KESTER.
The ocean stretched wide before me, endless and serene, the waves rolling in gentle, rhythmic crashes against the shore.
I had never been the kind of man to marvel at nature, but today, standing on this beach with the salty breeze brushing against my skin, I found myself appreciating the beauty of it.
Yet none of it-not the brilliant blue sky, not the golden sunlight reflecting off the water-held a candle to the sight in front of me.
Kasmine.
I watched my obsession tense every now and then, trying to walk with her legs pressed tightly together.
She went and sat beneath the shade of a small coconut stall, her legs crossed at the knees, doing everything she could to avoid looking in my direction.
Her dark hair tumbled over one shoulder, the ends damp from an earlier swim, and her flawless skin shimmered under the sun.
That bikini-that goddamn bikini.
She had worn it despite my warning. The black fabric clung to every curve of her body, leaving just enough to the imagination while revealing far too much for my liking. It hugged her breasts perfectly, teasing a swell of cleavage that had drawn more than one pair of wandering eyes since we arrived. The bottoms sat high on her hips, emphasizing the smooth curve of her waist, her toned stomach, and-
I clenched my jaw.
She knew exactly what she was doing. She had packed it just to test me, just to push my patience to its very edge. But she hadn’t expected that I’d have my own form of punishment waiting.
Now, she squirmed in her seat, her thighs pressed together, her fingers wrapped around the coconut she drank from. The way her lips curled around the straw, the way her throat moved as she swallowed-fuck.
Her entire body was betraying her.
Every shift of her hips, the subtle squeeze of her thighs… She was suffering, and I was the cause.
I leaned back against my chair, stretching my legs out in the sand, my fingers casually resting in the pocket of my shorts where the small remote sat snugly.
I hadn’t even turned it up past the second setting yet.
“Kester, are you even listening to me?”
June’s voice pulled me from my thoughts. She sat beside me, annoyingly close, her bikini-covered thigh brushing against my own. I barely spared her a glance.
“What?”
She huffed, tossing her wet blonde hair over her shoulder, her expression somewhere between irritation and amusement. “I’ve been talking for the past five minutes, and you’ve just been sitting here glaring holes into Kasmine.”
I smirked.
Not glaring. Watching.
“What has she done to offend you this time?” She asked, and I almost scoffed.
Kasmine could never do wrong in my eyes.
I slowly turned to her, “She’s done nothing,” I replied, turning my head slightly, eyes locking on Kasmine again.
I pressed the button.
Just a little higher.
Her body jerked. The coconut nearly slipped from her hands, her legs squeezing together so tightly it was almost painful to watch. Her lips parted slightly, a shallow breath escaping.
Perfect.
June, totally oblivious, nudged me. “Are you sure you two aren’t fighting or something?”
“No.”
“Really? Because it sure looks like you’re about to explode just watching her.”
I turned the dial up another notch.
Kasmine’s breath hitched.
She coughed, covering it up as if she had simply swallowed the wrong way.
The second the cough left her lips, a man appeared in front of her.
Not just any man-a young, fit, tanned bastard who looked to be about my age. He strode up to her as fast as he could, his face laced with so much concern as he reached out and patted her back like she was some delicate thing in need of saving.
My entire body went rigid.
I jerked upright from where I lay, sitting forward, my gaze locked onto the scene unfolding before me. My fingers twitched around the remote in my pocket, but I didn’t press the button again-I was too busy watching.
The bastard leaned in, saying something to her, while his hand still lingered too damn long on her back.
The irrational part of me grew agitated, pounding at my chest and shaking the bars of its cage.
She laughed at whatever it was he said.
She fucking laughed.
But that laughter didn’t last for too long because her gaze met mine, and her entire body stiffened at once.
Good.
“Kasmine seems to have attracted a fine young man,” June teased, and her words made bile rise to my throat.
I clenched my jaw so tight my teeth nearly cracked.
Before she could even finish her next breath, I was already on my feet.
Kasmine didn’t need to be told the storm that was about to swallow whatever chitchat that was building up there. She scrambled to her feet, spinning on her heel and practically fleeing toward the reception area near the resort’s convenience section as she muttered an “excuse me” to the young man.
I made to follow her, but a hand shot out, grabbing my wrist. June.
“Kester-”
I shot her a glare. “Sit,” I ordered in a deadly tone. “Stay here. Do not move an inch.”
Something in my tone must have gotten to her because her fingers loosened, her lips parting slightly like she wanted to argue. But she knew better than to try.
Kasmine ran, her damp hair bouncing against her back as she weaved through the crowd. She didn’t even look back.
She reached the reception area, slipping past the marble counters and polished floors, heading straight for the restrooms at the far end. I caught a glimpse of her fingers trembling as she gripped the door handle.
Almost.
I closed the distance just as she tried to shut the door.
My hand shot out, fingers pressing firmly against the smooth wood.
The door didn’t budge.
She tried again, a half-hearted attempt, but she wasn’t really fighting.
She knew she’d already lost.
Her head tilted slightly, just enough for her to glance at me over her shoulder, and there it was-that smile.
Small, teasing, infuriating.
She dropped her hands from the door and let me in, leaning against the wall.
I stepped in, closing the door behind us with a soft click. “You’ve been testing me all day, huh?” I said, dark desires already clouding my voice.
Her lips curled, her fingers lazily twirling a strand of damp hair with her thighs still tightly pressed together.
“Have I?” She murmured, tilting her head slightly, “I thought you’ve been too busy to notice,” she added, and heat licked through my veins, pooling low in my stomach.
Was that jealousy?
The way she had barely looked my way, all the while I sat with June. Was that on purpose?
Wait-was she actually jealous?
The same Kasmine who told me to be nice to June during this trip?
Fuck.
This was a win.
A slow, dangerous smirk curled on my lips. “Do I smell jealousy, Mine?” I murmured, closing the space between us. My fingers brushed along the soft curve of her cheekbone, tracing the warmth of her skin.
She huffed, rolling her eyes. “Don’t flatter yourself, Kester.”
But I felt her pulse racing so fast and unsteady.
And then-fuck me.
She grabbed my shirt in both fists, yanking me forward with surprising force, her small frame lifting as she crashed her lips onto mine.
That was… Bold. Unexpected. Reckless.
And fucking perfect.