Page 105 of Deacon

I opened my eyes to find her using the crutch to navigate the stone tiles toward me.

She stopped a foot away and extended a hand.

I caught her meaning and placed my crystal tumbler in her palm.

She held my gaze and took a slow sip.

My gaze shifted to her throat, eyeing the smooth motion as she swallowed.

She set the glass on the side table and straightened, leaving a faint drift of vanilla and floral musk in the air.

‘It’s hot, and I want to swim,’ she announced.

She stood waiting, tilting her head until I realized what she needed. I arched a brow, rose, pulled my shirt over my head, and discarded it on the chair.

I slid an arm around her waist, took the crutch from her grip, and laid it across the lounger. Then I lifted her into my arms and turned toward the pool.

She felt light in my arms, her hands locking behind my neck.

I eased down the shallow steps, keeping my footing firm on the wet stone before letting the water take her.

She had always been a strong swimmer. With a brief wink, she pushed off the step and glided away.

I joined her for a few lengths, then I slowed in the deep end.

I found her hugging the edge, gazing out to sea.

Water slicked her dark hair back, and the sight of it, so glossy and lustrous along her back, sent a jolt straight to my cock.

I swam up behind her and caged her against the tiled wall, my arms resting on either side of her head.

We stayed floating together in the silence, listening to the swell of the ocean below the villa.

Without a word, she turned and moved into my space, wrapping her arms around my waist and holding tight in a pure, unfiltered need for human contact.

Instinct took over, an overwhelming urge to shield her from every damn thing in the world.

I stroked her back, sliding my grip over her spine to draw her flush to me.

She tucked her face into the curve of my neck, her breath steady against my collarbone.

She pulled back, her slight yet soft smile undoing me.

Tracing the line of my jaw, her fingers moved over my skin, mapping the ink on my shoulders as our eyes stayed locked.

Without warning, my hard-on rose between us, as my desire arced through me.

I must have shifted, or perhaps she did, because she pressed into it, the scorching length of it throbbing against her tummy.

She parted her lips, her eyes gleaming with desire.

Fuck.

I had no voice remaining, no fight, no chance against her devastating beauty.

I flicked my gaze to the swell of her tits just above the waterline.

Hell, if I slid the material aside and lowered my mouth to her nipples, my hands going to her ass as I eased my cock inside her, we’d have the most mind-blowing sex ever.