I Have Lived and I Have Loved - Willow Winters Page 0,146

against mine.

“Then it’s nice to meet you, Ellington.”

His name falls from my lips, and I sigh.

“You, too, Heather.”

I push forward, pressing a sweet kiss on his mouth. His smile is warm against my lips, and he releases his hold on me. Eli takes my hand as we walk toward the house.

He opens the door, and my jaw drops. This is beyond words. As we step inside, I look around, trying to take it all in. The foyer hosts two huge staircases that lead to opposite ends of a balcony. There are two rooms off to each side at the bottom, one of which is a library. I’m not talking about a few books on a shelf, either. The entire wall looks lined. We walk deeper, and the other room opens to what looks like a more formal living room.

“Wow,” I say with awe.

“I bought this house a few years ago. I like to visit my mother here in Tampa, and Randy lives in Sanibel Island, so this is a good medium.”

“There’s nothing medium here, Eli. This is super-sized.” My voice cracks a little as he continues to lead me down the hall.

I try to stop counting rooms because it’s beyond what I thought it was from the outside. It’s at least three times the size I assumed. The house seems to get deeper and deeper, and when we reach the back area, there are huge windows that overlook the water.

“Do you need anything before we go?” he asks.

“Go?”

“Yeah.” He laughs and points outside. “That’s my boat. We’re going to spend the day on the water.”

My eyes turn to his, and I plaster a smile on my face. I love the water. Some of my favorite memories of my dad are from when he would take me boating when I was a kid. His boat wasn’t anything like the huge one currently docked to the pier, though.

Eli moves closer, and he pushes my hair back. “Is that okay?”

I nod. “It’s perfect.”

He shows me to the bathroom, where I put more sunscreen on, check my makeup, and say a few silent prayers that I don’t get sea sick. It’s been a long time since I’ve been on open water, and that would be my luck.

We get on the boat, which is equipped with two damn bedrooms, a kitchen area, bathroom, and a sitting area, therefore it’s a house with a hull. He shows me around, and then eases the vessel out onto the water.

I watch him command the boat and fight back a sigh. Everything he does is sexy. The way his muscles flex when he turns the wheel. How his brow furrows when he’s concentrating on steering. I don’t want to do anything but watch him, so that’s what I do. My focus is so singular, that I don’t notice when we’re out of the channel.

“Want to drive?” Eli offers, dragging me out of my staring.

“I’ve never driven a boat before.”

“I’ll help you.” He gives an encouraging smile and steps back so I have room to stand in front of him.

Too excited to say no, I move toward him and slip into the space. My hands grip the wheel, and I glance at him over my shoulder.

“Good, hold it steady and move the wheel a little if you want to go in a different direction.” Eli stands with his chest against my back, and I lean into him. “You’re doing great,” he says in my ear.

“I don’t really know what I’m doing,” I admit.

“Let’s go right. There’s a sweet spot for fishing over that way.”

Eli’s hands come around and settle atop of mine. He isn’t steering, just holding on. I could close my eyes and get lost right now. Our bodies are so close, and his strong arms make me feel safe.

We stay like this for a while, not actually driving so much as drifting along together. Eli slows the boat and pulls me onto his lap as he holds the wheel. “It’s like we’re completely alone out here,” I muse as I stare out into the ocean.

He kisses my shoulder. “We are.”

I look back at him with a smile. “Let me get this straight, you’re a sailor, singer, actor, and fisherman?”

“I’m a man of many talents.”

My laughter is free and unabashed. “You’re something all right.”

“Come on, let’s see if you can catch our lunch.”

Eli and I move to the bow of the boat, where he has two fishing poles waiting for us. After we thread our lines and bait our