On the Rocks

by Alyssa Rose Ivy

  “Fun dinner, huh?” Macon’s shoulder brushed against mine as we turned toward the beach. Their condo was on the ocean side of the island, and it was only steps from the sand. The nice thing about the Outer Banks is that the island is so narrow it’s hard to get too far away from the water.

  “Surprisingly, yes.” I slipped off my sandals, enjoying the feel of the cool sand on my toes.

  “Surprisingly?” Macon watched me the way you’d look at something you didn’t understand. Either he thought I was confusing, or he really cared about my answer. I hoped it was the latter.

  I gazed out at the water, giving myself a moment before answering. “Yeah. I’m used to dinners going badly.”

  “Oh really?” He kicked off his flip flops. “Care to expand on that comment?”

  I kept my eyes fixed on the water. Telling Macon about what happened wasn’t exactly high on my list. Then again, it would probably sound better if I told the story then if I waited for the inevitable visit from Kim. Her hatred for me knew no limit; she’d probably try to run off any friends I had.

  “Ok. Maybe that wasn’t fair of me. I’m asking you to divulge a private story without sharing one myself.”

  I turned back toward him. The setting sun gave his brown hair almost a glowing effect. “You’re going to share a story with me?”

  “Sure.” He smiled. “You ready for it?”

  “Yeah.” I was definitely ready to learn more about Macon. I couldn’t believe he was willing to share something personal with me.

  He took both of my hands in his. “I wasn’t always this cool.”

  “Uh, what?” I let out a small laugh.

  “I know it’s hard to believe, but I wasn’t. Ask Maddy. I was kind of nerdy at one point in my life. And to be honest, I’m probably not even cool now. I’m weirder than you’d think.”

  “Good to know.” I didn’t make a move to pull my hands away. He had a strange sense of humor, but then again, so did I.

  “I’m telling you this so you’ll realize that you don’t need to be intimidated about sharing anything with me. I can assure you that no matter what your story is, I’ve done something worse or even more embarrassing.”

  “I don’t know why you’re telling me what I already know.”

  He laughed. “Ok. Now that that’s out of the way, are you ready to talk?”

  “It depends. How much time do you have?”

  He released my hands, as though suddenly realizing he was holding them. I missed the contact immediately but tried to hide it.

  He unhooked his watch and shoved it into the pocket of his shorts. “Our time is limitless, my dear. We have all night.”

  I looked out at the water again. Why was he so curious? He barely knew me.

  “So? Am I going to have to pull it out of you?”

  “Pull it out of me? I’d like to see you try that.”

  “Oh yeah?” He got a twinkle in his eye that made me a little nervous.

  I ignored the nerves. “Yeah.”

  “You’re going to wish you hadn’t said that.” He put his hands around my waist and picked me up. My stomach dropped. What was he doing? Before I could think about it for long, I was met by the cool ocean water as he tossed me into the waves.

  “Macon!” I shrieked once I recovered from the shock.

  He laughed. “Now are you ready to talk?”

  “You’re insane!” I treaded water before trying to stand.

  “Maybe, but can’t say I didn’t warn you.”

  “I’ll talk if you join me.” Two could play at his game. If I was going to be soaking wet and swimming in my clothes, then so was he.

  “Fine.” He pulled off his t-shirt and slipped out of his jeans. I tried not to enjoy the view too much, but it was impossible. His chiseled chest was just too hard to avoid staring at. I finally shook myself when I noticed we were no longer alone. Macon’s actions attracted the attention of some tourists.

  He smiled at the women. “Sorry ladies, shows over.” With that he jumped in.

  “That’s not fair you know.” I gave up on standing. The wind made it too cold to have any of my body out of the water. I wasn’t looking forward to getting out.

  “What isn’t fair?”

  “That you are just in your underwear. You won’t have to walk around in wet clothes.”

  “You’re more than welcome to take yours off,” he said in a low seductive voice that had my chest tightening.

  “Yeah, I’d prefer not to get arrested for indecent exposure.”

  “Excuses, excuses. Now where’s that story you promised me?”

  “I didn’t promise you.”

  “Sure you did.” He dove under, resurfacing closer to me. “You told me if I got in you’d tell me.”

  “Fine. Why not?”

  “All right, I hope this is as good as the buildup.”

  “It’s not.” I looked up at the darkening sky. “The short version is my brother-in law came on to me. I told my sister and she took his side.”

  “What?” Macon swam over to me. “Your sister’s husband tried to get with you and she didn’t kick him to the curb?”

  “He convinced her that I was the one trying to seduce him.”

  “And I’m guessing this all happened at a dinner?”

  “It did. By dessert she was calling me a whore. She’d convinced herself that it wasn’t just an attempt and that I’d actually slept with him.” Just saying the words made me so angry I wanted to scream. I could feel tears welling, and I hoped I could play them off as ocean water.

  “That really sucks.” Macon’s voice came from right next to my ear. He pulled me into a hug, while keeping us mostly in the water. “I’m hoping that since you’re staying with your brother, he believes you.”

  “Yeah. Colin knows I’d never do something like that, he also knows my sister’s husband can be a royal jerk.”

  “But your parents sided with her?”

  “Of course. She’s the perfect one after all.”

  “Listen, I can’t say I’ve been in your situation, but I do know what it’s like to disappoint people.” He didn’t let go of me and I was glad. The feeling of his warm body next to mine dulled the ache I felt thinking about how little my family thought of me.

  “And how do you deal with it?”

  “I say fuck them. The only one you need to impress is yourself.”

  “Do you really believe that, or are you just saying it?” The sun fully disappeared, leaving us in only the faintest of daylight.

  “Most of the time I do.”

  I smiled. “Thanks. Most people aren’t that honest.”

  “You can count on me being level with you.”

  “Macon?” I wrapped my arms around myself.

  “Yeah?” he adjusted his hold on me, and his hand moved up under my soaking wet shirt.

  “How am I getting out of this water? It’s freezing.”

  “Wait here.” He let go and ran off toward the beach. He looked up and down the shore. “Ok, take off your shirt.”

  “What?” I gasped.

  “Just do it.” He held out his t-shirt. “You were right about it being freezing, so could you maybe move faster?” I unbuttoned my shirt and took it off. I crossed my arms over my chest as soon as I was standing. Macon looked away, but he held the shirt out to me. I grabbed it and slipped it on as fast as humanly possible. “I’m sure we can find something of Maddy’s for you to change into.”

  “I really hope my brother isn’t still at your place.”

  Macon laughed dryly. “Me too.”

  Darkness set in as we made the short walk home. The night was silent except for some faint laughter coming from a house along the beach.

  We both got lucky. The only one home was Brody when we walked in.

  Brody took in our wet forms. Considering Macon was in his boxers, and I was wearing his t-shirt it probably didn’t look good. “Uh, do I even want to know?”

  Macon grinned. “We just went for a l
ittle swim.”

  I didn’t stand around. I went right to Maddy’s room and searched her now mostly empty drawers for something to wear. I settled on a pair of running shorts and a tank top. My bra was soaked through, and I needed something that could work without one. Satisfied I looked halfway presentable, I walked out into the main room.

  Macon now fully dressed sat on the couch. “A little warmer?”

  “Much.” I held out his damp t-shirt. “Where do you want this?”

  “Could you put it on the washer?” He gestured down the hall I’d just come from. I discovered the accordion doors that hid the washer and dryer, and I carefully placed the shirt on top of the washer. I found an empty grocery store bag to stow my wet clothes in until I got home.

  I walked back out, picking up my purse where I left it on the side table.

  “What’s the rush?” Macon asked.

  “It’s late. I’m going home.”

  “Do you like scary movies?” He turned on the TV.

  “Yeah. Definitely.”

  “There’s a Friday the Thirteenth marathon on, you up for it?”

  “Sure, maybe I’ll stay for a little while.” I took a seat next to him.

  He put an arm behind me on the couch. “Usually I’ve been dating a girl awhile before I let her borrow my clothes. I guess it’s okay that I made an exception with you since tonight wasn’t an actual date.”

  “Do you generally date girls long enough for that to happen?” I needed to know if my player radar was right.

  “I haven’t had a girlfriend, per se, in a while if that’s what you’re asking.”

  “Gotcha.” That’s all I needed to know. If a guy didn’t do girlfriends, I didn’t do him. I was not the hook up kind of girl.

  “Is there a particular guy whose clothes you borrow a lot?” He looked at me with that serious expression again.

  “Is that your way of asking if I have a boyfriend?”

  “Yes.” He didn’t break the eye contact.

  “Don’t you think that would have been important to ask before you decided to go swimming with me half naked?”

  Brody laughed from somewhere behind us. “That implies Macon would have thought something out in advance.”

  “But to answer your question, no I don’t have one. I haven’t had one in a while.”

  “Okay. Perfect. We can both be single together. Now that Maddy’s with your brother I’ve been in the market for a wing girl. I think I found mine.”

  My stomach sunk. Wing girl? He wanted me to be his wing girl? So much for him having interest in me. I forced a smile. “Sounds great.”

  “But before we worry about that, we need to find you a job. Oh, and I thought of a fantastic idea while you were getting changed.”

  “Did you?” Brody asked before I could respond.

  “Colin and Maddy want to move in together, right?” Macon sounded way too excited about the comment.

  “Yes.”

  “And you don’t want to stay at your brother’s house all summer.”

  “Not a chance.” I had no idea where the conversation was heading.

  “Why don’t you take Maddy’s room? She’s paid up through the end of June, so that should give you some time to get on your feet. Besides, I’m practically charging her nothing, and I’ll extend the same discount to you.”

  “What?” Brody and I asked in unison.

  My first reaction was hell no, but why? Live practically rent free right on the beach? Make my brother insanely happy because I’d be pushing things in the right direction with his girlfriend? Both of those things sounded awesome. The only problem was could I handle living with two guys, especially if one of them made me warm just by standing in the same room? I ignored the last thought. “Sure, as long as Brody and Maddy are okay with it.” I turned to look at Brody.

  “Oh, yeah. That’s totally fine.” Brody seemed genuine with his answer, but it was hard to tell.

  “I’m sure Maddy will be okay with it too.” Macon put his feet up on the ottoman in front of us. “Now how about that Freddy marathon?”

  Chapter Six

  Macon

  Brody held his tongue until Carly left around one a.m. Then he let me have it. The door had barely closed when he turned to me. “Do you think inviting Carly to live with us is the best idea?”

  “Yes, actually I do. Maddy wants to move out and Carly wants to move in. It works perfectly.”

  “But you don’t want to sleep with Maddy. You do want to sleep with Carly.”

  “Just because I want something doesn’t mean I’m going to do it. Carly and I are friends. It’s going to work out great.” I leaned back against the couch. Sure, I hadn’t really thought things out, but that’s just kind of how I did things.

  “Let me just get a preemptive ‘I told you so’ out of the way now.”

  “You really don’t think I can control myself?”

  Brody took a seat on the love seat. “You can control yourself, but you can’t control the awkwardness that’s going to come from it.”

  “She’s cool. It’s going to work.”

  “I hope so. I really don’t want any drama.”

  “We’ve had drama with Maddy.” I picked up a celebrity type magazine Maddy had left out and flipped through it. I had no idea how she read those things.

  “No. Maddy’s had drama, but she doesn’t bring it home. If things with you and Carly get awkward then we’ll really have drama.”

  “Well, it’s too late now. I already offered her the place if Maddy agrees.”

  “You didn’t think asking me beforehand was important?” He shook his head. He wasn’t actually annoyed. He just wanted to give me a hard time about it.

  “You’re the one offering to help her get a job at the Grille.”

  “How is that even remotely the same?”

  “You like her, admit it.”

  “I’m not into her, but I get the sense she really needs a job.” Brody leaned his head back against the cushions.

  “She also really needs a place to stay. She can’t camp out at her brother’s all summer.” I felt for her. From what she told me, her family life pretty much sucked.

  “Fine, I agree she could use the break. Besides, it’s probably only for the summer.”

  I laughed. “That’s what we said about Maddy.”Of course this time I knew I might not even stay around past the summer, but I wasn’t willing to worry about that yet.

  “And a year later she’s still here… but in her case that’s a good thing. She’s been a fun roommate. Maybe Carly will be that way too.”

  “I know she will. She’s cool, trust me on this.”

  “Do I have any other choice?”

  “Nope. You might as well start getting used to it.”

  ***

  The forecast was beautiful. Sunny skies, a slight breeze and calm ocean conditions. It was the perfect morning for diving. I took a glance at the books. I was scheduled to take a group of girls out for the last day of their certification course. They’d been an entertaining bunch so far. I knew more about swimsuit shopping then I ever wanted to know, but I didn’t care. There was something awesome about introducing people to scuba diving and the underwater world. Maybe it was in my head, but it made me feel like I was making a difference.

  “What do we have on the books today?”

  I groaned. Caleb, the son of the shop owner rarely ventured in, but when he did he always managed to ruin my day. I generally like people, but not Caleb. He epitomized everything I hated in a person: entitled, rude, and disrespectful.

  “Is anyone going to tell me, or do I have to do it myself?” Caleb acted like he owned the place, and technically he would soon, but not yet. I still had a few months to enjoy my job.

  “Just one dive today. The last day of a certification,” Anna Marie answered carefully. She specifically didn’t mention the gender of the divers. I didn’t know for sure, but I got the hunch that there was some history with them. When it came to his
tory with Caleb it was never good.

  “Oh yeah? Who’s in the group?”

  “A few girls right out of high school.” She looked down.

  “Oh. Awesome. I’ll take them out then.”

  “That’s okay. Macon’s on it. He’s been with them all week.”

  “Macon’s going to be busy refilling tanks today.” He shot me a shit eating grin. “Have fun with that.”

  So much for enjoying the perfect conditions. Caleb was so sleezy it made me sick. At twenty-eight he had no business hitting on eighteen-year-old girls, but he didn’t care. Luckily there’d be a boat captain with them. So much for a good end of the week tip. Caleb would be pocketing that.

  “You might as well enjoy the grunt work, Macon. You won’t be diving for this company once I take over.”

  I resisted the urge to flip him the finger, and I headed toward the back of the shop. At least I was getting a cool new roommate.

  Chapter Seven

  Carly

  “Absolutely not.” Colin slammed his coffee mug on the granite counter top. I’d decided to confront him before he could leave for work. “Live with two guys? Are you crazy? Mom and Dad would kill you and me by association.”

  “They already want to kill me, so it’s just you we’d have to worry about.” I smiled. Colin could be so uptight sometimes. “Besides, you don’t want me staying here all summer.”

  “I could help you find a summer sublet or something.” I could practically see him going through his contacts in his head. If I’d agreed he would probably have had me a place by the end of the night.

  “Which is what I’m doing. I’m not signing a twelve month lease or anything.” We hadn’t exactly agreed on lease terms, but Macon had made it sound very informal.

  “Come on, Colin. It makes sense for all of us.” Maddy gave me a reassuring smile. “I want to move in with you, but I can’t leave Macon hanging. This way we all win.”

  I watched acceptance cross Colin’s face. “Fine, but I’m going to have to have a talk with those guys first.”