"You seemed happy that night. A little off, too, but mostly happy. So I'm just wondering why if you like the guy, you're keeping him at arms-length."
"Like you're one to talk? You're not exactly Mr. Relationship."
"Maybe not. But right now, I'm not the center of the universe. You are."
She rolled her eyes. "Fine. And what makes you think it's me? Maybe it's him."
"Is it?"
She thought about it, but she honestly wasn't sure. Was he respecting her boundaries, or did he have boundaries of his own? And what did it matter, anyway?
"Dammit, Nolan, you're twisting this all up. We have fun. That's it. Drop it."
He hesitated, then nodded. "Okay." He kicked off his sandals, then sat on the dock next to her. For a minute, they both just kicked in the water. There was more he wanted to say, she was certain of it. But he kept quiet, and she loved him for it.
After a minute, she leaned over and shoulder-butted him. "Thanks."
"For what?"
"For being concerned about me. As brothers go, you're not too bad."
He laughed, then swung his arm around her. "Right back at you, sis."
* * *
He'd destroyed her, Amanda thought, as her body slowly came back together, every cell crackling with the fire of a spectacular orgasm.
"Wow," she said, even though that simple word seemed far too difficult for her muddled brain to form.
"My sentiments exactly."
Smiling, she turned her head to find Derek laying beside her, propped up on one elbow. With his free hand, he was making slow, distracting circles on her breast. He matched her smile with a smug grin.
"You're setting the bar pretty high, you know," she teased. "How are you going to outdo yourself next time?"
His wide smile lit up his face. "I'm sure I'll find a way." He rolled her nipple gently between two fingers, and she drew in a tight breath, her body igniting all over again. "Mostly, I'm just happy to know that there's a next time on the agenda."
"Oh." She bit her lower lip, part of her wanting to pull away. The other part not wanting him to stop touching her.
"Amanda?"
What the hell was wrong with her? His mention of an agenda didn't amount to a proposal of marriage.
"Sorry. You're distracting me. And yeah, definitely more to come." She flashed him a flirty grin. "We have our standing hook-up, after all."
She leaned over and kissed him. "I should probably get going, though. If you're here on a Saturday, you must have work, and I--" She stopped when he took her hand and pulled her back toward him.
"I do, actually. But it's work you can help me with."
"Oh." She frowned. When he'd told her that he was a Winston, her first thought had been that he was exactly the kind of client she dreamed of cultivating. Someone with money and connections who could get her back on track career-wise. Because she'd gotten seriously derailed when she was with Leo.
Before Leo, she'd been on the fast track to getting not only her broker's license, but her certification as an international property specialist. One of the brokers in her office, Zeke, had offered to not only sponsor her, but to pass along his portfolio of domestic and international clients when he retired later that year. Plus, he was going to suggest that the company pay for all the courses required for international certification.
But then Leo had swooped in and Zeke had gotten into his head that she'd be more focused on her relationship than on her work. She'd been pissed, but she'd held her tongue. After all, she was in a great relationship, and so what if her career moved a little more slowly than she'd hoped?
She'd been an idiot, of course. Stupid for putting up with Zeke punishing her for having a life. And a total dufus for believing anything that Leo said.
When she finally picked herself up after the ground fell out from under her, Zeke had retired, he'd passed his portfolio off to one of the single men in the office (bastard!), and Leo was long gone.