Goodbye to You by Aj Matthews Read Free Book Online Page B

hold my backpack in front of me and adjust the uncomfortable erection pressing into the front seam of my shorts.
    We board the plane, and I whisper to the pilot while the ladies and other passengers take their seats on the ten-passenger seaplane.
    I tap Thea’s bare, freckled shoulder and signal for her to come with me to the cockpit.
    She tilts her head and purses her lips.
    Confusion looks so cute on her.
    “Tony, this is my friend Thea. Thea, Tony needs a copilot today, and I thought you might enjoy the view from upfront.”
    “I . . . I don’t know. I’ve never ridden in the front seat of a plane before.”
    Tony scratches his bald head. “Nothing special—but a better view than from the back. I’ve got the controls.”
    “Go on,” I urge her, “It’s spectacular, especially on the landing.”
    “Oh, sure.” She takes a seat in the cockpit, her sky-blue eyes wide as her fingers hover above the controls, gadgets, and meters.
    I take a seat in the first row on the left, with Thea in my sights.
    We take off smoothly, flying over the island and moving to open water in a flash. The flight is an hour long, and the recorded narration interesting. The shipwrecks visible from the plane are fascinating. When the narrator mentions the wreckage of Cuban immigrant boats, Bennie perks up and glances out the window.
    Thea’s staring through the windshield, mouth agape at the view from the cockpit. We’re pulling in for our water landing, which is much smoother than on the ground.
    Fort Jefferson is a national park, so a park ranger meets us at the plane and offers to take us on a tour. A family of four elects the tour and Thea wants to join. Bennie and Felicia hop off with their bags and ask the guide if there’s a shaded area where they can crash.
    She points them in the right direction, and we follow the guard to the red brick fort’s entrance.
    The dark corridors of the fort and Thea’s soft hand in mine inspire me to wrap her in my arms and press her against the chilly stone walls, kissing her senseless.
    “Let’s move on to the prison cells . . .” the guide interjects before I act on the impulse, and we shuffle behind her.
    I pull a bottle of water from my backpack, crack the cap, and offer her a sip.
    Her slender fingers brush mine as I hand her the bottle. Sparks shoot between us, and she laughs weakly. Does she feel the zing too?
    She wraps her pink lips around the bottle top and drinks. She pulls the bottle away and licks at the drops dribbling from her mouth.
    It will be a long, painful morning if she does that again.
    We finish the tour and head back to the plane to get our snorkeling equipment. I guide her to the small beach behind the fort, where the snorkeling is best. She takes her camera off her neck and sets it on the picnic bench.
    She slips the straps of her pink dress down, revealing inch by delectable inch the curves I can’t wait to touch.
    My gaze skims her from head to toe, and I swallow as I realize she’s wearing a bikini. Not tiny patches held together with string. This suit is sexier. The striped top, modest by most bikini standards, supports her. Her breasts sit high, and one might say, proudly on display.
    Begging to be touched.
    Forget about this being a long morning.
    Today might be my last day on Earth because this woman is trying to kill me.
    We gear up and hit the water, Thea with her camera strapped around her neck. We swim out and explore.
    She snaps more pictures. Blue and yellow angelfish, fat mottled groupers, and silver barracudas paint the underwater landscape on a backdrop of sea urchins, anemones, brain coral, and sea fans.
    She’s enjoying the view.
    As much as I’m enjoying the view of her.
    I don’t think she has a clue how sexy she is, but I want to show her later, when we’re alone.
    I check my watch, and it’s time to go, so I tap her leg and point to the surface.
    After we break through the water, I pull the air tube from my mouth. “We’ve got to get