Cooper smirked at me and whipped that towel off like a goddamn stripper. The next thing I knew, the towel was flying at my face, and I laughed when it hit me, the sound muffled by the thick terrycloth as the ends sank in the water around me.
By the time I looked up, I only caught sight of his bare ass as he walked into the bedroom.
“Don’t make me wait, Mags.”
My cheeks flushed as I fished the wet ends of his towel out of the water and wrung them out.
I wouldn’t make him wait anymore. Not a second longer.
A few minutes later, I slipped in bed with him, naked as he was. He lay on his side, head propped on his hand, and as soon as I was under the covers, he pulled me into him. My head rested against the mattress, and I looked up, smiling.
He moved my hair from my face and traced my jaw. “Thank you.”
“For what?”
“For agreeing to come with me here. For letting me show you all of this.”
“I had no idea. You kinda blew my mind.” I made an explosion sound with my mouth, and he laughed.
“Then we’re even.”
We watched each other for a moment as his hand slipped down my shoulder and arm.
“Maggie,” the word was tight, and he looked down to his thumb shifting against my skin.
I laid a hand on his solid chest, feeling his heart beat under my palm. “To hell with the rules.”
His eyes darted to mine, and he watched me, his hand moving to cover my own. “Do you mean that?” It was almost a whisper.
“I don’t want this to end, you and me. You make me feel good and true and … right. I don’t want to lose this feeling.”
“You want me?”
I laughed, the sound tight as I held back tears. “I want you, Cooper. Do you want me?”
His eyes searched mine. “More than anything.”
“Then everything else will be all right,” I said simply. “Just be patient with me.”
“I’ll do whatever I have to do, Maggie.” His hand found my cheek, fingers in my hair. “Just tell me what you need.”
“You,” I whispered. “Just you.”
He didn’t speak, just closed his eyes and kissed me, touched me, gave himself to me as I’d asked. I could feel the echo of my past buried somewhere in the back of my mind, but I wouldn’t be swayed to listen, not in Cooper’s arms. There was nowhere I’d rather be but surrounded by him where nothing could touch me. No one could hurt me.
The weight of his body, the softness of his skin against mine, was everything. The sweetness of his lips, the hardness of his body as he slipped inside of me, stealing my breath, stealing my heart. His eyes were on mine, the emotion written on the planes of his face as he thumbed my cheek. I turned into his hand and pressed my lips to his palm as he dropped his forehead to mine.
My legs wound around his waist, and the sheets slipped away as our hips rolled against each other faster. And when I looked up at him, I understood what I’d been missing for so long. I understood what I’d always been missing, what I’d misunderstood for all my life.
I let my heart go, let my body go, and he was right behind me, breathing my name like the word was sacred.
Our bodies slowed, and he wrapped his arms around me, shifting to his side, holding me to his chest with his fingers in my hair.
We lay that way in the moonlight for a long time, not moving, just breathing until our breaths finally slowed, leaving us hanging on the edge of sleep. His warmth left me for the briefest, coldest of moments before returning to me. He placed a towel in my hand that I used to lazily clean up before tossing it away, and then I slipped back into his arms.
I felt everything — the heat of his skin against my cheek, the beat of his heart thundering through me until mine matched its pace, the length of his body entwined with mine. His strong arms held me like he’d never let me go, and that was exactly how I drifted off to sleep.
PIECES OF ME
Maggie
I SHIFTED AGAINST HIM, FEELING his arms around me, wanting nothing more than to stay in that bed all day. Forever. His arms tightened as he stirred, pulling me into his chest.
He kissed my bare shoulder, and I rolled over to face him with my heart fluttering. The sandy stretch of beach and rolling ocean beyond the windows framed him, and when he smiled at me … well, I knew it was a moment I wouldn’t forget.
“Good morning,” he said, his voice rough from disuse.
“Morning.” He was so warm, and I nestled into his chest. “I don’t want to leave.”
“Then let’s stay.”
I sighed. “I wish we could.”
“There’s not much that could stop us.”
The ache in my chest was deep, but I smiled, making light. “But I’ll never prove my worth to your mom if I quit showing up.”
He chuckled. “Oh, your work there is done.”
“Why does that terrify me to think that you’ve been talking to your mother about me?”
Cooper backed up so he could see me. “She brought you up the other night at dinner. She kind of went on about you.”
“So she likes me?”
“She definitely likes you.”
“I hope she didn’t think I was weird the other day. I was just so surprised your mother was our benefactor. And also super pissed at you for interfering.”
“I know what it’s like to be controlled. I’d never do that to you.”
I curled back into his chest, and his arms squeezed a little tighter. “What are we going to do about West?”
Cooper’s chest rose and fell as he sighed. “I don’t know. He’s not going to take it well, but I have to believe that if he knows I won’t hurt you, he’ll be all right.”
Worry over their friendship wriggled through my brain. “I hope so.”
He stretched to look at the clock and sighed again. “We should probably get going.”
I groaned.
“Hungry?”
I piped down. “Actually, yes.”
“Let’s go get breakfast and get back on the water.”
I let out a breath. “Food and sailing. Those are maybe the only two things that could drag me out of bed, besides you. But you’re here, so …”
He laughed, squeezing me once more before we rolled out of bed, got dressed, and packed up our things. The car service sent a driver to take us back to the harbor. I watched the Hampton house disappear behind us and I sighed, missing the magic of the place within seconds.
The diner was somehow cozy and upper crust all at once, and my omelet was incredible, stuffed with bacon, tomatoes, avocados, and buttery crab meat. And an hour later, we were climbing back onto Midnight Caller.
We readied the ship, cast off the lines, pulled in the fenders, and then we rode out of the harbor, back to the ocean and down the coast. The day passed too quickly, and every minute took us closer to the real world. Our reality was so much more complicated than the last twenty-four hours had been. All I could do was hope that if we just held onto each other, we’d be all right.
It was almost dusk by the time we made it back into the marina in Manhattan, the sun dropping down in the sky too quickly. He pulled the boat into the slip and hopped onto the dock to tie us up.
He smiled at me as he climbed back in and stepped into the cockpit. “Come home with me.”
I stood. “I wish I could, but I should get back and get cleaned up. I have some work to do before tomorrow. It’s my first day with the kids.”
He wrapped his arms around me. “Well, I’ve got about an hour’s worth of closing down the boat to do. Did you want to hang out? Bobby’s here. He can give you a ride if you don’t want to wait.”
“Nah, that’s all right. I’ll just take the subway.”
“You sure?”