by Christa Lynn
I lie back in the chaise lounge for the longest time, the sun now starting to set and families and couples are walking along the beach, collecting shells and throwing frisbees. I suddenly long to be one of those couples, walking hand in hand along the water line, their feet kicking the sand and sharing kisses under the moonlight. It’s not something I’ve ever thought about, really. But suddenly I feel alone. Not lonely, just alone. I glance up the sky at the shining stars and silently make a wish.
Chapter 9
A fresh breeze rolls over my skin, and I shiver, blinking my eyes open, quickly realizing I fell asleep on the lounge chair. The golden orange sun is just starting to appear over the horizon, sea gulls awakening and dipping into the water to catch breakfast. I stand up and wrap my arms around myself to fend off the cooler air, but I don’t go inside. Instead, I stroll out to the beach and flop on the sand and watch the sun rise up over the water. There are a few people out here watching too, but I’m alone and content for the first time in days.
I watch as a shrimp boat floats lazily, birds circling it looking for their next meal. I decide seafood is on the menu tonight. I’ll head down to the market and see what’s fresh today then maybe fire up the grill. I start to feel lonely now, knowing I’ll be eating alone. But I know it’s what I need right now, space.
But as I sit here, I suddenly feel like someone is watching me. The cocoon of space around me feels invaded, but knowing I’m alone, I shake it off until I feel sand hit my back. I jerk my head around ready to move into defensive mode and like a God, Nash is standing there. His shorts are hung low, and his hands are in his pockets—his eyes are on fire. The glow of the rising sun reflected in the turquoise pools. I jump out of my skin and stand up, brushing the sand off my ass.
“Nash? What are you doing here?” I ask, stepping back as he steps forward.
“I came to make sure you’re all right.”
“Geez, I told you last night I was okay. What’s with everyone trying to meddle in my life?” I say as I turn to walk away, but he grabs my hand and pulls me back to him, and up against him, my breasts pressed into his hard chest.
“I can’t meddle in your life, not until you let me in.”
“Let you in? I don’t …” But before I can respond he leans down to try and kiss me, and I immediately pull back. He looks at me with confusion, and I cover my mouth with my hands. “I haven’t brushed my teeth.”
“Well, let’s go inside and find your toothbrush because I can’t wait anymore.”
My head is swimming, and my heart is pounding, my little personal oasis breached by the one man I was trying to avoid. He takes my hand. “Lead the way.”
“How did you find me?” I ask as we walk toward the house.
“Luck. I parked at the pier and walked the beach, hoping to find you.”
“Sarah apparently told you where I was.”
“She did, but don’t be mad at her. She cares about you and …”
“And what?”
“She knows I care about you too.”
“How is that even possible? We just met,” I say as turn the hose on at the top of the stairs to rinse the sand off our feet.
“I don’t know, but I feel like I’ve known you forever.”
“That makes no sense,” I say as I hose his feet off and turn off the water. “None of this makes sense,” I mumble as I walk down the pier to the house. As we get onto the porch, I grab a towel and dry my feet off and toss it to Nash before sliding the door open. The cold air blasts me as I rush to turn the air down.
“Damn girl, it’s freezing in here,” Nash says as he pretends to chatter his teeth.
“It was hot in here when I got here yesterday, so I blasted it to cool it off. Guess I forgot to turn it back up once it cooled off.”
“You guess?” He side-eyes me. “Weren’t you freezing while you were sleeping?”
“I didn’t sleep in here,” I say as I walk into the kitchen to put on some coffee.
“What do you mean you didn’t sleep in here?” he asks, a faint look of jealousy takes over his face. “Where did you sleep?”
I look at him innocently and smirk. But the jealous look turns to defeat, and he steps back. “What?” I ask.
“Whose bed did you sleep in last night?”
“Oh, my God, really?” I say as I turn back to the coffee pot, anxiously waiting for the pot to fill. He gently takes my hand and turns me toward him, his eyes softening.
“Whose bed did you sleep in?” he asks again.
“Do you really think I’m going to jump into bed with the first guy I meet on the beach? What kind of girl do you think I am?”
“You’re a beautiful woman, and any man would fight to have you in their bed.”
“Well, newsflash, I fell asleep on the porch. Alone.” I snatch my hand back, grumbling at the nerve of this man.
“Thank fuck,” I hear him whisper under his breath, but I pretend not to hear it. I try not to be pissed as hell at him, but the thought that he’s jealous makes me mad. He has no right to be jealous, or even here for that matter.
“Look, I came here to be alone. Jumping in the sack with a stranger is not on my list of things to do while I’m here.”
He steps closer to me, “I’m not a stranger.”
“And I’m not jumping in the sack with you, either.”
“But you want to. You told me so last night.”
Ugh, those fucking text messages. “That text wasn’t meant for you.”
“But you sent it to me.”
“It was a mistake,” I say.
“It was fate,” he says as his thumb tips back my face, so I have no choice but to look him in the eyes. “Have you already forgotten our phone conversation the other night?” He smirks.
“Oh, God,” I groan. “I’m going to take a shower, then I’ve got things to do.” I turn and leave the kitchen; I’ll get my coffee after my shower.
“Shelby?” he calls out to me. I stop, but I don’t turn around. “There’s no need to be embarrassed. That phone call was the hottest thing I’ve ever experienced. You have nothing to be ashamed about. But I do regret one thing,” he whispers as I turn around. “I am sorry not seeing your face when you came undone, because of me. Next time I want to see your face when you shatter.”
My body tingles at his comment, and my mind flashes back to that phone call. I don’t respond to him and head to the shower and turn the water on, the steam quickly filling the small bathroom. As the hot water streams down my body, I silently wonder if he’ll still be here when I get out, or if he’s given up and left.
I finish up and brush my teeth, then wrap a towel around me as I head to the bedroom, really wishing I had brought clean clothes in the bathroom with me. The house is quiet, so I peek out into the living room, and it’s empty. He’s gone. I exhale a deep breath in relief, but at the same time, I’m upset that I pushed him away. Still, in my towel, I walk into the kitchen for coffee, as the entire house now smells of fresh brew.
As I lean back and take a sip of coffee, the front door opens and in walks Nash. I jump and spill coffee down the towel and onto the floor. “You scared the crap out of me,” I say as I set the cup down and grab a dish towel to wipe up the mess. “Didn’t your mom teach you how to knock?” I ask as I bend over to clean up the floor. I hear him suck in a breath, and I stand up quickly, realizing I probably just exposed my ass to him.
“Let me get that for you,” he says as he takes the towel from my hands and finishes cleaning up the splatter. “I’m sorry, I should have knocked.”
“Yes, you should have,” I snark as I wrap the towel tightly around me. I step away, and my foot hits a wet spot, and I slip, my right leg shooting forward out from under me, but before I fall, strong arms wrap around me.
“Whoa there,” Nash whispers as he catches me before I hit the floor. As his arm wraps around me, his thumb grabs my towel and instead of me hitting the floor, my towel does. And now I’m butt-ass naked in my kitchen, fa
cing Nash with my exposed tits pressed into his stomach. His arms snake around my upper arms, and he pulls me even closer to him before his lips finally find mine. His tongue snakes into my mouth, and he tugs my wet hair back as we begin that intricate dance.
My nipples are hard against his chest, and my whole body comes alive. His other hand drops and cups my ass, his thumbs kneading and stroking before trailing up my sides, leaving chill bumps in their wake.
“Ahem,” I hear behind Nash, and I open my eyes, only to see my mother standing in the doorway. I quickly pull away and grab the towel and wrap it back around me.
“Mama, what are you doing here?” I ask, my voice higher than it probably should be.
“I could ask you the same thing?” she responds, her eyes darting back and forth between Nash and me.
“Hi, Nash Bennett. You must be …”
“Elaine Mansfield, Shelby’s mother.”
“So nice to meet you,” he says as he takes her hand and gently kisses her knuckles. My eyes follow his lips to her hand, and I suddenly feel like I’m a third wheel.
“Um, I’ll just go get dressed. I can explain everything,” I say as I run to the bedroom and slam the door. “Oh, God, what is she doing here?” I ask myself as I throw on some clothes. “And why in the hell did I leave Nash out there alone with her? Because you were in a towel, silly girl,” I answer myself. Now I know I’m going crazy because not only am I asking myself questions, I’m answering them.
Smoothing my tank top down over my shorts, I take a deep breath and stroll out of the bedroom and see Nash and my mother sitting at the kitchen table, drinking tall glasses of sweet tea and laughing.
“Shel Bell, there’s my girl. Come give mama a hug.” She stands up and pulls me into her arms like I wasn’t just found in a man’s arms, naked, in her house. Then I left them alone together before I even had the chance to explain. I really need to have my head evaluated.
“You should have told me you were going to be here, Shel. How long are you staying?”
“I’m leaving tomorrow,” I decide, as this “getting away” has turned into a clusterfuck. First Nash, and now my mother.
“Oh, nonsense, I’ll go get a room at the B&B down the road, you and Nash can stay here.”
“No, mama, Nash isn’t staying here.” I squint at Nash.
“Oh, sure he is, I insist,” she responds as she starts cleaning the house.
“Mama, the place is clean, I just got here yesterday.”
“Dust bunnies, you know how my allergies are,” she says as she fakes a sniffle.
My nerves are frazzled, and all I want to do is leave … alone. I came here to be alone, and now I have a houseful of people I don’t want here. Well, I kind of like having Nash here, but that’s not the point.
“Look.” My eyes go back and forth between my mom and Nash, who are standing extremely close together. “Why don’t I go to the B&B and you two stay here, you look mighty cozy,” I grunt and turn away, unsure why I’m feeling jealous. I have no right to feel jealous, except for the fact that Nash came here to see me and now it appears my mother is moving in, fucking cougar. Every guy she’s dated has been at least ten years younger than her, but for her to move in on my man … Wait, he’s not my man … Never mind.
“Oh, no, Shel, I’ll go and leave you two lovebirds alone.” She smirks.
“Mom, we’re not …”
“Oh, of course, you are, see how he’s looking at you? He’s looking at you like he wants to eat you.”
“Mom! He’s embarrassed, that’s why he’s staring at me! He’s trying to get me to rescue him from you. Oh, God, I can’t handle this,” I say as I go back to the bedroom and slam the door, face planting onto the bed. I faintly hear voices, though they’re drowned out by my crying and sniffling. I lie there until it’s quiet in the living room.
I slowly open the door and peek into the large room, scanning the area, and I see Nash, asleep on the sofa and my mother nowhere to be found. I don’t know why, but I half expected Nash to leave with her, though I can’t be entirely sure that she’s gone. This is her house, after all, and I can’t very well kick her out of her own house.
I sit down quietly in the chair across from the sofa where Nash sleeps and scan his features. A slightly dark shadow covers his face, framing his full lips. His high cheekbones make me wonder if he has some Native American in his blood—tan skin and dark blonde hair makes a stunning combination. His shirt is off, and his sculpted abs and pecs rise and fall with every breath he takes. I can see why my mother would be smitten with him, he’s gorgeous. I can also understand why Sarah is pushing me toward him. I imagine he and I could make beautiful babies.
What in the Hell am I thinking? Babies? I think not, or do I? No, I really do not, I don’t think. Hell, I don’t know … But for now, I’ll stare at Nash while he’s here because I don’t imagine he’ll be here long, since I’ll find a way to run him off, probably right into my mother’s arms. She likes herself a young, healthy man. She lives in Tampa with Phil, who’s like fifteen years younger. I was so surprised to see her here, I didn’t even ask where he was. Maybe he’d finally gotten tired of her and kicked her out. It wouldn’t be the first time. Once I get my head together, I’ll call her and get updated. But for now, I need to focus on me and get my shit straight.
Chapter 10
I glance at the clock and realize I’ve been watching Nash for almost thirty minutes. I’ve been staring so hard my eyes are burning, but I’ve now memorized every crook and cranny of his upper body, every dip, and ripple, and as I wipe the drool off my lip, I realize he’s watching me … watching him. Talk about awkward, but I brush it off and stand up. “Are you hungry?” I ask, not even bothering to ask why he’s still here or where my mother went.
He sits up and scrubs his hands over his stubble and rubs his eyes. “How long have I been asleep?”
“Not sure, I’ve been up about thirty minutes.”
“Damn,” he says as he too looks at the clock. “Three o’clock?”
“Yeah,” I say as I walk past the sofa toward the kitchen, but his hand darts out and grabs mine as I pass him, his strong arm pulling me back. I lose my balance and fall into his lap.
“Good, just where I want you,” he whispers next to my ear, brushing my hair back. I instinctively pull back, but he holds me tight. “Stop,” he says. “Why are you fighting this?”
“Fighting this? Fighting what? We had … phone sex. That’s it. What exactly is this?” I ask, hot, bothered, and embarrassed by our little escapade the other night, but he doesn’t seem to be embarrassed.
“This? This is us getting to know each other,” he says as he presses his lips to my ear, rubbing his hand up my neck to my ponytail, before tugging on it and nudging my head back. His mouth seeks out my neck, trailing his lips down from my ear to my shoulder. He sucks gently on the hollow of my shoulder, and my body comes alive.
But suddenly the warmth of his mouth vanishes and he looks at me. “Yes.”
“Yes?” I ask, cocking my head at him like a dog.
“You asked me if I’m hungry.” He smirks.
“Oh, okay, I’ll go fix us something.”
“But not for food,” he cuts me off. “I’m hungry for you, but we’ll need food first, because once I get you in bed, we’re not getting out.”
His words shock me and turn me on at the same time. But I climb off his lap, and he smacks me on the ass as I turn my back. The sting of the smack does nothing to calm my aching body, but I shake it off.
“Can I take you to dinner somewhere?”
“Oh, wine and dine me before taking my virtue?” I ask, a feeble attempt at being sarcastic.
He grins. “Kinda sorta.”
“This isn’t a game, you know,” I smart off, instantly wanting to smack myself.
“I’ve got games, ones you’ll be begging me to play.”
“Oh, really?” I ask, the sexual tension expanding. “You don’t even know me, Nash.”
“I know you’re beautiful, smart, talented. What more do I need to know?”
“Those are all superficial. You don’t know me anymore than I know you.”
“Well, that’s why I’m here. We’ll have dinner, talk, and if at the end of dinner, we both feel like this won’t go anywhere, then I’ll leave. But if that spark still exists, then I stay, and we explore this. Deal?”
I nibble on my fingernails, contemplating his offer. I feel that spark, I really do. But I can’t figure out if it’s because of Nash, or because I’ve been single for so long and no man has shown interest in me for a while. My mother seemed to see something I can’t see, but then again … my mom sees what she wants to see.
“Come on, we’ll grab a burger and talk. No pressure.”
“No pressure?”
“None at all,” he sternly says, with a straight face. I know what he’s thinking, though, but I picture Sarah telling me that I need to get out more, maybe find that special someone. I’ve been so focused on my career that men have been far from my mind.
“Fine, a burger.”
“Good, let’s go,” he says as he grabs my hand.
“Let me change first?”
“You look great the way you are,” he says as his eyes catch the neckline of my tank top. The heat in his eyes burns through me and my nipples awaken. I want to tell him that “my eyes are up here” but the burning sensation that he causes staring at my tits stops me. I’ve not felt like this in … forever, I don’t think. So, I decide to play his game and keep the low-cut top on. Let’s see if I can tease him as much as he teases me. And at the end of the evening, I’ll either send him on his way or fuck him senseless. Funny how I think it’ll be the latter.
He finally snaps himself out of his trance and pulls his keys out of his jeans pocket and rattles them, effectively locking me out of mine. The magnetic pull between us just gets stronger, but let’s see what happens when we’re out in public together. He could turn out to be a total dick.
