Whatever She's Got Read online

  I let out an audible sigh and grab my trunks out of my suitcase. “Okay, okay. Give me a minute to change.”

  Livie takes the trunks from my hand. “Why? You shy, Landon?” And there are those damn eyes again. Sparkling, all the while challenging me. They seem to change in an instant. She knows how to play me, and that’s not easy because it’s been forever since I was into a girl enough to get played. But there is something about her, besides the fact that she’s stunning, that I can’t seem to shake. Something in her eyes that makes me want to learn more, even though I know this could potentially be dangerous to my health.

  “Out, Livie,” I order. She merely smiles at me, knowing full well that she has won this round. Despite being irritated with her, despite needing nothing more than to escape her, if only to save my sanity, her smile tugs at my heart. Oh hell, did I really just say heart? I am more screwed than I thought.

  I change my shorts, my erection feeling uncomfortable in my trunks. I look down, thankful that my Knights tee shirt covers anything that might reveal my current state of distress. Hopefully, Livie will find something else to occupy her time, and this won’t be an ongoing issue for the rest of the week. No sooner do I wish her gone than I find myself angry at the thought of her finding something or someone to occupy her time. Even if I can’t have her, I sure as hell don’t want to think about her with anyone else, either. Man, am I a mess.

  When I open the door, I find her leaning against the wall expectantly. She shakes her head, a smile playing on those oh-so-kissable lips of hers. “Still with the shirt, Stud? You have something to hide?”

  If she only knew. “Don’t make me change my mind about this,” I warn. With a giggle, she holds her hands up in surrender.

  We make our way out to the speedboat at the dock. After getting our tutorial and being buckled in, we sit next to each other on the back of the boat. Livie bounces in her seat as we wait to go up. “Are you scared?” she asks.

  “No way. Mr. Uptight lives for this stuff,” I say. And I do. I may be a little uptight, but I sure as hell am not a chicken. I haven’t been parasailing before, but I love water sports. “Are you?” I ask. She doesn’t answer, but I can feel the nervous energy radiating off of her. “Oh my God, you are. That’s so cute.” She playfully slaps my arm. “Okay Ms. Scaredy-Cat, I won’t tease you about what a big chicken you are.”

  “Watch it, Sutton,” she warns. She looks adorable when she tries to be tough.

  The guide gestures that it’s time. Livie let out a long breath. Instinctively, I cover her hand with mine to help calm her. Just a simple touch sends electricity through my body. When I glance over at her, I can see she feels it too. “Just relax,” I say with a smile.

  Moments later, as we begin our ascent into the sky, she laces her fingers with mine. I give her hand a light, reassuring squeeze, and by the time we reach our altitude she is laughing like a little kid. The wind in my face, the sun on my skin; it’s been a long time since I felt this free and relaxed. Not to mention the gorgeous woman next to me whose joy is making this experience that much more enjoyable.

  When our feet hit land, the look on Livie’s face is priceless. It’s a mixture of excitement and pure bliss.

  “That was amazing, wasn’t it? We need to do that again!” Livie squeals.

  I would do this all day if it kept that gorgeous smile on her face. “We? Looks like I’m not so uptight after all.”

  She tosses her head back as she laughs. Making her laugh makes me a little happier than it should. “That remains to be seen.”

  We make our way back to the hotel. This being the first time we have ever been alone together, I don’t really even know how to begin a conversation with her. Aside from her abusive boyfriends and the party girl persona she gives off, I really don’t know much about her. I can feel her eyes on me, and when I look down at her, the infectious smile she has been wearing most of the day is gone.

  Before I can even ask, she offers up her thoughts. “I’m worried about Chase.” I nod in agreement as she continues. “I’ve never seen him like this before. I just…I’m afraid he’s going to do something stupid and mess up everything he worked for.”

  “He’s hurting and working through this the best he can,” I assure her. “But he’s smarter than that. He’s not going to jeopardize everything because of her. Besides, he never got to do the wild days like the rest of us; he deserves to have a little fun.”

  “You’re probably right. Wait…you had wild days?” she asks.

  “Wouldn’t you like to know,” I tease.

  My response stops her dead in her tracks. “Yes—yes, I would,” she yells after me. “Landon!”

  I’m still laughing at her when we enter the hotel lobby. “It’s not funny,” she says, brushing the sand off of herself. But it was, and she knows it. After feigning so much shock about me having a bit of a wild streak, she jogged to catch up to me and tripped, landing herself in the sand.

  “Oh, but it really was,” I laugh.

  She playfully shoves me. “You know, if you’re not nice I won’t give you your surprise,” she says as she folds her arms across her chest.

  Her expression is serious, but her body language tells me she’s full of it. I am extremely intrigued by what this “surprise” might be. If I were smart, I would drop the conversation, excuse myself, and head back to my room. But I’m not. Instead, I play along. “Surprise, huh?” She smirks. “Well, in that case, Matthews, I am so very sorry for laughing at your unfortunate little incident back there.”

  “Smartass,” she replies. “Meet me back here in fifteen minutes,” she says with a wink.

  I watch as she walks away, studying the way her body moves--the natural sway of her hips, the way her hair bounces when she walks. Runway models be damned; they have nothing on this girl.

  Fifteen minutes later and there I am, like a fool, standing in the hotel lobby waiting for her. Only a complete and utter moron would purposefully torture himself like this. As though it isn’t bad enough that Livie went ahead and dangled her assets in my face all day, I had to go and agree to let her do it more. I check my watch. Ten more minutes have passed. Maybe she got distracted. Maybe I got lucky and some guy caught her attention and she decided to head back to his room with him. The thought causes me to clench my fists, only solidifying the fact that my feelings for her run deeper than I care to admit.

  I take a seat on one of the sofa, my head in my hands. Five more minutes. That’s all I am giving her. If she isn’t here by then, I am going to head back to my room. Silently, I curse myself, knowing full well that I should have done that already, that I should never have agreed to spend more time with her. At least, not just the two of us. I shake my head, frustrated with myself for getting into this situation. I stand up from the couch, determined to be smart about this. Better for her to be pissed at me for ditching her than to spend more time together and get myself deeper into something I know I won’t want out of. But as soon as I am on my feet, I see her. Her arms are full, and she is running as fast as she can in flip-flops. She looks like a beautiful crazy mess and I can’t help but smile when I see her.

  “Quit grinning like an idiot and help me with this stuff, will you?” she laughs. I grab some of the items from her, lessening her load. Her face is all flushed and she’s slightly out of breath, and I can’t help but picture her looking just like that underneath me. “Sorry, I’m late. Took a bit longer than I thought to get supplies, and I didn’t have your number to call your or text you, so here I am.”

  “What is all this stuff?” I ask.

  “Don’t you worry about it, Stud. I got this. Follow me.”

  Oh, I am definitely worried. Just not for the reasons she is thinking. Livie is still wearing her bathing suit, if you can even call it that. Thankfully, she at least put some sheer thing on over it that hides barely anything but at least makes me feel a little more comfortable. I, on the other hand, look way overdressed in my tee shirt and khaki shorts. I sure as
hell hope she doesn’t plan on going for a swim. Based on my continual arousal, my boxers alone will not suffice.

  I can’t seem to peel my eyes off her. The entire way to the beach, I walk slightly behind her, watching her ass sway with each step she takes. My eyes are fixated so much that I don’t realize she has stopped, and I run right into her.

  “Shit, sorry,” I apologize as my hands hold her hips to steady us.

  “If you wanted to touch me, all you had to do was say so,” she says as she turns to me. I remove my hands and turn away. “I’m just messing with you, Landon.”

  When I turn back to her she is bent over putting down the items, her tits on breathtaking display for me. She catches me staring, and a knowing smile spreads across her face. Shit, I’ve been caught. Thankfully, she gives me a pass and tosses me the blanket without a word.

  “Hope you’re hungry,” she says as she plops down on the blanket and emptys her bag, complete with sandwiches, chips, fruit, cookies, and large bottle of tequila.

  “Wow, you really went all out. You didn’t have to go to all this trouble,” I say.

  “I figured I owed you for coming parasailing with me. You know, since fun doesn’t really seem to be your thing.” She arches her eyebrows at me, a wicked smile on her face.

  “I can be fun. I thought I proved that today?” To further my point, I grab the tequila bottle and take a long drink.

  “Watch out, Landon Sutton, the Knights’ new bad boy,” she teases. And I can’t help but laugh at the irony of it. Yeah, I can see that happening. “Tell me something about Landon Sutton,” she says as she pops a grape in her mouth.

  “Not really much to tell. Spent most of my time either studying or playing football growing up. Now I spend most of my time keeping Chase out of trouble. And occasionally I play a little football.”

  “Chase has become a full-time job lately,” she laughs, though I know underneath her smile she is worried about the path he has been heading down. “Come on, can’t you give me something better than that?”

  “My mom runs her own company. How’s that?”

  “Wow--I mean, I feel like I’ve known you my whole life,” she jokes as she rolls her eyes at me. “Okay, new idea.” She grabs the bottle of tequila and takes a drink. “Truth or Dare?”

  “What are we, in high school?”

  “I said, Truth or Dare?” she repeats.

  I shake my head unable to believe that I am going to take part in this. I take the bottle from her, because I am going to have to drink a hell of a lot more to play this game. “Truth.”

  “Do you have a girlfriend?”

  “No.”

  “Gee, elaborate much?” she asks.

  “I’m not really one to talk about myself,” I reply.

  “Fine,” she says, exasperated. “My turn.” So I sit and wait for her choice. “Are you going to ask me or not?”

  “Really? I have to ask? Don’t we already know what we’re doing here?” The look on her face tells me the correct answer is to shut up and ask, so I do. “Truth or dare?” Surprisingly she answers Truth. “What do you do for a living?”

  She laughs. “Apparently we’re going to have to work on your creativity, too. Well, I work for an organization that aids and shelters abused and battered women and their children. You know, like when they leave their abusive husband and have no place to go, we provide them shelter and help them make new lives for themselves.” This doesn’t seem like the job the party girl I have heard so much about would have. Though I suppose having lived through an abusive relationship and seeing that kind thing on a daily basis would make you want to blow off some steam. My shock must register on my face. “Don’t look so surprised. I happen to actually be a very nice and responsible person…when I want to be. Now that, Sutton, is how you answer a question.”

  We continue our game and our drinking for a while longer. The more I learn about her, the more I like her. She’s easy to be around, and she’s definitely not what I expected. Her questions are probing and explorative, and despite the fact that I love getting to know her, I can see her getting frustrated by my unwillingness to share too much. So I decide to give her what I know she really wants…I choose dare.

  “About time,” she says, a wicked smile spreading across her face as she rubs her hands together. “Take off your shirt.” I can feel myself glaring at her now. “Oh, come on, you have had that damn thing on all day while I have basically been showing off my goods to you. Can’t I get just a little something in return?” I can’t believe I’m doing this. I let out a breath before I peel the shirt off and toss it at her, a trophy of sorts. The look on her face tells me she’s pleased with what she sees. Despite knowing better, I unwisely choose dare my next go around. Things are heading in the exact direction I shouldn’t allow--but hell if part of me doesn’t want them, too. “I dare you to kiss me.”

  Exactly what any guy in my position would have wanted to hear, but it’s exactly what I have been trying to avoid. “Not happening.”

  “You picked dare--you don’t have a choice,” she argues, her gaze holding mine steadfast.

  “I do. It’s called I’m done playing. Game over.”

  “Come on, Landon, one little kiss. What could it hurt?” She crawls over to me and straddles my lap.

  I place my hands on her waist in a futile attempt to move her off of me--“attempt” being the operative word here. I’m more than twice her size; if I really wanted to move her as much as I keep telling myself I do, I could have. “You’re my best friend’s sister. I can’t do this. He’d kill me.”

  Yet her fingernails on my chest have my body saying something completely different. “Please, Landon. Just one little kiss. Please?” she purrs.

  Eyelashes batting, lips pouting, and that warm pussy hovering very close to my erection, I lose my last bit of restraint. And thanks to the tequila, apparently my damn mind. “You sure about this?” I ask, giving her one last opportunity to back out.

  “Positive.”

  My hands cup her ass and I slide her close to me, my erection pressed firmly against her. A gasp escapes her lips. If she wants to play with fire, then she better be ready for the consequences. I’m sure as hell not ready, but being with her like this makes me want to throw caution to the wind. I take her face in my hands. “Last chance.” She closes her eyes in response and I cover her lips with mine, slow and soft. It’s supposed to be one kiss. But one just isn’t enough…for either of us. My lips explore hers, the taste of her intoxicating. I run my tongue along her lips, asking for further access, which she willingly gives to me. She invites me in; her arms snake around my neck, holding me close to her. Need takes over. My hands drop back to her hips, pushing her further onto me before I run them up her sides grazing over her breasts. She feels amazing under my hands, soft skin atop toned muscle.

  I need to stop this, I argue with myself. I need to break this kiss, before I lose myself in her and I can’t. Because right now, I don’t think I can ever get my fill of her. I pull back, both of us breathless. For a moment, I rest my forehead against hers, trying to regain my composure. Within moments, her lips are back on mine. The realization that this is Chase’s sister hits me like a truck and I pull back. “I can’t do this.”

  “You were doing just fine,” she says as she leans in again.

  This time I push her back. “We can’t do this, Livie. We just…we can’t.” As I stand up to leave, I look down at her, still sitting on the blanket, looking hurt and confused. “Listen, I’m sorry. You’re amazing and I want you more than I can admit, but you’re also my best friend’s little sister. I shouldn’t have let things get this out of hand. I’m sorry.”

  I walk away. It is the right thing to do, the honorable thing to do. The last damn thing in the world I want to do.

  Chapter 2

  Livie

  Wow! Who the hell would have thought that Mr. Uptight and Impersonal would deliver such a panty-wetting kiss? Don’t get me wrong. The guy is hot as hel
l; you would have to be dead or blind not to notice. Before today, though, the thought of him as anything more than my brother’s friend never crossed my mind. Besides, he’s a good guy, which means he is about as far from my type as you can get. He’s a guy that deserves a woman who will treat him well, commit to him, and give him that happily ever after. And that woman is most definitely not me.

  I don’t know what came over me today. There was just something in the way he looked at me when I first saw him by the pool. His steel-blue eyes bore right into me and made me feel beautiful and desired. While he may have spent the better part of the day trying to fight it, I knew he wanted me. And hell if that didn’t make me want him too. With one look he turned me on more than any amount of foreplay, more than any other man in my life ever had.

  Then there was that damn shirt! I pick it up off the ground and hold it to my chest. He kept it on all day, taunting me, making me all that much more curious. And I couldn’t have been more right. The man is rock-solid perfection. Not to mention he is a complete gentleman. Landon Sutton is most definitely the whole damn package. I know why he walked away, and I don’t blame him; he did the right thing. Though I suppose if we are going to be seeing each other all week, I better start my cold showers right now.

  I wake up the next morning and despite the mass quantities of tequila I tried to dull it with, my body is still keyed up from the kiss I shared with Landon last night. The nervous energy has my leg shaking as I lie in bed checking my social media. After scrolling through my feed for a few moments, I find myself cyber stalking Landon. Granted, it probably isn’t his actual page, but who cares when they are affording me the opportunity to stare into those eyes. Those amazing blue eyes that told me we were over before anything had even started. I close out the screen and throw my phone on the bed. After the insane effect that kiss had on me, I need something to help clear my head of the handsome football player. So I slip on my gym shoes and get ready for a run.