Read Online Between Us: Sex on the Beach by Jen McLaughlin - Free Book Online Page A

think it fits perfectly.”
    A fist punched my chest. I’d swear it had. I opened my mouth to scoff at her reply, or to retort I was scarred, broken, and ugly. But nothing came out. I didn’t want to argue with her. If she thought I was beautiful, maybe that was a goodthing. So I didn’t say a word. Just stared at her, speechless for the first time in my fucking life.
    “So, uh, now what?” She shifted her weight and wrung her hands in front of her. “I’m obviously not accustomed to what happens next, since I never got this far before.”
    There it was again. That adorable innocence she had going on. It was irresistible to a messed-up guy like me. I smiled and stole a quick glance at the clock. I had another hour before I had to be home. “What do you want to happen?” I asked softly.
    “I…” She bit down harder on her lip. “If you’d like to, I’d like to spend the rest of my time here with you. When you’re free, of course. I know you have a job and everything. Unless you’re a one-time guy. That’s fine, too.”
    “You’re not going to be with your friends?”
    She shook her head. “They’re off having their own adventures. It’s all part of the plan—get laid and have fun. They need it as much as I do.”
    “Ah, gotcha,” I said, rubbing my jaw and hiding the grin that inexplicably formed. “You’re doing pretty good in your portion of the plan.”
    She blushed again. I fucking loved that blush. “I’d say so. I have you.” She rested her hands on my chest, raising those bright green eyes to mine. “So, are you interested in hanging out a bit more?”
    I did the math. Four more days with her? It wasn’t a hard decision to make. “I’m in. If I’m not working, I’m yours. How’s that sound?”
    “Perfect.” She let go of me and backed up. Then she wrapped her arms around herself and looked toward the window. Her profile was so fucking perfect it stole my breath away. “We need to set some ground rules, though.”
    I flopped down on the bed again and reclined against the headboard, crossing my arms behind my neck. Man, she liked her fucking rules almost as much as I liked her. “No pictures. No selling you out. No feelings. No attachments. Just fun, no-strings-attached sex?”
    She blinked at me. “Yeah. Pretty much. I’ll be leaving and—”
    “And I’ll be staying.” I raised a brow. “I am well aware of this fact, seeing as I, you know, live here and all. Has anyone ever told you that you have the tendency to point out the obvious?”
    She put her hands on her hips. “Yeah, maybe.”
    “Well, you should work on that. I thought you were flawless, now I find I’m wrong? It breaks my heart.”
    She shook her head, but her lips twitched into a small smile. “I don’t want anyone to get hurt. Is that so wrong?”
    I reached out and snatched her by the hips, pulling her back in to the bed with me. “What makes you so sure I’ll be the one who gets hurt? Maybe you’ll be the one who won’t want to leave me, and I’ll have to be all—” I held a hand to my heart and tried my best to look brokenhearted. I’d never suffered from that affliction before, so I might have failed. “‘Babe, you need to get on with your life. Do a few tours. Sing a few songs. Then you’ll forget all about me. I promise.’”
    She laughed. “Oh my God. Has anyone ever told you that you’re incorr—”
    I kissed her into silence. I’d always wanted to do that to a girl, but never stuck around long enough to get to that point. I was more of a take-em-and-leave-em type of guy, and I made sure the girls I took and left were the same way.
    Hell, Mackenzie was even one of those girls. She just wanted some no-strings-attached fun, and I was the perfect guy for that, since it’s all I did. I hugged her closer, my hands tightening on her without conscious thought. Her arms snaked around my neck, holding me tight. It felt like it was meant to be or some other corny-ass thought.
    I