Love in Catalina Cove

by Brenda Jackson

  How could any man have the techniques of kissing down to a science? She was doing her best to keep up with him but he’d left her behind several tongue strokes ago. Never had she wanted a kiss not to end but it finally did and she felt so weak that she dropped her head on his chest.

  Vashti could tell from the sound of Sawyer’s breathing that he’d needed to pull air into his lungs, otherwise there was no telling how much longer they would have continued kissing. She wasn’t sure just how long they’d been gone from the party and before Sawyer got any ideas to go for a third round, she lifted her face from his chest, looked up at him and said, although not too convincingly, “It’s time for us to go back.”

  “I could have kissed you all night,” he said in a deep, husky voice.

  She was tempted to say, I wish you would have, but instead she said, “You know what they say, all good things must come to an end.”

  “I know, but I wish they didn’t.” After drawing in another deep breath, he said, “And just so you know, I haven’t figured out what’s going on between us, Vashti. I don’t know any more now than I did before. Other than I like the way you taste.”

  CHAPTER TEN

  “I HAD FUN TONIGHT,” Vashti said, coming into the kitchen for a cup of coffee, feeling refreshed after her shower, and for the moment satisfied that she’d gotten the kiss she had wanted. When she and Sawyer had returned to the party that was in full swing, everyone was either dancing or had gone back to the seafood pot for seconds. No one seemed to have noticed them drifting back to rejoin the group.

  Not even Bryce. At least if she had, she hadn’t mentioned it in the car ride home. Vashti felt stuffed from eating so much food and would admit Catalina Cove had the best seafood in all the world. Bryce grinned over at her as she came to sit down at the table. She’d taken a shower as well. “I guess you would since you had the sheriff’s attention most of the night.”

  So she had noticed. “Umm, he’s nice.”

  Bryce nodded, eyeing her closely. “Anything you want to tell me, Vash?”

  She shrugged. “No, nothing that I can think of.”

  “Okay, keep your lips sealed. Lips that happened to look as if they’ve been thoroughly kissed.”

  Vashti laughed. “They don’t.”

  “Oh, yes, they do, trust me. Good thing you’re leaving town tomorrow. If any of those women who’ve been chasing behind our sheriff get wind that you, who haven’t been in town but a couple of days, made a home run when they’d been striking out, they will be out for blood.”

  “Well, you know what they say. You win some and you lose some.”

  Bryce smiled. “Well, it looks like you came out a winner tonight. I like Sheriff Grisham, but so does everyone in the cove. Even Reid Lacroix. However, I will say tonight was the first time I noticed him paying attention to a woman. Consider yourself lucky.”

  Vashti smiled, thinking about that kiss and decided yes, tonight she certainly felt that way. “The kiss wasn’t planned. It just happened.”

  “Yeah, right. I guess you two didn’t intentionally wander off from the group either.”

  Vashti took a sip of her coffee. “I can’t help that there’s an attraction between us.”

  “Hey, I’m not complaining. You can kiss any man you want.”

  Deciding to change the subject, Vashti asked, “Who’s that guy you were hanging with tonight? He’s quite handsome.”

  “That was Ray Sullivan. He’s a pretty nice guy who moved to town last year and works for Kaegan. He keeps to himself most of the time. A real loner. Although that hasn’t stopped the women who’ve given up on the sheriff to turn their attention to him. So far he’s managed to stay clear of all the eager beavers. Even when he comes into the café he’s by himself, except for those times Kaegan or the sheriff joins him.”

  “Do you know where he’s from?”

  “I have no idea, but I overheard Kaegan tell my dad that Ray’s a hard worker and a pretty smart guy, which is why he made him his right-hand man in the company. And before you get any ideas, don’t. Ray was only being nice to me.”

  Later that night after Vashti slid between the sheets, she eased on her back and stared up at the ceiling. Even after taking a shower and relaxing with a cup of coffee, her brain was still on overload and her stomach doing somersaults. And all because of Sawyer Grisham’s kiss. Yes, while talking to Bryce she had deliberately downplayed all that sexual chemistry flowing between her and Sawyer tonight, mainly because they had tried to themselves. Instead they’d tried to concentrate on all that seafood and the music. Then there was the conversation where he’d told her more about his daughter. The smile on his face when he talked about her was breathtaking. Vashti wondered if her father ever smiled when asked about her. She would hope that one day long ago he had...before she did something her parents could never forgive her for.

  She’d managed to get through the meal with him sitting beside her. Afterward, the music was cranked up for line dancing. Kaegan had the perfect patio in his yard and it had been fun. Sawyer hadn’t danced. Instead he’d stood on the sidelines drinking a beer while watching everyone. Namely, her.

  Just knowing his gaze was on her body’s movements while she danced made her feel tingly inside. It had been a while since it had been so obviously clear that she had a man’s attention. For the first time in a long time she thought it felt good being a woman and taking the time to flaunt it.

  She’d done it with a purpose and he’d taken the bait. She had wanted that kiss as much as he had and a part of her knew that he’d gotten the message. The man had kissed her in a way she’d never been kissed before. He had taken his time. He had been thorough. Her brain waves were still dancing from the impact of how delicious his tongue had tasted in her mouth.

  She had noticed Sawyer wasn’t the only man in lust with a woman tonight. She doubted Bryce realized it but Kaegan had practically watched her every movement as well. Especially when Bryce seemed to spend a lot of time with Ray Sullivan.

  Her thoughts shifted back to Sawyer and that kiss. A part of her regretted she’d probably seen him for the last time tonight since she didn’t ever plan to return to the cove. She thought about Bryce’s suggestion tonight that she move back to the cove and reopen the inn. What could she be thinking? She would admit when she’d gone to the inn yesterday she had visions of the things she would do if she were to open it up. But just as quickly as the thoughts had entered her mind, she’d dismissed them. The inn was in need of repair and that would take money. It was money she didn’t have. She would have to take out a loan and she couldn’t do that. She was still paying her student loan for college. And she needed to be careful how she spent her severance pay. Moving back here and running the inn was out of the question. Before leaving she would instruct Bryce to put Shelby by the Sea back on the market. In the meantime, when she returned to New York she would continue to look for a job and hope she found one soon.

  * * *

  “HOW WAS THE party, Dad?”

  Sawyer glanced across the room the minute he closed the door. Jade was sitting on the sofa in the dark. He turned on a lamp. “Why are you still up?”

  “Waiting for you. You’re late.”

  He chuckled as he crossed the room to sit down beside her. “Do I need to remind you who’s the parent and who’s the child?”

  “No, but that doesn’t mean I can’t worry about you.”

  He lifted a brow. “Then maybe I need to remind you who’s a student and who’s the sheriff. I think I can take care of myself.”

  She leaned into him and he automatically placed his arm around her. “Oh, Daddy, I know you can but that doesn’t mean I don’t worry sometimes. I was in bed and had a dream. It wasn’t a bad one or anything. It was a dream about Mom.”

  He squeezed her tighter and said, “Tell me about your dream, sweetheart.”

  She to
ok his hand and held it. “I dreamed the three of us, me, you and Mom, were in Florida again. At Disney World. Remember when we went there?”

  He remembered. It was the last vacation they’d taken as a family. “Yes.”

  “I dreamed about it but this time we did something in my dream that we didn’t do in real life.”

  “And what was that?”

  “The three of us rode on Space Mountain.”

  He chuckled. “Yes, that was definitely in your dream because there’s no way I would have gotten on that thing.” Johanna and Jade had a penchant for scary and he much preferred keeping his feet on the ground.

  “Well, in my dream you were there, flying high with us and loving it.”

  “It shocked you awake, didn’t it?”

  “Pretty much. I got up to tell you about it and saw you hadn’t come home and it was after midnight.”

  “Your old man was having fun.”

  She smiled. “You should. You work hard in this town protecting everyone. You need to enjoy life. Heck, Dad, you don’t even have a girlfriend.”

  Her comment surprised him and he glanced down at his daughter. “Are you throwing out hints?”

  She shook her head. “Possibly. I just want you to be happy.”

  “And that’s the same thing I want for you, too, Jade. Your old man wants you to be happy. By the way, I have business in New Orleans tomorrow. I might not be here when you come home from school.”

  “Okay, Dad, and I know the routine.”

  “Yes, you do.”

  An hour or so later, instead of getting in bed Sawyer stood at the window in his room. There was a full moon out tonight in a starlit sky. Someone once said that when there were a lot of stars out that meant your loved ones were smiling down. If that was true then Johanna had a huge smile. Their little girl was everything she would have wanted her to be. By no means had he made her life cushy. He’d taught her responsibility and deep down he believed she would appreciate him for it.

  Leaving the window he pushed back the covers to get into bed and once settled he thought about tonight and Vashti Alcindor and the kiss they’d shared. There was no way he could not think of her when the heat of her taste was embedded on his tongue. The woman had a way of unsettling his mind, every part of his body. He wished he could say the kiss hadn’t been planned, but it had. After spending all that time with her, getting turned on by her mere scent, by watching her move her body while dancing, he’d sat there while his entire body hardened with desire for her. And then he’d decided to find out for himself what was going on with them, just like she’d asked. Now he knew and at that moment logic was replaced by a need he hadn’t felt in years, if ever.

  It bothered him that after she left town tomorrow, chances were their paths would never cross again. The very thought of that made a surge of longing and regret fill him.

  He pushed those emotions aside. They had no place with him. He didn’t get attached to women. Johanna was the only female he’d gotten attached to and he preferred keeping things that way. Vashti was a woman a man could get attached to easily if he wasn’t careful. She was the kind of woman who had the ability to take a man’s breath away without even trying. The kind of woman a man intent on staying single for the rest of his life should stay away from.

  He had studied her a lot tonight, even when she hadn’t known she was the object of his intense scrutiny. She had the ability to brighten up an entire yard. Her smile had dazzled him and was contagious. He doubted he had ever smiled so much and her laughter was just as infectious. He had enjoyed getting to know her. At least the part she was willing to share. The former FBI agent in him could sense when he wasn’t being told everything. But then he was of the mind that everyone had something they’d rather keep to themselves.

  She was a free spirit, someone who enjoyed life and relished the times she could have fun. For some reason he had a feeling she hadn’t done either for a long time. But tonight, she had, thanks to Kaegan.

  It was easy to see Vashti’s friendship with Kaegan was an old one, built on love and trust. She felt comfortable around him and the people he entrusted with his life. It was as if the saying, a friend of yours is a friend of mine, applied between the two. And because she trusted Kaegan’s judgment when it came to people, she was relaxed and at ease.

  Sawyer switched his thoughts to something else he’d observed tonight. He wasn’t sure what was going on with Kaegan and Bryce Witherspoon but there was a story there. He believed Kaegan had kept his eyes on Bryce as much as Sawyer had kept his on Vashti tonight. Especially when the two women had been dancing. He had detected something deeper than male interest in the eyes that had stared at Bryce. He had detected a need that was capped by anger. He found that odd since he thought Kaegan was one of the most easygoing men he knew.

  Sawyer switched his thoughts back to Vashti. She’d worn jeans tonight and the pair had hugged her hips in a way that reminded him he was a man every time she moved. And whenever he engaged in conversation with her, which had been most of the night, his gaze seemed to zero in on the pair of firm breasts that fit perfectly beneath the pink cotton shirt she’d been wearing.

  He recalled those same breasts touching his chest when he’d kissed her. And how his arms had wrapped around her small waist while holding her. And he couldn’t forget how their tongues had tangled when he’d kissed her deeply. As deep as he could possibly get.

  At some point that night Sawyer fell into a deep sleep and when he began to dream, they were dreams of Vashti Alcindor.

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  SAWYER ENTERED THE hotel suite and glanced around. Normally, they used the same room each time and she’d always ordered a bottle of wine for them. Room service would deliver their meal later. Much later.

  Leesa was there, sitting in the chair waiting for him. She was fully clothed since they enjoyed undressing each other. She stood and moved toward him and when she wrapped her arms around his neck a pair of firm breasts pressed against his chest. Immediately, he thought of the breasts that had pressed against this same chest last night. Vashti’s.

  “How are you, Sawyer?” her soft voice asked.

  Instead of answering, he kissed her, but for some reason it wasn’t the same and all he could remember was the mouth he’d taken hungrily the night before. Not appreciating the memories or the comparisons his mind was making, he suddenly broke off the kiss.

  Leesa lifted a brow as she studied him before asking, “Are you okay?”

  “Yeah, I’m fine.” He took a step back and began removing his shirt. She took a step back to watch him. After he’d tossed his shirt aside and had moved his hands to the belt of his jeans, she reached out and stopped him.

  Sawyer looked at her. “What’s wrong?”

  She held his gaze. “You tell me.” And then as if she fully expected him to do just that, she moved to the lounging chair in the room and eased down on it.

  “What makes you think something is wrong, Leesa?”

  She smiled over at him. “A number of signs. You weren’t kissing me back for starters. Then you began undressing yourself instead of letting me do it.”

  He didn’t say anything at first. Instead he walked across the room to pour a glass of wine. He stared into the dark contents for a minute. Possibly two. He knew her well. Just like she knew him. Leesa was a beautiful woman and he hoped one day she would find someone who could give her the type and degree of love she deserved, although he knew she would fight such a thing tooth and nail. She was highly intelligent and was one of the few women who’d become a marine pilot. He valued their friendship. Always had and always would.

  “No rush, Sawyer.”

  At the sound of her voice, he turned and looked at her as he took a sip of his wine. “Sure you’d rather talk than get naked in that bed with me?”

  “The thought is tempting, trust me. However, somethi
ng is bothering you. I picked up on it the minute you opened the hotel room door and walked in. You’ve always listened whenever something bothered me, and I want to do the same for you.”

  She paused a moment and then asked, “Is it about Jade? Is she okay?”

  He shook his head. “Jade’s fine, although last night she did throw out a hint that I needed a girlfriend.”

  Leesa smiled. “Did she?”

  “Yes.”

  “Well, at least she’s open to the idea. Nelson would have a hissy if I were to even mention anything about dating. My son wants me to remain single forever.”

  “Boys are different. They are protective of their mothers,” he told her.

  “And there’re some girls who are protective of their fathers. They don’t like sharing. Now tell me, Sawyer, what’s bothering you?”

  With his wineglass in hand, he moved to sit on the edge of the bed. “It doesn’t bother me as much as it mystifies me, Leesa.”

  “What does?”

  He took a drink and then said, “I met someone a few days ago. A woman. I pulled her over for speeding and gave her a ticket.” He smiled. “I think she got a little miffed that I didn’t give her a warning ticket.”

  A smile curved Leesa’s lips. “I’m sure you told her that you don’t give out warning tickets.”

  He returned her smile. “Yes, I did.” Then his smile slowly faded. “There’s something about her, Leesa, that I can’t put my finger on. I was attracted to her from the first. I ran into her a couple of times in Catalina Cove and it’s like I’m totally mesmerized. Thoroughly captivated.”

  Leesa nodded. “Any reason you can’t get something started with her? I hope you don’t think I’d object to us ending things. We agreed that if either of us met someone or just wanted to end things, we would, without any questions asked.”