When Lucky did his whole proposal about the sex-rules, I didn’t quite get it would mean we’d now be dating with the three of us. At the same time. He sneaked that one in without me noticing, the bastard. That will take some getting used to, I think.

It’s Sunday morning, and we’re all in Lucky’s car, on our way to an outing he has planned. Mason is riding shotgun, and I’m in the back, dozing a little. I’m tired, truth be told. The work at the senior center isn’t super taxing physically, but they’re long hours, and I already did three shoots this week.

They were all for the same video, a more complicated production involving a few guest stars that Rebel is directing. I wasn’t needed in every scene, but Rebel wanted me on set for all three days, so it was tiresome hanging out there for three whole days.

Plus, one of the scenes was a DP, and while I don’t mind them, this one was…taxing. Hot damn, my ass can take a lot, but that guy’s dick was challenging all by itself, let alone with another crammed in there. To be fair, Rebel checked with me twice to make sure I was okay. And I was, even though my ass is still a little sore. A DP bonus is good money, and I’m not turning that down.

All I can hope is that today will be relaxed, ‘cause my body is kinda in need of some rest. Mason and I both have no idea what we’re going to do, though Lucky did ask us if we could swim. Turns out, we’re both decent enough to stay afloat and that was enough. Maybe we’re going to a lake to swim?

My guess is that Lucky is an excellent swimmer, what with being a Marine and all. If Mason manages to get himself overboard—and let’s face it, that scenario is quite realistic considering how accident-prone he is—I’m confident Lucky can rescue him.

I doze in that perfect state between being awake and asleep, content to keep my eyes closed while I listen to Lucky and Mason chat. By the time we arrive, I’m already feeling a bit more rested.

“Where are we?” I ask as Lucky turns off the engine.

“The beach,” he says.

I smell the ocean as soon as I open the door. It’s still early since Lucky wanted to leave at the crack of dawn. I wondered why since we didn’t drive for more than an hour.  

“We’re going to the beach?” Mason asks.

“No,” Lucky says with a boyish smile. “We’re going sailing.”

We follow him onto a path that leads to small harbor, filled with all kinds of boats. “You have a boat?” I ask.

“It’s not mine. It’s my parents’.” He points toward a sleek boat almost at the end of the dock. “That’s her.”

I know literally nothing about boats, but the boat he points to looks nice enough. Pretty new, as far as I can tell. Ronja is painted on the side with dark blue, elegant letters. “Is that your mom’s name?” I ask.

“No, it’s from a children’s book she loved and that made her want to become a writer. My mom’s an author of children’s books.”

Just as I want to ask him what his dad does—or did, maybe, since he could be retired—a man pops up on the boat from below deck. He waves as he spots us, and Lucky waves back.

“Who’s that?” Mason asks, as usual not bothered by any social norms. I gotta love that about him.

The guy leaps from the boat to the dock with a graceful move, waiting for us to come closer. “Guys,” Lucky says. “This is my brother, Ranger. Range, this is Heart and Mason.”

His brother? Fucking asshole for not mentioning that. Though one look at Mason clamming up, and I realize he did it on purpose. If Mason had known, his stomach would have been in knots for days, probably.

Mason finally manages to untangle himself and extends a hand to Ranger, who’s watching him with quiet patience. “It’s so nice to meet you, Mason,” he says with a voice that sounds remarkably like Lucky’s, even though physically, they’re very different. “Lucky’s told me good things about you.”

Okay, with that, both brothers score major points in my book. Anyone who manages to make Mason feel good about himself is good people.

I extend my hand as well. “Pleasure to meet you,” I offer.

His grip is stronger than his thin frame looks. “You too, Heart. Looking forward to getting to know you better.”

My eyebrows shoot up before I can hold back my reaction. Getting to know me? What the hell is he talking about? Is this some kind of fucked up sex reference? Does he really think I’m gonna…?

Lucky’s hand clamps down on my shoulder. “Relax,” he says quietly in my ear.

Ranger has let go of me by now and is grabbing the bag Mason was wearing, probably to prevent it from ending up in the water.

“He means it literally, getting to know you. Talk to you, chat, nothing more.”

“Oh.”

Lucky turns me around to face him. “Do you get now why we need these two months without sex? When even an innocent remark like that makes you suspect other motives?”

I nod, feeling like a first-class idiot, but he cups my cheek. “It’s okay. I understand where it’s coming from.”

“I didn’t mean to insult him…or you.”

He bends over and kisses my cheek with warm, soft lips. “I know. No worries.”

“Why is he even here?” I ask, resisting the urge to feel my cheek where Lucky just kissed me. “I thought you wanted to date us. Isn’t that kind of hard with your brother there?”

“I can’t sail this boat by myself. Technically, I can, but it’s not safe since I guessed neither of you has any experience. That was one reason to ask my brother along. Also, his presence will help me keep my hands off you.” He shoots me a wicked grin.

I step closer, our bodies almost touching—but not quite. “You struggling with that?” I tease.

He leans in, his mouth hovering a breath away from mine. “You have no idea. But I’m a man of my word, Heart. I will not touch you.”

“You said no sex,” I remind him. “But kissing was okay, right?”

“True.” He cocks his head ever so slightly, his eyes fixated on mine. “But do you really want our first kiss to be here, with strangers watching, while we’re in a bit of a hurry to catch the wind?”

“No.” My voice is barely more than a whisper. “But we’ll kiss at some point, right?”

“Yes. But not before I think we’re ready for this. You need to learn to stop using your body to draw me in, babe. You have my attention…now I want to get to know you.”

I keep pondering his words as Lucky and Ranger do all kinds of things to make the boat ready, and a few minutes later, we leave the harbor. The boat has an engine, too, I discover, which makes complete sense because I imagine it would be hard to always be dependent on the wind.

They wait till we’ve left the harbor, the Pacific stretching out before us like a calm glistening blue blanket, before hoisting the sails. I’ve never been on a boat this small, and it’s a little scary at first, but then the wind fills the sails and all of a sudden, the engine is turned off and we’re sailing. Lucky smiles as he pulls on some ropes, adjusting the sails, and he calls out some sailing lingo to Ranger I have no hope of understanding. But whatever it is, it’s like magic, because the sails pull tight in the wind and we’re flying.

Mason lets out a little squeak, his cheeks almost as red as the life jacket he’s wearing. We’re all wearing one per Lucky’s orders, even him and Ranger. I wondered why since they both seem excellent swimmers, but Lucky calmly explained even experienced swimmers can drown at sea, especially when there’s a chance you can get knocked out cold by something.

Wow, I had not expected us to go this fast. I figured sailing was more for older people, like a calm, relaxed activity, but Lucky and Ranger are making the boat fly through the water.

“You okay, Mase?” I check.

“We’re going really fast,” he says.

Lucky makes eye contact with me since Mason is sitting with his back toward him. “Do we need to slow down?”

“Do you wanna go slower?” I ask Mason.

He bites his lip, then shakes his head. “No. It’s a little scary, but the good kind of scary, you know?”

Do I ever? I close my eyes and raise my head toward the sun, the wind a welcoming breeze as the sun is still gaining power. No wonder Lucky warned us to put sunblock on. You’ll burn alive on the water with the wind masking how fast you’re developing sunburn. But what a rush, this sensation of being one with the wind and the water, the sun even.

I don’t know how long we’ve sailed when Ranger calls out. “Ready about?”

Right, this is the part Lucky explained to us in simple terms. We’re changing our position relative to the wind, if I understood correctly, which means that big beam is gonna come right over our heads—preferably over and not against, as Lucky said with a wink to Mason.

“Watch your head, babe,” Lucky tells Mason, and I love him for taking that extra precaution. He winks at me when he sees me watching him. “Going about,” he calls to Ranger, followed by, “Lee ho!”

That big beam moves fast as it flies over our heads into the opposite direction. It only takes seconds before the wind hits the sails again, slower this time. Lucky does something with the ropes and we’re steady again, but at a slower pace. Ranger moves over to where Lucky stands, and then Lucky comes sit between us.

“How are you doing?” he asks me.

“This is magic,” I say, a big grin plastered on my face. “Dude, I never thought we could move that fast.”

“Yeah, we had the perfect position,” Lucky says, returning my smile. “She can go even faster, but I figured this was enough excitement for a couple of newbies like you.”

“Thank you,” I say. “For taking us out on the water. It’s…perfect.”

Lucky leans in, and for a second, I think he’s gonna kiss me. But his lips find my forehead instead, and somehow, that kiss feels more intimate than any French kiss he could’ve given me. “So are you,” he says. “Perfect, that is.”