To be fair, he hasn’t given them shit, but he watches like a hawk, and I feel a little bad for Jamie sometimes. If he even raises his voice to her, Dillon gets ready to knock him flat on his ass. It must feel like walking on eggshells sometimes. I know Dillon’s protectiveness comes from a place of love, but he’s got to accept he won’t always be there to shelter his sister. Plus, she’s a grown-ass woman capable of making her own decisions, and he needs to let her live her life and deal with the consequences of her actions.
The transformation in Jamie is astounding. Though I suppose it was the same with Dillon. Neither of them even glances at the groupies. They only have eyes for us.
Until you leave. My snarky inner devil whispers nastily in my ear.
“Come on, dickheads.” Jamie slams his hands on the table again, knocking Conor’s bottle of beer to the floor. He must have a death wish.
“You’re such a jerk, Jay,” Cat says, but there’s no heat in her tone. Her boyfriend whispers in her ear, and Ash sends me a knowing look. She isn’t Stephen’s biggest fan because rumors of his infidelity have been circulating since just before our exams, and she doesn’t trust he’s being faithful to her friend. Ash and Cat had a big falling out when Ash told her what the gossipmongers were saying, and they’ve only just started talking again. I haven’t heard from Cat in weeks. I guess she assumed I would take Ash’s side, but I don’t really care. She earned a place on the bottom of my shit list with the way she reacted to news of Reeve being my ex.
“I’ll pay you back from my stash,” Jamie tells Conor.
Conor just shrugs, in that affable laid-back manner of his. I swear, in the entire seven months I’ve been in Ireland, I have only heard that guy say a handful of sentences. The shy blonde tucked under his arm doesn’t seem to care. I have no clue how they know each other, whether they are dating, or if he just brought her along to Brittas Bay this weekend.
“Let’s get this show on the road,” Jamie says, standing. “Time to head back to the house and finish the party there.”
56
“Who’s up for skinny-dipping?” Dillon suggests when we arrive at the beachside vacation house that belongs to Conor’s grandparents a half hour later. The walk back here from the pub was dark and perilous, but we made it in one piece.
“Hell to the no.” I shake my head, crossing my arms around my waist.
“Prudish much?” Jamie smirks, and I thump his shoulder.
“That’s not the reason. If the water was that freaking cold earlier, I’m not willing to test the temperature at midnight.” The beach at Brittas Bay is stunning. Grassy dunes surround miles of gorgeous sandy shores. Crystal-clear shallow water looks deceptively inviting until dipping a foot in and realizing it’s cold enough to freeze body parts.
“Bawk, bawk.” Ro and Jamie make chicken sounds, flapping their arms about.
“I’ll keep you warm,” Dillon purrs, wrapping his arms around me.
“You can’t return to the US without skinny-dipping in the Irish Sea,” Ash says, and I throw caution to the wind.
“If I die of hypothermia, it’s your fault,” I tell my bestie.
We grab towels from the house, heading out through the back garden that leads directly to the sand dunes. Racing one another to the beach helps to warm me up but not much. This will be a true test of endurance, but I’m up for the challenge.
It’s pitch-black on the beach with only faint illumination glistening on the water from the moon overhead. Behind us, most of the properties closest to the beach are in darkness, which makes sense, as this is mainly a family destination and I expect most people are in bed.
Dillon undresses in front of me, shielding me with his body while I yank my jean shorts down my legs and tug my sweater and tank off over my head. “Bra and knickers too,” Dillon says, shoving his boxers down his legs, standing proudly in all his naked glory.
Shrieks and squeals rip through the silent night air as our friends run toward the water, completely naked.
Unclipping my bra, I let it drop to the sandy floor, leveling my boyfriend with a pointed look, even if he can’t properly see it. “I do understand the meaning of skinny-dipping, Dil.” He strokes his hardening length as I clutch his arm to steady myself while I pull my panties down.
Predictably, he tweaks my nipple. “I love it when you get snarky with me. Keep it up. It just turns me the fuck on.”
“Everything turns you on.” I shriek when he yanks me in flush to his body, thrusting his hard length against me.