Something Wonderful (34 page)

I
TOOK
J
ENNA BACK
into the house. She never once complained about how cold it was, but I could tell when she shivered in my arms. Her hair looked a bit wild from the breeze, making her look sexy as hell, but I wasn’t going to tell her. I was going to enjoy my view.

I wasn’t sure if proposing this early in our relationship was a good idea, but I didn’t want to wait another day. Besides, when was it ever a perfect time to propose? You just do it when you think the time is right, but who knew about these things. I never wanted to propose to anyone until I met Jenna.

As we ate dinner on the balcony, under the heat lamp, Jenna couldn’t stop staring at the candlelight. Seeing her smile and in awe of everything I did for her tonight confirmed I had made the right decision. The thought of her saying “no” did cross my mind. However, after what we’d been through this past month, I knew our love for each other had grown. I guess this would be the arrogant side of me, but how could she refuse?

Knowing Jenna, I may have to wait a year to get her down the aisle, but I’m fine with that. I want her to feel comfortable. Scaring her off is the last thing I want to do. I knew that if I was patient with her, we could work out the kinks, the trust issues, and her insecurity.

“Are you cold?” I asked, seeing her tremble as I took a bite of my steak.

“I’m fine,” she said, taking a sip of her tea, and pulling her black shawl over her shoulders. Her new black dress had a touch of lace around the neckline, and looked fantastic on her. With her hair in soft curls, though the curls had straightened somewhat due to the breeze, she looked edible and I couldn’t help thinking about the things I was going to do to her later.

I also observed the diamond earrings and necklace set I had bought for her for Christmas. They looked lovely on her and I’m glad that I chose them. A woman like Jenna deserved all the finer things in life, though she would disagree; all the more reason I wanted to do it for her.

Looking into her eyes, they radiated against the candlelight, just like her ring. I loved seeing her this happy. Knowing Jenna as well as I did, I figured she would want something simple yet elegant, and that is what I bought for her. She couldn’t stop staring at it, though she tried to hide the fact that she was.

As I took my last bite, I noticed she only ate half her dinner and I knew the reason why. She must be feeling as giddy as I was.

“Babe, eat your dinner, or I’ll have to feed you myself.”

Jenna let out a slight giggle, looking at me wickedly and deviously. “I’m not that hungry. I can’t think about food when I’m thinking about getting you naked in bed.”

Holy shit! She did not just say that to me. Then her finger went straight to her mouth purposely giving me that innocent, sexy grin that made me come unglued. That look that can make me do anything for her.

Jenna was a lot more flirtatious these days. She was getting more comfortable, and opening up more. I knew there was a wild, sexy goddess in there. I just had to help her ease into her new skin. Absorbing her words, I gulped down my last sip of wine. Though I had poured some wine for Jenna, she hadn’t even taken a sip.

Leaning into her, I gave her a challenging stare. “You want to make that come true?”

“I dare you to,” she teased, holding up an asparagus stalk, gliding her tongue on it with a long stroke. As I watched, I could swear I just felt her tongue on my dick.

It took every ounce of restraint not to clear this table and take her right here.

“You know what would make me eat more, Max?” she continued. “If I could eat my dinner off your naked body.”

That did it! She had no idea how much self-control I had been utilizing since the minute we walked through that door this afternoon. Jenna gasped when I pushed back my chair suddenly. Did she think I wasn’t going to take her up on her offer? Knowing Jenna, that’s exactly what she thought.

“Come on, I’m taking you up on your offer right now,” I said, as I swatted her ass. I flung her over my shoulder. It happened so fast she didn’t know what hit her.

“Max!” Jenna laughed out loud. “Put me down.”

“Don’t move. I’ll drop you.” I wasn’t going to, but the way she was wiggling, I knew I possibly could. “If you don’t listen, I’m going to spank your ass all the way to our room,” I said in a forceful tone, giving her a good smack on her ass again.

“Max, don’t forget my plate,” she giggled.

She didn’t know I was already holding it. She also didn’t know I had a can of whipped cream upstairs and I was planning on licking it off her. “Prepare yourself, babe. You’re not getting much sleep tonight.”

B
ECCA LOOKED ABSOLUTELY STUNNING
in her form-fitted black dress. It looked very similar to Jenna’s. Becca looked relaxed as I held her hand while driving. When we reached our destination, I told Becca to stay seated, as I ran around the car and opened her door for her.

“There are so many boats here,” Becca gushed, gazing around, looking amazed.

“We’re in Long Beach. The best place to look at them,” I commented, embracing her in my arms as we headed to our yacht.

I had purposely taken my time getting here. I wanted Becca to see this amazing view and I knew by the look on her face that she was in awe. Her eyes were gleaming and her smile said it all.

The white lights that dangled from poles along the dock, highlighted by the moon, gave it an elegant feel. The sound of the small, anchored boats rocking against the water was hypnotic and the music that emanated from one of the boats gave a soothing feel.

Lightly shivering in my arms, I pulled Becca tighter. “You cold, firecracker?”

Becca gave a hardy laugh. “I hope you don’t plan on calling me firecracker in front of other people.”

“Why not? Unless you want me to call you love, babe, sweetheart, sunshine….”

“Okay, stop,” she snorted. “You can call me firecracker when we’re alone. If you promise, I’ll show you what a real firecracker can do in and out of bed. But I rather you call me Becca.”

She was talking all hot and flirty, so how could I resist that offer? “Agreed. Better hold on to that thought. Here we are.”

Becca’s eyes were wide, looking stunned as she stood there taking in the beauty of this magnificent three-leveled yacht. How could she not be? I’m in awe every time I set my eyes on her and I’ve been on this boat a million times. “Welcome to the Ellen Knight, named after my mother. My dad had gifted this to her when our company took off.”

“Wow. I don’t know what to say. Thank you,” Becca said softly, unable to peel her eyes off the yacht.

“Let’s get on board.” Holding Becca’s hand, I led her inside. She was grinning from ear to ear and it got even bigger when she set her eyes on our private dining table, adorned with candlelight and flowers.

“Good evening, Mr. Knight, Ms. Miller.”

Becca looked stunned that Carlos, our personal chef, knew her name.

“Good evening,” Becca replied.

“Please watch your step. Mr. Knight, I’ll be back with the wine.” With that, Carlos disappeared.

After I helped Becca settle into her chair, I sat across from her. The cool breeze gently tousled her hair. Being under a heat lamp, we were able to enjoy the view on deck, instead of having to eat inside. So many boats sailed that night. I had planned to do just that after dinner, so Becca and I could be truly alone. She had no idea what was coming.

After Carlos poured the wine, he was out of sight. I lifted up my glass. “To our first Valentine’s Day together, and many more to come.”

Becca clinked the glass. “To a new beginning.” After she took a sip and placed the glass down, she let out a soft sigh. “Thank you, Matthew. Everything about today is amazing. I’ve been on Valentine’s Day dates before, but this is something else. You’ve gone out of your way to make me feel special.”

“Firecracker.” I lifted her chin to set my eyes on hers. “You are special to me in every way. You’re the only one that made me want to move forward, and I’m going to do everything I can to show you exactly what I mean.”

Becca gave me a huge smile. “Thank you.” That was all she could say. I think I just put out the fire in my firecracker.

M
ATTHEW MADE ME BLUSH
big time with his words. I don’t know what I did to help him move on, but whatever it was, I’m sure glad it worked. Everything about tonight was fantastic. I would dream about this night for a very long time.

After dinner, Matthew gave me a tour of this fabulous yacht. The furnishings were elegant, with leather seats and fine wood cabinets. The television was state of the art, and everything else was nothing but the best. His mom was sure spoiled, but it was also sweet of her to allow him to use it for tonight.

“When you’re ready, you’ll have to meet my parents,” Matthew said out of the blue. “I mean when we’re both ready.”

“Matthew, remember one day at a time. I don’t want you to get sick of me so quickly,” I joked.

“Never,” he said, whisking me into his arms.

When he let go, I jerked back. “We’re moving?” I started to panic. “Where are we going and who’s driving?”

“Relax. Carlos not only cooks, but he is fully qualified to pilot this boat.”

Matthew wrapped a blanket around us, planted a kiss on my forehead, and led us out. We were heading into complete darkness, but the light from the other boats was a reminder we weren’t alone. From afar, they looked like stars, floating on the wave of the ocean. At times, it felt as though we were aimlessly drifting through the universe without a destination. There were no words. It was magical.

Matthew reached under what looked like a secret compartment I hadn’t noticed before, and took out a walkie-talkie to speak into it. “Carlos, make sure to steer away from all the other vessels and then you can return to your cabin. Please do not disturb us unless it’s an emergency. If you do, fair warning, you may see me naked,” Matthew laughed.

Matthew saying the word naked caught my attention. When I flashed my eyes at him, he winked at me. After he put the radio away, he pushed a button, and soft music filled the air around us. Leaning into each other, neither of us spoke as we stared at the magnificent view.

“Ready for tomorrow’s trip?” Matthew asked.

“I can’t believe I’m going to the London Fashion Show,” I said excitedly. “I’m so freakin’ excited I can hardly contain myself.”

Matthew snuggled into me, chuckling. “I love it when you’re excited. It makes me happy to see you happy.”

“You know what else makes me excited?” I asked in a flirty tone, running my hands across his hard chest, the chest that made me gasp for air just thinking about when he took off his sweater at the apartment.

“I can take a guess.” Matthew bit his bottom lip. Seeing him flirt back made me lose it. “I bet I got you excited when I first took off my sweater.”

He was right, but I wasn’t going to feed his ego. “You think so?” I glued my eyes to his. “I bet I got you excited when I dumped the plate of leftovers on your sweater.”

Matthew’s eyes grew wide with humor, recalling the incident. “I bet you got excited when I told you to wash it off. And then your eyes rested directly on my crotch.”

I don’t know why recalling our not so friendly, heated conversation turned me on, but I had nothing to say after that because he was damn right. Without any further hesitation, I sealed my lips on his for a quick kiss and backed away. “Happy Valentine’s Day.”

Matthew didn’t respond at first, taking his time staring at me with the look of longing. His look said, ‘I’m going to take you NOW’. Then he closed the gap between us, pressing his chest against my breasts, his hands not touching me. Pulling his face into the side of my neck, he whispered, “I want to make love to you under the stars.”

When I nodded to confirm, Matthew slowly peeled off my clothes, layer by layer, as if I was the most precious gift. Tenderly, he continued to worship my body as he stripped off his own clothes. He took his time kissing every single inch while we cuddled under the blanket.

Feeling like I was going to melt any minute as his hands, lips, and tongue explored me, I quivered, and could no longer stand on my own two feet. Suddenly, he spun me around. Instinctively, I gripped the handrail for support and parted my legs as I eagerly waited for him. With one hand on my breast, the other on my thigh, he entered me from behind.