Liam ran his hand down my side, tracing the valley just above my hip, then moving up and over. Down to my thigh. When his fingers brushed bare skin, a shiver of pleasure shook my body. His mouth didn't slow on mine as he rolled me onto my back. His teeth nipped at my lip and his hand moved under my skirt, nudging my legs apart. My body throbbed as his fingertips tickled their way up my inner thigh. The higher he got, the more heat spread through me. I wiggled under him, but he took his time. Teasing me. His fingers traced up one thigh, then went to the other, coming close to the throbbing center of my body but never touching me. He took it slow, which was something I'd never experienced before. Guys didn't usually take the time to just be with me. To kiss me and touch me and please me. In my experience, sex had always been like a sprint to the finish line. But not with Liam.
Liam's lips moved down my neck and chest, then back up. It felt like he wanted to memorize the feel of me under him, the way his hands and lips swept over me. The way he traced my curves. The anticipation was hotter than anything I'd ever experienced.
When his hand finally cupped me through my lace thong, I let out a moan so loud I almost felt embarrassed. Almost. His mouth moved back to mine as his palm rubbed me. I writhed under him, silently begging for more. He didn't give it to me, though. Didn't try to take my clothes off or move faster. It drove me wild.
“Liam,” I gasped against his lips. “Touch me.”
He nipped at my bottom lip and his hand moved faster. “I am.”
I pressed my body against his hand as the need inside me coiled tighter. My body ached for more. I wanted our clothes off. Wanted to feel Liam's skin against mine. Wanted his fingers to stroke me until I screamed.
I shook my head, but no words would come out. So I grabbed his wrist and tried to get him to understand, tried to guide his hand where I wanted it to go. He didn't stop what he was doing, and within seconds I didn't want him to. The tension inside me built and tightened and knotted until I was nothing but a giant ball of anticipation. Then Liam hit a spot that made it all come unraveled. My body shook and trembled, and I let out a strangled cry that might have been his name.
My heart was pounding so hard I found it difficult to breathe. It had been amazing. So amazing I wanted to rip Liam's clothes off and tear mine to shreds. To have our limbs tangled together.
I gripped his face between my hands and pulled his lips back to mine. Our mouths met as his fingers fumbled with the zipper on my dress. I rolled onto my side, hoping to give him easier access. When he had the zipper partway down, he moved his lips to my chest. His tongue ran across the top of my breasts as he slid the zipper down the rest of the way. Then he eased my dress down, cupping my right breast. When his thumb moved across my nipple, my eyes rolled back in my head.
Without warning, the bedroom door opened and the sound of drunken giggles filled the room. My eyes flew open and Liam pulled my dress up, covering my breasts. He bolted upright, but I couldn't move. My heart pounded against my rib cage as I stared up at the ceiling.
“What the bloody hell, Drew?” Liam said, climbing to his feet. “You know the bedrooms are off limits! If you want to shag your girl, you take her home. Got it?”
“Yeah, yeah. Sorry, man.” There was a pause and the girl with Drew whined a little. Then Drew said, “Hey, Liam, is that Ryan's little sister?”
“Cousin,” Liam snapped.
Drew laughed. “Whatever, man. Nice job.”
The door shut and Liam swore, then turned back to me. I hadn't moved a muscle. My body felt like it was made of jelly and I couldn't catch my breath and my heart was going faster than a jet plane. I doubted I could have gotten up even if I tried.
Liam didn't make a move to come back over to me, and after a few seconds he said, “We should head back out to the party.”
I blinked. There was no way in hell I'd heard him right. I was more turned on than I ever had been in my entire life, and this guy was going to walk away? Oh, hell no.
“Excuse me?” I said, rolling over to face him.
Liam shuffled his feet and glanced toward the door. “Ryan is going to notice we're both missing.”
“Umm . . .” There were so many things I wanted to say swirling around in my head that they all got clogged on the way out, leaving me speechless. I was pretty sure I was going to have to call a plumber if I ever wanted to talk again.
Finally, after what felt like an hour of silence, I said, “I thought you were only after one thing?”
“Who says I'm not? I'm just not a wanker.”
“Okay . . .” I couldn't figure out exactly what he was thinking, or how to respond.
Liam let out a deep breath, then took a step back, like he was afraid to be too close to me. “Bollocks. Why do you sound confused?”
“Because I am. I'm here and I'm willing, so I don't see the problem.”
“Ryan's my mate, Cami.” He shook his head, then walked toward me. “Can't do that to him.”
Liam grabbed my hand and hauled me to my feet. My zipper was about halfway down, so he pulled it back up. Ugh! I had really expected him to take my clothes off, not put them on. Had I found my way into some kind of alternate universe? Or maybe I'd lost my touch. I had really thought Liam would be an easy thing to mark off my list. Easy was his distinguishing personality trait, after all.
“I have a sister too,” he finally said, as if that would in any way make me understand where he was coming from.
“Um, Liam. You do know there's a good chance all those other girls you've fooled around with have brothers too, right?”
Liam blinked and stared at me like I'd sprouted wings. It was as if he'd really never thought of it that way before and I'd just given him some kind of epiphany.
He ran his hand through his sex hairânot imitation anymoreâand shook his head. “Shit.”
Shit
was right.
Liam exhaled, and he wouldn't stop shaking his head. “Let's head back to the party.”
I couldn't argue. Even though I was still incredibly turned on, the mood had passed. Things felt off and confused after the sister comment, and it was clear from the look on Liam's face, I wasn't going to be able to change his mind. Better to just let it go and try again later.
We headed downstairs and Liam grabbed us another couple drinks while I searched the room for Annie. The more I thought about Liam and what had just happened in that bed, the more my body heated up.
I still hadn't found Annie by the time Liam came back with my drink, and it was halfway gone when I finally spotted Chris wandering around the room. He looked kind of lost and I figured he was looking for Annie too, so I flagged him down. Chris shoved his way through the crowd and headed our way.
Liam stayed glued to my side, which I saw as a good sign. Guess he wasn't too freaked out that Ryan was my brother or cousin or whatever.
“Have you seen Annie?” I asked Chris when he stopped in front of us.
He shook his head and pointed to the back of the house. “I saw Ryan head out to the beach. Maybe she's with him?”
I'd searched the whole house already, so unless she'd snuck off to get busy with a drunk frat guy, she wasn't inside. The beach seemed like the next logical place to look. “Let's check it out. She sure as hell isn't in here.”
We headed toward the back of the house, and by the time I got there my cup was empty. My head was feeling pretty light too, like it was full of helium or not quite attached to my body. Despite the setback with Liam, I was having an awesome time.
When we stepped outside, the air felt warm and sticky with humidity, but the ocean breeze was cool. I tore my shoes off at the bottom of the stairs, then stepped onto the beach. The sand swirled between my toes when I wiggled them. It was a nice feeling. Like being young and free.
We walked toward the water, but no one was around. I looked to the right, trying to catch sight of Ryan in the distance, then to the left. As far as I could tell, no one was on the beach.
“What the bloody hell?” Liam said behind me.
I turned to find him holding up a shirt and recognized it immediately. It was Annie's. On the ground were other things: shoes and pants, and a bra. I spun toward the ocean and let out a laugh that rang through the air. The light from the moon shimmered off the water as the waves rolled in, and I could just make out two figures in the distance.
Number eight: skinny-dipping.
How do you like that, Julie? I didn't get anywhere with Liam, but I can still strip down and go skinny-dipping in the ocean. That's something we always joked about, isn't it? Too bad you aren't here to enjoy it with me.
“Annie!” I yelled, pulling my dress over my head.
“Cami!” Chris snapped and stepped forward like he was going to stop me from taking anything else off.
Liam grabbed his arm. “Back off, mate. She's a big girl.” He was grinning from ear to ear.
I called out to Annie again just as Liam dropped his pants. He pulled his shirt over his head and I giggled like I was a thirteen-year-old boy who had just heard someone use the word boner. Liam's muscled chest was highlighted by the moon above us. Even though I knew he was toned because I had plowed into him only a few days earlier, I still couldn't help the flush that came over my body. Then he dropped his boxers onto the sand and I was able to appreciate the full package. Literally.
I followed Liam's lead, and even though Chris hadn't been up for it at first, he did too. It probably had a lot to do with the fact that Annie was out there naked.
Liam and I took off toward the ocean just as someone behind us yelled, “Skinny-dipping!” I looked over my shoulder and laughed. A handful of people were busy stripping down, and more were pouring out of the house behind them.
The salty sea stung my skin when I ran in and it was warmer than bathwater. The waves crashed against my legs, almost knocking me down, but Liam grabbed my hand before I could fall. The moon reflected in his blue eyes when he looked me over, savoring the sight of me as if I were an exquisite work of art.
The water rose to the point where I could swim, so I let go of Liam's hand and pulled myself through the waves toward Ryan and Annie. When I swam up, she was laughing. The water was too deep for me to be able to touch the ocean floor, and I briefly considered hanging onto Liam. But I decided it was a very bad idea with Ryan standing right in front of us, and wrapped my arms around Annie's neck instead. Liam kept his distance like he was afraid if he got too close, Ryan would be able to read his mind and know what we'd just done.
“What are you guys doing?” I asked my cousin and roommate. If it had been anyone else, I would have assumed they were up to something naughty. Why else would two people go skinny-dipping in the middle of the night?
Ryan didn't look my way, but he was smiling. “Just getting some things out of the way.”
“What? Like your clothes?” Chris said, coming up to join us and looking right at Annie.
Annie shivered like she was cold, which was just crazy. The night was warm and the ocean felt like a heated pool this time of year. I pulled myself closer to her just in case, and my breasts rubbed against her arm. Even in the moonlight I could see her blush.
Liam elbowed Chris and jerked his head my way. “I'm gonna be dreaming about that tonight, mate.”
“You're about two seconds from getting your ass kicked,” Ryan muttered. “You think I don't know what you were up to in there with my cousin?”
My eyes snapped his way. Did Annie tell him? No. I couldn't believe she would do that to me. Ryan probably just figured it out. Oddly enough, he didn't sound very mad. Not nearly as mad as I'd thought he would be.
Liam flashed a sexy grin and even in the darkness his eyes seemed to sparkle. “She's a wild one.”
He threw himself behind Annie and me just as Ryan made a jump for him.
“I'm gonna kick your ass,” my cousin growled.
Liam took off and Ryan dove after him. I wasn't really sure what he thought he was doing, though. Was Ryan going to tackle Liam? If so, he'd be in for a shock.
“You're not thinking straight!” I yelled after them. “He's naked.”
Ryan didn't stop, so I let go of Annie's neck and swam their way. Liam was laughing as he pulled himself through the waves, and Ryan was hot on his trail. By the time I caught up with them, the guys were in the middle of a water fight. They were acting like two little boys instead of college sophomores. I splashed my cousin in the face while I treaded water. Without Annie, I was going to have to rely on Liam or Ryan. No way was I going to let my cousin's naked body touch mine. Gross.
I wrapped my arms around Liam's neck just like I had with Annie a few minutes before. Liam grinned when my breasts brushed against his arm, and heat spread through my body all over again. The water fight came to an abrupt end. Ryan glared at Liam like he was hoping
Jaws
would show up and take a big old bite out of him. I needed to lay down the law if I wanted Liam to take the next step.
I rolled my eyes at my cousin. “Calm down. First of all, I'm an adult and perfectly capable of making my own choices.” Ryan snorted, but I ignored him. “Secondly, nothing happened. This is just ridiculous! Let me be a teenager and make stupid decisions and throw myself at hot foreigners who are only after one thing. You wouldn't be acting this way if Annie was the one throwing herself at Liam.”
Ryan's eyes got big and he turned to face Annie and Chris. They were a few feet away from us, and standing very close to each other. It looked like they were on the verge of their first kiss. My heart pounded so hard you'd think I was the one about to get kissed. I had the urge to do a cheer. Annie was about to mark another item off her list!