Claiming His Labor Day: A Romance Holiday Novella

by Lulu Pratt

  “Come on,” she jerked me in her direction and led me to the edge of a rock where some of the guys were jumping off into the water with scuba suits on.

  “What is it with you?” I asked, fumbling along behind her. “You haven’t left my side from the moment we got here.”

  “I just want to have fun with you. Is that a crime?”

  “I’m beginning to think it should be.”

  “You’ll be going back to work when school starts,” she said, barely looking at me. “This might be our last big party together.”

  “I’m going back to work, not going off to war,” I turned to look behind me since that was where she seemed to give all of her attention, but she pulled me forward when I tried.

  “Come on.”

  I gave up trying to figure her out and chalked it up to lust for some guy — or girl in her case — in the crowd. We stood on top of the large rock and looked down into the deep blue water. I pretended to be interested in what was going on below all the while keeping my eye on Mia.

  She kept looking behind us as if she was trying to keep an eye on someone. Then my curiosity got the best of me.

  “Mia? Are you scoping someone out?” I turned and looked at a group of people.

  She sighed and took my hand. “No, but you should be,” her voice calm, and she looked at me almost with a sympathetic look. She pulled me off the rock and to the crowd. When we got our feet into the sand, I yanked my hand back and stared at her.

  “What is wrong with you?” I demanded.

  “I’m trying to show you.”

  “No. Just tell me. First, you want me to go scuba diving, then you try to pull me away. You haven’t left my side all day. Are you feeling okay?”

  “I wanted to be sure before I showed you. Just come with me. It will all make sense in just a few moments.” She grabbed my hand again and led me in the same direction.

  “What will make sense?”

  We walked up to the group of people, and she nudged a couple of them out of the way. “Excuse me,” she said. “We need to get in here.”

  “Mia,” I whispered sharply. “What are you doing?”

  She pulled me around from behind her and pushed me to the middle until I was face to face with Devlin. The chatter died down, and he looked at me with wide eyes.

  I could only stare back.

  “Naomi? What are you doing here?” He was as surprised to see me as I was of him.

  How was this possible? He was supposed to be at least five states away. Fear struck me, and I froze. When I managed to move, I looked at Mia and the big grin on her face. She quickly lost the grin and looked pissed.

  “Mia? What the hell?” I whispered.

  She leaned into me, her mouth close to my ear, and she whispered to me. “I know your secret, Naomi. Don’t keep it from him like you kept it from me.” She stood up straight and glared at me.

  All my energy left my body and dumped onto the sand. “You knew?”

  She cocked her head to the side.

  “I’m sorry, Mia. I didn’t want you to find out this way. I was going to tell you tonight.”

  She shook her head, looked at Devlin, and walked away from me, leaving me in the middle of a bunch of people I didn’t know.

  Her words struck me like a knife in the stomach, and I wrapped my arms around my waist. I felt light-headed pushing it away with a few deep breaths.

  “Are you okay?” Devlin put his hands on my arms and leaned down to me.

  “Who’s this?” A woman appeared next to him and slung her arm around his neck. He ignored her as he led me out of the crowd. He sat me down in the sand. He crouched down beside me, the woman following suit.

  “Do you need some water or something?” he asked.

  “No, thanks,” I muttered.

  I looked up at him and then at the woman and had a feeling she was with him. Her swimsuit was black, her hair pulled up into a long ponytail, and her arms were peppered with tattoos. I wanted to be anywhere but where I was.

  When Devlin stood up, she immediately possessed what she felt was hers by throwing her arms around his neck. He gently pulled her off him.

  “Can you not, Lindsey?” he scolded. “Have some courtesy. She’s obviously not feeling well.”

  I quickly looked away, pulling myself up off the sand and wiping myself down. “I’m sorry,” I fumbled. “I don’t know what Mia was thinking pushing me in the middle of you and your—” I looked at the woman again and shook my head.

  “I’m sure she wasn’t thinking at all,” said the woman with sarcasm.

  “Enough,” he said through his teeth.

  I felt a numbing sensation waft over me as tears filled my eyes. All I wanted was to get away from everyone. Were they all against me? Were they conspiring against me? I felt trapped, almost claustrophobic. I gasped and ran in the only direction where there weren’t people standing around.

  “Naomi!” I heard Devlin’s voice call out to me, but I kept running and praying he wouldn’t come after me.

  By the time I stopped to catch my breath, I looked back at the beach and the crowd of people still having fun without me. No one came after me, and as far as I was concerned, I wasn’t going back there. I hated Mia for throwing me into the lion’s den. I hated Devlin for making a big deal over me in front of her.

  I walked until I found a secluded spot under a cluster of trees, and I sat beneath them where my tears flowed easily. My mind was scattered, and everything had changed. My whole world that I was trying to piece back together was falling apart from under me.

  There were so many variables. How did Mia find out I was pregnant? How was I going to tell Devlin? I scoffed. Mia wasn’t going to let that one go. Now, I’d have to deal with the guilt of trying to convince him it’s okay that he still does what he wants. I never expected him to be a father in the first place. Hell, I didn’t know what I was expecting. I was still trying to process the information myself.

  CHAPTER 6

  Devlin

  I WATCHED NAOMI run away. I was still working it through my head that she had been standing directly in front of me. All those hours searching for her after that one passionate night together — I had finally given up, and in the most unexpected places at the most unexpected time I was presented with her only to have her dash away from me. I was going to be damned if I would lose her again.

  I looked at Lindsey and saw her eyes glossy with tears. She knew how much Naomi meant to me, and she was also under the impression I wasn’t going to have Naomi back in my life. The evening I spent with Lindsey was more than I should have spent.

  Naomi was back and the chance to be with her again was within reach. That determination was what set me into motion.

  I went to Lindsey, and she looked hopeful that I was going to stay instead of running after Naomi. I took her arms and held her in front of me. I searched her face for some sort of understanding.

  “That was Naomi?” she asked.

  I nodded.

  “The Naomi?”

  “I’m sorry, Lindsey. I didn’t think—” I stopped. What was I supposed to say? “I tried to be as honest about you and me, about our relationship, as I could be. You knew this wasn’t something I could commit to. I took you out for dinner and drink as I enjoy your company. But that was it. Nothing more.”

  “I know,” she nodded and sniffled, trying to keep a stiff upper lip. A tear escaped down her cheek, and she tried to wipe it away without me noticing. But I saw, and I felt it.

  “I know you were hoping for more. But I couldn’t do that to you. It wouldn’t be fair to you.” I picked her head up with my fingers under her chin and smiled at her. “You’re sexy as hell, and I love your company, but I have to go after her.”

  She nodded again. “Go. I understand. I’m, uh, I’m going to get out of here anyway. Maybe head back to my place and get myself so fucking drunk I won’t know my own name.”

  She pressed her lips together, turned and walked away from me. I stood
and watched her go. She deserved more. I deserved the pain I felt for hurting her and for leading her on.

  I looked away and scanned the crowd, noticing Mia standing on the rock. Her eyes were glued on me. Her arms were folded, and she didn’t look all too happy. She walked straight up to me, and I waited, glancing down the beach where Naomi had gone. She was still visible, but I waited. Maybe her friend had something to offer the situation before I ran after Naomi. I stood my ground, but something about the way Mia looked at me made me think that maybe she could hurt me.

  She stopped in front of me, her arms still crossed over her body.

  “Mia,” I said, my hand up between us. “I’m trying to make this right.”

  “Then why are you still standing here? Are you going to go after Naomi or what?”

  “Honestly, it doesn’t look like she wants me to,” I said.

  “At this point, it doesn’t matter what she wants. You need to go after her and talk to her.”

  She turned away from me and walked back to the rock, leaving me to ponder what she meant. At that point, I knew there was something more to what was bothering Naomi, why she didn’t seem to want anything to do with me. Mia had my curiosity up so far that I needed to find out or die of curiosity. Naomi was the only one who was going to tell me, I hoped.

  I looked along the beach, but I didn’t see her. I walked down the beach, hoping she wouldn’t be far, hoping she would be willing to talk, hoping she felt the same about me as I did about her. I reached the water and followed the small waves as they lapped against the shore, Naomi’s beautiful face in my mind. I kept my eyes open for her, but the further I walked, the less I was sure I would find her. I looked up the beach, wondering if she went further inland. Just when I was ready to turn back around I spotted her sitting beneath a group of trees, the shade casting down upon her. Hints of sunlight sprinkled over her as the wind moved the leaves of the trees around over her.

  She was unaware I was there, so I took advantage of it. I watched her, and she made me smile. A strand of her hair had escaped her bun and was blowing gently in the wind across her face as she picked a leaf apart with her fingers. She was as beautiful as the day I met her. Her simple innocence captured me and held me like a prisoner in her world. I would have done anything for her, and to see her in pain over something I couldn’t control seeped into me. I needed to find out what it was. I needed to help her fix it if I could. “Naomi,” I whispered.

  I didn’t know if I said her name louder than I heard myself say it, or if the wind carried it to her ears. Or perhaps it was a coincidence that she looked up at me at that moment with wide eyes. She dropped the pieces of the leaf that she had gathered in her hand. I didn’t run after her, and she didn’t try to run away from me. Something was troubling her, and I had a good idea it had to do with me. Mia was more than adamant about me going after her.

  I slowly walked up to her.

  “Hi,” I said as I approached.

  She looked down, and I couldn’t tell if she was upset or angry.

  “You look great,” I tried again.

  “What do you mean? Have I changed in the past two months?”

  “You have a point. You haven’t changed. You still look incredible. Seems like it has been a lot longer since we saw each other though.”

  She looked up at me. The expression on her face was as real as it got. I wanted to crumble next to her.

  “I looked for you,” she said. Her voice was demure and soft. “For weeks after that night. I went back to the field, hoping you did too. Hoping you’d be looking for me. Call me stupid, I don’t care. I wanted to see you again. I needed to see you again.”

  I chuckled and started to laugh. I didn’t know why, but I couldn’t control it.

  “You’re laughing?” She stood up and glared at me. “You think this is funny?”

  “No. Not at all,” I tried soothing her.

  “Then what the hell are you laughing about?”

  “If you only knew the lengths I took to try to find you after that damned carnival, you’d be laughing too.”

  “Wait. What?” She dropped her arms and stared. “You looked for—”

  “I did go back to that field. The morning after. The sun was barely up, and the carnies were tearing shit down. I asked almost everyone there, but no one knew who you were,” I shook my head. “For weeks and weeks afterwards, I went to bars, restaurants, you name it. I even went to the art gallery in town, but they couldn’t help me. Perhaps, because I figured you like the finer things, you were looking for me in biker bars and I was looking for you in cocktail lounges and art galleries.”

  “You looked for me?”

  “I tried denying what I felt for you, but I couldn’t,” I took her hands and put them to my mouth. “I couldn’t stop thinking about you, Naomi.”

  Her soft chuckle was beautiful, and I stepped up to her. I wanted to gather her into my arms, but when I reached out, she took a step back and looked away.

  “What is it?”

  “It’s too late, Devlin. I can’t do this.”

  “Do what? What do you mean it’s too late? It has only been two months. What could have changed since that night at the carnival? What has you so guarded?”

  “You’d be surprised,” she turned away, her hands covering her face.

  “Mia seemed adamant about me finding you. She gave me the impression that there is something I should know.”

  “Damn it,” she spat out.

  “Talk to me, Naomi,” I pleaded. “Please,” I forced her back around, to look at me, pulling her arms down. “I have been tearing my hair out wondering about you. Dying to know where you went, and now, that you have somehow finally dropped back into my life you won’t even talk to me?”

  “Why do you want to know me so badly. I’m not like those other girls. I don’t fit into your world,” she said softly.

  “My world is diverse. All walks of life, all types of people. You’d fit in perfectly. If anyone has a problem with that, they can screw off.”

  She shook her head, and I knew I wasn’t getting into her head. “I can’t. Just leave me alone.”

  “I can’t do that.”

  “You should go back to her.”

  “To who?”

  “That girl you were with.”

  “Lindsey? Our relationship has been platonic for months now. It’s always been you, Naomi.”

  “You don’t even know me.”

  “Then give me the time to find out about you, so that I can justify how I feel. Can’t you at least give me that chance?”

  “You don’t want me, Devlin. I’m… damaged.”

  “What do you mean, damaged?”

  “I’m… we’re too different!” She was raising her voice, and her anger levels were heightened. “I can’t be with someone like you,” her eyes were glued to a piece of leaf that was still stuck to her hands.

  “You just told me yourself that you looked for me. There was something there. You have to admit that.”

  “Yeah, well, I was naïve.”

  “Just two months ago? That doesn’t make you naïve. You’re scared of something. Something happened, or someone said something to you. Naomi,” I pulled her face up to meet my gaze. “Talk to me, please.”

  She didn’t. She merely wiped the sand from her legs and walked away, and I watched her, helpless to stop her, helpless to convince her to give me that chance.

  Naomi slowed her pace, her hands going up to her head. I watched as she collapsed to the sand and I ran to her. “Naomi!” I couldn’t get to her fast enough. I knelt by her side and rolled her to her back. She was still conscious, but her face had lost all its color.

  “What happened? Are you okay? You’re white as a ghost,” I said.

  “Yeah,” she forced herself to sit up. “It’s just the heat. I’ll be fine in a minute.”

  I scooped her up and started back to the party. “I want you to get checked just to be safe.”

  “No, Devlin. Rea
lly, I’m fine. I just got heated. Please don’t make this a big deal. A little water will cool me off.”

  She looked to the ocean, and I stopped. “I don’t want to go anywhere,” she said, her expression softening.

  I carried her to the ocean and felt the water around my feet. I walked into the waves with her still in my arms. She felt incredible against my chest. The water reached my knees, and I stopped.

  “You can put me down now,” she said, pushing away from me.

  I was reluctant, but I did. The waves lapped at our legs, and I watched her as she scooped the water into her hands and let it run down her arms. She walked in deeper, the waves surrounding her slowly.

  “See?” I said. “You need me. I saved your life.”

  “You hardly saved my life. I was fine,” she smiled.

  “Yes, you are,” I gazed at her. “Just go to dinner with me. Let me show you who I am, Naomi.”

  “Devlin—”

  I sloshed through the water to get closer to her and took her hands in mine. “Whatever it is that is troubling you, we can work through it. I’d be able to help a lot more if you would tell me what it is, but I understand if you can’t.”

  “It has nothing to do with you.”

  “I find that very hard to believe, especially when you have your best friend pushing me to find out what it is.”

  She glared at me.

  “Just dinner. That’s all. If you want to talk to me about it, that’s up to you. I won’t press. I just want a chance with you.”

  She nodded, and it filled me with happiness.

  “I feel better now.” She pulled her hands from me and went back to shore, looking back at me with a smile. She scooped up a handful of water in her hands and flung it at me, her giggles filling the air around me. I loved that she was trying to make the situation better, and I took advantage of her playful attitude.

  “Oh, that’s it!” I warned. I sliced my open hand through the water and soaked her with one wave.

  She squealed and ran at me in a futile attempt at pushing me into the water. She jumped on my back and wiggled around hoping I’d lose my footing, but I planted my feet securely, reached around and pulled her around to the front of me before buckling my legs and forcing the both of us into the water. She screamed just before she went under and popped back up laughing. It was music to my ears. I watched as she ran at me again, jumping into my arms and attempting to dunk me again.