Surrender 01 - Surrender

rubbed in the lotion.
    “Quit complaining. I’m saving you days of pain right now.”
    “You wouldn’t have to if you hadn’t ripped off my protection.”
    “Oh, honey, you never want to rip off the protection,” Miley said with an evil grin.
    “I can’t believe your husbands ever allow you girls to leave the house. You’re terrible.”
    “Our husbands know we love them more than anything, for some unknown reason. We can look plenty just as long as we don’t touch. Trust me, girl, our men don’t pass up the opportunity to check out a nice firm ass when it walks in front of them,” Amber said as she lay back and closed her eyes.
    “You’re missing the show,” Miley complained as she nudged Amber.
    “I know, but Sean was sick last night and I got hardly any sleep. I can stare at hunky guys anytime, but a nap is something I rarely ever get the pleasure to indulge in.”
    “Ooh, I like your thinking,” Shelly said as she lay down next.
    Pretty soon Ari found herself the only one conscious as her friends dozed and soaked up the rays. She’d been sitting in the office all week and had energy to burn. More sitting around for the entire time they were on the beach just didn’t appeal.
    And as good-looking as the men were who kept walking past, the idea of spending the day staring at them nonstop didn’t thrill her, either. Maybe she’d attempt to take a swim. The ocean would be cold, sure, but once she got used to it, she could get in a decent workout.
    She stood and began moving toward the water when a couple of women stopped her.
    “Hey, we need another person for volleyball. Can you join us?”
    Ari turned to politely refuse when one of the women grabbed her hand and started dragging her toward the now empty volleyball court.
    “Hi. I’m Lia and this is my sister, Rachel. Thanks for joining us.”
    “Um…I’m really not very good at volleyball,” Ari said as she tried tugging her hand away.
    “That’s OK. You don’t have to be good. We just need a full team. What’s your name?”
    “Ari.”
    “Pretty name. It’s a beautiful day, isn’t it?”
    “Yes. I was thinking about taking a swim, getting some exercise after being cooped up in the office all week,” Ari said, trying again to get out of the game without hurting any feelings.
    “Oh, that water is freezing. Besides, a couple of rounds of sand volleyball and you’ll be begging for mercy. It’s great exercise, especially for the thighs. They’ll be burning by the time we’re finished.”
    “I guess I can give it a go, but when you find out how horrible I am, you’ll want to find a new player,” Ari warned.
    She had no clue that she was with Rafe’s sisters and that they couldn’t care less about her volleyball skills. They wanted to find out all the information about her that they could.
    “We found another player. We’re ready,” Lia said as she bounced onto the court.
    “Nice. You girls ready to lose?”
    “I wouldn’t count on it, slim. We’re pretty feisty,” Rachel countered as she got into position in front of the net.
    There were six of them all together, and Ari felt better when she saw some of the other bikinis the women were wearing. Their outfits made her bikini top and shorts look downright modest. One of the women was barely keeping her large breasts contained, and Ari suspected that the large orbs were going to pop out at least once during the game.
    “Heads up!”
    Ari turned, but not quickly enough to avoid the spinning ball that smacked her right in the forehead. Going down about as ungracefully as she possibly could, she groaned as a pair of strong calves stepped into her vision.
    “I’m so sorry. Are you OK?”
    “I’m fine. I think my pride is the only thing that got wounded.”
    “Let me help you.” Before Ari could refuse, the man reached beneath her arms and lifted her into the air, letting her body slide down his before her feet touched the ground again. “I’ll make sure to be more careful,” he said with a wink.
    Ari was shocked speechless as she realized he was flirting with her. She didn’t know what to say back. He was stunning, in a beach-bum, bleached-blond kind of way, but there were no sparks flying.
    Who cares? she thought. She had just been moaning and groaning about sexual frustration and here was a hot, red-blooded male practically groping her.
    Before she could decide one way or the other whether to flirt back, Rachel came running up.
    “Oh, Ari. Are you all