and looked up. What Ray saw staring back at him, nailed him to a proverbial cross.
“What’s wrong?” He trotted up to her, not thinking of anything but his need to chase away the thing hurting her. He cupped her face and searched her red-rimmed eyes for answers.
Mina fell into him and began to weep. Tears soaked his skin and the sensation of her breasts pushing against his chest sent ripples of heat coursing through his veins.
Ray sat them down on the sand and cradled her in his arms. He remained silent, allowing her to exorcise her emotions. The world turned, and the breeze continued to drift off the roaring ocean, and still, Ray cradled the only woman he’d ever love.
After a while, Mina sniffed and pushed up from where she had lain against Ray’s chest. Using the hem of her dress, she wiped her face, giving Ray a glimpse of her inner thigh.
Ray forced himself to look away.
“I’m sorry.” She sniffed.
“What happened?” he asked, tucking a wayward chocolate strand behind her ear.
“Everything,.” She waved her hands in the air. “You! The fucking poachers, Ben Meintjies,” she blurted between sniffs and hiccups.
The mention of Ben’s name drove a spike deep into Ray’s soul.
“I’m sorry.” Ray wasn’t sure if that was what she needed, but he meant it.
“Fuck you, Ray. Sorry doesn’t even begin to fix it.” She slapped his arm.
“I deserve that.”
Mina looked him in the eye, her gaze soft and warm. She wrapped her arms around his neck and began to sob again. “It must have been so hard for you. I’m sorry I didn’t try harder … Should have told you … I should have…”
Years of raw emotions burned their way up Ray’s throat and bulged in his neck.
He swallowed hard, and his voice broke when he replied, “Should-haves and could-haves are irrelevant. We are here now. Life brought us back together for whatever reason. We have this amazing daughter you raised on your own. You have a life that’s better than any I could have provided …”
“Oh, bullshit!” Mina leaned back, her eyes puffy but angry. “It should have been a life with you! That was all I ever wanted, Ray. Why are women forced to believe that they have to make it on their own? Be tough, be trendsetters, make no room for a decent partner to love and be loved by or they’re failures, weak, and oppressed. With you, I was everything I wanted to be. I love that there are strong female figures out there for my daughter to look up to, but I just wanted to be yours!” Her hands gripped his shoulders and shook.
All coherent words and thoughts fled Ray’s mind in that moment. Surely this was a dream. He pinched himself. “Eina!”
“What did you go and do that for?” Mina laughed. God, what a sound. Deep-bellied and joy-filled—how much he’d missed her.
“Thought I might be having one of those dreams again.” He shifted in the sand to relieve the pressure of his trainer pushing into his thigh.
“Ah. Yeah, I’ve been having some too.” A cheeky grin opened up on her face. “Do yours go something like this?” She leaned in and pushed her lips against his.
Ray didn’t have to be asked twice. He gripped Mina by the hips and turned her so that she straddled him. Her hands roamed his back and came to rest on his chest as her tongue plundered his mouth. Ray fumbled searching for the edge of her knee-length summer dress. His hands scrunched the fabric until it sat bunched around her hips and then he paused.
Leaning back, he faced her confused expression. “Baby. I’m not sure we’re …”
“Shh.” She placed an index finger on his mouth as her other hand dove between his legs.
“I don’t have a condom.”
Mina blushed as she bit her bottom lip. Her innocent gaze caused his need to push uncomfortably against his shorts.
“Then we’ll just have to make do.” She wiggled down his lap, but Ray stopped her.
“Baby, are you sure? You’re overwhelmed, and vulnerable and—”
“I’m a grown woman. Last night, I was vulnerable. Right now … I need you.” She tugged at his shorts, her hungry consent rocking his world off its axis.
His hard-on jumped from its restraints as Mina leaned forward, taking it in her hands. “Fuck, I missed you.”
Ray glanced around. Thank God the mist gave them some protection.
Mina slid back and bent over.
“Aaah,” he groaned as she licked and flicked the tip of her tongue around his hard length.