by Violet Paige
“Yes?”
“We’re not doing this this morning.” He pushed off the bed and looked down at me.
“What? We’re not?”
He moved my hand away. “I’ve already fucked up. I’ve gotta do the right thing, Kaitlyn.”
He tucked the sheet around my chest and reached down for his boxer briefs.
“What do you mean?” I was angry. “Do you regret it?”
“No. Hell no. But it doesn’t mean we can do it again. It was great. You were great.” He turned to find his shorts.
“Great?” My eyes narrowed.
He rubbed the back of his head. Damn it, why was he so ripped and chiseled? I followed the contoured lines of his biceps.
“Great was the wrong word.” He sat on the edge of the bed, tilting my chin toward him. For a second I thought he was joking. He was going to undress and get back in bed. “Last night we both gave in to something that felt good. But Ryan would fucking shoot me. And lock you up. It was on me to make the right call.”
“And you didn’t make the call my brother would approve of?”
He hung his head. “Don’t say it like that. You knew this was complicated before you invited me in. I just assumed we were on the same page, Kaitlyn. This can’t happen again.”
“Right. Because of you and Ryan.”
He looked at me. “And you and Ryan.”
“He’s overseas. He doesn’t care. This is insane.”
Cole stood from the bed, refastening the button on his shorts. I wished he would find his shirt so I could stop looking at his six-pack.
I think what I hated the most was that what Cole said was right. My brother would never be ok with this. He would hate it from the minute he heard about it.
“You’re right,” I admitted.
“What?” Cole stopped dressing.
I nodded. “I said you’re right. Ryan wouldn’t understand and he’d freak out. You’re right.”
“So we’re ok?” he asked.
I smiled. “We are.”
Inside I wasn’t. I wanted a replay. I wanted another last night. I wanted to pull Cole back to bed and never let him go.
But maybe I wasn’t lucky like that. If this trip had taught me anything it should be that I was pretty freaking unlucky lately.
“I have to get work. But I’ll see you?”
“Yeah.”
He leaned down and pressed a kiss to my cheek. Cole paused at the door. “For the record, it was a fucking amazing night.”
I smiled sadly. “It was.”
13
Cole
I had to keep my head on my work. I needed to focus on repairs and finances. Because if I stopped for a single fucking minute, I’d think about Kaitlyn. I’d hear my name on her lips. I’d remember how her skin felt. What it felt like inside her. How her body quivered when she came.
My cock twitched and I slammed my hand into the wall. I had to stop.
She was my best friend’s sister. And he was like a brother. We graduated together. Played baseball together. We fought and survived in the desert together.
That came before anything. It had to.
There was a pile of bills on the desk. I took a sip of coffee and sat down to face the inevitable.
I had work to do if I was going to keep the Dunes running.
Last night was the first time I had actually put in words what this place meant to me. What I wanted it to mean for Grayson. If he grew up and hated it, he could sell it. He’d make millions. But I wanted him to have that choice. I wanted him to be the one to decide his future.
I checked my phone. I didn’t have anything from Amber.
I called her, waiting for her to answer.
“Do you know what time it is?”
“I called to say hi to my son.”
She put Grayson on the phone without an explanation. “Hi.”
His voice was small.
“Hey little man. How are you?”
“Watch Thomas.” He giggled.
“Thomas the Train?” I asked.
“Yep.”
I wished he was here or I was there. I hated splitting time with Amber. I liked the sticky Cheerios and the trains he left all over the place. Becoming a father was the most unexpected best mistake of my life.
I never would have volunteered to have a child with Amber, but Grayson was such a part of my life. The kid was my heart. I couldn’t imagine not having him. I wouldn’t undo that decision if I had the choice. He was here for a reason, even if it meant I had to face up to my sins and work to be a better man.
“I can’t wait to see you next week. I just wanted to say hi.”
There wasn’t much to a conversation with a two-year old, but the sound of his voice was enough to get me through this stack of bills.
He reminded me I had a purpose here.
“Bye-bye. Bye-bye,” he repeated.
“Bye.” I hung up and faced the mountain in front of me.
I drank my coffee and looked out the window in time to see Kaitlyn.
I could come up with a hundred distractions, but as long as she was in Padre I wasn’t going to forget last night.
14
Kaitlyn
I looked around my motel room. I couldn’t stay in here all day and hide out from Cole. I threw a bottle of sunscreen into my beach bag and one of the towels he had brought yesterday. A day at the beach was in order and I deserved this. It was my vacation.
I twisted the key in the lock and pulled my sunglasses over my eyes. The sun was blaring.
“No, I understand, but if you could just give me until the end of the month—” I heard Cole’s voice. It sounded like he was near the ice machine. “I have reservations the rest of the month, if you would just let me keep the account open until then.”
He sounded like he was in the middle of a negotiation. It was unmistakably about the Dunes. “Right, I know you have a business to run. I’m just asking as a favor—only until the end of the month.”
The call must not have turned out the way he wanted, because I heard the ice machine take the brunt of his anger.
I clutched the beach bag tightly to my shoulder and took the steps to the boardwalk two at a time. I didn’t want Cole to catch me eavesdropping on his business call. Things at the Dunes must have been worse than I thought.
From the top of the peak, I could see South Padre beach spreading for miles in both directions. To my left was the spot of last night’s bonfire and to my right was the party mecca. I walked straight ahead, shook out my towel, and stretched out under the Texas sun.
I tried to take deep, relaxing breaths and focus on the warmth of the sun’s rays, the waves pounding the shoreline, and the gulls circling overhead, but every time I heard a wave crash, I thought about that kiss and Cole’s hands on my body. Damn it. I sat up.
It was just a crush—a crush that should be out of my system now. Nothing else could happen.
“Here you go! Party at Bottoms Up tonight.”
A runner with a messenger bag slung over his bare chest ran past while shoving a flyer in my hand. I looked at the fluorescent green paper.
Bottoms Up knows how to party
Be there—everyone else will be
It wasn’t the most creative marketing I had seen, but it was sure to draw lots of other grads like me. Maybe that was what I needed. I should get away from the Dune Scape and hang out with other people my age. I needed to integrate with the rest of the real world. A distraction from Cole and those lips was in order.
There was a long list of performers. Luckily, whoever had designed the Bottoms Up flyer had added a map at the bottom. Like Peabody’s, it was on the sound side of the island and not too far from where I was staying. I smiled before tucking the party invite into my bag.
The green sundress would have to be ok for the Bottoms Up party. It was the only dress I had, and I didn’t want to wear running shorts for my night out. I checked my reflection in the mirror. It hit my curves in all the right
spots, and I thought about what Lisa had said about how I looked in it. I wasn’t above accepting a few free drinks tonight.
I grabbed my purse and the palm tree key chain, and jogged out of the door and straight into Cole.
“Oh, hey. Sorry. I was—” I looked at him. He was carrying a stepladder in one hand and his waist was wrapped in a tool belt.
“You in a hurry?” He set the ladder down against the wall.
“I thought I’d try the Bottoms Up party tonight.”
I brushed my choppy bangs to the side. I don’t know why he always made me fidget so much. I never did this around Branch.
“Right. I thought you said you weren’t a party girl.” I couldn’t tell if he was teasing me again or offended I was leaving.
“I’m not. I just wanted to see what the big deal is.”
I couldn’t tell him I needed a break from him. That if I stayed in my room tonight, I’d just think about last night.
He dropped the smile from his lips. “Well, be careful. It’s a big crowd and things get a little crazy down there.”
“So you’ve been before?” I tried to imagine Cole in a dance club. Should I ask him to go with me?
“I’m not that old. Yeah, I’ve been before. It’s not really my scene. I like Peabody’s.” He picked up the ladder.
I hesitated in the walkway, hoping for a sign of familiarity between us—a smile, a wink, anything. “Ok. See you around, I guess.”
I tucked the palm tree key into my purse and walked away from Cole. I liked Peabody’s too. If he had asked me, I would have gladly ditched my Bottoms Up plan to go have a drink with him at the bar, but he didn’t. Instead, he acted as if nothing happened last night.
The bouncer at the door barely looked at my ID before shuttling me through the gate that led into Bottoms Up. I was wedged against the back wall by a crowd of people in line for drinks at the bar. I edged along the wall, taking in my surroundings. There were cages dangling from the ceiling with bikini-clad girls dancing, a rapper I had never heard of performing on stage, and girls with beer logos strategically placed over their breasts handing out free drink samples.
Everything was flashing and the bass was so loud that I couldn’t think. Bottoms Up was all wrong for me. I knew it within my first two minutes inside the club. Why did I think this was a good idea?
“Can I buy you a shot?” An overly muscled guy wrapped his hand around my waist and shouted into my ear. He had doused himself with at least half a bottle of cologne and was wearing a tight tank top.
I tried to push back a little from him. “No, thanks. I was just leaving.”
I could still make it to Peabody’s and have a margarita. This evening didn’t have to be a total waste.
“You here alone?” His hand was attached to my waist, and I didn’t have much room to move.
“I’m meeting someone, so thanks for the offer.” I tried to smile and brush past him, but he was like a solid statue I couldn’t escape. I looked around his sculpted arms, pretending to search for my imaginary friend.
“I’d like to buy you a drink.”
The guy was really pissing me off. “I already said no thank you.” I dropped my sweet girl act.
This time I made no hesitation in my attempt to breakaway from him. I pressed my hand against his chest and shoved. It was like pushing against a rock.
“Hey, bitch. Watch it.”
He grabbed me by my wrist and twisted it. If he was trying to get me to cave to my knees, he knew what he was doing. I looked around to see if anyone noticed what was happening, but the energy was frenetic in the club and no one saw the dick who now had me in a mercy hold.
“Let her go.” From out of nowhere, Cole appeared.
He towered over the guy. Before he had a chance to negotiate whatever he was thinking, I raised my knee and brought it straight up with as much force as I could.
“Aww. Bitch!” The asshole let go of my wrist and crumpled to the floor.
I rubbed my wrist and stood over the guy who was writhing in pain.
“Wait, you didn’t even let me hit him.” Cole looked pissed.
“I didn’t need you to hit him. I took care of it.” I placed my hands on my hips.
The guy rolled on his side into a fetal position.
“But I was going to hit him.” Cole watched as he shifted to his knees and started to crawl away.
“I had it under control.” I glanced at Cole. “I already have one big brother.” I realized how bitter and nasty the words sounded.
“I can see that.” He rubbed the side of his jaw and shook his head.
I pursed my lips. “What are you doing here? I thought you said you hated this place.”
“Come on,” he directed me.
Cole pressed his palm into the small of my back and ushered me away from the wall. We walked out on the sound terrace where the rapper’s music wasn’t so loud.
“You shouldn’t be here alone. I never should have let you leave the Dunes.”
“You were worried about me?”
“Something like that.” He avoided eye contact.
“Well, I can take care of myself. I’m not a damsel in distress type of girl.”
Cole laughed. “I guess I should have thought of that. I’ll give you the self-defense technique.”
“Thanks. I think.” We both stared out at the water.
“Kaitlyn, why in the hell are you here alone?” Cole turned to me.
“I had to get out of that room.”
“No. I mean Padre. Why did you come here by yourself?” he pressed.
It was the one question I really didn’t want to discuss with him or anyone. But somehow I felt as if he deserved the truth.
“The condensed version is that the person I planned the trip with had a last-minute change of plans. So I decided to do the whole thing solo.”
“Brave girl.” He whistled.
I wondered what he would think if I told him the entire story. Why did it matter if Cole knew I had just been dumped? I didn’t lie, but I left out a few key points I didn’t want to think about, at least not when he was around.
“I’m ready to get out of here. Walk me back?”
“Sure. Yeah, of course, but I drove.” Cole turned toward the party that was raging in front of us. “I think we can leave through the side gate. No reason to go back in that shit.”
I followed him around the side of Bottoms Up and through the wooden gate that was marked as an emergency exit. I waited for a siren to go off as he pushed on the handle, but it was silent.
“They just mark the gates like that so people don’t sneak their friends in. That’s how my buddies and I used to get in here.”
I looked at him. “You used to sneak into Bottoms Up? Tell me it ain’t so.”
Cole laughed. “Yep. And I did a lot more than that.” His sexy smile made me melt. “Come on, let’s get you back.”
Cole walked over to a huge maroon truck parked in the club’s lot. He crossed in front of the vehicle and opened the passenger side for me. I had to hold the grab bar to hoist myself into the cab. This was definitely the highest truck I had ever ridden in, but that was supposed to be Texas. Big trucks, right?
Cole pulled into the empty parking lot at the Dune Scape and cut the engine. I could hear the waves hitting the beach through the open windows of his truck.
“Would you want to have a drink?” Cole pulled the keys from the ignition.
“Should we ask Ryan?”
He shot me a look.
“Kidding. Yes. A drink sounds good.”
“Ok, then. I’ll grab a few drinks from my room and meet you at the boardwalk.”
I climbed down from the cab and made my way to the wooden path that led to the beach. The breeze had picked up and I wished I had something to cover my arms.
After a few minutes, Cole emerged behind me holding two beers. “Sorry, I don’t have a huge selection. Beer ok?”
I wasn’t about to admit that I didn’t drink m
uch beer. “It’s perfect.” I took the cold bottle and sipped. A shiver ran down my back.
“You cold? Here.” Cole handed me his beer and unbuttoned the plaid shirt he was wearing. He pulled one sleeve and then the other before wrapping it around my shoulders. Underneath, he had on a T-shirt. I studied every move he made, as if he was unwrapping a present.
“Thanks. I guess you did get to be a knight in shining armor after all.” I laughed and was glad to be warm. The shirt was heated was from his body.
“Follow me.” He tilted his head in the direction of the water.
“Where are we going?”
“My secret spot on the beach.”
“Sounds mysterious.” I trailed behind Cole as we walked down the boardwalk and north along the dunes, glad his playful side had emerged again. We felt normal again.
“Here it is.” He stepped into an alcove nestled by beach shrubs. “It’s a natural wind barrier. You won’t be as cold in here.”
I also noticed that we wouldn’t be spotted by a single soul on the beach. The cove was tucked away among higher sand dunes. Cole tossed one of the forbidden motel towels down on the sand.
“I heard you can’t use those except for showers. There’s a strict motel policy,” I taunted him.
“I’ve got connections.” If it hadn’t been so dark on the beach, I would have sworn he winked at me.
I hugged his shirt around me and sat on the towel next to Cole.
“Didn’t you say you had guests checking in later this week? When do they get here?” I sipped on the beer. I actually liked this one, it tasted like it was mixed with orange.
He leaned back, his palms pressed into the blanket. “I held off on taking any early reservations. Other than you, the first reservation of the summer season checks in on Friday.”
“And you have to do all of the work yourself? You can’t hire anyone?” I asked.
He exhaled. “No, I can’t. And to be honest, I don’t even know if I’ll have all the rooms ready by the weekend. Maybe they won’t notice the broken deck boards or the missing shower rods. What do you think? Too obvious?”
