Perfect Pleasures Read online

  Zachary rolled his eyes skyward. “Are you difficult by default or do you actually work at being such a pain?”

  She kicked water in his direction. “It takes skills to do what I do,” she said with a soft giggle.

  She stared at him, her eyes dancing over his face. After their initial lovemaking they’d slept the night away, finally giving in to the exhaustion that had been teasing them both for days. It was a peaceful slumber, satisfying and rejuvenating. They had been so comfortable that neither had moved, waking up in the exact same position where they’d laid their heads the night before.

  His eyes had opened first, the early rays of morning sun streaming past the open window blinds and shining over them. The morning air was unusually warm, and he knew that it was going to be an extremely hot day. He woke with an erection, his morning boner bringing a smile to his face. It took every ounce of his fortitude to keep his urgings at bay. As he’d rolled away from Kenzie, rising to relieve himself, she’d opened her own eyes, greeting him with the sweetest smile, and his fortitude was lost. They had started the day making love before breakfast and again after, and now he needed to get back to his responsibilities. Half the day was already gone without him leaving his home.

  Zachary threw water back in her direction. “I need to get dressed,” he said as he lifted himself from the water and reached for a towel. “I need to get a run in, and then I need to go to my office for a few hours to get some work done.”

  She nodded. “I should go run with you.”

  He smiled. “You’re always welcome. But don’t expect me to hold back so you can keep up. I don’t work that way.”

  “Why do you assume I wouldn’t be able to keep up? I’ll have you know I’m in excellent shape!”

  He shrugged his broad shoulders. “I’m sure you are, but you’re not in my kind of shape.”

  Light flashed in Kenzie’s eyes, and a muscle at the edge of her brow twitched ever so slightly. It was like a switch turned on, igniting her competitive spirit. She followed behind him as he moved into the bedroom.

  The expression on her face made Zachary laugh. “You better keep up,” he said as he reached for his running shoes.

  Kenzie grabbed her shoes and one of his T-shirts from a pile of clean laundry on the dresser top. “You better run fast,” she said.

  * * *

  Zachary was dressed and ready a split second before she was. When she exited the house, he was in the front yard, bent at the waist as he reached for his toes. She stretched her own limbs, twisting first to one side and then the other. Zachary gave her a wink of his eye, and then he took off running, not bothering at all to count down or say go. Kenzie took off after him, the thought crossing her mind that maybe it hadn’t been a good idea to think that she could keep up with him.

  Zachary crossed the grounds at Revolution, running toward the lengthy driveway and out onto the main road. He ran purposefully, his lengthy strides at an even pace. Kenzie stayed close on his heels, determination motiving each of her own steps. They ran from Patong to Karon Beach. The route was one of the prettiest she had ever run. The spectacular views made the pain she was feeling worth it, and she was feeling pain. The round-trip trail offered some challenging hills, and the midday heat was just a few degrees from stifling.

  Sweat poured from them both like water from a running faucet. Kenzie’s lungs were feeling brittle and dried like crumpled paper. Her legs were concrete wrapped in rubber. She imagined that if she stopped, her whole body would be one gelatinous mess and she wouldn’t be able to move a single step farther. She was just about to quit when Zachary suddenly darted in the direction of the beach, coming to an abrupt stop at the edge of the coastline where the warm blue water kissed the sand. They were both panting harshly.

  She gasped for air. “Why . . . why you . . . why did you stop?” she finally managed to mutter.

  He cut an eye in her direction. His hands clutched his hips, his broad chest heaving up and down, a drumline beating rhythmically beneath his skin. He laughed and then coughed, gasping for his own air. He shook his head, bemusement painting his expression. “You can keep running,” he said. “You don’t have to stop because I stopped!”

  “I said I would keep up with you, not outrun you. I’ll save that for another day!”

  Zachary laughed heartily. He gestured toward the empty water bottle affixed to her waist. “I thought you might like to get something to drink,” he said as he turned and pointed to a small shack at the end of the beach. “They make a great ginger water that will help energize you.”

  “Who said I needed to be energized?” she quipped as she followed him down the length of coastline.

  Zachary tossed her a look over his shoulder, his expression smug.

  The little restaurant was family-owned, and as they stepped to the counter, a young woman greeted Zachary by name. She was beautiful, with waist-length hair, a petite figure, and strong Thai facial features. Zachary introduced Kenzie to Preeda, as she looked Kenzie up and down, her narrowed gaze expressing her displeasure. Preeda turned her attention back to Zachary, her wide smile expressive, her eyes wishful. He greeted the young woman warmly, ordering two drinks in the native language.

  Kenzie didn’t miss the exchange between the two as Preeda passed him both drinks, allowing her fingers to glide seductively against his. He pulled several bills from his pocket, laying the Thai currency on the counter to pay for their drinks and leave a substantial tip. He passed one cup and straw to Kenzie and grabbed the other. With a warm palm pressed against the small of her back, he guided her to an empty picnic bench so the two could sit down. Preeda was still giving Kenzie the evil eye, watching them both intently.

  “Something I should know?” Kenzie questioned, her gaze shifting toward Preeda and back.

  Zachary shrugged. “If there’s something you want to know, Kenzie, you just need to ask,” he said. “I don’t make a habit of volunteering unnecessary information.”

  “Did you sleep with her?”

  He lifted his eyes to meet the look Kenzie was giving him. He wanted to laugh, but then he realized she was serious, a hint of jealousy wafting off her spirit like a ghostly mist. “No,” he said with a head shake. “I’ve never had sex with her. I did train her brother for a few years, and I’ve given both her parents work when they needed it. But I have never even thought about Preeda in that way.”

  “Well, she’s thought about you like that.”

  “I can’t control what anyone thinks about me. If I could, it would eliminate a lot of drama in my life. And I definitely don’t worry about anything I can’t control. You should give it a try. It’ll work wonders for you.”

  Kenzie pondered his comment for a moment, but she didn’t bother to respond. She switched her attention to the plastic cup in her hand. She took a sip of her drink, surprised by the cooling effect of the ginger and citrus blend.

  “So, let me ask you something,” Zachary said. He set his cup down and clasped his hands together in his lap. “Why are you jealous?”

  “Who said I was jealous?” She cut a quick eye in his direction, then shifted her gaze toward the shoreline.

  “No one needed to say it. I could see it on your face. That little girl actually had you seeing green.”

  Kenzie rolled her eyes skyward, the gesture exaggerated. “First, she is no little girl. She’s a grown woman. And second, I was not jealous. Not one bit.”

  “Yes, you were. You were all caught up in your feelings.”

  Kenzie clenched her teeth, her jaw muscles tightening. Once again she hated to admit it, but Zachary was right. She had been in her feelings, her emotions drifting between jealousy and curiosity. The intensity of it had surprised her, and clearly, despite her best efforts, she hadn’t been able to keep it off her face. She didn’t bother to respond, feigning interest in her drink instead.

  Zachary laughed. He shifted his body and extended his legs, then leaned his back against her chest, pulling her arms around his waist. Ke
nzie giggled as she let him settle his weight against her. She brushed her fingers across his abdomen. His skin was damp from perspiration, the T-shirt he wore saturated from sweat. He smelled like heat and manliness and the outdoors, his body odor musky and intensely sexual. She inhaled him, allowing his scent to fill her nostrils.

  “You need a shower,” she said, still trailing her palms and fingers back and forth across his chest and stomach

  He lifted an arm and sniffed his armpit. “I do,” he said with a slight shrug.

  He turned his head to nuzzle his nose between her breasts, pulling at her sports bra to expose the round tops of her breasts.

  Kenzie’s eyes widened, and she tossed a quick glance around to see if anyone was watching them. Preeda was still eyeing them intently. Kenzie swatted a hand at him. “What are you doing?”

  “Learning your scent. There is something very sexy about a woman’s natural body odor,” he said.

  She bit down against her bottom lip. “I need a shower too.”

  “After we make love again, we can both shower,” he said.

  She giggled as he nuzzled her again, his tongue lapping at the salty sweat on her skin. “You really should stop,” she said, leaning to press her face into the top of his head. His dreadlocks were loose, falling past his shoulders in intricate waves. His hair was thick and soft, the twists feeling like cotton against her skin. The strands smelled of coconut oil and shea butter. “You’ve got me feeling all tingly, and we still have to run back.”

  He nipped at her skin, biting her lightly with his teeth. “I can’t. Not yet,” he said as he palmed her breast with a heavy hand.

  Kenzie tossed a look over her shoulder. Preeda was gone, having disappeared back inside the small building. She looked over her other shoulder, her eyes skating the landscape. The beach was empty, nothing but water and sand and miles of sunshine around them. “Why can’t you?” she whispered, pressing her palm over his hand and squeezing it gently.

  Zachary nipped at her again. “Because you’ve got my dick hard.”

  * * *

  They were insatiable. Zachary had waved down a tuk-tuk to take him and Kenzie back to Revolution, forgoing the return leg of their run. The driver of the mechanized, three-wheeled taxi had been excited to have the champion in his vehicle and had talked nonstop the whole trip. The entire time, the two had been in the back seat, sitting miles apart, fighting to keep their hands off of each other.

  Zachary had tipped him generously when they’d been delivered to the front door of his home. Once inside, they’d left a trail of clothes from the front entrance through the living room and into the bedroom. Their loving had been intense and dirty, the physicality of the sexual act raw and hard. Everything about their coming together was animalistic, the two rutting like it was mating season. Kenzie had lost count of the number of times she’d orgasmed, each one more intense than the time before.

  There was something seductive about the easy caresses and gentle nudges they shared. Their connection was intoxicating, and both felt an air of buoyancy that came with the newness of their relationship. The give-and-take between them was surprisingly easy, the two exchanging breaths with each deep inhalation and exhalation of air. They traveled in a parallel universe of their own making, and it was full of sheer bliss like they’d never known before.

  As Zachary drifted off into the deepest sleep, he was in awe of his own stamina. Nothing in his past had prepared him for the fireworks between him and Kenzie. Just the thought of her would lengthen an erection in his pants and have him salivating at the prospect of tasting her. When he slid himself into her, it was as if he’d found world peace and the cure for cancer, and had righted everything wrong in the whole wide world. They came together over and over again, and it still wasn’t enough. No woman before her had ever had him feeling so fulfilled and so ravenous at the same time.

  It was dark out when they finally made it into the shower, slowly soaping each other and rinsing the suds from the other’s body. When they finished bathing, they ate the leftovers from the night before, then Zachary excused himself to go check on the chores he’d ignored earlier.

  Kenzie retreated to her own cottage for her laptop, sitting down to type out the finer points of her article. She’d been struggling with the words, unable to convey the message that had been spinning in her head for weeks. And then, just like that, it was as if the floodgates had opened, syntax spilling out with a vengeance. She wrote like a woman possessed, the words coming faster than she could get them onto paper. The feeling was incredible, a level of excitement rising that shoved her writer’s block to the wayside and had her feeling like a contender for the next Pulitzer Prize. She still needed to visit Colorado and Alexander Barrett’s athletic facility there, but she had more than enough data to write the story she was excited to tell. With the words hitting the paper like melted butter on hot toast, she fell into her zone and took up residence.

  A few hours passed, and Kenzie had finished the first draft and a round of edits before she realized how late it was. She glanced at her wristwatch and then her cell phone, surprised by the time. After pressing the SAVE button on her keyboard she shut the computer down and tucked it back on the closet shelf.

  She moved into the bathroom to freshen up, rinsing her hands and face with warm water. She stared at her reflection, marveling at the glow that seemed to shimmer in her eyes. It felt as if everything that had been weighing heavily on her spirit was gone. She felt something like joy, and the smile on her face refused to be moved. Zachary Barrett had her all in her feelings, and she couldn’t begin to fathom that ever going away. She combed through her curls with her fingers and dressed her lips with her favorite gloss. After giving herself a spritz of perfume and one last look in the mirror, she went to search out Zachary, missing him something fierce.

  * * *

  “I think we should sweeten this game up a bit and play strip poker,” Zachary said matter-of-factly. He peered over the top of the cards in his hand, lifting his eyebrows suggestively.

  They were playing pitty pat, a card game that Kenzie had learned to play as a child; her mother’s great aunt Janie had played it with her when she’d been a little girl. After a good hour of conversation, she’d been surprised when he had started dealing the deck of cards, asking her what she did or didn’t know how to play. Apparently, he was skilled at gin rummy, poker, and a host of card games she’d never heard of before. She, on the other hand, was only proficient at pitty pat and go fish.

  She laughed. “I told you, I don’t know how to play poker.”

  “It would be my pleasure to teach you.”

  “I’m sure it would, and something tells me I’d be buck naked while you’d still be sitting around fully clothed.”

  Zachary laughed. “Maybe for the first few games. Until you got yourself acclimated to playing. Then I’m sure you’d give me a run for my money.”

  Kenzie said, “A run for your skivvies, you mean!” She laughed with him.

  “Them too!”

  “Pitty pat!” she said as she slammed her last card down on the discard pile. She jumped to her feet and did a little happy dance. Zachary rolled his eyes skyward. She’d beaten him in six straight games, and she enjoyed reveling in his defeat. “Do you want to play again?” she questioned.

  He shook his head. “Nope! I’m done for the night. I’m going to take a swim, soak for a few minutes, then I’m going to take you to bed.”

  Kenzie laughed. “Just like that?”

  He nodded. “Exactly like that,” he said as he leaned in to give her a swift kiss. He stood as he swept his T-shirt up over his head and dropped it to the concrete beneath his feet. He moved in the direction of the pool, stepping out of his trunks along the way. His naked backside was a sight to behold, his buttocks full and firm like two oversized melons. Kenzie imagined he could have easily balanced a quarter on his hind parts with very little effort. As if he knew she was watching him intently, he jiggled one cheek and then
the other, demonstrating the strength of his muscles. The gesture was a wave of sorts, beckoning her to follow after him.

  Kenzie moved to the edge of the pool and watched as he slipped beneath the surface of the water, sinking his body low into the pool’s depth until it covered his head. Zachary held his breath for a few good minutes before he lifted himself up, shaking the dampness out of his eyes and hair. He gave her a bright smile, and then he swam laps from one end of the concrete tub to the other, back and forth until Kenzie was actually tired for him. When he finally came to a stop, leaning back against the wall to catch his breath, she realized that she’d been holding her own breath the entire time, air locked deep in her lungs. She blew a heavy sigh and then took a deep inhale of oxygen.

  As Zachary lifted himself out of the water to sit on the pool’s edge, she thought he was the most beautiful specimen of male prowess that she had ever seen. His warm complexion glistened under the water that trickled down his chest and against his skin. Everything about him screamed power, every hardened line, each sinewy muscle. He was absolutely divine!

  Zachary found it exciting to watch her as she stood watching him. The expression on her face was intoxicating, an intense longing seeping out of her eyes. She was as mesmerized with him as he was with her. No woman had ever looked at him like that before. He found himself liking the reflection he saw in her eyes.

  As if she were reading his mind, Kenzie lowered her gaze coquettishly. The look she gave him sent a chill up his spine, and he shuddered as if he were cold. He shifted his body backward, crossing his legs in a lotus position. His dick was rock hard, standing straight up from his body, heavy and lengthy and swaying back and forth as if demanding attention. Their gazes locked as he wrapped his hand around his member and shook it at her, the gesture reminiscent of a magician waving his wand to effect a trick.

  “Look at what you did,” he said teasingly.

  Kenzie laughed. “What I did?”

  He nodded. “It’s all your fault. Now what are you going to do about it?”