And here Erin was, his gorgeous little freak, fitting in like houses with his mother and family. He laughed to himself.

“She fits. Makes me happy.” Todd watched Joe fall under her spell as she grabbed a soda for him from the ice chest and told him some story about something or other.

“It’s been years since we’ve all been out here on a holiday!” His mother began to pass around plates. “All these cops, at least one of them had to work, more often more than that. This is the first year in about fifteen that we’ve all been together on the Fourth.”

“If we were firefighters we’d never be home on the Fourth,” Joe said.

“Now that Ben, Cope and Todd are in the private sector and Dad and Ben and Cope’s father are retiring, the odds are better.” DJ took a bite of Erin’s noodle salad and nodded. “This is really good.”

“Erin is a great cook in addition to being a wonderful musician. Heck, she’s so good even I listen to her stuff.” Which Todd knew was a brag, yes, but totally true. He’d never been one for much rock music or alternative stuff, but Adrian was really good and their stuff together was amazing. He had to give her props for that. Plus, damn it was sexy.

Erin blushed and sipped her soda. “Enough—gah!” She slid sunglasses over her eyes and rustled around in her bag until she pulled out some sunscreen.

Todd jumped up, giving Cope a glare because he’d started to offer too. His friend just snickered.

Todd settled on his knees before Erin, and one corner of her mouth canted up slightly. Now would not be the time to get wood. He squeezed the lotion into his palm, the summery scent filling his nose as he began to massage it into her legs.

He watched her swallow hard and part her lips to breathe. Good—she was as affected as he was.

“Wanna go swimming?”

“Dude, that water looks freakishly cold.”

“’Course it is.” He laughed. “You jump in, it’s cold, and then you warm up because it’s hot out here. That’s how it works.”

“I’m expecting you to roll your eyes and say, Girls, or something. This behavior of yours when you’re around your brothers and Ben and Cope is so male, but extra cute.”

“You know you want to,” he taunted.

“I think you just want to see me in my bathing suit.”

“You’re wearing a bikini under there?” He swallowed, trying to will away the images sending all the blood in his body straight to his cock.

“Yeah. I mean, not like a thong or anything—sheesh, we’re with your family and I can’t carry that off—but a two-piece. You said there might be swimming and all.”

“Can’t carry it off, my ass. You’d look so hot.” He looked and caught his mother watching them, clearly amused. “Take off your shirt so I can get sunscreen on your back and shoulders.”

“That was subtle.” Erin’s voice was dry.

“I’m all about subtle.”

“Mmm hm. My favorite quality in you.” She unbuttoned her shirt and he watched her graceful, nimble fingers exposing more and more of her skin beneath.

Her bathing suit top was blue. Nothing too revealing, nothing fancy, but hot damn did she look good. He slathered the sunscreen on her back and shoulders and she made a sound. A sound very similar to one she made when he slid into her.

“Stop that,” he said quietly.

“Sorry, it felt good.”

Looking over her shoulders, he saw the press of her ni**les through the material of the swimsuit.

“You’re going to kill me.”

“Jeez, let Cope put it on then.”

“Ha! He’s just as bad as I am.”

She turned her head to look up at him, pulling her sunglasses down to show her eyes. “Oh no, he isn’t, Todd. No one is as bad as you are.” Her voice was quiet, low and so starkly sensual he stopped for a moment to gather his control again.

With a laugh, she tossed her sunglasses to the deck and followed Liz into the water, surfacing all wet and glistening in the sun.

“Yeow! Cold.”

He peeled out of his shirt and down to his trunks and jumped in after her. Before long, pretty much everyone had joined them, laughing and swimming.

She moved through the water, sleek and graceful as he caught glimpses of her tattoos through the blue green.

He swam to her, gathering her in his arms as they treaded water. “Every time I think you can’t be more beautiful, you prove me wrong.” He kissed her.

“I see you’re not experiencing any shrinkage,” she said in a whisper, as he pressed against her.

“Not around you. Not even in this freezing water.”

She pulled away, doing a lazy backstroke to the ladder, and got out of the water and back onto the boat.

Lord he got to her. Even in a situation where she was nervous that his family would like her, he still made her gooey inside.

The sun dried her off, warming her up on the outside. It was unseasonably warm for the Northwest, in the nineties easily. Her eyes were closed as she lounged, but she knew when Todd had come to lie next to her, knew it when he reached out and took her hand. Like knew like—they belonged to the other.

“I like belonging to you,” she said quietly and he squeezed her hand.

“I like it too.”

They ate on and off over the afternoon and into the evening. Todd’s sister and Erin made margaritas, virgin and non, and they all settled in on blankets and chairs, waiting for the fireworks to start.