“Honestly, I was pretty impressed by that too.” Zack turned onto his side first, his body enveloping Rachel’s with little regard for what was all over her chest. Talk about no shame! “Still think we should go confess to a priest. If only so I can brag to somebody.”
Rachel sank deeper into her bed the more she laughed. Endorphins. A hot man pressed up against her. The sunlight streaming through her window. They all made her so deliriously happy that she didn’t know what to do with herself. “I’ve gotta get cleaned up.”
“Let’s go make out in your shower.”
“You wanna shower with me?”
“Uh, yeah? Duh.” Zack was also the first out of bed, his boxers sliding down his legs and kicking off his feet. His hot ass walked across the apartment in search of Rachel’s bathroom. “Last one there has to lather the other one up first!”
Even though Rachel was the last one in there, Zack volunteered to lather her up first. He paid careful attention to the mess he made – and then spent extra attention on the place between her legs still hungry for more.
With his tongue, no less. Turned out Zack like making eye contact as much as she did.
***
“Whoa.” Zack did not expect to see an older woman sitting aboard Retirement Fund later that evening. His plan, after leaving Rachel’s place only an hour before, was to drop by and surprise Uncle Roy with some Chinese takeout for dinner. Zack had the sack of lo mein and orange chicken slung over his shoulder, the other hand gripping the ladder. He almost dropped the bag of takeout when he reached the top of the ladder and saw the woman sitting casually on deck. “Uh, hi. Sorry. Didn’t know my uncle had company over.”
The woman, with her wavy gray hair and the crow’s feet of a wise old crone, uncrossed her legs and flashed Zack a non-threatening smile. “You must be Zack. Your uncle has told me a lot about you.”
Well, well, well. Looked like Zack wasn’t the only one getting some around there. While Uncle Roy was no stranger to women on his boat, his crazier, lustier days were well behind him. Wasn’t this the man who often said his mistress was the ocean and real love was for land lovers? Still, didn’t mean a seventy-year-old man couldn’t enjoy the company of a pretty woman.
“Yeah. I’m Zack.” He pulled himself over the edge and shook the woman’s wrinkled hand. She was visibly the same age as Uncle Roy, but as spry in the way she moved her lean limbs as if she didn’t have a creaking bone in her body. “Afraid we haven’t met before.”
“I’m Lorelei. Ah, don’t mind me.” She dropped his hand. “I need to get going anyway. I’ve overstayed my welcome.”
Before Zack could protest, Roy emerged from the depths of his yacht, eyes widening at the sight of Zack and Lorelei conversing on his ship.
“What are you doing here, son?”
He held up the bag of Chinese food. “Stopped by with dinner. Didn’t know you had guests. Sorry.”
“I was telling him that I had to get going.” Lorelei turned toward Roy. “Thank you for the lovely afternoon, Roy. Look forward to coming by again later.”
Roy insisted on helping her down to the dock. He treated her more gingerly than he did his own ship, as if the older woman were going to break her hip or get tangled up in her ankle-length skirt at any moment. When she was securely on the dock, he gave her a long hug and a kiss on the cheek. Zack stared after her as she bypassed security with a nod of the head and disappeared around the corner.
“Who was that?”
“Lorelei.”
“You sly dog.” Zack couldn’t help but grin at his uncle. “You caught the love bug the moment you came back to land, I see.”
His uncle shot him a harsh look before sitting down at a small folding table and gesturing to the Chinese food his nephew carried. “It’s not like that. She’s not my girlfriend.”
“You looked keen to court her.” Zack sat down across from him and pulled out the cartons of food and plastic silverware. He had forgotten to get drinks. Luckily, his uncle kept beer and soda tucked away in the fridge downstairs. As soon as one of them got thirsty enough, they’d go down for a can or five. “Or so my mother would say.”
Roy shivered at the mention of Eloise. “Not all of us are hormone-riddled young men looking for the next skirt to sniff.”
Only interested in sniffing one skirt right now. Rachel in a skirt. Now there would be a sight to behold. Throw in a plunging neckline and her hair down… Let’s not get hard again in front of my uncle, okay, body? Zack had enough earlier, and he didn’t say that often. Between what they got up to in Rachel’s bed and in her shower… he couldn’t believe he could have that much sexual fun with a woman and not have his cock inside of her.
“Speaking of,” he said with a cheery air, “things are going well with Rachel. We’re taking things slow right now, but she’s the best woman I’ve met since…” He stopped himself short. His uncle didn’t need to hear Sadie’s name to know who he was talking about. “Anyway, I’ve got a good feeling about her.”
Roy chomped on his noodles while barely paying any attention to his nephew. “Was that the girl who cheated on you?”
Zack lost his smile. “You have such a way with words.”
“Stating the facts as I know them.”
“So who was that woman?” Zack was desperate to change the subject. “Don’t see you entertaining like that very often.”
“I wouldn’t call it entertaining. Like I said, we’re not dating.”
“Just a friend, huh? I know all about that.”
“Not sure I’d call her a friend, either. It’s complicated.”
“How complicated?” Zack wanted to make a Facebook joke, but that was difficult when his uncle barely knew how to use the internet
Roy looked around with paranoid eyes. He always looks paranoid, though. No, this was different. This was legitimate paranoia, as if Roy truly were afraid that someone was listening in on them. Security was too good for paps to get a good shot, though, let alone audio. It was one of Zack’s favorite reasons to bring his dates down to his yacht. Step One: Impress them with the boat. Step Two: Fuck ‘em in peace. He’d daresay it was more private than taking them back to his apartment.
“Did your father ever tell you about… ah, never mind.”
“No. Go on.”
Roy sighed. It was one of those rare moments where he truly looked his age. Please don’t look your age. That means I have to acknowledge how old you are. Zack didn’t want to know a world where his uncle no longer lived. He was already reaching that age where more than one member of the family expressed legitimate concern about him sailing around the world alone. “About your grandfather’s extramarital activities.”
Zack almost choked on his chicken. The first thing to enter his head was his father saying something about a supposed half-sister existing somewhere in the world. “That wasn’t…”
“That was Lorelei Weathersby, daughter of Carmen Weathersby, my father’s wartime affair.” Roy leaned forward, his hair scraping against wet soy sauce. “I’ve spent twenty years looking for her. Because I’m not gonna die before making sure my father’s bastard-daughter’s family gets what they’re owed, even if I have to give her my own share.”
Both Zack’s mouth and his plastic fork dropped to the table.
Chapter 21
Zack’s beer befouled breath snaked down the back of Rachel’s neck the closer they sat in the bar booth. His arm looped loosely around her, both of their eyes pointed down to the dating app on her phone. The whole world partied around them on a Friday night, but they only had attention to pay to one another’s attics.
“Go on,” he whispered into her ear, sending chills down her spine. “I dare you.”
He wasn’t daring her to put up a new profile on the latest and greatest dating app. That was already a given.
He was daring her to say she was looking for men and women.
Until that moment, Rachel hadn’t been clear about how far her door swung. Let alone in which direction. It was none of his business. How was I to know how much he might fetishize it? It still really wasn’t his business, and he would probably still fetishize it, because what men knew any better? None, in Rachel’s experience!
“Who says I’m looking for a female partner right now?”
“Because it’s hot, duh.”
Rachel couldn’t argue with that. When she hit the Women radio button, Zack let out a whoop and downed another drink.
“You’re a fucking cad.” Rachel’s profile went live.
“So here’s what you’re going to do.” He was acting like he didn’t hear her! “You’re gonna sleep with one of these hotties and tell me allll about it.”
Was he always this bad, or only when half-drunk? “You want a threesome with me and another woman.”
“I’ve had threesomes before,” he said much too quickly, “but I can guarantee that one with you in it would be the fucking best ever. You know what?” He woke his phone up again. “I know three women off the top of my head I could text right now and…”