CHAPTER 5

Leya sucked in a breath as she stepped onto the stone patio of the hotel’s most popular outdoor bar, the Moongate Tiki Lounge. She exhaled as she took in the décor.

It certainly felt like paradise! Not the cheesy replicas she’d come across in the city at any rate. No, this place looked as if it had been carved into the landscape. Plants and blooming flowers erupted in a riot of color in every available space.

There was a mini waterfall behind the main bar, and that was lit with stylish multi-colored LED lights. Primitive masks decorated stone walls and enormous torches lit up every corner.

A live band played a vibrant reggae beat that made Leya wish she knew how to dance. Still, she smiled and swayed to the rhythm as she walked over to an empty chair.

This was exactly what she wanted in a vacation! She threw her head back and took in the stars and the cool breeze coming off the ocean. The night was magical! She bit her lip as she took a step further inside the exotic paradise.

Her dress was a deep blue color that brought out her eyes. It was shorter than anything she had ever worn before with a fitted bodice and flare skirt.

Judging from the frankly appraising glances of the people she’d passed on the way to the bar, it was apparently as flattering as Liandra had said. Not that she cared about other people’s opinions, she told herself firmly.

The dress was fun and flirty and made her feel good. That was all that counted. Yes, she did feel kind of exposed, but this was the first day of her new adventurous life. A new wardrobe was a requirement!

And this dress was certainly new! The elastic bodice and off-the-shoulder cap sleeves didn’t allow for the heavy minimizer bra she often wore. The bulky beige thing was now in the trash can of her hotel room with most of the clothes she’d brought from home.

Leya shocked herself today when she added several, teeny, tiny bits of lace that passed for under garments to her purchases at the boutique. Again, necessary, she told herself.

Each one of the twenty-two-dollar pairs of underwear were needed to accommodate her new wardrobe! The matching bras were simply a given. Some of them hardly covered her ample assets, but Liandra assured her she looked good. And she believed her.

She bit her lip and looked down at the cleavage spilling from her top. Too much too soon? A whistle brought her head up, and she was shocked to see a group of young men drinking at the bar waving and trying to get her attention.

They weren’t her style, but she wasn’t rude by nature, so she waved back, but she managed to find an empty seat far away from them. It was probably best to ignore them.

She found an empty seat a good distance away and set about having a good time. Operation let my hair down is a go! After some pleasant conversation with the bartender, and a few other hotel guests, Leya realized she was actually having a good time.

“What else can I get you, sweet lady?” the happy bartender asked her with his pleasantly accented voice and she smiled back at him.

“Do you carry any Bite?” she asked.

She was happy to note that they did and ordered a glass for herself. She was talking to an older couple from Chicago who were on the island for their twentieth anniversary when the bartender placed a brightly colored cocktail in front of her.

She scrunched her nose, she hated the overly sweet drinks. Especially after Gary. Leya preferred her favorite brand of top-shelf whiskey served over ice in a short glass any day to the candy named concoction in front of her.

“From an admirer, miss,” he said and winked.

Leya eyed the blue cocktail distastefully and asked him to send it back with her regards, but no thank you. She didn’t think anything of it until someone grabbed her arm and spun her around in her chair.

“Hey, now, that drink was from me! Now, I’m sure you didn’t mean to be rude. Let me introduce myself, my name is Alec, now tell me, did it hurt?” The young blonde man held her arm tightly in his grip. He reeked of alcohol, and his speech was slurred as he spoke. Leya yanked her arm back and narrowed her eyes at him.

“Look, I appreciate the gesture, but I’m afraid I don’t take drinks from strangers.”

“Well, okay now, Miss Goody-two-shoes, but you didn’t answer me, I said, did it hurt?”

“Excuse me?”

“When you fell from Heaven?” he looked back at his buddies who were busy snickering and whistling from their end of the bar. Leya had enough of this nonsense. She dropped a bill on the counter and turned to the older couple she’d been chatting with.

“I’m sorry to leave so soon, you two have a nice anniversary,” she said. Maybe bars weren’t good places to start adventures after all, she thought to herself.

“Hey, what about me?” Mr. Grabby followed her across the floor and took hold of her elbow this time. Leya did not like that at all. She’d almost gotten away too! Ugh.

“Look, pal take your hand off me,” she said and tugged her arm, but it was no good, blondie was stronger than he looked.

“Now, look here, you don’t want to embarrass me in front of my friends. Come on, let’s dance,” he grabbed her hip with his other hand and tried to drag her against him.

“Ooh, hey, I don’t want to dance with you!”

“Sure, you do, come on,” he rubbed against her suggestively to the hoots and cheers of his pals.

“I said let go!” She yanked herself back with more strength than she realized. Oh crap, and that was when she lost her footing.

“Damn it!” She yelled as she tipped backwards, wind-milling her arms. The force of her pull with the strength of gravity all worked against her as she felt herself fall backwards, down the three stairs that led to the beach.

She closed her eyes and braced herself, but instead of the jarring impact she expected, Leya landed on something hard. Hard, but warm.

Day-um. Leya gasped and looked up into familiar brown eyes.

“Didn’t I tell you to watch where you were going?” His teasing voice reached her ears, a low grumble over the sounds of the tiki bar.

The things that voice was doing to her! Oh my! Her rescuer looked down at her with an amused expression on his face. If it wasn’t for the way his dark eyes raked over her body, she’d think he was laughing at her.

“Oh, um, I-”

“Hey, lady, damn, I just wanted to dance!” The blonde looked down the stairs in horror at her near miss and Leya scowled.

She lifted herself into a sitting position, but firm hands held her waist where she would have stood up. She ignored that. For now.

“Steady now,” he murmured, his lips tickling her ear. She ignored the thrill that went through her and focused instead on the young clout who made her fall.

“I don’t want to dance with you, you-” she was visibly shaken. Her rescuer spoke to her, close enough she felt his warm breath on her neck send shivers down her spine.

“Mind if I handle this?” he asked, and at her nod he turned.

She watched as his expression changed from teasing sweetness to pure threat. He addressed the cocky fool who’d grabbed her without moving her from her place on his lap.

“Son, you best turn around back to your friends if you know what’s good for you,” he said in a deep voice that practically growled in his throat and made her knees turn to jelly.

“No problem, man!” The younger man backed away hands raised.

“Well, this is cozy and all, but suppose we see if you can stand up alright?”

Leya felt her face heat up furiously. She was still sitting on the guy’s lap, for Pete’s sake! She was probably crushing him.

“I am so sorry! I must be hurting you!”

“Hurting me? A little thing like you? Darlin’, I could sit like this all night. I just want to make sure you didn’t get hurt when you fell,” his gaze dropped, and she heard him suck in a breath.

“Oh, uh, no, I’m fine, but I am not little-” she looked down and saw why he was having difficulty breathing. Her elastic top was pulled down, and her breasts were almost completely bared to his and everyone else’s’ eyes. Yikes!

“No, baby, you are not,” he growled.

She yelped and stood up quickly. Scrambling off his lap and tugging the fabric back in place. She didn’t even realize the hand he kept solidly on her waist.

She tried taking a step back, but he stood up too. His hand firm and solidly on her body. The feel of him singed her through the layer of material. She didn’t feel intimidated by him. No. She felt warm all over. She wanted to lean into his touch.

Oh Lord, Leya shook her head and looked up at him from her high-heeled sandals. The man was huge! He had to be well over six-feet tall, and twice her width! There wasn’t an ounce of fat on the guy.

He looked like a bodybuilder or football player or something. He was so big, she actually did feel small standing next to him. That was a novelty in itself! One she would love to get used to.

“Um, thank you so much,” she whispered, unable to break the spell of his intoxicating stare.

“I’m Marcus,” he said. His eyes sparkled in the moonlight like onyx as he looked down at her.

“My name is Leya.”

“Like the princess?”

“Yeah, sort of,” she laughed even though she’d heard that one a time or two in her life.

“Your folks George Lucas fans?”

“Yes, well, my dad really, but my mother insisted the spelling be different. It’s L-e-y-a.”

“Beautiful,” he said, and again her knees turned to jelly.

“Thanks. It’s a cool name I guess.”

“I don’t mean your name, though that’s lovely too.”

“Oh.”

The fingers on her waist became caressing, leaving little flames of excitement wherever he touched. She could feel the heat coming off of him through the thin layers of her dress as he swayed closer to her.

This was new, she thought, different and magical. She didn’t have much experience with giant good-looking men, but she was definitely game to try.

The sound of the waves crashing drowned out the band from the bar. Or was that the sound of her blood pounding inside of her head? Leya didn’t know, she only knew she felt hot and swollen all over.

Leya wanted, oh yes, she wanted alright. Him. She wanted him. She never did have much luck when it came to men, but for some reason, this man, here and now, felt so right to her.

She licked her lips and watched his eyes follow the movement. He seemed to tense. The rumbling sound from his chest increased. She watched as he closed his eyes and exhaled before pinning her with his gaze.

“Have dinner with me?”

“Yes,” she said immediately.

She knew it was fast, fast and crazy, but it felt right. He took her hand in his large, callused one and together they walked towards the hotel.

“Do you like seafood?”

“Yes,” suddenly she was reduced to one-word answers. You dope, talk to him!

“Great,” he smiled at her.

It was one of those thousand-watt smiles she’d only ever read about, sexy and sinful. Full of secrets and promises. She felt her heart turn over in her chest. No one had ever looked at her like that.

He had straight, white teeth and a small dimple on the right corner of his mouth. His hair was a deep, dark brown and fell in rakishly handsome waves to his shoulders.

His eyes were darker by a shade and reminded her of the expensive Blue Mountain coffee she infrequently indulged in. The expensive drink was rich and sweet, lacking the bitterness of cheaper blends.

I wonder if he tastes like that. Smooth and rich. She felt her cheeks warm and realized she must be blushing furiously. He didn’t seem to notice, thank goodness, as he approached the hotel manager.

He squeezed her hand, and ten minutes later they were seated in the hotel’s most exclusive restaurant. She smiled in appreciation.

“Uh, what do you like?”

“Oh, well, obviously I like everything,” she felt her cheeks heat up again and looked down at the table.

“Why ‘obviously’?” he looked genuinely confused, and Leya could have kicked herself for her stupidity.

Now, wasn’t the time to bring up her weight problem, though he could see for himself that she had one. Best just say it.

“Oh, well, I mean, you know, I’m not, I mean,” she took a breath and looked directly at him, “It’s obvious I enjoy food.” Leya frowned when he sat there quietly as if waiting for her to continue. What more needed to be said?

“I’m not thin, you know,” still nothing, “Fine, I’m fat! Okay?” she hissed at him. Damn the man for making her spell it out! And she had such high hopes too…

Her face was burning, and she bit her lip wishing she could take back the last few minutes of their time together.

Leya had never felt such a powerful attraction to a man before, and she had to ruin it with her idiotic confession. He wasn’t blind, he could see what she looked like! And yet he still asked you to dinner.

As she mulled over whether or not to bolt for the door, he placed his large hand over hers and leaned forward dwarfing the small round table where they were seated. She had no choice but to look at him as it seemed he wasn’t going to release her hand until she did.

Oh boy, might as well get this over with, she thought before looking him squarely in the eyes. She’d been friend-zoned often enough to read the signs.

He was definitely about to tell her she was a great gal and didn’t need to worry about her weight with him. Yadda yadda. She swallowed her disappointment and sat facing him.

If only he wasn’t so good to look at. Oh well. As if reading her thoughts, he dropped his gaze and boldly swept his eyes over the mounds of flesh that were revealed in the snug top of the dress she wore.

Leya felt hot all over from that stare. His brown eyes darkened to almost black as his stare seemed to penetrate the table top, the dress, anything that was in the way.

It was as if he was looking at her naked. An idea that she found she didn’t quite mind. Well, that’s certainly different.

“Leya, I don’t know who’s been feeding you that line of garbage and, believe me when I say I would gladly pound every single one of them to a bloody pulp if you’d like, but first things first,” his voice was gravelly and deep.

She could hardly keep up with what he was saying, especially, when his thumb was running over the top of her hand in slow seductive circles that made her want to drool. Spit it out, buddy, before I embarrass myself!

“You look exactly the way a woman should look. Baby, you are incredible,” his voice went even deeper as he traced every visible line of her body with those molten eyes of his.

Leya released the breath she’d been holding. Her entire body seemed to sizzle with awareness. Small trembles danced along her skin under the heat of his penetrating gaze. Did he mean it?

He sure looked like he did. He didn’t release her hand, not even when the waiter came and left their menus on the table. She hardly noticed, captivated by what he’d said, what he was still saying with his eyes and that wicked thumb of his.

He wants me. Me! She felt hot all over at the realization, powerful and indescribably sexy for the first time in her life. Desire flared between them. No doubt, her entire body was turning beet red under her clothes.

Even her breasts seemed to warm and swell at his words. He moved his thumb to the soft side of her wrist, and Leya’s lips parted. When had a touch, any touch, never mind one as innocent as this one, caused such delicious friction inside of her?

She waited as he leaned even closer to her. Okay, not friend-zoned, but what now, she thought. Marcus looked as if he was about to say something, but the waiter interrupted them.

He leaned back in his chair, but not before lifting her hand to his mouth and kissing her fingertips. He lifted the menu and spoke. His voice a deep rumble that sent shivers down her spine.

“Do you mind if I go ahead?”

“With what?” She sounded breathless, but she didn’t care. No one had ever looked at her or talked to her quite like that.

“With ordering, for the two of us?”

“Oh, sure, that’s fine,” she smiled.

It was old-fashioned, but Leya kind of liked it. Besides, there wasn’t a dish she’d met that she didn’t like. She sat back and listened as this gorgeous stranger proceeded to order for them both. Well, she quickly learned he had good taste in food at least.

He ordered a chilled seafood tower that promised exquisite delicacies such as raw oysters, clams, boiled shrimp, crab legs, and lobster claws. Next, they were to sample some of the hotel’s famous conch chowder, followed by broiled Chilean sea bass served with a creamy spinach risotto on the side.

Then he finished the order with two chocolate soufflés with vanilla sauce for dessert. He had to order those ahead since the kitchen needed time to prepare them.

“Wow,” she said.

“What? Did you want something else?”

“Um, no, I think even I might have trouble putting all that away!”

“Whatever you don’t want, I’ll finish, I have quite the appetite,” his barely veiled innuendo sent a wave of heat right to her belly and lower.

The mood lightened a touch when the first dishes arrived. They laughed and talked throughout the entire meal. She loved the way he served her himself, shooing the waiter away when he would have done the job.

It was as if he took pride in filling her plate and when she was uncertain if she liked something, he lifted the fork to her lips himself to allow her to decide before he served her more.

“This is incredible,” she said as he poured her some more of the delicious dry white wine he’d ordered.

“Yeah, I love seafood, and it’s impeccable here,” he popped a shrimp into his mouth and she squirmed as he licked the tips of his finger, smiling at her the whole time.

“So, uh, do you travel a lot?”

“Sometimes. Lately, yes.”

“For work?” She asked, curious about him.

“Yes. This is kind of a working vacation. But what about you?”

“I was an administrative assistant for a PR firm in New York, but, uh, I just quit my job actually.”

“Really? Why?”

“Well, it’s kind of embarrassing.”

“Tell me, anyway, Leya,” he seemed genuinely interested, and she’d yet to get it off her chest.

She could trust him, she decided. It was fast and crazy, but she really felt she could. That settled, she went ahead with her tale.

“So, I very stupidly had a small crush on my boss,” the small growl from the other side of the table had her eyes shooting up, but the sound quit before she could question it, “anyway, he turned out to be an enormous jerk,” she noticed him tense, but he didn’t interrupt her.

She continued, and before they were finished eating, she’d told him the entire story. Even the embarrassing bits.

“Not to be a dick or anything, but I’m glad.”

“That my boss was an asshat?”

Confusion warred with anger over his blunt statement. Why would he be glad someone had treated her so shitty?

“Hell yeah, I am glad, Leya. If he’d been half a man, kind to you, or nice in any way, then you wouldn’t be sitting here with me. Of course, I’d happily kick the shit out of him for insulting you that way.”

Happiness welled up inside of her at his admission. He seemed to feel pretty strongly for having just met her. That was good. It meant whatever magic was making her feel this way, wasn’t one-sided.

How long does it take to fall for someone anyway? Fall in like, not love. Too soon for love.

“That’s a good answer, Marcus,” he returned her smile.

“So, I’ve decided to make this vacation a series of new experiences for myself. The first thing I did was dump my suitcase and buy new clothes. You might have noticed the way I looked when I first arrived-”

“Not to sound like a jerk, but I noticed you-”

“Oh no, in the green-couch outfit? It was hideous!” She hid her face and grimaced when he gently tugged her hands down.

“Not that I’m complaining about that sexy dress you have on, because fuck yes, it looks a damn sight better than that green outfit, but the truth is Leya, the way you dress isn’t as important as who you are.”

OMG. New panties needed at table five! Heat pooled in her belly and travelled to her core. He was absolutely perfect. The things he said! The way he looked. How he made her feel. My oh my, maybe, just maybe…

“I guess I always dressed according to what fit me. It’s not easy being a plus size in a size zero world.”

“I don’t know from sizes, I just know you look amazing. You should wear what makes you feel good about yourself.”

“Even if it leaves some parts of me exposed?” She blushed as she looked down at the ample cleavage on display and noted the way his eyes riveted to that exact spot and his lips parted.

“Honey, covering any part of you up is a goddamned crime.”

“I’m glad you feel that way, Marcus, it makes what I’m about to ask you a little easier.”

“What’s that?”

“First, you should know I’m twenty-seven years old.”

“Okay-”

“I’m not done yet. I’m twenty-six years old, and I’ve been waiting my whole life for something special to happen. I admit, I thought about having a vacation romance on the plane over.”

“Yeah?” he swallowed, she followed the small movement with her eyes, continuing before she ran out of courage.

“I’m through waiting.”

“Uh huh.”

“Twenty-seven and virtually untouched.”

“Wait, you mean you’re a virgin?”

“Yep.”

“How is that possible?”

“Not for lack of trying,” she laughed and felt her cheeks heat up.

“Excuse me?” he coughed into his napkin and she continued before she lost her nerve.

“In high school, there was Steven. He was shy and cute, and the one time we got into some heavy petting his mother walked in, and you can guess what came next.”

“Poor Steven.” She couldn’t be sure, but she swore Marcus’ eyes glowed when he said that.

He looked as if he wanted to tear poor Steven’s head off. She took a sip of her wine and lifted an eyebrow. He nodded, and she went on.

“Then, in college, I tutored Judd, a football player with a habit of well, being early to the party, if you catch my drift.”

“Awe, that’s too bad for Judd.”

She tilted her head to the side and nodded. He seemed tense. But he nodded again despite looking as if he wanted to say, fuck off Steven and Judd.

“After Judd, was Thomas, a music major. He had some strange ideas about women and let’s just say I told him to take a hike before we got to third base.”

“Poor Thomas,” his voice got even deeper.

“A few dates here and there in the years that followed were not promising. Then there was Gary, who I told you all about.”

“Oh yeah, Gary. I’d love to meet him in a dark alley.”

“Anyway,” she laughed, “now I have a problem.”

“What’s that?”

“I’m tired of waiting. I want to make something special happen.”

Marcus swallowed again, and Leya bit her lip. What the hell? You waited long enough already. Much longer than any of her old friends from school or anyone at her former job.

This vacation was supposed to be her turn to run wild before starting her new life. She got the wardrobe, onto the next experience.

“What are you saying?” He asked in that deep, sexy voice of his. The one that made goosebumps break out all over her body.

Oh, but the man definitely had a voice. A dark, deep timbre that made her mouth water and her core ache.

“What I am saying Marcus, is that I want to make that something special happen with you.”

“Check please!”