him I was free after two o’clock and I couldn’t help feeling excited at working with him again.
***
Today. Was. Going. So. Slow!!!
Throughout the day I found myself checking my watch over and over and when I thought that fifteen minutes had passed, it had only been one minute. Ray had called me back saying he’d meet me at the gym and when my last session before Ray’s finally finished I felt like a giddy high school girl again. I didn’t know what was wrong with me and I had no idea why I was acting this way but I knew deep inside it was because I hadn’t had a relationship in years that a simple kiss was a big deal for me.
I was floating around the gym, just giving tips and helping members that wanted it when Tom’s happy voice shouting from the entrance. “Shell! Long time, no see!” he grinned walking straight up to me and wrapping an arm around my shoulders.
I laughed with a shake of my head, “Hi Tom, as I recall I saw you last night with a hoard of young girls hanging onto your every movement”
“Now, now there’s no need to be jealous Shell, there’s enough Tom to go around for every beautiful woman. And by ‘beautiful woman’ I mean every woman” he winked at the woman I was helping.
“I highly doubt Seychelles is jealous of your many conquests Shaw” Ray’s deep, voice added. I looked over and saw him wearing an amused expression. “Hey Seychelles”
“Hey Ray...”
Tom looked between the two of us before he unwrapped his arm from my shoulders and pretended to choke as he coughed dramatically, “Damn! The sexual tension between the two of you is so thick I can barely breathe!” A deep blush instantly coloured my cheeks and Ray’s face mirrored mine. Wow, the uncensored mouth of Tom Shaw was ridiculous. He never held back anything he was thinking!
“Uh, come on Ray. Let’s get started yeah? Feel free to use the machines Tom” I called over my shoulder to Tom who had already taken my spot in helping the same woman he winked at out.
“I’m so sorry Beauty. Tom... he doesn’t have a filter” Ray grumbled adorably.
“That’s alright. Here, I’ll get you to warm up on the treadmill first, then I want to focus on your legs today since that’s where your injury is and would need to be worked the most” He nodded and just like that we fell back into our comfort zone.
[Ray’s POV]
Who knew the tiny blonde with a stellar smile could be such a killer!
I hadn’t had a hard work out like today’s session in months and my aching leg was proof that Seychelles was in her element. She’d started off easy enough but as the minutes ticked by she’d stepped into her personal trainer mode and pushed harder and harder until I was at my limit and kept me there. She’d told me that we’d work my legs, and they were worked!
“How are you feeling?” She grinned with a lopsided smile.
“Beat” I chuckled. “I’m not going to lie Beauty, my legs are killing me especially my shot leg. You definitely rode me hard”
As soon as I said the words I wanted to swallow them back down. I could just imagine her riding me hard, and right now was neither the right time nor the place to be having thoughts like that. She didn’t seem to notice though as she laughed and threw my clean towel at me. “So, with your uh deep tissue massage, did you want me to come around to your house later?”
I could feel a stirring in my gym shorts at the thought of her hands on me again. Not only did it feel amazing last night she gave me a massage but I felt much closer to her. “Uh no, I’ll swing by yours later. I could bring dinner and have that massage afterwards?” I asked with raised brows.
To be completely honest with myself, I wanted something with Seychelles. She was daring, hard working and had such a big heart that I couldn’t help but want to explore this relationship with her. We clicked so well when we were together and our kisses... wow. I wanted more of those, but I was a kind of guy who wanted to be involved with a woman when I kissed her.
“Oh, you don’t have to Ray. You can just come afterwards” She declined but I shook my head.
“Nope, no can do. I’ll be over at your place at eight with food. See you then Beauty” I winked and strode past Tom dragging him away from another woman he was trying to impress. With a quick glance back at Seychelles before we left the gym I saw her biting back her smile. Hopefully she was as excited as I was to see her again.
“I could get used to this place” Tom sighed as we passed a group of girls in cropped shirts and short shorts. I ignored their giggles and coy looks and thought about what he just said. I could get used to staying here as well, especially since meeting Seychelles. But my life was the Air Force, I knew everything that about it and I was good at what I did.
I spent some time with my mom and Tom back home and once seven o’clock rolled around I left to buy dinner and drive over to Seychelles’ house. I waited outside her door holding two pizzas and a grocery bag with soda and dessert. After today’s session I needed food! Seychelles opened the door in a matter of seconds wearing a loose, white cotton t-shirt and grey cotton shorts. Her long blonde hair waved over her shoulders and her emerald eyes sparkled with happiness.
“Hey Ray, come on in” She smiled. She led the way inside and I couldn’t keep my eyes from her ass. They were perfect round globes that swayed from side to side with every step and I almost ran into her when she suddenly stopped and turned around. “I love pizza!”
“I hope you’re hungry because I am starved! You really know how to work a man and make him hungry” Once again I wished I could swallow my words. I wasn’t sure if I was just saying phrases that had sexual innuendos or it was just me thinking that way. In any case I really needed to stop.
“What’s this?” She asked pointing at the grocery bag.
“Soda and ice cream for dessert”
“I could just kiss you right now Ray!” She beamed clapping her hands together. She put the ice cream away in the freezer and I stepped up right behind her.
“Well, I’m not stopping you Beauty” I whispered in her ear making a wavy tendril dance. She turned around and our eyes clashed again. Could she feel that connection? To my surprise she stepped up on her toes and gently brushed her lips against mine so lightly I would’ve second guessed if she really did kiss me.
“Thank you” she whispered before ducking into the lounge. She placed the pizza and sodas on the coffee table and turned the volume up louder. “Come on Beast, or I’ll eat everything!”
***
“Damn! Where do you put all that food?!” I cried in amused shock. Seychelles and I had both eaten a pizza each and I more than surprised that she could keep up with me. “I love a woman who can eat!”
“And I love a man who can bring me some ice cream” laughter bubbled up my throat and the look Seychelles was giving me was priceless. I stood up and grabbed the ice cream along with two spoons and fell back down on the sofa handing her one spoon.
We watched a movie on the TV while eating the ice cream and it just felt so... normal. It felt like I could do this every night. “You have a little something on your lip” I pointed at her with my spoon. She swiped around her mouth but kept on missing it so I leaned forward and held her hand to direct her where it was. Once she wiped it off I didn’t even think twice before bring her hand to my mouth and sucking the ice cream off the pad of her thumb.
Her eyes dilated as she bit her lip and I noticed her chest rising and falling much quicker. It was only then did I realise what I doing. My hand traced around her wrist and up her smooth arm before I caressed her jaw line. “Seychelles... I’m going to kiss you again”
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A/N
Yes, I did leave it there lol
Thanks everyone for being patient with me while I finished writing my other story and had to put this on hold for a little while.
This chapter is without a doubt dedicated to @BriannahLowe who would badger me incessantly for an update on this story literally every single day. So you can thank her for having this update lol.
Nix <3