Meet Me in Hawaii by Georgia Toffolo (novels for beginners txt) 📕

knew how blue they were, how they danced with his amusement, or burned with reciprocated awareness or just looked at her.

She eased one hand onto his hip, the other onto his chest, over his heart and took a small breath.

‘You need to get used to it anyway,’ she said, ‘there’ll be a lot of doing as I say during your ridiculously expensive twenty-thousand-dollar training.’

‘You saying I’m going to get more stick per buck?’

She smiled at his chest. ‘Precisely.’

He gave a groan that she felt rumble through her fingers and she closed her eyes briefly.

Just dance, Malie, concentrate on the music.

‘Enough talk,’ she said, and then she bit the bullet further to say, ‘Put your hands on my hips and feel how I move.’

She saw his Adam’s apple bob before her, his jaw held tight, as he moved to do as she asked. Was he finding this as hard as her? As hard and yet…

His fingers closed around her hips, their warmth seeping through the delicate fabric of her dress and triggering a rush of warmth that far exceeded their gentle pressure. She tried to breathe through it, tried to stay fixed on the pulse beating in his steadfast jaw as she focused on the music, the rhythm urging her to move. She didn’t want to dwell on just how perfect, just how thrilling his touch, his proximity was, or the fact she could feel his breath brush over her hair, his scent—

‘Now feel how I move and move with me…’ her voice rose above her heightened senses, ‘like this.’

She eased his hips with her fingers, nudged his stance wider with her foot and felt his eyes upon her head as he concentrated and mimicked her. And he did. He really did.

‘Better already – do you feel that?’

His answer was another rumble in his chest, a more confident sweep of his hips. She strummed her fingers over his chest, over his heart.

‘Feel the beat,’ she whispered, not knowing whether he heard her or not. She was losing herself in the music, the feel of his body moving beneath her touch, moving with her, heady, intoxicating.

She found her hand softening against his hip, less guiding as he did it under his own steam. She could – should – let go but even as she thought it, their bodies eased closer together, the music and something far more visceral wrapping around them.

‘You’re a good teacher,’ he said against her hair.

‘And you’re a good pupil.’ Her eyes lifted before she could stop them and collided with the dark intensity of his own. She felt his fingers pulse around her hips, her own breath catching as her breasts brushed against his chest.

Just keep dancing.

Remember: Student. Teacher; Student. Teacher; Successful Businessman. Surf Teacher; Philanthropist,. Big-Hearted Charity Do-er; You. Do. Not. Mix.

‘Fancy taking a walk on the beach?’

His question broke through her internal mantra, shocking and effective in equal measure.

No, Malie. You don’t fancy going anywhere that private, at this time of night, with him.

She bit into her lip, killing off the impulsive yes, the impulsive no.

She used to know her own mind.

But with Todd, it seemed her mind was lost beneath a multitude of other, far more gratifying sensations.

‘I’d love to tell you more about the Foundation and the work we do, the kids you’ll be teaching…’

She felt her cheeks flush. Again. Lils would so love this reversal in her composure which had her suffering the same affliction as her beloved friend. Malie really didn’t.

Seriously, there she was getting carried away with the idea that the super successful, intelligent and sexy beyond measure hunk with his hands on her hips was as caught up as she was in this magnetic attraction, when really all he wanted to do was talk about her passion. Their passion. Something they shared.

‘Of course.’ She stepped back abruptly, hating how high-pitched her voice sounded.

She distracted herself by brushing down her dress, keeping her tingling palms busy. It wasn’t enough. They were still so warm, so fuzzy, from him. She tried to snap out of it by seeking out her drink and grabbing it up. Using the sweet, cold alcohol to drown her embarrassment and loosen up her dry mouth.

‘I’ll get you a fresh one.’

She was about to say there’s no need, but he was off weaving through the crowd to hunt down a member of the serving staff.

At least it gave her time to cool off and get her head straight.

At least she hadn’t outright kissed him.

At least she didn’t have that to worry about.

To remember.

To dream.

Her fingers went to her lips that thrummed at the thought of it alone and she shook her head.

There’ll be no dreaming, no kissing, no anything.

Talking. Walking. Surfing. Working.

A perfect list of -ings to stick to… and she could do that.

Surely, she could?

Chapter Four

IF HE COULD REWIND time by mere minutes he would. To take back his idea of a walk and not witness the look of alarm that had crossed her features. Not to mention his own panic. What the hell had he been thinking?

Truth was he hadn’t been thinking at all. He’d been so caught up in the moment, so convinced that she’d wanted to kiss him as much as he did her, that the only thing separating them had been the crowd and he’d wanted them all gone. He’d wanted it to be just the two of them so he could satisfy this incessant need to stay close to her, and closer still.

But it was foolish, reckless even, and it wasn’t like him.

Maybe the beauty of the island and the sea air was going to his head. Maybe his phone call with his father had done more damage than just the suffocating helplessness he had become accustomed to.

He’d quickly tried to rescue the situation by using the charity work as an excuse and escaped so fast under the pretence of getting drinks when really what he wanted was time to acclimatize to her appeal. Time to regain his control