“YOU KNOW, I’VE never had sex on a boat before.”
I stiffen at the sound of Summer’s soft voice in my ear. Any logical man would rectify that without a second thought. But I am clearly the dumbest man alive. “I would love to cross that off your bucket list, babe, but your dad is on this boat, and I still want to have a career when we touch land again.”
We’re staring at the boat—or yacht—that is getting docked in the Boston harbor so we can board. Now I understand why she’s been evasive about the location of this dinner.
“Come on, we’ll go to one of the cabins. I promise I’ll be quiet.” She holds up her pinky.
God, she’s fucking adorable. “You can never keep that promise, Summer.”
She kisses my neck, and I swallow hard when she hums. “You can put something in my mouth to keep me quiet then.”
My resistance is already paper thin, and she’s not making this easy on me. But I know what she’s doing. She wants a distraction from the nerves she has about tonight. Summer’s been lost in her thoughts a bunch lately, but she says it’s because of her application, and I let her have that excuse for now. I know she’ll tell me about whatever’s on her mind when she’s ready.
Her nails run along the nape of my neck causing a shiver to crawl up my spine. “You smell so good.”
Her eyes shine under the moonlight. Before I can speak, she kisses me. Hard, rough, sloppy. I kiss her back, unable to resist. I palm her ass and inch my fingers below her dress when someone clears their throat.
I yank Summer away from me so fast she almost stumbles off the deck. I hook an arm around her waist to balance my dazed girlfriend to my side.
Lukas Preston is staring right at me.
Calculating. Murderous. Appropriate reactions to what he just saw.
“You must be the boyfriend.” He says with disdain.
My hands are sweaty, and I actually hear the buzz of nerves on my skin. I extend my hand. “Aiden Crawford, sir.”
His eyes flash with recognition. “Crawford. Fastest collegiate player in the country. Toronto is lucky to have you.” He turns to Summer and my grip on her tightens. “Sunshine?”
Summer stiffens, and Lukas Preston’s eyes swim with a softness I didn’t think he possessed.
“Hi, Dad.” She looks past him. “Where’s Mom?”
The hope in his eyes extinguishes. “Up there. She’s excited to see you.”
As soon as we climb the steps to the front of the boat, a woman comes into view. Her tan skin glows against the red dress, and I see her striking resemblance to Summer.
“Oh my goodness, meri jaan! You look gorgeous,” she gushes, giving Summer a tight hug. “And this is that handsome boyfriend of yours? Aiden, right?”
“Yes, ma’am. It’s so nice to meet you.” I hand her the bottle of wine. Summer said I didn’t need to get something so expensive, but we were on a yacht for Christ’s sake.
“Don’t be so formal. Call me Divya. Come sit, you must be hungry.”
Divya brings out multiple dishes, and from what I can name chicken tikka masala, butter chicken, naan, and sweets cover the table. Then two identical girls walk in, eyes glued to their phones. Summer’s twin sisters.
Serena and Shreya introduce themselves before they sit down.
“How did you get our sister to go out with you? She hates hockey players,” one of them asks.
“Shreya,” Summer warns.
I chuckle “Trust me, I know. It wasn’t easy, but it was all worth it.” I take Summer’s hand in mine.
“Are you two being safe?”
Summer chokes on her water, and I pat her back.
“Shreya. That is not an appropriate dinner conversation,” Divya scolds.
The girl’s eyes narrow. “Why not? We learned all this in class. I’m just making sure they don’t pop out a kid any time soon. I’m way too young to be an aunt.” When Shreya sees her dad’s warning look, she shrinks in her seat and stabs at the salad on her plate.
The rest of the hour goes by with questions about me. About hockey, my future plans, and the occasional interrogative questions from Summer’s sisters about my intentions.
After dinner, there’s a stuffy strain in the air when Lukas Preston starts asking about school. Summer’s easy body language shifts, and I can’t react fast enough to do anything about it.
“Did you buy tickets for graduation? Your grandparents want to come too,” says Divya.
Summer shifts uncomfortably in her chair. “Not yet. I’m focused on grad school decisions right now.”
Her dad makes a noise, and the scraping of utensils stops.
“What?” Summer dares to ask.
“More school,” he tuts. “You’d be better off if you stuck to figure skating like I said. I could have made you a star by now.”
I place my hand over Summer’s, trying to ease her tension. “Actually, Summer just held an event on campus that was a huge success for the psychology department. She raised way more than the target for her initiative.”
Gray eyes turn cold. “Success in school is fine, but it’s the real world that matters. Your options are limited after you graduate, and even after a master’s you’ll spend more time in school. It’s a misuse of valuable time.”
Summer stands. “Thanks for your input, but I didn’t come here to hear about how disappointed you are in me. I like school, I’m good at it, and I know that I want to be a sports psychologist.”
He shakes his head. “That’s not what I meant. You had the tools to become the best. I mean look at your sisters, they’re first in every competition.”
Summer’s eyes fill with sadness. “And I’m proud of them, Dad. But it really fucking sucks when nobody’s proud of me.” She tosses her napkin on the table and disappears down the hall.
I stand to follow her, but I can’t just leave. “I don’t mean to disrespect you, sir, but Summer has done nothing but work her ass off to get where she is. If you want to show her that you care, just be supportive of her decisions. How you’re acting now is doing nothing but hurting her, and I won’t stand by while my girlfriend can’t have a conversation with her father without him overstepping.”
Gray eyes grow frigid. “You know nothing about my family.”
“I know enough.” I see red, and I’m pretty sure he does too. “I know how she’s cried about you choosing your career over her and how you haven’t bothered to get to know her even after you retired. It’s a shame, but I’m proud to say that she’s the greatest woman I’ve ever met, and it’s no thanks to you.”
There’s a murmur from Summer’s sisters. I expect them to be angry that I’m speaking to their father this way, but they smile. Like they’ve been waiting for someone to have Summer’s back the way she’s always had theirs.
Serena pipes up. “He’s right, Dad. You put so much pressure on her to mold into what you want.”
“Now that she’s doing what she enjoys, she’s bound to feel like you don’t care,” Shreya adds.
Lukas Preston simmers in his seat. “Girls, go to your rooms.”
Without another word, the twins shuffle away.
I turn to Summer’s mom. “Divya, I apologize if—”
She lifts a hand. “No, this needed to be said. There’s only so much of this I can take, Luke, it’s been years. You need to fix this.”
His lack of response only makes me angrier, and I know I need to leave before I do something stupid.
I meet Divya’s embarrassed gaze. “I apologize for interrupting dinner, but I need to take Summer home. Thank you for dinner.”
Walking through the hallway, I find her room locked. “Baby, it’s me. Open the door.”
It takes a minute before the lock clicks. Summer sits back on the bed, holding a photo frame. I take a seat beside her, putting my arms around her. It’s a picture of their family Christmas.
“We were so happy here,” she whispers. “He could have been a good dad. He would’ve been the best, but he chose not to.”
“I think he does know, and that’s why he’s acting like this.”
She sighs. “He’s being selfish.”
“I know.”
Three beats of silence pass before she looks at me again. “You shouldn’t have stood up for me. I don’t want it to affect hockey.”
“I don’t care about that right now. I care about you. If you can count on one person to be on your side no matter what, it’s me. I don’t ever want you to think you’re alone because there isn’t a second that goes by when I’m not thinking about you.”
Tears rim her eyes when she kisses me. I kiss her back, and in an instant, she’s all over me. Straddling my lap and pulling my tie.
“Summer…” I groan, mostly because my self-control has been withering since I saw her in this dress.
“Come on, check it off my bucket list.”
“Your parents are right outside.”
“They won’t come in here. Please? I don’t want to think right now.” She starts undoing my shirt buttons, and her ass grinds over my erection, forcing a choked moan from me. She never needs to say please, but hearing it fall from her lips makes me want to fulfill her every desire. Before I can speak, she pulls down the straps of her dress, baring her breasts. I have no resistance as I grab her hips and grind her down. She moans in pleasure, kissing my neck.
I’m so fucking hard I can’t remember why I thought this was a bad idea. “Take me out—”
“Sunshine.” Our heads snap to the door where Lukas Preston’s voice filters through.
Right, that’s why.
I spring up, pulling Summer off my lap. I barely have my buttons done when he knocks again.
“Can we talk, Summer?”
I’m tucking in my rumpled shirt as Summer just sits there. Smiling.
“Have I told you how hot you look in that suit?” She’s not even remotely alarmed by the man on the other side of the door.
“Summer,” I warn, taking it upon myself to pull her straps up and fix her hair. She’s holding back a laugh as I make sure nothing is askew, but my glare finally makes her sit up straight. Her eyes still flare with mischief. “Jesus, don’t look at me like that.”
“Like what?”
“Like you want my cock in your mouth.”
She smiles wider when I say it, and I step away before I do something reckless. I open the door to Lukas Preston who surveys my clothing. My lipstick-stained collar to be exact. Shit.
“Aiden, would you mind giving us a minute?”
His voice is tight, but his neutral face is commendable considering he wanted to rip my head off just minutes ago. I want to refuse, but Summer comes up behind me to give me a reassuring nod, and I squeeze her hand before leaving them alone.
