Hawaiian Holiday: Destination Desire, Book 2 (11 page)

“She sounds like an amazing woman.” He reached out and caught her chin, lifting it until she looked at him. “I can see where you take after her.”

“That’s kind. Thank you.” Disbelief and flattery reflected in her eyes. “Eloise left some very big shoes to fill though. I’m not sure I have quite the
joie de vivre
that she did.”

“I think you do.” He released her chin. “There aren’t many people I’ve met who manage to make fun out of nothing the way you can. And so far, you’ve been pretty bombproof, no matter what happens.”

He hoped she believed that, because he knew how hard it was to dig out from under the grief when a loved one died. It took a long time and the pain never went away entirely—it just got easier to bear. Julie was doing better than she thought she was, and in his opinion, her view on life was to credit for that. A view she seemed to have inherited from her aunt.

“Thanks. Really…thanks.” She flushed and bit her lip. “I’ve…uh…never told anyone about losing Eloise being worse than losing my mom. I’ve always felt kind of guilty about it, like I should have loved my mom best. But she and I were pretty different. We loved each other and she was awesome—both of my parents were—but when there’s no common ground it’s hard to have a deep connection.”

“Family dynamics are complicated, Julie. Don’t feel bad about that.” He leaned forward. “The important part is that you all loved each other.”

That lopsided grin formed on her face again. “You’re right. Mom was the ultimate sportswoman, and
loved
to go hunting and fishing with my dad. I always opted to stay with Eloise. We’d sit in her shop, knit, and gossip with her customers. And every now and then, she’d just hop in the car with me and go for a drive. She liked seeing places she’d never been.” A laugh straggled out of her, and tears glistened in her eyes before she blinked them away. “One time, we went to Lake Tahoe for lunch. Just because.”

He took another bite of his shrimp. “Did she really like to take wrong turns, or did she have a bad sense of direction too?”

She giggled as he’d hoped she would. “No, I get that from my dad. Mom and Auntie were always the navigators. She just liked to see new things. I took over her shop for her every summer in college while she traveled. I don’t think she ever made it to Hawaii, but she would have loved it.” She mock-leered at him. “Auntie probably would have pinched your butt and called you a stud muffin.”

“And you plan to do that when you reach old age?”

Her eyes twinkled merrily, but her shrug was demure. “Sure. I’ll need something to keep me entertained. Harassing hot men who can’t get mad at an old lady sounds like fun.”

For some reason, he could picture her being a holy terror as a senior citizen, a wicked gleam in her gaze as she shook up people’s lives the way she had his. He could imagine how amusing it would be to sit back as an old man and watch the show. Maybe she wouldn’t grab anyone’s ass, but she’d still be finding ways to have a good time no matter where she happened to be. She’d probably manage to drag other people into that fun. Now there was a way to spend his retirement. He shook his head at those ridiculous thoughts. It would be too good to be true. Hell,
Julie
seemed too good to be true.

It was a futile idea, but he suddenly wondered how much different his life would have been—how much different
he
would have been—if he’d met Julie before Lilith. Would he be the bitter divorcee who was suspicious of every woman’s motives? Would he still be blown away by the force of nature that was Hurricane Julie?

He didn’t know, and it was foolish to wonder. He was who he was. He’d made the choices he’d made, and his life had been shaped because of those choices.

“They have a portable sink set up over there.” Julie pointed before she stood and gathered her plate and fork. She waggled her eyebrows at him. “I bet they even have soap.”

“Wow, do you really think so? I’m positively giddy with excitement,” he returned,
sotto voce
.

She rolled her eyes. “Come on. We need to get back on the road, and then I need to explain a flat tire to the rental company.”

“They might be assholes about that.”

“I know, but that’s a problem for later. I’m not letting it get me down now.” She waved that away. “But, Lukas?”

He paused in collecting a napkin that had been caught in the sea breeze. “Yes?”

Her gaze was direct. “Thanks for listening, about my aunt and mom. Thanks for not judging. Thanks for asking in the first place.”

And he almost hadn’t bothered to ask, hadn’t wanted to get involved, hadn’t wanted to intrude. He’d always been a bit reserved with new people—Julie being a notable exception—but how much more withdrawn had he become in recent years? He was glad he’d ignored his usual reticence for her. She was a nice woman, and if his listening had helped with what she was going through, he was even gladder. When she left the island, he hoped she was in a better place with her grief than she had been when she arrived.

“You’re welcome.” He walked around the table and dropped a kiss on her forehead. “Let’s get going.”

“Turn in here,” Lukas said and Julie obeyed without question. He hadn’t steered her wrong so far, so she assumed he knew where he was going.

After cutting across the highway, she pulled into a small parking lot surrounded by trees. Between the trunks, she could see glimpses of sand and ocean. “Where are we?”

“Other than the North Shore? I’m not sure. It just looked like a pretty place to stop.” He winked. “I thought Aunt Eloise would have approved of the spontaneity.”

“Ha. Yes, she would have.” Julie set the parking brake and climbed out of the car. They walked through the trees, which dappled the ground with shadow. Pretty, just as Lukas promised, but nothing could beat the moment they broke through to the beach.

The breeze curled around her, the scent of the ocean filling her nose. The waves crashing against the shore were so blue and beautiful it was almost surreal. The beach was dotted with palm trees, the sandy coastline stretching between two black cliffs. And she’d thought Waikiki Beach was gorgeous. It had nothing on this.

Lukas’s arm came around her shoulder. Neither of them said anything, just stood there and enjoyed the stunning panorama.

“Let’s walk a little,” he suggested. He kept his hold on her, and their shoulders and hips bumped as they walked, but it felt like the most normal thing in the world. Being with him was comfortable, but he also sparked a fire inside her that she’d never experienced with any other man before. It confused her, because the first reaction was one she associated with a friend, the second with a lover. None of her boyfriends had ever hit both notes for her at once. They’d always been too much of one or the other, and it hadn’t worked out.

When they reached the towering black cliff, Lukas steered them into an alcove in the rock face. She looked up at the jagged outcroppings of stone. “Is it lava rock?”

“I’m not sure, but it seems like a good guess.” His voice sounded in her ear, his hot breath brushing over her neck. He pressed a kiss to her nape, then nipped at the tender flesh there. Her eyes closed and her head dropped back on his shoulder.

Goose bumps broke across her skin as he drew her against him. He was big and solid and warm behind her. Passion shimmered within her, and she savored the burn. They were half an island away from their hotel and she had a feeling the rest of the drive was going to be a little bit torturous with them trapped together in that teeny little car, close but not close enough. His palms skimmed down her sides until he reached her skirt, then gathered fistfuls of the fabric. Her eyes popped open in shock and the hard length of his erection pushed against her backside. “You have to be kidding me, Lukas.”

His voice was low and rough, cajoling. “We’re shielded from the road here.”

Pulling away, she spun to face him, hands planted on hips. “Anyone could come along and see us! Aren’t all beaches in Hawaii public?”

“Yes, so we’d better hurry before we get caught.” His smile was challenging, and she couldn’t believe the restrained professor wanted to do the nasty in public. He caught her hand and drew her further into the alcove, sitting on the sand with his back to the cliff. He tugged her down until she was straddling his lap. The sand was rough under her knees, but she didn’t try to get up. Excitement spurted through her, even though she wasn’t sure this was the best idea ever.

He smoothed his hands up her thighs. “I’m so glad you’re wearing a dress, even if it sucked to change a flat tire in it.”

A shiver rippled over her skin, her breath rushing faster. He pulled her forward until her sex pressed against his. He was hard, straining against his fly. Lust punched through her, and she felt her core grow damp with need. She set her hands on his shoulders to steady herself. The pounding of her pulse filled her ears, competing with the crash of waves on the shore.

“Kiss me,
mein Liebling.”
He traced the edge of her panties around the bottom of her buttocks, and her inner muscles clenched.

There was no refusing him, no denying the heat and fire he created inside her. Leaning in, she offered him her mouth, and he took it, took her, and she moaned. Their tongues twined, the flavor of him reached down deep and grabbed something inside her she couldn’t even identify, but it felt amazing.

She was really going to do this. The thrill of danger and the forbidden raced through her, sizzling her nerve endings. Pressing her hips forward to grind her clit against his hard length increased the ache of longing within her. She could feel the beginnings of climax shivering through her pussy. A groan vibrated his broad chest. He thrust his tongue into her mouth, the motion mimicking what she wanted him to be doing to other parts of her anatomy. Unstoppable desire built like a rising tide inside her, and she had to have him moving deep in her sex, driving her toward orgasm.
Yes. Oh God, yes.

By pushing her hand between them, she could fumble with his belt and zipper. When she got his pants open, she reached in to free him and fondled his thick cock. Moisture beaded at the tip and she smeared it over the bulbous crest. He shuddered, his hips bucking beneath her.

“Condom,” he gasped after he tore his mouth from hers.

He set her away from him just long enough to pull a rubber out of his wallet. She grabbed it out of his hands, ripped it open, and slid it on his cock. Her body throbbed, so close to the edge she thought she might explode into a million pieces.

“Impatient, much?” His chuckle was a rough sound.

She shot him a look. “If you’re not inside me in the next thirty seconds, I’m going to come without you.”

“
Mein Gott
, Julie!” He didn’t even bother to remove her panties, just jerked the inset aside and thrust into her pussy. The stretch was exquisite and when he began nudging back and forth within her, the friction was intense enough to make her eyes roll back.

“Lukas!” she gasped. “This is insane.”

“I know.” His arms encircled her and pulled her even closer while he worked his full length into her sex. “You feel so perfect, all tight and wet around me.”

His words sent an electric shock straight to her core, and she had to move, to push toward the climax that teased her senses. She arched into him, lifting and lowering herself on his cock. She rode him faster and faster, her breath rushing out in gasps. The muscles in her thighs burned as she quickened her pace, and her knees in the sand were more than a little uncomfortable, but she couldn’t have stopped for anything.

Rocking his pelvis upwards, he increased the depth and speed of his penetration. His hands closed over her breasts, massaging before he zeroed in on her nipples. He pinched them hard through her dress, twisting until she cried out with pleasured pain. It sent her tumbling straight into orgasm. Tingles raced over her skin, and her pussy fisted in rhythmic pulses on his pounding dick. She ground herself down on the coarse hair at his groin, extending her climax as long as possible.

His fingers bit into hips, so tight it was almost bruising. He pulled her to the base of his cock, forcing himself deeper inside her than he’d been before. The shock sent her over the edge again, and her inner muscles squeezed around his cock. His groan was a harsh, wonderful sound. He shuddered beneath her, his gaze locking with hers and she watched satisfaction play across his face.

“Julie,” he whispered.

Just her name, but he looked at her like she was the most amazing thing to ever rock his world. She liked being looked at that way. It made her feel powerful, irresistible, sexy.

A girl could get used to feeling that way.

Chapter Seven

Lukas stared blindly out the car window as they cruised toward Honolulu. Thankfully, Julie just needed to stay on the highway because he didn’t think he was up to any serious navigating.

She was right, what they’d done
had
been insane. Irresponsible. Irresistible. What was it about her that made him set his caution aside? Hell, he’d thrown it to the wind. A cautious man doesn’t have sex on a public beach in broad daylight. Yet, he’d done exactly that, because waiting another two hours to have her was more than he could stand. It had been mind-blowing, earth-shattering. It was getting better every time, and if anyone had asked him if that was possible the first night they’d spent together, he would have said no.