On the Rocks

by Alyssa Rose Ivy

  I forced those thoughts away and focused on the business dress attired Carly. Who knew she could look so hot in slacks and a blouse?

  “Thank you for taking the time to meet with us.”

  The audience consisted of Maddy, Colin, Brody, and Kim. As much as Carly had issues with her sister, I was glad Kim had taken the effort to come down and try to clear the air. I was also glad she’d have the opportunity to see how passionate Carly was about the project.

  “What do you think of when you think of vacation scuba diving?” Carly pressed a button on her laptop. A picture of the ocean with slow rising bubbles stared back at us.

  “I think of Macon.” Maddy smiled at me.

  “Okay, you think about quality instructors.” Carly bit back a smile.

  “Anyone else?” She zeroed in on Colin.

  “I think about boats?” He looked to me for some kind of clue.

  “Here’s what I think about.” She clicked another button on her computer. A picture of a sea turtle appeared, she clicked again and there was an underwater scene featuring fish and a ray gliding through the water. “These are great images, are they not?”

  “Beautiful.” Kim watched intently.

  “But what happens after those images? What happens after you see these? If you take a standard dive you can expect something like this.” She clicked again and a photo of a mushed peanut butter and jelly sandwich filled the screen. “And this.” A bag of cheap crackers with a juice box beside it took the sandwich’s place.

  “But what if diving could be different? What if you could go from this,” we were back at the ocean scene, “to this?” The next image was of kabobs and shrimp cocktail. “And even this.” Her next click revealed two cocktail glasses.

  “Ladies and gentlemen, I introduce to you Ocean Quest Gourmet. Luxury diving at a cost that a vacation diver can afford.” She continued moving through some more images, ending on one of a beautiful sunset.

  “Can you picture that? A place where a diver can enjoy all the wonders of the ocean and then relax with a delicious meal and cocktails?”

  “I’d do it!” Maddy grinned. “Obviously not the cocktail part now, but when I’m not pregnant.”

  Carly nodded, and I started to hand out the prospective information she’d put together.

  Colin leaned forward in his seat. “Carly, this is a genius idea, but where do you think you’re going to find all that money? That’s a lot of zeroes.”

  She smiled sheepishly. “I was hoping you could help.”

  “I can’t come up with that kind of money, Carly. I can maybe swing thirty percent.” He turned to Maddy. “That is if my future wife agrees.” Maddy nodded enthusiastically.

  Colin sighed. “You know I hate saying no to you, but I don’t think we can do more.”

  Kim studied the papers. “I can contribute some. Maybe 5-10%. I think this is a fantastic idea.”

  Carly’s jaw dropped as she looked at her sister. “What? You want to invest?”

  “Absolutely. I’m really impressed.”

  Carly looked at me, and I shrugged.

  “Excuse me, I hope you don’t mind the intrusion, but the door was unlocked.”

  We all turned to look at Max.

  “Max? What are you doing here?” Carly twirled her hair nervously.

  “I’ve been thinking this over since yesterday. I think this could be the perfect investment for me.”

  “What?” It was my turn to show surprise. “You want in?”

  “I’ll do 49%. That way you guys still run the show. I’ll want updates, and I expect you kids to view this as the serious business venture it is.”

  “Of course. This is amazing.” Carly sat perched on the arm of the couch.

  “I like the business model. I like the plan. You obviously have the chef already,” he nodded to Brody. “I’d like to be present when you negotiate the deal. I happen to know your boss well, Macon, and I have a feeling he’d listen to me more.” He turned to Carly. “No offense to your hard work.”

  “None taken.” She beamed.

  He walked over and shook her hand. “Great. It looks like we’re going into business.”

  Chapter Thirty

  Carly

  We had a business. Max was right, his presence did help seal the deal, and with only a small loan to make up the difference, we were the proud owners of Ocean Quest Gourmet. We were starting small, using the off-season to get everything perfect for the next summer. Maddy was going to be working in the business as well, she wanted to run the front of the updated shop. Considering the shop would now house a bar near the dock, she was the perfect one for the job. Brody was busy brainstorming ways to bring gourmet food on the boat, and Macon had successfully convinced all of the current employees to stay on—except for Caleb. He’d happily taken his part of the sale money and left the beach behind. Hopefully he wouldn’t be back anytime soon.

  Kim had gone home to have it out with Jasper. I felt for her. No matter how much of a jerk he was, telling him it was over wouldn’t be easy. Sometimes my sister could be stubborn as hell and could push my buttons, but she was still my sister. I made sure she knew the door was always open. I might have been the youngest, but that didn’t mean I wasn’t there for my family.

  Labor Day came and went, and I found myself looking forward to the off-season. I didn’t mind the tourists, and I loved the warm weather, but I was looking forward to the quiet. It would also make for an easier transition from working at the Grille to working at Ocean Quest. Working through the rest of the high season was part of the deal we struck with Max.

  Macon and I headed out for a late night walk. Being out on the beach at night always reminded me of the night that changed everything for us. I still replayed every moment of it in my head, and it never failed to put a huge smile on my face. When I first arrived in Corolla my life was a mess. I was the boat that kept slamming into the rocks no matter how hard I tried to steer. But then everything changed, and I knew Macon had a large part to do with that.

  I was thinking about it when Macon pulled me out of my thoughts.

  “I have to ask you something important.” Macon stuffed his hands in the pockets of his cargo shorts. The moon was full, casting an ethereal glow over the beach.

  “What is it?” I tried to stay calm, but I hoped he wasn’t about to do something crazy. I loved Macon, and the thought of spending my life with him made my heart soar, but we weren’t ready for that level of commitment yet. I thought over what I’d say. I couldn’t say no without ruining everything.

  “Will you move in with me?”

  “What?” I breathed a sigh of a relief. “But I already live with you.”

  “Yeah, but the last time I asked it wasn’t to share my bed. Besides, I thought it would be funny to make you think I was proposing.”

  I pushed his arm. “How do you know I’m not disappointed?”

  “Because when I do propose, which I will be doing at some point, love, you’re not going to have that freaked out expression on your face. It’s going to seem so natural that you don’t even have to consider the answer.”

  “And here I thought you weren’t super confident.”

  “I’m not about everything, but I am about you and me. I’ve never been more confident about anything in my life.”

  “Then, the answer is yes.”

  “The answer to what?” He gave me a confused look.

  “I’ll move in with you.”

  “I was hoping you’d say that.” He pulled me into his arms, and his lips crushed into mine. I devoured the earthy and slightly salty taste of his mouth. Macon had every reason to be confident.

  Sometimes love is best served on the rocks, especially when it’s the kind of love that changes you forever.

  Want more Mixology? Maddy and Colin’s story, Shaken Not Stirred is available now!

  Shaken Not Stirred

  *New Adult Romance mixed with humor and garnished with a twist*

  Finding the p
erfect guy is like mixing the perfect drink. It's all about the taste and presentation.

  Faced with a pile of med school rejection letters and no plan B, I took a job tending bar in a beach town while living with two male roommates. All of that would have been fine if I'd had a clue what to do with my life or if my love life wasn't just as pathetic as my career path. But in the end I figured one of those things out—and I also discovered his perfect drink.

  Keep reading for a preview of The Hazards of a One Night Stand (Hazards) by Alyssa Rose Ivy and Wreck You by Jennifer Snyder.

  For more information about Alyssa Rose Ivy’s books, please visit her online at:

  www.AlyssaRoseIvy.com

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  twitter.com/AlyssaRoseIvy

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  To stay up to date on Alyssa’s new releases, join her mailing list: http://eepurl.com/ktlSj

  The Hazards of a One Night Stand

  Alyssa Rose Ivy

  One small town boy, one girl who wants more, one roll in the hay…

  Hooking up with your high school crush is a bad idea, a really bad idea. It was only supposed to be one night, one brief departure from my real life, but nothing ever works out exactly the way you plan.

  Colton Waters was everything from my past that didn't fit into my present, so why did he have to show up at my college and pledge the one frat I couldn't avoid?

  Because nothing is ever meant to happen just once. At least not the life changing things that mean the difference between falling apart and falling in love.

  Chapter One

  Field parties are about as much fun as they sound. It’s just a bunch of kids getting wasted in the middle of nowhere as a way to pass the time. They were lame in high school and even lamer after a year spent away at college. Yet there I was, drinking my third Smirnoff (it was that or crappy beer) waiting for my friend to finish messing around with her boyfriend so she could drive me home.

  I sighed, turning my back on the line of cars illuminating the pasture that was, thankfully, devoid of cows at the moment. Someone was blaring really bad music that I knew would be stuck in my head for a week.

  “Hey, sorry!” Annie, my best friend since childhood, grabbed my arm. “I didn’t mean to run off on you like that.” Her face was flushed, and I knew my earlier assumption about her whereabouts was spot on. She and her boyfriend still lived with their parents, so they used whatever alone time they could find.

  Annie had made plenty of time for me while I was home, but I sensed that I was getting in the way of the new life she’d created since I’d left the previous fall. I never planned to go back to Gasden that summer. I wanted to find something to do in Charleston, but it didn’t happen. I needed a paycheck and a roof over my head, so I took my old job lifeguarding at the town pool for the fourth summer in a row.

  “It’s fine. Where’s Greg?” I searched around the dense crowd for her boyfriend. Generally, he stayed pretty close to Annie when there were other men around. If Greg had a major fault, it was his over protectiveness.

  “He ran into Jason.” She brushed some of her long light brown hair behind her ear. My hair was about three shades darker, the darkest brown you could get before you called it black.

  I groaned. “He’s not going to bring him over here, is he?”

  “I don’t think so. But he’s really not so bad. Didn’t you guys have fun at the movies?” Her tone was light but excited. She was still on a high from her stolen time with Greg.

  “No. I already told you he spent the whole time bragging about how cool his frat was.” And going on about how many girls he’d been with. Why would that have made him seem more appealing to me?

  “Maybe he’s just intimidated by you. Guys sometimes brag like that when they feel insecure.” Annie smiled sweetly. That was the problem. It was impossible to be angry with a girl who smiled that way. Her whole personality was sweet as sugar. I tried to come off that way, but generally my true colors shone through. They weren’t as sparkly as hers. “And you’re in a sorority. Maybe he thought talking about his frat would impress you.”

  “It didn’t work.” All his talk did was make me miss college more. I’d almost survived the summer, only one week remained before I got to go back to campus for rush. I was dying to move into my sorority house.

  “He’s Greg’s friend, and I got to know him much better this—” She stopped suddenly.

  I sighed, taking another huge swig of my drink.

  “Hey, girls!” The president of our graduating class, Becky, hugged us like she hadn’t just seen us a few days before. She was just one of many people present at the party that I’d had no desire to see again after graduation. “How are you?”

  “We’re doing well.” Annie smiled. Once again, she was the polite one.

  “Have you heard from Jack at all?” Becky turned her attention to me, bringing up my ex-boyfriend like she was discussing the weather. Her low cut top left little to the imagination, and I wasn’t sure why she felt the need to annoy us.

  I fought down the real answer I wanted to give and put on the biggest smile I could muster. I’d found that the more enthusiastic you were, the less likely a mean person was to strike against you again. You took away their fun that way. “No. Not recently.”

  “Oh that’s too bad. He was always such a cutie.” She fluttered her eyelashes. I’m not kidding, she actually did that. “Ta ta, ladies. See you later.”

  Annie put a hand on my arm as soon as Becky walked away. “Don’t let her get to you.”

  “I’m trying not to.” I ignored the tightness in my chest that always developed when someone mentioned Jack’s name. Despite all the good times we had, those memories were overshadowed by the way he dumped me. Being told you aren’t good enough is the kind of experience you never forget.

  Annie smiled sympathetically. “She’s just jealous, and you know it.”

  “Yeah, yeah. I know.” I said the words Annie wanted to hear. After a year and a half, she was probably getting tired of me reacting so infantile every time Jack’s name came up in conversation. Too bad time didn’t seem to make the hurt and humiliation go away.

  “Okay, and keep that positive thinking right now.”

  “Why?” I followed her gaze. Greg and Jason were on their way over. Thankfully, at the last moment, Becky grabbed Jason’s arm and Greg continued on without him. The triumphant smile Becky shot us made me grin. She thought she was stealing a guy I liked. Too bad she was actually doing me a favor.

  “Some of the guys are setting up a bonfire down on the other side of the property. We should probably make sure it doesn’t get out of hand, babe.” Greg put his arm around Annie.

  “Yeah, sounds like a good idea.” She kissed him on the cheek.

  “I think I’ll stay here.” I assumed the bonfire wasn’t just cover to go hook up again, but either way, I was tired of being a third wheel.

  “Really?” Annie asked me skeptically.

  “Yeah. I might try to find a ride home.”

  “No. You can’t leave yet! I can’t have a party without you here.” Annie’s uncle owned the farm we were on, so in theory she was throwing the party. In reality, Greg was doing it all.

  “All right. I’ll hang out for a while.”

  “Yay! Text me if you need me.” She squeezed my hand before walking away.

  “Fantastic.” I stood there by myself once again. The crowd had thinned down some, thanks to the bonfire, but luckily everyone was too drunk or too busy to notice me.

  “Hey, pumpkin,” a low and warm voice whispered in my ear.

  I jumped, spilling my Smirnoff down the front of my navy tank top. “Damn it, Colton!”

  “Good to see you too, babe.” He picked me up and swung me around like I was a little kid or something.

  I stepped back from him, taking in his muscular form. He was bigger than I remembered, but that sun tanned face and those killer blue eyes were exactly the same. Other than running
into him over the holidays once, I hadn’t seen him since graduating. “What are you doing here? Aren’t you supposed to be staying with your cousins this summer?”

  “So you did ask around about me.” He winked. “I’m back for a few weeks.”

  “Great.” I fought to keep a smile from slipping out. I’d been friends with Colton my whole life, and I’d be lying if I didn’t admit I was kind of glad to see him. He had one of those personalities that was perpetually upbeat. Generally, all it took was a few minutes with him to find myself in a better mood. I’d had a crush on him for years, but considering I spent half of high school dating his older brother, I never did anything with those feelings.

  “Did you get the package I sent you?” He stuffed his hands in his back pockets and watched me expectantly.

  “Yeah. I did.” I thought about the large box that showed up on my doorstep two weeks before. It was full of the most random stuff, including magazines, figurines, and jolly ranchers. I loved jolly ranchers, especially watermelon. The gift wasn’t a complete surprise. He’d been sending little care packages to me occasionally since we were kids. It all started when he drew my name in this secret Santa exchange we did with some friends in middle school. He’d put together this awesome package of goodies for me, and I jokingly told him he should give me gifts more often. The care packages became a long running inside joke.

  I tried to hold onto our friendship when I left, but like with most of my friends, we’d drifted. I think the fact that he was a grade younger and still in high school made it even harder to stay connected. Of course, there was also the little detail of his brother breaking my heart into a million pieces. “Thanks.”