Caramel Beach (Lessons in Pure Life Book 2) Read online

  “Wait for me,” he calls in a loud whisper.

  I’m momentarily paralyzed by the sight of all of him, his confident march to the shoreline, his determined expression combined with the blunt physicality of his erection. I swear, that thing’s going to be the end of me.

  If I’m lucky.

  He’s sloshing toward me with big, slow steps. Diego, naked in the waves. Where do I start?

  He cuts through the water fast until he’s up to his hip bones, the V-lines of his pelvic muscles enhanced with shadow.

  “You are a spectacular woman.”

  Moving in, he reaches out for me. There’s nowhere else I could go. Carefully he scans my face before he grips the back of my neck and kisses me hard, opening my mouth wider with his tongue. I lock my arms around his neck and wrap my legs around his waist, passion giving me the strength to hold myself up. Can’t stop my hips from rocking against his while he slides his hands over my wet body, trying to touch all of me at once.

  He looks down between us, breathing hard, making me want to take him in. He reaches between my legs, pulling the soaked-through fabric of my underwear aside to press the pad of his index finger into my bare skin, making me gasp.

  “This okay?” he asks, not slowing down.

  “Goddamn right.”

  He grins and I kiss him again. He adjusts his grip around my waist, putting me in a better position to handle him like a vintage Italian convertible.

  “Dios mío,” he says in a grating whisper when I figure out his rhythm. He’s touching me softly, gradually stroking deeper, getting me wetter than all the water around us.

  It’s not until he begins to move toward the shore that I have to question him, even though he’s holding me against him tight.

  “What – where are we going?”

  “Nirvana, I hope.” He carries me ashore and lays me gently on my back. “I’m looking for enlightenment. Have you seen it anywhere?”

  “What are you up to?”

  The surf rolls up to my chest and back down again. Diego plants himself on his stomach and parts my legs, pulling each one over his shoulders. Oh. Warm air cradles me, the tropical breeze stirring deep, peaceful feelings. My palm fills itself with his wet hair, pulling on it when I feel his tongue glide gently between my legs. Saltwater wraps a glossy sheen around my body. There’s never a time his grasp isn’t roving, ever-present everywhere. Breath rakes through me rough, exhaling in bursts and gasps.

  “Can I tell you something?” he murmurs just above a whisper, sliding his fingers inside me over and over. I can’t get the words out.

  “Y…”

  “This is what makes me come when I’m alone.”

  “Don’t stop.”

  “Every night since I saw you last. And before that too.”

  I might … heart attack … doesn’t matter.

  “You get me so hard, I…” He trails off, words stopping so he can use his tongue again. Letting go feels like all the layers falling off and only a hot, fluid center is left.

  “Diego…”

  It’s all I can – oh sweet goddamn. How long until there’s nothing left and I disappear?

  “Diego!”

  “What? Are you okay?”

  “No-yes! Don’t stop,” I demand when he hesitates, reaching down to pull him back to me with both hands.

  He loves my enthusiasm and he’s so fucking gorgeous, digging his knees into the sand and pulling my body up toward him as he licks circles inside me.

  “I think I’m gonna–”

  Thunderbolts and lightning. One and then another ecstatic ring of pleasure shockwaves from deep within my pelvis, down my legs and up through my chest to the top of my head. It’s fast and potent, the sensation he kisses into my body, the heights of pleasure pumping my heart into breakbeats.

  The intense, supersensitive tremors dissolve into honey-glowing radiation, and there’s a transition from total lack of control to a great, sensuous awareness of myself. Goddess. A low laugh ripples out of me. How could I have forgotten? I’m in complete control.

  Diego lies on his side next to me, looking pleased with himself, and I don’t waste any time reaching for where his hard-on presses against my thigh. His neck arches back and his mouth falls open into a sigh as I take it, it’s that sensitive. It’s his hardest, strongest muscle and it’s nearly perfect.

  “I’m almost there already,” he groans, maybe even hiding embarrassment behind a laugh. “That was pretty fucking hot.”

  I push him flat on his back and slide down to face his hips. Sand clings to his body, so I pour water over where he’s hard, stroking his dick, letting him into my mouth when I’m ready. One hand supports his head, his eyes wide so he can see everything, his mouth an astonished O. His other hand runs gently through my hair, tousling it and pulling it lightly as I glide up and down.

  “Seductora. Me pene es tan duro, en tu boca…” he mutters.

  Diego’s hips buck and he starts trying to tell me something I already know the answer to. His whole body flexes hard as the pressure mounts inside him, growing more swollen in my mouth. He breathes short and quick, grabbing his cock and hyperjerking it, moaning gutturally as he starts to come. He shudders, ejaculating in hot bursts. It’s like a rocket launch.

  When it’s over, he lifts his head for a moment to smile up at me meaningfully and then drops it back into the sand, exhausted, happy.

  I get up and wade a few feet into the water and dip my body in up to the neck. In a minute he joins me, walking slowly in that trance guys fall into. Absently, he swipes his hand over his thigh, washing away his sperm like it’s nothing. Millions of tiny Diegos swimming free. They’ll probably burrow into the ocean floor and evolve into a super-race of mermen or something.

  He dips down next to me, our shoulders touching lightly. No need for more. Everything’s out in the air now, well beyond holding hands. Contact confirmed. Lust satiated. Future unknown.

  “Kill me.” His voice gravelly, rolling through his throat to get to me. “I’m finished.”

  Our relaxed laughter is so quiet it fades into the white noise around us. We don’t look at each other. Eventually Diego reaches out and finds my hand, fingertips just grazing mine underwater for a second until they fall again. Minutes pass. It’s like we witnessed some extraordinary event, bonded by the natural experience, rather than your average tipsy, hotly anticipated fooling around.

  “I wonder how many other people are hooking up tonight,” I wonder out loud. “On the planet, I mean. A million?”

  Diego just laughs.

  “It’s good to see you again, Lia,” he says affectionately.

  The moon disappears behind some heavy cloud and doesn’t look like it’ll be making a comeback. We stagger back up the dark shore and hunt for our clothes, dumbstruck and giggling from the sugar and the sex and the magic.

  CHAPTER 4

  Diego

  Five fifteen a.m. Mierda. My head’s still clocking in for work. I can’t lie here anymore, even with Lia sleeping next to me. We crashed hard. Last night was… Que bomba. Might take a while to process.

  The smell of coffee beans roasting pulls me out of bed. May as well make myself useful.

  Careful not to wake the sleeping tiger, I try to be quiet in the bathroom, remembering to wipe up the water that pools around the edge of the shower when I’m done. Where did I leave my wallet? Can’t remember anything except glimpses of her body. How she made me feel. Where the fuck are my shorts? My head hurts and it’s not a hangover. Not from the drink, anyway.

  In the low morning light I write out a note and leave it on the small wooden table next to the bed. Back soon with coffee. That’s a promise I’ll keep.

  Buzzing like an angry cicada fills the room. Jesuchristo. The whole table vibrates, her phone lighting up. I glance at Lia but she’s still asleep, breathing long and slow. A new text message pops up on the screen.

  Unknown: Lia? They told me you’re in Panama or something. That’s great, good on
you. Listen, beautiful, I’m writing to say I’m sorry. I’m so regretfully sorry. When can we speak?

  Out in the hallway, I shut the door behind me gently and jog slowly down the wooden stairs toward the roaster. Panama, my ass.

  It’s raining so soft the drizzle doesn’t reach the ground. A path of sand separates the hostel from the roaster and his coffee orchard. When I order two coffees instead of one he smiles to himself. I’ve been here every morning, alone. Thinks he can see it all from where he stands.

  The man tells me to wait while he brews the next batch and I do. It’s worth it; Lia will like it. There’s nowhere to sit so I lean against a parking sign and stare out like I’ve never looked at the ocean before.

  When can we speak?

  Never, if I can help it.

  Five minutes ago, telling Lia I need a change of address was a problem. Now someone wants a piece of her and it’s someone who doesn’t ask if, but when. Her last admirer was a lady-beating prick. If that little shit comes crawling out like the roach he is, I’ll break his fucking neck.

  I’m not an idiot. I see how the local boys watch her, but they watch a lot of girls. Truth is, they don’t bother me. You can’t blame them, or anyway, I don’t. I didn’t get it until I saw her. Sexy, with steel behind it. Hot and cool, she’s a phoenix. There’s a way about her that makes you feel something, and I’m not so selfish I think other guys would miss it. You’re not getting away from Lia Noble without a good, long look in the eyes. Last thing I need’s her asshole ex-boyfriend trying to repaint the past. If the message is from him.

  “All ready for you, sir.”

  Cafés con leche and the teasing old-man smile are mine to take.

  I drop money in his hand and go away, back where I came from. His soft laughter tails me for a while until it gets bored and wanders back to its owner.

  Three sisters taught me not to fuck around with a serious girl. The kind with goals, college, all that. Respectable. Genesis said don’t distract them, you’ll just get in their way. I could see what she meant. Weekends were good to me behind the hotel bar, easiest gig I ever had. Mixing cocktails and pouring beer, I could see everything. Scout the hottest girls and watch them make their way over to me and whoever else was working that night.

  All the bartenders were hired off the beach, chosen for some look the American chain was going for. Classy-athletic or some shit. Shots were ordered, and after dark the girls would whisper with a desire that overwhelmed me at times. No one tells you how strong a woman can be when she wants something, her insides more powerful than the muscles that make a man. The other guys would take bets on which ones would approach first. I never put any money down, but I’d be lying if I didn’t guess who would invite me up to their room after my shift was over. I’d be lying if I said I turned them all down.

  It was easy not to get serious in school with American girls because their education was at stake. Mine, well, my heart wasn’t in it. Campus was good to me, but it was hard not knowing how to leave. Literally, I couldn’t get out of a dorm room fast enough. Didn’t matter how good she looked, whoever she was. There was no connection. I felt nothing beyond a little affection. I think I would have made a decent friend if I’d been able to resist the fucking. They were all so soft, stunning. Wet. By the time I was rinsing off, the room was already closing in. Surfing was the perfect excuse. They knew I couldn’t give up the morning swell.

  For a long time I wondered if there was something wrong with me. Caring, commitment, it doesn’t come naturally for me with outsiders. Reliable is what I tried to be instead.

  “Buenos dias, Diego. Para mi?”

  It’s the hostel manager eating pineapple at her desk, eyes on my second cup.

  “Lo siento, Lupe. Next time.”

  She laughs and doesn’t believe me. I make my way upstairs with heavy feet.

  Never trusted anyone but Genesis and Mama with deep conversations, the kind that make you think for days about more than just yourself. I do trust Lia, though.

  She’s sitting up in bed, swimming in my t-shirt, when I get the door open. It’s cute. Her eyes go round with excitement when she sees what I’ve got, like it’s game I’ve brought back from a hunt.

  “Brilliant move,” she says approvingly, reaching out when I hand it to her. That warm smile doesn’t get lost on me, the one that says thank you without speaking.

  Goddamn it’s easy to be kind to her. It’s the only thing I’m sure is right. Never had such a physical connection with a woman I respect this much. Lia’s a one-two punch and I’m feeling it. I want to be a better person for her. A girl’s never done that to me before, make me start thinking with her heart.

  “Is this from next door?”

  Her long lashes make shadows on her cheek as she peels the lid of her coffee back and leans forward to savor the aroma. Nothing’s lost on her, either.

  “Sí, bonita.”

  Before she showed up in my life, I was a capable zombie. Lia turned my insides into soul again with her inability to know apathy. I went from feeling mostly dead to wired when she turned up. Every part of me gets hard and pounding around her – I’d swear my blood is swollen, that I can feel it running hot through my body. I am not a violent man, but I am a man. That’s enough violence right there; war in my very nature boils under the surface, accelerated by her peaceful approach.

  “You all right, Diego?” Lia asks softly.

  She’s gazing up at me, curious, edging on mild concern.

  “Yeah.”

  No. It isn’t just her body, but the way she moves inside it. Doesn’t change the fact that I don’t belong in my home country any longer. Doesn’t have anything to do with it, except I might never see her again, and that would be bad.

  Nothing makes any sense. My desires split in different directions, and neither one is a lie.

  Lia

  Climbing in is the only way to get the electric blue dress on my body, pulling it up my waist and over my tits so the ladies appear to float perfectly. In the bathroom mirror I watch myself adjust the ultralight fabric over my shoulders and arms until it fits like couture. Hey look, I’m a sapphire. The neckline shoots downward, making a deep, narrow V. With the fitted, gauzy sleeves, it’s pretty damn glamourous. I’ve fastened a thick gold chain around my collarbone to match my shoes and purse. My hair’s got all the volume, with pieces pinned back kinda beach-glam. This is what you wear to bring a secret agent man to his knees, make him spill his secrets like water.

  “Almost ready in there?” asks Diego’s muffled voice.

  “Five minutes!” I call through the door, moving double time. When I look down, my hand’s clutching the knob shut. Easy, mama. I need to think.

  I sure as hell haven’t told Diego that the ex I’d left for dead in the swampy underbelly of my mind has returned to haunt me, calmly texting out of nowhere like we’re friends. Really, Carter? I’ll get another restraining order so quick it’ll kick in yesterday. Damn him for tracking me down. Don’t give him another second of your precious time.

  When I step out into the bedroom it’s empty, but the door’s open and through it I see Diego gazing out over the railing outside, lost in his own world. Cool evening air gets me longing. Cash, I.D., phone, gum and rosy strawberry lip balm, let’s do it. My d’Orsay heels hike me up four inches taller. Steady as she goes.

  Diego turns when my heels hit the concrete behind him. His suit is panther black, tailored to fit. Never seen him dressed to kill, but I could get used to it.

  After taking me in for a moment, he curses under his breath.

  “You’re gonna break some hearts tonight, gringa,” he tells me, shaking his head.

  “I’m not the only one. You look handsome as hell.”

  It’ll take all night to soak him in, this dapper, smouldering version of Diego. Knowing a surfer’s only got so many suits, I bet Genesis had it made for their mother’s funeral last year. She would know quality like that, and I can’t see him caring about tailoring, except
not to look foolish. He’s anything but.

  “Una visión en azul,” he says, eyeing me with fascination, dragging the words out slowly as he runs his fingers through his hair.

  “I wasn’t sure if it was the right thing, but…”

  He grins. “But then you looked in the mirror.”

  If he had a dollar for every time he made me blush, he could buy another suit. My date reaches down the front of his pants and adjusts himself shamelessly. It’s like last night hasn’t happened yet but is just about to.

  Naked yellow lightbulbs flick abruptly on outside each room all the way down the hall, popping to life in succession. The lanterns of nighttime are lit. Electrical buzzing fills the air.

  “Should–?”

  “Can we–?”

  Laughing off the tension, I lean over the railing and look down the road for the cab. I need a drink.

  Eventually, the sound of tires on wet pavement grows louder until twin beams flash into the parking lot.

  “Come on, muchacho. Let’s go crash a wedding.”

  “Mujer fatal,” he mutters, watching me walk past him, down the stairs, and into the cab.

  CHAPTER 5

  Lia

  The lobby has those classic black and white tiles that are polished wet-shiny. There’s no need to ask where the wedding is; it’s taken over the atmosphere of what I bet is otherwise a pretty quiet luxury hotel. Beyond the marble front desk, a plush green carpeted staircase splits into opposite directions toward the second floor. We climb the cushy stairs and pass through a set of floor-to-ceiling French doors that have been propped wide open to let the night in. It’s spectacular.

  “Woah.”

  Jose sums it up. We’re on a massive terrace facing the beach. You can see the tips of distant breakers reflecting the moon. Long tables covered in white linen are canopied by bamboo posts hung with Edison bulbs and silk voile. The warm lights glow, radiant pendulums over last mouthfuls of warm beer and empty wine glasses.