Tawny Weber - Call To Redemption

“I’m just wondering what are your plans for the rest of the morning?”

“I’m supposed to meet my cousin, catch a few waves,” Nic said absently, watching as she looked up the beach one way, then down the other. “But I can blow that off.”

“Are you sure?” she asked as she reached behind her neck with one hand, behind her back with the other. The move made her breasts thrust out, and put his body on full alert.

He tried to clear his head when Darby tilted her head to one side as if waiting for his answer. Really wanting to see what she’d do next, he hurried to give it to her.

“Yep. Sure. Definitely.” He sat up a little straighter. “I’m positive.”

With that and a flick of her fingers, the top of her bikini dropped away. Leaving her standing there, the sun glinting off those cherry-tipped breasts and making his mouth water.

“Why don’t we try a few of those positions and see if we can make up your mind.”

* * *

MMM, YEAH. DARBY stretched her body out on the padded beach recliner, her flesh tingling as her toes dug into the warm sand and the sun drenched her supersensitized body with soothing rays. Her skin slathered with SPF 40 and her sunglasses shielding half her face, she stared out at the ocean in fascination.

Hours ago, she’d ridden Dominic’s body the way he was riding those ocean waves. With the same enthusiasm, the same verve and—she tilted her head to the side—hopefully with the same skill.

She was going to go with a yes to that last part since he’d seemed to enjoy himself.

Almost as much as she had. And why not. The man’s body was like sculpted gold glittered with diamond-like sparkles of the ocean’s spray. Darby spent a good five minutes watching Nic surf, wondering how the guy’s muscles were impressive even from this distance. Not quite as impressive as they were up close and personal, but it was still enough to make her mouth a little dry.

Was it that body, though? Or was it his personality that had her so hooked? She’d never met a guy who challenged her brain, made her laugh and turned her on all at the same time.

It was a little scary how much she’d liked it.

Desperate for distraction, she grabbed her ever-present cell phone and auto-dialed. It only took five minutes for her to wish she’d found a different distraction.

“Let me get this straight,” Grace said, dragging the words out in her surprise. “You, Darby Raye, ballbuster extraordinaire, woman who no man can con into anything, a chick with a deep mistrust of anything even approaching the emotional level, is having an affair with a stranger.”

Cringing, Darby pressed the phone closer to her ear, then realized it was stupid to worry about the people around her on the beach overhearing that she was doing the naked mambo on vacation. Smarter would be to wonder what she was doing making such a huge confession by phone with her secretary. She was so not the touchy-feely sharesy type.

But she couldn’t seem to stop herself.

“He’s not a stranger.”

“You met the guy last night,” Grace argued.

“Have you ever met someone and felt an instant connection. Not some soul-mate romantic drivel connection,” Darby quipped before Grace could finish the aww sound she’d started. “Just a connection. Like, you understood them. Even without all those random details, you feel as if you know them well enough to relax and be yourself.”

Leaning back in the lounge chair, Darby slurped up a deep sip of her smoothie to the sound of silence.

“Go ahead,” she finally said, figuring Grace would grind the enamel off her teeth trying to bite back her opinion. “Say it.”

“First, I want to know that you’re really Darby Raye and that you’re not responding under duress. So answer these questions three. First, what color is your desk chair? Second, what was the last thing we ate together? And third, who irritates you the most in the office?”

This time it was Darby who went aww, although she kept the comment in her mind. There was something seriously sweet about having someone care enough to ask silly questions that most stalkers wouldn’t have a clue the answers to, just to be sure that Darby wasn’t being forced into multiple beachside vacation orgasms against her will. Especially since Darby knew that if she answered any one of them with anything but Grace’s expected response, the other woman would be on the phone to the authorities, pulling every legal string and connection she could to ensure Darby’s safety.

It was the first time that Darby could remember anyone caring that much about her, and it was kind of touching.

“My desk chair is aubergine, and don’t try to say that it’s purple because we both know I won that argument when I showed you the receipt. The last meal we had together was some weird tofu stir-fry thing you insisted I try, but you know perfectly well I threw my portion in the trash as soon as you left the room.” Darby waited for Grace’s relieved laughter to fade before answering the last part. “And third, I’d say that giggly brunette with the huge teeth in research irritates me the most, but I think this is a trick question.”

“Since you nailed the first two, I’ll give you a pass on the trick question,” Grace replied. “Just tell me you’re being careful.”

“Are you asking if I’m having safe sex?”

“Darby!” Grace’s gasp was half giggles.

“C’mon, remember to whom you’re talking,” Darby reminded her with a laugh. “You said it yourself. I’m made of mistrust. Added to that, I’m trained to read people. To understand body language, and to take care of myself. There’s nothing to worry about.”

“Nothing? You don’t know his last name. You don’t know where he works or what he does for a living. You don’t even know if he lives in the United States. None of that merits a little worry?”

Darby grimaced. She was already regretting mentioning Dominic in any way, let alone confessing her trip into sexual nirvana. Since she hadn’t kept her mouth shut, she shifted to damage control.

“I know his first name. The owner of the resort, an upstanding citizen who, according to the framed photos in the lobby, is on a first-name basis with numerous elected officials, as well as three Navy Admirals, is his uncle. I know that whatever he does for a living involves using his body—and given the quality of said body, he’s damn good at what he does.”

She waited while Grace made a low humming noise, then asked, “So when you get back, are you going to fill me in on the details of what he does with that body?”

“Isn’t that a little tacky?” Darby said as she leaned her head back on the thick lounge cushion and tried to keep from laughing. “I’ll plead the Fifth on that.”

“Appropriate.”

This time Darby didn’t try to hide her laugh. But she did try to reassure her friend.

“Grace, I’m good at taking care of myself. I promise, I’m not in danger.”

“Okay, but please check in every once in a while, just so I don’t worry.”

Darby wanted to roll her eyes. She was a grown woman. She couldn’t remember a single time any of her family had asked her to check in, let alone shown any worry for her. She wanted to tell Grace to quit being such a worrywart and chill out.

“I promise,” she said instead. Then, because feeling all gooey inside made her uncomfortable, she changed the subject. “So how’s everything in the office? Any exciting new cases?”

“Um, yeah. About that. I don’t want to put a pall on your wild vacation fling or anything, but you should probably know that a certain ex has been in and out of the offices more than once this week.”

Darby’s smile fell away as she pictured Paul Thomas. She didn’t shift from her lounging position, but her body tensed all the same. She tried to ignore the guilt trickling down the back of her throat.