Chapter Nine
Gabby
I felt somewhat better after we got manicures and pedicures at the Bang and Blow. Arielle also got her hair trimmed and had some highlights put in—she seemed to be bouncing back, as well.
Sadly, but predictably, fish pedicures were not an option, but the girls who worked at the B and B were fascinate by my description of them. Afterwards, we met Mia and some of our other friends at the Come Again. Well, to be fair, we met half the town there, but not by design. As far as bachelorette parties go, I think it would have been more entertaining if I'd been able to get as drunk as everyone else was doing, but it was loud, and rowdy. And I got to dance!
Apparently, a lot of guys who hadn't given me a second glance back in high school were more than happy to take me for a whirl around the dance floor now that I was about to be off the market. And since dancing is not one of Derek's special talents, I was happy to let them do it.
"I'm excited you're coming to see my play tomorrow," Mia said when we were both resting between dances. She was still flushed with pride from all the praise that had been heaped on her by Phoebe and Brook, who'd seen the play the year before.
It didn't surprise me to learn that Mia written a kickass script. She and Chase had been the stars of the drama club all through high school. They were two years ahead of me, so I'd only been in a couple of plays with them—the most notable being Grease, where I got to play Patty Simcox to their Danny and Sandy—but even back then their talent had not gone unnoticed.
"You must be so busy with all the last-minute details."
I groaned at the reminder. Then I gave her a redacted version of my week—being sure to leave out anything to do with Wyatt and Arielle. "Not only that," I said. "But I still have to write my vows!"
"You don't really have to do that," Arielle said, sounding grumpy, and a little drunk. "Especially if you’re pressed for time. You could just go with traditional vows."
"I know."
"There's nothing wrong with it. People do it all the time."
I nodded, but remained unconvinced. I really wanted to personalize the ceremony. Not that the whole wedding wasn't already turning out way more unique than I'd hoped. But, no, actually; that was exactly why the vows felt so important. Everything else was unique in ways I wouldn't have picked, if I'd had a choice. At least I could get the vows right.
"Well, c'mon, everyone," she said impatiently. "Drink up! Then let's get some food. They'll be lighting the bonfire soon, and I don't want to miss it."
I nodded. "We should get going." Bonfires and Booze were staples at pretty much every Sapphire Falls celebration I'd ever attended. I was already missing out on the Booze. Missing the bonfire would be unacceptable.
We left the Come Again and hit the festival, which surprised me a little. It shouldn't have. Both Arielle and Mia had been raving about the Texas Barbecue truck all night, insisting they'd been dreaming about their brisket since last summer. And Brook is a total carnivore, it was hardly unusual that she wanted meat. But, to be honest, it was a little much for my pregnant stomach to handle. I couldn't eat more than a couple of bites. The potato salad was good though.
After dinner, we headed out to the bonfire. "Talk about déjà vu, " I muttered as we got out of the truck. It all hit me at once; the music, the laughter, the smell of the fire, starlight gleaming on the river.
"Right?" Mia smiled knowingly.
"You miss it, don't you?" Brook asked, her voice oddly flat. "Are you sorry you moved away?"
"It's not that. It's just that it brings back memories."
"Mostly happy ones," Mia added.
"Yeah." Brook sounded thoughtful. "I suppose it makes a difference if there's someone you can talk to, someone who has some of the same memories, and understands how you feel."
"I'd say that depends on the memories," Mia said with a grimace. "But, yes, for the most part, I'd say that's true."
I frowned. There were undercurrents to this conversation that I didn't understand. Why did Brook seem so sad? What was the story, that I only vaguely recalled hearing about, involving Mia and Chase and a bonfire that did not go so well?
"I'm just sorry that Derek's not here to experience it with me." At least he'd gotten a small taste of what Sapphire Falls is all about at the mud run. But there was so much more I wanted to show him...
"Don't look now," Arielle said dryly. "But I think you just got your wish. What part of bachelorette party do those guys not understand?"
"All of it?" Mia giggled. "I'm not complaining, though. Are you Gabby?"
I turned around. My gaze found Derek's and I smiled. "Nope. Not complaining at all."
"Oh, wow.” Brook looked impressed. “Who's the big guy?"
"Wyatt. Derek's brother."
"Don't you have enough people to worry about?" Arielle muttered crossly.
Brook laughed. "Oh, I see. It's like that is it?"
"No," Arielle snapped. "It's not."
"Yes," Mia and I replied in tandem. "It is."
"Whatever." Arielle turned and walked away, headed in the direction of the fire. To absolutely no one's surprise, Wyatt immediately peeled away from Chase and Derek and bee-lined after her.
I didn't even want to know what my mother would think of that.
But tonight, I was not going to let it bother me. It wasn't a crisis, right? Besides, I figured the fact that we'd just been deserted—both by my maid of honor, and by Derek's best man—meant that the bachelor/bachelorette portion of the evening was now concluded. Which suited me fine.
We found seats around the fire and everyone got drinks—Booze, wine, or beer for the most part. I had sweet tea, which wasn't quite the same. But at least I got to cuddle with my cutie. That more than made up for it.
Brook left us a short while later, mumbling something about needing to, "make a few more Sapphire Falls memories.” Not long after that, Chase and Mia also called it a night. They had a final dress rehearsal to attend in the morning, and the play itself tomorrow night.
"I'm glad you're here," I murmured, snuggling closer to Derek.
His arm tightened around me. "Me, too. I’d hate to think of you going through all this wedding business with somebody else."
I laughed. "You know that’s not what I’m talking about, right?”
He nodded, but his smile looked strained. And his question, "You really love this place, don't you?" made him sound almost as melancholy as Brook. Maybe Derek needed to make a few more Sapphire Falls memories too?
"C'mon." I jumped to my feet, and reached for his hand. "I've got an idea."
"Wait," Derek said as I led him away from the fire. "Don't we need flashlights, or something?"
"What's the matter, city boy?" I teased. "Afraid we'll get lost in the woods?"
"Now that you mention it..."
I glanced around, making sure no one was close enough to hear, then whispered, "No, because if we take flashlights, people might see."
"See what?"
"Us. We're going skinny dipping."
"We are?"
"Sure. It's tradition."
"Like the haunted house? And the Ferris wheel, and the fireworks, the volleyball game, the Booze..."
"Yes, except this is better than all of them."
"How do you figure?"
"It's wetter and more naked?"
He looked reluctantly impressed with my logic. "Can't argue with that."
We felt our way to a nice, quiet, sandy spot along the riverbank, then I let go of Derek's hand and toed out of my shoes. The wet sand was soft beneath my feet.
"So how naked are we getting?" Derek asked, watching as I pulled off my tank top and shimmied out of my shorts.
"All the way?"
"C'mon, really?"
I stopped, and fisted my hands on my hips. "You know, for a guy who—not that long ago—dared me to perform a public striptease for someone else, you're acting surprisingly prudish all of a sudden."
"I did what?" Even in the darkness, I could see him scowl. "Oh, bullshit, I did. How many times do I have to say it, Gabe? That was not what I had in mind. And I can't even believe you're bringing that up again now."
"Okay, fine," I said, relenting a little, as I reached behind me to unclasp my bra. Talking about ex-lovers was probably not a good move. "You're right. I apologize for mentioning it."
"Thank you."
I pulled off the bra and smiled, loving the sharp intake of his breath, the way his eyes grew dark as he stared at my chest. It was gratifying to know that even now, several months after making their acquaintance, Derek still could not resist the twins. "Now, are you coming with me, or not?"
Derek exhaled loudly. "You don't play fair."
"Nope." I stepped out of my panties. "Never said I did."
He reached for me, but I turned away and dashed into the water, squealing just a little at the chill. Once I got all the way in, the water was cool and deliciously refreshing. I could feel it waking up every cell of my body. I took a deep breath and stared up at the clear starry night feeling gloriously alive. This is a moment I want to remember forever, I thought. Then Derek was with me, wrapping his arms around me from behind, filling his hands with my breasts. And that moment was even better than the last.
"God, I love you."
"Love you too, goddess," he murmured. "How about we go back to the camper so I can show you how much?"
"What is this sudden obsession you have with privacy?" I teased.
"Oh, please. This from the woman who wouldn't let me fuck her last night because my brother was in the next room?"
"At least we don't have to worry about that tonight." I sucked in a quick breath as Derek slid a hand down over my stomach and between my legs. "I thought you wanted to wait until we got back to the farm?"
"I've changed my mind. I've decided some of these traditions of yours might need to be explored in depth."
Now, traditionally speaking, in Sapphire Falls, skinny-dipping usually refers to swimming nude in the river. That's not to say that people here never have sex out-of-doors. Of course they do. The high school, post-graduation-party camp-out is a tradition as well. But, for the most part, that's what the backs of trucks are for. And, in general, there would be blankets involved, or sleeping bags. Not to mention a few acres of isolated farmland.
Actually doing it in the river, in full view of the bonfire, on a Friday night during festival week? Well, what can I say? Maybe that should be a tradition.
"So, you think you're the right man for the job?" I teased, barely able to form words, totally caught up in the sensation of his fingers brushing against my clit.
He bent and kissed my neck. "You'd best believe it."
I choked back a moan. "Oh, God. Right there. Do that again." I was overwhelmed by sensation. The flow of the water around us. The glow of the stars overhead. The heat of Derek's body against mine, all those hard, heavy muscles that I love so much. His hands, his lips, his skin. And, yeah, the knowledge that there were a couple of dozen people, not that far away, who might choose—any minute now—to come down to the river's edge; who might catch us in the act. That wasn't a turn off either. "I could come right now, just like this."
"Not so fast." He leaned in close and whispered in my ear, "You know, you can touch me too, if you want."
Oh, yes. I wanted. I turned in his embrace. Heat blazed in his dark eyes as I looped my arms around his neck. When I went up on my toes to kiss him, his chest hair scraped against my sensitive nipples. I shivered in response.
"Cold?" Derek murmured as his hands smoothed over my back, fingers spread wide, as though he were attempting to warm away the chill.
I smiled against his lips. "Not at all."
As I spoke, I trailed my fingers down the front of his body until I found his cock. I loved the slow, shuddering breath he drew when I wrapped my hand around him, the way his head fell back, the way he thrust himself into my fist, again, and again. There was no hesitation in his movements, no holding back. He was mine. Mine to do with as I wished—and I reveled in the knowledge.
He gripped my head and pulled me back in for another kiss. And more than anything, I loved the soft moans that vibrated in his chest—the ones we both knew he couldn't have held back if he'd tried.
In fact, there was only one real problem with this position. Standing nearly chest deep in water meant I couldn't take him in my mouth. And I love giving head. There's almost nothing I like better than making Derek lose control, watching him fall apart at my hands. Still, there were advantages to doing it this way, as well.
If anyone had been watching from the shore, I'm pretty sure they wouldn't even have realized what was happening. All they'd have seen were two people, standing locked in each other's arms. They might have noticed the way our hips were rocking; they might have seen us kiss. They might even have heard a stifled moan or three. But they wouldn't have seen our busy fingers at work. They couldn't know how unmercifully we tortured and teased each other, or how close we were to losing it. I'd have been content to stay like that for hours. Derek had other ideas.
"Wrap your leg around me," he instructed quietly. When I complied, he slipped a hand beneath my thigh, lifting me slightly and anchoring me in place. "Now, hold on tight."
"Why? What're you—? Oh," I gasped in surprise as he thrust inside me. It wasn't the deepest penetration, but the angle more than made up for that. The head of his cock rubbed across my sweet spot—more or less continuously. I hoped he was close, because I wasn't going to last more than a couple of minutes like this.
Now, it was my head that was dropping back. I stared up at the stars and moaned. "Derek..."
"It's called Tripadam," he murmured, his voice husky and low, as he bent to kiss my throat.
His movements were slow, easy. Distracting. Blinking in confusion, I raised my head to frown at him. "What?"
"This position. Tripadam—it means Tripod." A small, strained smile curved his lips. "You asked."
"I did?" My mind was a blank. Well, it generally was when I was this close to orgasm, but you'd think I'd remember something like that. "When?"
He exhaled sharply, a deep, heavy sigh that sounded like surrender. "All the time." As he spoke, his body continued to claim mine. His movements, as fluid as the river, seemed to punctuate every sentence he spoke. He'd thrust inside me, pull back and thrust again. "The other night. Numerous times over the past year. I've lost track of how often." Surge. Retreat. Surge. Retreat.
I shook my head. "Nope. Still not processing."
"Tantra? The Kama Sutra?"
I stared at him, dumbfounded. "You mean this is what you've been hiding from me?"
"Hiding?" He frowned, obviously unhappy at the thought. "No. Not hiding. I was waiting. For you."
"Derek..."
"Shhh. Focus. Feel how good this is."
"Yes, but..."
"You knew I'd give in eventually," he murmured. "You had to know that. I couldn’t resist you forever. And I could never deny you anything you wanted."
"Oh, God, Der, I—"
"Not yet," he ordered again, more fiercely than before. "Focus."
But I couldn't. Just the barest note of command in his voice was all it took. I spiraled out of control. It felt like my whole body was contracting. I wanted to curl into him with everything I had. My head was pressed against his chest. My nails were biting into his shoulders.
His arms felt like iron straps, banding us together, keeping me from falling, growing tighter and tighter. And then he was coming too, hot semen mixing with the cool river water; both of us racked by tremors so intense I'm still surprised they didn't knock us off our feet—just like that earthquake back in February.
Derek continued to hold me close, until my legs had stopped trembling and my heart rate had returned to something approaching normal. I gulped in a breath. "Oh my God. That was... Wow. We need to do that more often."
"Well, yeah," he said, laughing softly. "But where? The Pacific Ocean's too cold for this kind of thing most of the year."
"True. And I guess the pool's out." The pool in our complex was located right in the middle of the courtyard. That was a little more exposure than even I was comfortable with. Not to mention that there were probably rules against that kind of thing. "I suppose... Wait." There was a lot I didn't know about Tantric sex, but surely, "We don't always need to be in water when we—"
I shut up abruptly, hearing voices, and the rustling sounds of people moving quietly through the woods, heading away from the fire. We stayed where we were, motionless, waiting until the noises faded away.
"I guess we weren't the only ones to think of this," he observed
"I told you." I prodded at his shoulder. “C’mon. We’d better get back. They’ll be wondering where we’ve gone."
But when we returned to the bonfire, Arielle and Wyatt were nowhere in sight. "Do you think they left?" Derek asked looking puzzled.
"To do what? Walk home? Did you forget I'm everybody’s designated driver?"
"I guess I did."
"Oh, well, I'm sure they'll turn up eventually."
I probably should have been more concerned about what my sister was doing, But I was feeling too amazingly good. "Best bonfire ever," I said after we'd found a place to sit and I was snuggled up against Derek once more. There was only one thing missing. "But next time, you have to promise you'll dance with me."
"Oh, yeah?" Derek stared for a moment at the handful of couples who were still on their feet, swaying to the music. "I tell you what, you get me drunk enough, there's no telling what I might do."
I laughed out loud. "Good to know."
Unfortunately, as it turned out, Derek wasn't the only one about whom that could be said.
Eventually, Arielle and Wyatt emerged from the trees looking furtive and flushed—with suspiciously wet hair and even more suspiciously dry clothing. But that wasn't what ruined my mood, or brought me surging to my feet. It was the glassy look in Arielle's eyes, the way she leaned against Wyatt, as though she was too drunk to stand on her own.
"Are you serious?" I hissed at her angrily. "You went swimming? Like this?" I turned my glare on Wyatt. "She could have drowned!"
"Not on my watch," he replied, with a shake of his head. When he glanced at my sister, his expression turned gentle. "That's right, isn't it babe? Tell your sister she can trust me."
Arielle looked up at him and nodded sleepily. "Whatever you say."
Trust him? I mean, sure, to the extent that I didn't think he'd purposely stand by and watch her drown. But he wasn’t sober, either! And when it came to her heart, her emotions, her mental well-being? Then, no. I didn't trust him. Not at all.
The bonfire was still going strong when we left, but my mood had soured. And when we got to the farm—and I had to help my sister into the house and up to her room—it didn't improve. And, yes, there was a fair amount of guilt mixed in with the anger. I should have been more concerned with what Arielle was doing. I should have paid more attention to how much she'd been drinking. Just because it was my party, that didn't absolve me from thinking about anyone else. If something had happened to her...
"What the heck were you thinking?" I asked, when she was finally settled in bed. I'd made sure to put a glass of water and a bottle of aspirin on her nightstand. I was pretty sure she'd need them both come morning.
"I don't know," she answered, sounding surprisingly mournful. Then again, maybe it wasn't such a surprise. She's always been something of a weepy drunk. "I tried to be good, but then the bonfire was lit, and there was wine..."
"You were into the wine well before we hit the bonfire," I reminded her—and myself.
"That's right" Arielle nodded. "First the wine, then the bonfire. And then the music, and the dancing..."
"And the river."
"The river," she repeated dreamily, her lips curving up in a suspiciously bright smile. "Yeah, that was nice. And Wyatt," she said on a yawn. "He was in there, too."
"Yep," I said as I turned off the light. "I’m sure he was."
I was more than a little annoyed, when I got back to the wagon, to find that Wyatt was still there—asleep and snoring on the pull-out couch.
"I thought you were gonna get him a new tent?" I said, as I entered the bedroom.
Derek nodded, looking sheepish. "We did."
"Then why is he here?"
"Because we forgot everything in Chase's jeep. Wyatt's suit too."
"Are you kidding?" I breathed out a sigh, feeling tired and stressed. "That's just great."
Derek, it seemed, was neither stressed out nor tired. He was up—quite literally—for another round. I eyed him crossly. "Do I even want to know what you guys did tonight that put you in this kind of mood?"
"Tonight?" He chuckled softly. "Not too much. We had dinner; we saw a comedy show; we came home."
"That's it?"
"Well, there was also the bonfire, the Booze, and the skinny dipping. That probably had something to do with it too. Don't you think?"
"That's funny." What wasn't so funny was the realization that this was a virtual recap of the conversation I'd just had with Arielle. "I'd have thought Wyatt would have at least suggested a few strip clubs."
Derek grinned. "Did I mention it was an adult comedy show?"
"Ah. So, there were naked girls?"
He laughed at that. "I don't know what you're fishing for, Gabe, but you're the only naked girl I've seen so far tonight. Now, am I gonna get to see her again or not?"
"Can we be serious for a moment?"
"If we have to." Derek rolled onto his back and stared up at the ceiling. "Okay, honestly? You're not the only one who expected Wyatt to suggest something raunchy. But this is a new Wyatt. I've never seen him act like this before. I think he's got it bad for your sister."
"I'm not sure how I feel about that."
Derek nodded. "I’m not either. Especially since, as far as I can tell, Arielle's been sending some pretty mixed signals. I think it's really messing with his head."
"Are you serious?" I sat up and glared at him. "Up until two days ago we didn't even know he was coming. Now, the wedding's almost here, my dress might be ruined, we still haven't written our vows, and now, on top of everything else we've got going on, I'm supposed to—what? Talk to my sister about how she's affecting Wyatt? I'm pretty sure he can take care of himself."
"Calm down. I didn't say he couldn't. It's just that—"
"She lives here, Der. He's leaving next week. If I'm going to be concerned with anyone's feelings, it's gonna be hers."
"Fair enough. I get that. And I'm not expecting you to do anything about it. They're both adults. They can take care of themselves. But that doesn't stop us from worrying about them, does it?"
"No," I said as I lay back down beside him. "I guess it doesn't." I felt oddly queasy for a moment, as though I were going to be sick.
“Are you all right?” Derek asked, sounding concerned.
“I think so,” I said, as the impulse to hurl faded away as quickly as it appeared. I glanced over at him and smiled. "I love you, you know."
"I love you, too," he replied as his eyes heated up and he reached for me again. "Now come here!"
For once I was not worried about anyone overhearing us.