Damn, he loved this girl.
As soon as the thought flew thorough his head, Rome squashed it. It didn’t matter if he loved her or not, because she was too good for him. Once she found out the truth about who he was, she’d look at him like he was dirt and that’d be the end of it. Best to hold any sort of emotion inside and take it with him when he left.
The air changed as they got closer to the ocean, the scent of salt water filling the night breeze. The land had flattened out, too, though it wasn’t as easy to see that in the dark.
“Should we find a hotel to make sure we can get a room?” she asked him, finger-combing her hair. “I’m starving.”
“Hotel coming up,” he told her. “And then dinner.”
He passed a large, expensive hotel and hesitated. Should he take her someplace like that? It’d wipe out his account in no time, and he hated the thought of having to cut their weekend short simply because he ran out of cash. But still, it was her weekend. “You want big hotel or want to see if we can find something more cozy?”
“Oh, cozy,” she said, smiling. “My family always stays in the big hotels, and something different would be fun.”
Thank god for that. He drove through the Galveston Strand and stopped at what looked like a quaint bed-and-breakfast. It was winter, so hopefully they wouldn’t be too busy thanks to the off-season.
Sure enough, he was able to procure a room for the weekend, and he grabbed Elise’s hand and they headed up to their room.
It was a girly room, clearly designed with honeymooners in mind. The tub was enormous, a triangle-shaped jacuzzi in the corner of the room with mirrors on both sides of it. The room was decorated in a Victorian style, and the large bed in the center of the room was a four-poster covered with an ornate purple quilt.
“Cute,” Rome said. Elise was silent, so he looked over at her and was surprised to see her expression, her face bright red. He squeezed her hand. “What’s wrong?”
“It’s just . . . one bed.” She brushed her hand against her cheek, almost automatically.
“One bed,” he agreed. “And one shower.” He touched her cheek. “And one guy that is perfectly fine with waiting on sex if you’re not ready. This weekend is about you.”
He could practically see her cheeks getting redder. She gave him another shy look, and then reached up and brushed her mouth against his. “I brought condoms in my purse,” she murmured, and then licked his lip ring.
Rome groaned. “If you’re not ready, we don’t have to—”
“I’m ready,” she told him, and she gave him a shaky smile. “Just a bit shy about admitting it.”
He kissed her back, letting his mouth show all the appreciation and desire he had for her bravery. Then he pulled away and brushed her hair off of her face, touching the curve of her cheek with his fingers. “First, dinner, I think. Ravishment later.”
She laughed at that, the tension on her face easing. “Ravishment later,” she agreed. “Dinner first. Which is good, because I’m starving.” She glanced over at the clock on the bed. It was ten thirty at night. “Don’t you think it’s a bit late, though?”
“Not for a Friday night,” he told her. “Come on.”
They walked the Strand, looking for a place to dine. At one point, they stopped outside of a nightclub; the place was hopping with music and thriving bodies. He looked over at Elise. “You want to go in?”
The look she gave him was blankly terrified, and she shook her head. “I don’t like dancing.”
He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and hugged her closer as they walked. “Then we don’t go.” That was fine with him. Elise already felt edgy and tense—he could tell from her body language—and he guessed she was thinking about heading to bed with him later that night. No sense in putting her more on edge.
They found a restaurant that was open late, and got a table. Elise immediately ordered a longneck, and he did the same, but leaned in to whisper to her. “Just one tonight. I don’t want you drunk.”
Her blushing nod made his c**k hard in his pants, and for a moment, he wished that they were getting food to go. But she was clearly enjoying being out with him, so he resolved to enjoy it, too.
They ate and chatted, the conversation full of flirty notes. He rubbed his foot along her calf idly as they waited for food, and enjoyed seeing her squirm in her chair . . . and the fact that she rubbed his leg with her own foot.
It was the longest damn dinner of his life. He couldn’t wait to get back to their room so he could peel her clothes off and take his time f**king her. Tonight was going to be amazing.
But after they paid for the meal, Elise didn’t look tired at all—she looked keyed up. Her hand automatically slipped into his and she gave him a teasing look. “Want to do a midnight walk on the beach?”
He wanted to go back to their room and make her scream out his name. But a walk on the beach would be fun, too. “I’m game if you are.”
“Great,” she said, and tugged his hand, dragging him in the direction of the beach.
It was a few blocks away from where they were, but the weather was mild for winter, and the night breeze was a light one. The dull roar of the waves was a soothing sound in the distance, and eventually they hiked over the sand dunes toward the beach.
Elise continued to drag him forward, like an excited puppy. “Let’s go walk in the waves.”
Rome chuckled, surprised by her enthusiasm. “All right. I hope we don’t run into any nighttime jellyfish, though.”
She looked back at him, a grin on her face. “I’ll kiss all your boo-boos for you.”
Damn. Just like that, his dick was hard all over again. “What if I get the boo-boos in some rather unfortunate places?”
“They’ll get extra kissing,” she teased.
“I’ve never wanted to be wounded so much,” he murmured.
Elise laughed, the sound joyous to hear, and her long, dark hair whipped around her head in the night wind. She headed to the edge of the water, Rome’s hand firmly locked in hers, and then leaned on him to take her shoes off. She grabbed them in her hand and stepped into the water, then shivered. “It’s cold!”
“Of course it’s cold,” he said, amused.
“You going to take your shoes off?”
He glanced down at his heavy combat boots. They were his only shoes, and he didn’t want to get them f**ked-up with water. “Guess so. Give me a sec.” He released her hand and knelt to undo his laces. When his shoes were off, she grabbed his hand again, and she dragged him into the water.