Modern Wicked Fairy Tales: Complete Collection (50 page)

“Well, there you are!” The sound of Drew’s
voice startled her and she actually screamed, jumping away from the
door, her hand raised to the level of her heart. “You’re missing
all the fun.”

“I got…lost,” she said, breathless, as he
approached. God he looked good, wearing tan slacks and a
button-down navy shirt, the color almost matching his eyes. He was
a button-down kind of guy, clean-cut and handsome, but not in the
breathtaking kind of way that might have made him really stand out
in a crowd. It was his smile that did that, the one that he was
giving her now, a little naughty and mischievous, like he wanted
nothing more than to find some trouble to get into. The problem
was, so far, his intentions hadn’t lived up to his smile.

“It’s a big boat.” He laughed, taking her
hand and leading her back the way he’d come. “Come on, let’s get
back to the party.”

They climbed the stairs to the main, or
middle, deck, finding themselves in the corridor that led to both
of their suites.

“I’m a little warm.” Gretel slowed as they
reached her room, pulling out a key card. The suite doors locked
the same way hotel doors did, with key cards that slid into slots.
“I think I’m going to change.”

Andrew hesitated. “Do you want me to
wait?”

“Why don’t you come in?” She smiled over her
shoulder at him, taking a deep breath and pushing open her
door.

“All right.” He followed her, shutting the
door behind him.

“Have a seat,” she called, grabbing a dress
off the rack and heading into the bathroom. Of course, there was
nowhere to sit but the bed, which was big enough for four people
and covered in some sort of down duvet. She still hadn’t gotten
used to the luxury of this place, the breathtaking view, usually a
vast expanse of ocean, out her window every morning.

“Sheesh, and I thought my suite was nice,”
he muttered. “You’ve got your own bar?”

“I’m not twenty-one,” Gretel reminded him,
and then cursed herself for doing so as she slipped her jeans down
her hips. She’d left the bathroom door a little open so she could
hear him and vice versa.

“Actually, the drinking age in Australia is
eighteen,” Drew called. “Mind if I indulge?”

“Help yourself.” She undressed quickly,
deciding to take her bra off as well as the sundress was strapless
and didn’t lend itself to wearing one. She turned on the light,
kicking her discarded clothes into a corner, before slipping the
soft, flower-print dress over her head, pulling a long curtain of
red hair out from underneath and giving it a quick combing before
she was satisfied.

“Did you find…” She trailed off as she came
out of the bathroom, seeing Drew sitting with a drink in his hand,
only she wasn’t really seeing him—she was seeing his reflection in
the mirror across from the bed. With the bathroom door cracked
open, he could have seen everything, and from the look on his face,
he most assuredly had.

“Here.” He cleared his throat and handed her
a shot glass. “Live a little.”

She accepted it, already flushed, and the
alcohol burned its way down her throat, spreading like hot fingers
through her chest.
So he saw me naked,
she thought.
He’s
seen me in a bathing suit before. What difference does it make?
And hadn’t she left the bathroom door open just a little on
purpose, hoping…?

“Drew, can I ask you something?” She sat on
the edge of the bed, holding her glass out and letting him pour
some more amber-colored liquid into it.

“I’m sure you can.” He knocked back another
shot, making a face and pouring another.

She did the same, shivering, gasping, and
then asking the question before she could lose her nerve. “Are you
attracted to me?”

“Oh god, sweetheart…” Drew groaned, setting
his glass and the bottle on the night table next to the bed. “Gay
men would be attracted to you. How could I
not
be attracted
to you?”

“Well then why…” She put her glass next to
his, half-turning toward him on the bed, struggling for the words.
“I mean, I think I’ve been… you know, pretty clear…”

He grinned. “Not at the moment, no.”

Gretel gave up and kissed him, doing it
without thought or reason. It was a purely impulsive act, something
driven and beyond motivation, and it moved through them that way,
like electricity traveling a livewire, shocking them both.

“Is that clear enough?” she breathed as they
parted.

He swallowed. “Quite.”

“Can we do that again?” She leaned in, this
time with her whole body, pressing full against him, aching for
more.

“It’s probably not a good idea.” He sighed,
shaking his head and putting his hands on her shoulders to keep her
at a safe distance. The look on her face prompted him to offer her
more. “Because…because I work for your grandmother.”

Gretel frowned. “So that’s why?”

“That’s why.” He nodded.

“So your job is more important than me?”

He smacked himself in the forehead and fell
back onto the bed with a groan. “Women!”

Gretel got up and went to the window,
opening it so she could feel the night air. It was cooler than the
heat of the day, but still warm, and the big boat rocked gently in
the waves. She was far too full of longing, as if her body was too
small to contain the feeling, her skin too thin to keep it all in,
desire literally seeping through her pores.

She felt him approach, cautious, and she
murmured, “The lights are pretty, but I wish we weren’t docked. I
like it better when we’re in open water.”

“We’ll be sailing back out tomorrow.” He was
close now, close enough she could feel the heat of him behind her.
“Your grandmother said we were stopping so your brother could pick
up some supplies.”

“What is he up to down there in that lab all
the time?” she wondered aloud.

“I like the open water best too.” Andrew’s
arms went around her waist. She held her breath and closed her
eyes. “Full moon reflecting off the water, dolphins playing in the
waves. You feel so small and insignificant in the scheme of things,
and yet a part of it all.”

“Yes.” She turned in his arms, tucking her
head under his chin, a perfect fit. “I really like you, Drew.”

He hesitated just a moment and then she felt
his lips against her forehead. “I like you too.”

“Please…” Her mouth had a mind of its own,
finding his and making a small attempt to give him just a minutia
of the feelings coursing through her body. He held back at first,
letting her wrap her arms around his neck, her breasts pressed hard
against his chest, her mouth searching for more, more.

Then she felt him give in, as if his whole
body had exhaled. He even groaned a little against the press of her
lips, his tongue finding hers, his hands groping her flesh, the
sudden explosion of emotion so overwhelming that Gretel cried out
from the pleasure, the pain of it. It was as if a switch had been
thrown from “off” to “on” and her whole body lit up in response to
his heat.

“Oh no,” he whispered against her neck,
kissing and biting at her flesh, driving her backwards towards the
bed with the lean muscles in his thighs. “We should so not be doing
this.”

“I want an adventure.”

She let him tumble her onto the mattress,
accepting his weight and curling herself around him as they kissed
and fumbled in the lamp light. She closed her eyes and let herself
be transported by sensation—the wet trail of his tongue across her
collarbone, the hard throb of his cock against her thigh, the
desperate grip of his hand over her breast, the nipple standing up
for attention, begging for more.

She was so lost that when he stopped, still
breathing hard, it took her a full minute to open her eyes to the
realization.

“Gretel …” His smile was sad, a little
sorry, and she hated it. She tried to kiss it away but he shook his
head, rolling to the side of her, both of them staring at the
ceiling now. “Sweetheart, wait. Let’s just…stop…”

She took a deep breath, her limbs still
tingling, cold now without him covering her. She wanted him back,
she wanted the moment back, but part of her knew it was lost.

“Okay,” she agreed, blinking at the white
expanse of ceiling. “What do you know about my grandmother?”

Drew snorted a laugh. “Well that’s a subject
change if I ever heard one.”

“Does she ever talk about my mother?” Gretel
rolled onto her side toward him. “She won’t tell me anything.”

He reached out to smooth her hair, shaking
his head. “Your grandmother is a very private person.”

“You’ve been with her…how long?”

“Six years,” he confessed.

“Does she ever talk to you?”

He shrugged. “Sometimes.”

“What does she say?” she demanded, leaning
in closer, searching for the truth in his eyes.

“Can we go back to kissing?” He grinned,
only half-joking, she could tell.

“Do you want to?” She wasn’t about to let
the opportunity slip by.

“It seems safer.” He smiled, accepting her
arms around him, the soft press of her lips and, oh his tongue,
exploring the soft recesses of her mouth. She slid a thigh over
his, pressing it between his legs, feeling his instant response
like a brand. Her dress was hiked up high, her panties soaked, the
aching throb of her mound straddling the hard muscle in his leg,
and she rocked like a wave against him again and again, whimpering
her longing into his mouth.

He groaned, breaking the kiss and gasping.
“Okay, I was wrong, definitely not safer…”

“Please,” she pleaded, knowing she was
begging and not caring in the least. “It’s okay, I’m not a virgin.
And I’m on the pill.”

“Oh…well that’s good to know.” He blinked at
her as he sat up on the bed, leaving her curled into a desperate,
quivering ball beside him. “But that’s not what I’m worried
about.”

Sighing, she sat up to face him. “What are
you worried about?”

He leaned over to kiss her cheek but Gretel
turned her face to him and he caught the corner of her mouth. She
took full advantage of that, licking at his lips with her little
tongue, lapping like a cat, her hand sliding behind his neck.

“You’re going to be the death of me,” he
groaned and then got up, holding his hand out to her. “Come on,
there’s a big dance floor. Let’s go use it.”

Gretel wasn’t giving up that easily. She
stood too, wrapping her arms around his neck, letting the heat of
her body sway against his. “We can do that here.”

His breath drew in sharply when he felt her
thigh pressing between his. “We can also get into much bigger
trouble here.”

“That’s what I was thinking,” she whispered
into the shell of his ear, giving it a lick for good measure, using
her fingernails to gently rake the hair at the back of his
head.

Drew rested his forehead against hers with a
sigh. “You’re a very naughty girl.”

“So spank me.” She grinned.

“Come on.” He turned, grabbing her hand and
pulling her with him. “Before I lose the last thread of my
sanity.”

The dance floor was crowded. Their
grandmother had decided the crew needed a little R&R—although
Gretel suspected it was probably Double’s request that had led her
to the conclusion. She noticed him drinking at the bar, a woman
hanging off each bulky arm, even smiling on occasion. Where all the
people had come from, she had no idea. She recognized most of the
crew, of course, the people who had been cooking their meals,
making their beds, doing their laundry, but there were far too many
unfamiliar faces in the group.

“Can you dance?” she asked Drew over the
pound of the music but he pulled her against him, his hips
answering her question, and she found her own body responding to
his in kind. They rocked and swayed, rubbed and teased, grinding
their hips together. She couldn’t have asked for a better
opportunity to continue seducing him. The music was too loud for
words but their bodies spoke clearly enough for them both.

“You’re driving me crazy,” he managed to
whisper into her ear as she rolled her hips, her behind grinding
against his crotch. She could feel how crazy she was making him,
the evidence rubbing up over her hip, and she wanted him to know he
was making her just as insane.

Turning in his arms, she pressed her lips to
his ear, whispering, “My panties are soaked.” She heard him groan
and smiled at the way his hands gripped her hips, pulling her
close, as if he could get inside of her right there. The bodies
pressed around them, everyone lost in their own sensations, the
music keeping time, and Gretel kissed him, deciding to show him
just how excited she really was.

Slipping a hand under her sundress, she
hooked her thumb in the side elastic of her panties, yanking them
down. They stuck wetly between her legs, but the buck and roll of
her hips eased them down her slender thighs to her knees and from
there it was as easy as letting them fall to the floor. The hardest
part was getting down to retrieve them but the entire process, from
wiggling her way down Drew’s body, her cheek grazing the hard bulge
in his trousers, to the triumphant slipping of her panties into his
pocket, made them both breathless with lust.

“A present for you,” she murmured, kissing
his cheek before turning and weaving her way through the crowd,
heading for the bar. She ordered a fuzzy navel, glancing over her
shoulder and smiling to see Drew coming off the dance floor,
inspecting the moist bit of material in his pocket.

“That’s right, ladies, this key opens any
door on this whole damned ship,” Double announced, putting one arm
around the blonde on his left, his other around the blonde on his
right, the key card in one of his big hands. “Who wants to go with
me so I can prove it to you?”

The girls giggled and teased him and Double
bought them another round of drinks, probably in hopes he could get
them both to go back so he could prove it, Gretel thought. She saw
Hans at the other end of the bar drinking a beer and waved. He
waved back, giving her a brief smile. Then she saw their
grandmother appear behind him, whispering something into his ear.
She hardly ever saw the old woman without Double by her side, but
she’d obviously given him the night off.