“Someone’s wearing too many clothes to go skinny-dipping… If it’s me, should I take more off?” He raised a questioning eyebrow as he slid his fingers in the elastic waistband of his undies.
“No!” she yelled.
Yes! she wanted to scream.
He flashed her one of his heart-stopping smiles.
Oh Lord.
Rising, she dusted the sand off her butt. She could do this. Men had seen her naked before. Not many, but enough to know she wasn’t a prude. All she needed to do was take off one thing at a time. Nothing to it.
She reached around her back to unzip her dress. But as she gave the zipper a tug, it got stuck on the fabric and wouldn’t slide down. She pulled a little harder, but it only made it stick more.
“Umm, my zipper is caught. I need help.” She turned her back to him.
As he stepped closer, even though they weren’t touching, heat from his body surrounded her. Slowly, he pushed her hair from her shoulder and his fingers brushed the side of her neck. Her body quivered and goose bumps exploded over her skin. Such a simple act had her turned on in a not so simple way.
After a beat, the dress gaped open. A cool breeze rippled across her overheated skin.
“It’s fixed.” Nate’s voice sounded husky and unsteady.
Was he as affected as she was?
Holding her dress to her chest, she turned and met his hot gaze and found her answer. “Do we…should we…everything off or…” The words clogged in her tight throat.
“How about we leave our underwear on? It’s my first time, I’m a little shy.” He smirked.
She breathed a sigh of relief and knew damn well he wasn’t shy. “You go ahead. I’ll meet you there in a second.” She needed a moment to calm her jittery nerves.
“Great, so I’m shark bait.” He laughed. “Don’t be long.”
His gaze traveled over her body, and even though she still held onto her dress, he looked at her as if she was completely naked. Then he jogged to the water’s edge.
Under the soft light she could see the muscle definition in his back as it dipped above the roundness of his butt as he hurdled over the small, breaking waves. Then he stood in waist deep water for a moment, looking like he was offering himself up like a sacrifice to the moon goddess, before diving in. The reflection of the moon rippled over the water’s surface. A moment later, he reappeared and shook his head. Tiny drops of water sprayed off his hair like little flecks of diamonds. She’d never witnessed anything so goddamn sexy.
He waved to her. “The water’s perfect.”
Okay, she couldn’t stand there all night. She did a quick scan of the area, and once satisfied no one was around, she took a deep breath and dropped the dress. Should she walk or run? Fully aware of Nate’s gaze on her, she settled for a quick walk. There was a high risk if she ran, she’d fall flat on her face.
* * * *
Nate watched as Jade shimmied out of her dress. Smooth, creamy breasts sat high in a lacy, pale blue bra. Her petite body was perfectly shaped in all the right places. Christ, how was he supposed to control himself?
As the water reached her belly, she sucked in a startled breath, and her nipples bore through its lacy confinement. He had to stop himself from groaning out loud. Thank God the water was around his waist so she couldn’t see how she was affecting him.
When she waded closer, he asked, “What do we do now?” God, he hoped it was what was on his mind.
Sliding her hands onto his chest, she smiled. “We swim.” Then she pushed him away, laughing as he fell under the water.
When he resurfaced, he wiped the water from his face. Jade was floating on her back, lightly kicking her legs and swaying her arms with the water swirling around her body.
“I might never have skinny-dipped before, but I reckon it should be a lot more fun than just swimming. If I’m to live out a teenage experience, I’d want it to include doing something with the naked woman I’m with.”
Jade stopped floating and splashed him playfully. “I’m not naked.”
“That’s too bad.” He grinned.
She feigned a shocked expression then said, “We can have a swimming race?”