Bad Things (Tristan & Danika #1) (11 page)

I was reaching out to open the sliding glass door that led to the pool when I remembered sunscreen.
 

I grabbed a tube of forty-five SPF out of the bathroom, catching Mat as he was racing through the hallway.
 

He stood still, but tapped his foot impatiently as I helped him put it on.
 
“I coulda been in the pool already, boo,” he whined.

“Well, we don’t swim without putting sunblock on first, so no you couldn’t have,” I told him sternly.
 
I wasn’t one to indulge whiny moods.
 

He glanced at me, and snapped out of it almost instantly.
 
“Can I go now?”

I nodded, waving him off.
 
“Go for it, peeka.”

Ivan came barreling down the hallway, and I gave him the same treatment.
 
He stood patiently, knowing the routine.
 

“Is Tristan going to live with us for very long?” he asked.
 

“Not very long.
 
Just another week or two.
 
How come?”

“I like him.
 
He’s a good cook, and he’s funny.”

“Can’t argue with that,” I told him, then waved him off.
 

I took a minute to pull my hair into a messy ponytail on top of my head, and carefully sun-blocked my face in the mirror.
 
I went outside to keep an eye on the boys as I spread it over my body.
 

Ivan and Mat were already in the pool as I stepped outside. Tristan was poised at the edge of the pool, watching them attentively.
 
I had a brief moment to take in the awesome sight of Tristan shirtless in broad daylight before he looked at me.
 

I slipped on my gold framed shades, then bent to rub the sunscreen into my thighs.
 
I propped my foot on one of the carelessly strewn lounge chairs to cover my knee and calf.
 
Slowly, I gave my other leg the same treatment.
 
I straightened, rubbing it onto my shoulders, and arms.
 

I began to walk towards Tristan as I slathered it onto my stomach.
 

I handed him the bottle when I reached him.
 

I saw his throat work as he swallowed hard.
 
He was wearing shades, too, but I could still read his expression well enough.
 

“Want me to get your back?” he asked.
 

“Yes,” I said, caught off-guard.
 
I’d forgotten to do my back.
 
I’d meant for him to use it for himself, but he made a good point.
 
I turned around.
 

The first touch of his slick hands made me jump.
 
He rubbed the sunblock on, and I was very conscious of the fact that I loved his hands on me.
 
And he hadn’t even begun…

After he’d covered my shoulders and back with tantalizingly light touches, he began to rub and massage, focusing on my shoulders.
 
I just about melted beneath his fingertips.
 

“Mmmm,” I hummed as he worked at a tense spot on my neck.
 

“I see you rubbing this spot all the time.
 
You’re tense.
 
You should let me work on you.”

“Are you a massage therapist, too?”
 

“No, but I have strong hands, and they’re at your service, whenever you like.”

Boy, did my mind go crazy with that statement, running wild with the things I’d
like
him to do with his hands.
 

His hands moved down my back, rubbing deep into my muscle tissue.
 
He worked to the sides of my waist, kneading.
 
I moaned when his arms circled me, his hands working on my abs.
 
I felt his chest just brush against my back, and instinctively I leaned into him.
 

“Boo, why is he touching your belly?” Mat shouted with typical six-year old volume control basically loud enough to alert the entire neighborhood.
 

That snapped me out of it.
 
I straightened, moving away from Tristan.
 
“He was helping me put on sunscreen, peeka.”

 
I didn’t look at Tristan again until he spoke.
 
“Can you get my back?” he asked, his voice hoarse.
 

“Yes, of course,” I said, moving to help him automatically.
 
I paused for a long moment, staring at his back on full display.
 

I thought that there couldn’t be anything on earth sexier than a strong back as I began to work the sunblock into his skin, relishing the feel of his firm, resilient flesh.
 
I kneaded at his shoulders, trying to copy what he’d done to me, as I studied his myriad tattoos.
 

There was a golden dragon on his shoulder.
 
It was intricate, and every detail looked precise and perfect, even in the direct sun.
 
It was beautiful.
 
I made a note to ask him about it.
 
Later.
 

He moaned, and I kept rubbing, working down his back, slipping my hands to his sides.
 
I could scarcely believe it, but he felt even better than he looked.
 

I was careful to keep my chest from touching his back as I reached around to rub his abs.
 
It was only fair…and I was dying to know how they felt.
 
I’d never touched six pack abs before.

I shut my eyes, leaning into him, as I kneaded at his hard flesh.
 

“Now you’re helping him put some on his belly, boo?” Mat shouted.
 

“Yeah, peeka,” I said, flushing hotly.

I stepped away from Tristan, handing him the bottle of sunscreen so he could finish putting it on.
 

I didn’t look at him, taking a few brisk steps, and diving into the pool.
 

CHAPTER NINE

We both made a good show of ignoring those brief moments of contact, but I couldn’t seem to get my mind off how good he’d felt, or how amazing it had felt to let him touch me.

We swam for hours, playing and frolicking in the water.

Tristan was great with the boys, throwing them around the pool just how they liked.
 

He lifted a giggling Ivan above his head before dropping him into the water.
 

Ivan resurfaced, laughing.
 
He pointed at Tristan.
 
“I bet you can’t do that to Danika!”

“You
bet
me?” Tristan asked.

“I dare you!” Ivan said.

Tristan arched one sassy brow, sidling over to where I was working with Mat on his backstroke.
 
I yelped as he gripped his big hands around my waist, lifting me before I could think to put up a fight.
 
He didn’t throw me, as he had Ivan, but lifted me high, thrusting his head between my legs, and settling me onto his shoulders.
 

I scrabbled for a handhold, trying to grip his too-short hair, finally settling for a hold under his chin.
 
My thighs clenched hard around his neck.
 

“What are you doing?” I asked him.
 

“Ivan dared me.”

“You can’t say no to a dare, can you?
 
Even if it comes from an eight-year old?”

He shrugged his shoulders, jostling me until I clutched him harder, screeching.
 

“I guess not,” he said.

“I dare you to drop her!” Ivan called, the little traitor.

Tristan didn’t hesitate, lifting me by the hips, holding me high over the water for a brief moment, then dropping me.
 

I came up sputtering and glaring.
 

He just smiled.
 

I started thinking hard about how to get even.

The sliding glass door opened, and Jerry leaned out.
 
“I’m running errands, boys.
 
Anyone want to join me?
 
I might just be getting ice cream while I’m out…”

Mat was climbing out of the pool before Jerry had even finished.
 
Ivan paused for a moment, considering.
 
Finally, he chose ice cream, bolting out of the pool.

Jerry waved at us as the boys ran inside.
 
“I’ve got them for the afternoon, so, have fun.”

I waved back, still plotting about how I could dunk Tristan under water.
 
He was just so big…

Jerry ducked back inside, and we were left alone.
 

Tristan smiled at me, leaning back, and propping his arms up along the side of the pool.
 
He sank low, watching me, and I saw my chance.
 

I glided over to him, trying hard to look perfectly innocent.
 
I moved close, getting right up in his personal space.
 

He watched me, swallowing hard.
 

I slid my arms around his neck, brushing my hands over his hair.
 
I leaned in very close, and his breath caught, but he didn’t stop me.
 

I straddled him, hooking my legs behind his knees.
 

“What are you doing, Danika?” he asked roughly, looking almost panicked, but still, he didn’t stop me.

“I’m daring you,” I began, gripping the backs of his massive arms, “to go under!”

I took his legs out from under him, yanking his arms away from the side of the pool.
 

He went under, but then again, so did I.
 

The maneuver also had the troublesome side effect of shoving his face between my breasts.
 

He didn’t come up right away, instead wrapping his arms around my waist and keeping his face right where it was.
 
When he stood, he took me with him.
 
I laughed as he began a wet motorboat between my breasts.
 
I yanked at his short hair to no avail.
 

He finally tilted his head back, laughing up at me.
 

We both stopped laughing abruptly as he lowered me, and my body slid along his.
 
There was a brief moment of contact between my sex and his.
 
He was hard.
 
We both gasped.
 

I pushed away, and he let me, taking a step back himself.
 

“Bad idea,” I said breathlessly.

“Yeah,” he agreed, running a hand over his wet hair.
 

“Guess we’re done here.
 
You can shower first,” I told him, since we were sharing a bathroom.

“Thanks,” he said, lifting himself out of the water with one smooth move.
 
He wrapped a towel around his hips as he moved toward the house.
 

“Just let me know when you’re done.
 
I’ll wait out here.”
 

He was already at the door, sliding it open.
 
He kept his back to me as he gave one short nod.

I stayed in the pool, trying not to panic.
 
So we were attracted to each other.
 
It didn’t mean anything.
 
We were two grown-ups who could control ourselves.
 

I didn’t even want to have sex.
 
Sex had never been good for me.
 
For me, at its best, it had been a way to stay connected to someone that I wanted to feel intimate with.
 
It was a sad fact that if I really wanted to get off, I had to take things into my own hands, and not just when I was single.

I had no idea why I couldn’t seem to keep my hands to myself when it came to Tristan.
 
It was a new problem for me.
 
I felt hot and bothered as I never had before.
 
I decided to make a short appointment with my vibrator in the very near future.
 
It could only help.
 

I swam laps, trying to blow off steam, and give Tristan enough time to shower and change.
 

I was breathless and exhausted when I stopped.
 
I started as I saw that Tristan was standing over the pool, dry and dressed in a white T-shirt and some gray athletic shorts.
 

“Shower’s all yours,” he said, watching me, his expression blank.
 

“Oh.
 
Thanks.”

I moved to get out of the water, and he met me at the steps with a towel.
   

“I’m going to go workout,” he said as I dried off.
 

I just nodded.
 
He’d made good use of Bev’s home gym in the short week he’d been staying at the house.
 

“Feel free to come and join me.”

I nodded again.
 
“I might.
 
I need to wash the chlorine out of my hair, and do a few things first.”

“Sure,” he said, walking back into the house.
 

I couldn’t tell if he was out of sorts, or just in a quiet mood.
 

I showered, and changed into a comfortable T-shirt and some shorts.
 
I started to head to the home gym when I changed my mind, turning around.
 

Maybe Tristan was on to something with his frequent showers.

With kids underfoot, I kept my vibrator at the back of the drawer in my nightstand, wrapped in a sock that was wrapped in a T-shirt.
 
It was very well hidden, since I did not want to have a conversation about
that
with the boys.

I shut and locked my bedroom door, turned on some music, slipped out of my shorts and panties, and grabbed the neglected toy out of my nightstand.

I sprawled out on my bed, closing my eyes.
 
I pictured Tristan as I set to work on myself with the small vibrating wand.