Chapter 33

Joey

“I don’t want to go zip-lining,” I hiss in my brother’s ear as if he’s not mid-conversation with the clerk at the counter.

“We decided as a group, Joey. You got out-voted.” He turns back to the lady at the excursion desk, ignoring my hissy fit.

“What about parasailing?” Anthony offers, catching Jon’s attention and handing him a brochure when he turns around.

Jon looks past Anthony at me, eyebrow raised for my consideration.

“That’s just another death trap,” I complain. Why can’t we just go lie on the beach where it’s mostly safe? “Another way to die.”

“Look,” Jon points to a picture on the brochure, but I’m too busy glaring at Anthony for even offering such a thing. “They have tandem rides. You don’t even have to do it by yourself.”

“Not it,” Cooper yells from behind us.

“Me either,” Dave agrees.

Jon looks at Andi, and I expect him to plead with his eyes, but he skips right over her after mere seconds of consideration before his gaze lands back on Anthony. “You suggested it. You have to ride with him.”

Maybe parasailing won’t be so bad after all.

Shrugging, Anthony looks over at me. He doesn’t agree until I give him a quick wink.

“Make the new guy suffer,” Anthony teases good-heartedly.

“Earning your stripes, but I’m surprised you’re willing to do this considering your fear of heights,” Jon says with a slap on the back before turning back around and changing our reservations.

Cooper and Dave step to the side, continuing the heated conversation that started earlier about the pros and cons of left-handed batters. Andi is furiously typing away on her phone muttering something about killing everyone at her job when she gets back on land.

I take the opportunity, while everyone else is busy, to stare at Anthony. He catches me of course, as was my intention all along.

After looking over his shoulder at Jon to confirm he’s still at the desk, Anthony walks toward me.

“You’re fucking me with your eyes,” he whispers sexily but maintains an acceptable distance away.

“I’d rather be fucking you.”

“The group’s all here.” His eyebrows go up. “We can tell them now.”

“We agreed on this.” My jaw is clenched, the words sliding in a hiss past my front teeth.

“Agreed on what?”

“Nothing,” I say.

With a resolved look on his face, Anthony turns away from me and joins the guys arguing about baseball.

“I feel like I missed something,” she mutters.

“That’s what happens when you interject yourself into the middle of a conversation,” I scold as Jon turns around from the counter.

“Everyone ready?” he asks holding up a stack of papers.

“We’re going to die,” I screech when the boat driver tugs harder on the harness between my legs.

“Watch it, dude,” Anthony hisses when his eyes linger too long on the straps circling my upper thighs.

I can’t blame him. I’ve got pretty fucking awesome thighs, but it probably has more to do with the stress erection I’m sporting. No way to miss that thing.

“Just making sure he’s safe,” he says apologetically as he steps back from me.

“Safety is good.” Nodding my head frantically, I look back over at Anthony. “You sure you don’t want to just lie on the beach and read a book?”

“You don’t come to Mexico to read books, Joey.” With a quick nod of his head, he indicates to a spot behind me. “Look, that little boy can’t be any older than six, and he’s super excited to go.”

Ignoring the smiling kid, I look back at Anthony. “Kids are too stupid to realize the danger of what they’re doing. They trust their parents even when they may be minutes from death.”

“Well, you can trust me. This will be fun.”

“You said that about the roller coaster,” I remind him.

“As I recall,” he says taking a step closer to me as the driver checks several gauges on the front of the boat, “you enjoyed that roller coaster ride.”

“So you want to skip this and go back to the room so you can jack me off?” I waggle my eyes at him.

“I didn’t jack you off on the roller coaster,” he clarifies.

“Then we can pretend that we’re back in your truck.”

Grunting, he turns and adjusts the straps near his crotch. God, torturing him is an absolute blast.

“You’re gonna cave eventually.”

“You’re the most persistent guy I’ve ever met. I didn’t realize the teasing I endured before I kissed you in front of everyone would continue.”

“You regret kissing me?” There’s no way he regrets it.

“I want to kiss you right now,” he assures me, stepping closer than he ever has before in public.

My skin heats with anticipation, mouth watering with the memories of how his full, soft lips felt against mine.

“You guys have fun!” Andi yells.

Anthony steps back as we look over at Andi and Jon who are also being strapped into their harnesses fifteen feet away on another boat. I wave at them and turn back to Anthony.

“Why are they already getting strapped in?” Concerned, I look at our driver who just turned the ignition in our boat. “We’ll crash into one another if we’re doing this at the same time!”

“It’s a big ocean, baby. We’ll be fine.”

I grin, but only at the use of the pet name because right now I’m beyond terrified.

The guy at the front of the boat walks to the far back of the boat and fiddles with something on the sail, and I convince myself he’s out to kill us.

Grabbing onto Anthony is instinctual, and I couldn’t care less if Jon loses his shit at seeing me cling to him. Expecting Anthony to question the sudden embrace, I’m calmed slightly when he wraps both strong arms around me and whispers assurances in my ear.

“Take good care of him,” Jon says, and it makes my head snap in his direction. He gives us a thumbs up as the boat he’s on carries him and my best friend away to certain death.

“Look,” Anthony says and turns me in his arms so I’m forced to look up at him. “If you’re really that scared, we can go sit on the beach.”

It’s nearly the same words he spoke at the roller coaster, and I want to kiss him for offering to sacrifice his fun for me.

“I’m gonna do it.”

The look on his face tells me he’s already reconsidering, even with my offer.

“You sure?”

“Kiss me in case we die?”

Softly, tenderly, without looking around, he reaches up and uses both of his hands to cup my face. Leaning in, he presses his lips against mine. It’s brief, ending too soon and there’s no tongue involved, but it’s the most amazing kiss I’ve ever had, hands down.

“If we survive, I’ll kiss you until my lips fall off,” he promises.

Hells bells, if that isn’t enough to convince me to go skydiving, and that type of adventure is nothing but sure death.

Anthony steps back as the driver, finished sabotaging our sail, walks toward us. “You’ll need to sit on the back of the boat while I strap you to the sail.”

The trembling returns as we sit and the guy explains that the straps hanging from the seat-like harness we’re in connects to a pole. Doing my best to understand only confuses me more. He tells us we can sit close, but warns of jerking and risk of injury if we’re holding on to one another. He fiddles with more shit that seems so complicated I just know he’s going to fuck it all up, before taking a step back.

“We’re heading to that area.” The guy points across the ocean. “I’ll give you guys a thumbs up to let you know I’m about to pull the release lever.”

“Don’t kill us,” I plead.

“The only guy that’s died on my watch was eaten by a shark.” He smiles and walks away laughing.

I’m trying to tear the straps away from my body when Anthony, chuckling like the sadistic asshole he is, places his hands over mine. “Calm down.”

“Call me baby,” I beg.

“Baby, calm down. He was joking.”

Before I can argue with him, the boat is pulling away and zipping across the shark-filled waters. The salty air stings my eyes as we speed away from the safety of the dock, but I’m grateful for the burn so I can blame the tears streaking my cheeks on the wind.

Before I know it, the guy’s hand goes up, and the jolt of the sail catching the wind steals my breath.

“Open your eyes,” Anthony urges. “You’re missing all the fun. It’s beautiful up here.”

Opening one eye a mere crack, all I can see is the blue sky above us and the bluish-green ocean below us. It would be absolutely amazing if there was a chance I could let go of the fear and enjoy myself.

“Why is he slowing down?” I screech like a damn teenage girl at a Bieber concert when we begin to drop, lower and lower, plunging, albeit slowly, to our watery deaths.

“I think he’s getting ready to turn back around.”

Sure enough, the guy slows enough to make a wide turn, but we’re hovering what seems like only inches above the water. I yank my legs up as high as I can, but Anthony’s hit the water, and I’m splashed.

“The sharks!”

“We’re fine!” He releases the strap of his harness. “Hold my hand.”

“Fuck you!” I yell and hold my straps tighter.

Is he in cahoots with the driver? Do they both want me dead?

“You can see the cruise ship from here.” Through the squinted crack of one eye, I follow the point of his finger, but the boat and safety still seem a million miles away.

“Tell me when it’s over.” I squeeze my eyes shut again and don’t open them until I feel the boat slowing down longer than the first time.

“You’re not going to like this,” Anthony says, and my eyes snap open.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” I yell as the boat slows on its way back to the dock and we’re dropped even lower.

“How did you think we were going to get down?”

I can’t even answer him because my feet, then my thighs are dropped below sea level. Torn between being happy we’re not flying through the air and the fear of sharks under me, my teeth begin to chatter.

“Cold?”

I shake my head, unable to answer him as the boat driver ties off to the dock and reels us in.

“Are you okay?”

I shake my head again.

Anthony helps the guy lift me to the dock before he climbs out of the water himself.

“Come here.” He opens his arms, and I walk right into them. “You can mark it off of your bucket list and never have to do it again.”

“Nothing like that is on my bucket list,” I assure him.

“He okay?”

My spine stiffens at my brother’s voice, and I release Anthony immediately.

“It scared him pretty badly,” Anthony offers as I ignore the frown on his face.

Taking three steps away from him, I know he’s more than willing to lay it all out for my brother this very second, and as much as I want to stay in the comfort of his arms, my nervous system can’t handle everything that would come with it.

“Drinks,” I tell Andi as she walks up to join us. I grab her hand as I walk past my brother.

“I never would’ve suggested it, if I’d realized how much it would upset him,” Anthony tells my brother as we walk away.

“No worries, man. He’ll get over it. Let’s go find some chicks to hit on.”

I don’t even bother looking back. I know Anthony’s not the type to pretend to hook up with some other chick to hide his true sexuality, but that doesn’t keep Andi from stiffening at his words.