“What? I like the antici—”

“Say it!”

He frowns. “I was going to before you interrupted me.”

“Never mind,” I mutter. “You’ll learn one day. Now, explain yourself.”

“If you think I don’t want to sleep with you, you’re wrong. I’d fuck you right here on this couch, but I don’t want that for our first time together. I want the moment to be right.” He pulls his head back and meets my eyes. “We’re getting dressed. We’re going out to dinner. Then we’re coming home and I’m having you for dessert.”

My hand tightens around his length at his declaration, my teeth biting into my bottom lip at the promise.

“Zoe?”

“Yeah?”

“Move your hand before we can’t stop.”

He’s right. I know he is. I don’t want our first time to be on the couch either.

But I want him—bad.

With reluctance, I remove my hand, and Caleb pushes himself up on his knees and away from me. I sit up, my hair spilling out in every direction, chest pushed out, on display.

His pupils dilate as he points to the bedroom. “Go now, before I change my mind.”

Chuckling, I pull myself off the couch, keeping the blanket wrapped around my waist because I am most definitely not wearing pants under it. “Where are we headed?”

Caleb relaxes back into the cushions, exhaling a shaky breath and widening his legs, trying to make the situation in his pants more comfortable. “Seafood okay?”

“Is seafood okay, he says to the girl who spends several weeks a year in Outer Banks.”

“That’s Zoe speak for yes, right?”

“Yes, Caleb.”

He runs a hand over his forehead, pretending to wipe sweat away. “Phew. Good.”

“Give me about thirty minutes then?”

“Like thirty minutes or ‘thirty minutes’?”

“A normal half hour.”

“Okay,” he agrees skeptically.

An idea hits me as I begin to walk away, and I pause at the end of the hallway.

“Hey Caleb?”

He twists around on the couch to look at me, the fire of desire still dancing in his dark eyes. “Yeah?”

I drop the blanket, and his mouth hits the floor along with it.

“A thong!” he yells. Then I hear a loud groan as I continue down the hallway. “You’re killing me, Zoe. Killing me!”

Caleb shifts the car into park and opens his door.

“Stay there,” he instructs over my shoulder.

“You could at least say please!” I argue, but he’s already shutting the door.

I watch as he rounds the car and am surprised when he rushes over to my side to open my door for me.

Extending his hand, he says, “For you.”

I allow him to help me out while eyeing him warily. “Why are you being so gentlemanly? Because you want to get laid? I plan on sleeping with you either way.”

He smiles. “No, but that’s nice to know.”

“Then…”

“It’s the right thing to do. When we were at the restaurant, I watched an older man do it for his wife and I realized how much of an ass I was for never doing it before.”

I want to laugh at him, but it’s actually kind of sweet and romantic.

“Well, thank you then.”

“No problem.”

He grabs my hand and begins leading us down the path we always take to the beach.

I pull at him. “Wrong way.”

“No it’s not.”

“You’re telling me you’re dragging me to the beach for a change?”

“What? I’m starting to like it.”

I grin. “Hey, I’m not arguing here.”

We make our way down the dusk-lit path. Before we hit the sand, we take our shoes off and Caleb rolls up the bottoms of his jeans. Then he leads me over to what we’ve sort of deemed our spot and doesn’t stop until we’re standing at the water’s edge.

He wraps his arms around me from behind, pulling me close, and we stare out at the vast ocean as the rays of day settle into night, letting the water lap at our bare feet. The stars shine above, the moon reflecting off the water in a picturesque scene. It’s quiet and comfortable and the simplest, most romantic gesture of my life.

“I could get used to this,” he says into the darkness. “You, me, nights on the beach.”

My heart thunders at the thought of spending days, weeks, even years with Caleb out here.

“Going out to romantic seaside dinners…roasting s’mores on the beach.”

I can see it too.

“Spending all the time in the world out here…naked. Lots of naked time on the beach.”

A laugh bursts out of me and I spin around in his arms. “You totally just ruined that moment. Also, being naked on the beach does not sound appealing. Sand would get in all your no-no spots, and no one likes that.”

“What the hell are you doing? Lying spread eagle face down in the sand or some shit? We’d lay a blanket down. Geez.”

I pat his chest twice and walk farther into the water. “I love how you’re planning our beach sexcapades right now. Never gonna happen.”

He prowls toward me. “You don’t think so?’

“Nope.”

“You’re telling me if I stripped naked right now then slowly peeled away that”—he bites his knuckles and takes another step closer—“sexy as sin sundress from your body, you wouldn’t get down and dirty with me?”

My chest heaves as the image of Caleb doing just that washes over me. I have to squeeze my thighs together to create even an ounce of the friction my body is craving right now.

“No,” I lie.

“Uh huh.” Another step. “And what if you were all wet and had to get naked? What about then?”

I already am wet. “No.”

“You sure?”

“Yes.”

Suddenly he swoops me into his arms, my legs automatically going around his waist for safety, and dashes into the shallow part of the sea. I’m half enthralled, half scared I’m going to fall.

He brings his lips to my ear. “I’ll say it again: you sure?”

“I swear, if you drop me into this water, Caleb Mills, you’re going back to school with the bluest balls in the history of blue balls, and you’re going down with me.”

He gives me a wide grin then pretends to lose his grip on me, and I let out a loud yelp, climbing farther up his body.

“Caleb!”

“Zoe!”

“Put me down.”

“Down? Right here?”

I rear back and glare at him. “Don’t you dare.”

Laughing, he carries me until we’re not standing in half a foot of water and are safe on the beach again. When we’re in the clear, he releases his strong grip.

I slide down his body in the slowest moment of my entire life.

I feel him everywhere, every hard and soft inch of him. I feel his heart beating within his chest like a wild animal stuck in a cage.

His opaque blue eyes bore into me, and we’re locked in a trance. Our chests brush together at every strangled breath, and I know he’s feeling what I’m feeling.

I don’t know if it’s the magic of the moon or the anticipation building up to our date tonight, but I want Caleb.

I want him bad.

I lift my head until my lips meet his ear. “Caleb?”

I feel his shiver, can hear the shuddered breath he takes. “Y-Yeah?”

“Take me home.”

We walk hand in hand up the short driveway, only parting to unlock the front door.

Caleb silently leads me down the hall to the bedroom we’re sharing.

The backs of my knees hit the end of the bed and I collapse, bouncing once before finding my balance. He stands in front of me, looking down at me like I’m his last meal.

His hands come up to cup my face, titling my head until I’m at just the right angle, and then he descends. His lips move over mine with ease, his tongue slipping into my mouth. One hand stays cupped along my jaw while the other dances upward. I feel his fingers dive into the mass of hair I have swept up into a ponytail and carefully pull the elastic band from the mess.

He grips my head and holds me close to him as his mouth makes love to mine in the most sensual kiss I’ve ever experienced. My whole body is alight with fire and yearning. My body is growing lax with the pleasure coursing through me, and all he’s doing is kissing me.

I can feel it everywhere—in my nipples, which are pulled tight and straining against the barbells poked through them, in the way my core tightens and my thighs clench together at the anticipation of satisfaction to come.

More. I want more.

I reach for the button on his pants, working it through the hole and popping it open. With an agonizing slowness, I slide the zipper down. I find the waistband of his jeans and push them and his boxer briefs down until his hard cock is exposed.

I waste no time wrapping my hand around his arousal.

Caleb wrenches his mouth from mine with a gasp.

“Zoe…what are you doing?”

“Shut up. Let me take care of you.”

“T-Take care of me?”

I stand and maneuver us until Caleb’s sitting on the bed and I’m standing over him, his dick still bobbing between us. I fall to my knees and push him back until he’s more relaxed.