When he emerged fifteen minutes later, Cal found me and stretched out his hand for mine. “Ready?”
I wanted to pull him into my arms and show him just how ready I was, but it wasn’t the time or the place. I gave him a smile that I hoped conveyed some of my feelings and clasped his fingers in mine. He held my hand all the way back to his house.
“I need to go back to Atlanta. My boss has been really understanding about this week, but things are getting down to the wire with this conference, and I have to make sure it goes smoothly.”
Cal nodded. “I figured you would.” He gestured to the love seat in his living room. “Want a drink? I think I’ll have a glass of wine. I deserve it after today.”
“You do. I think I’ll pass, though. I’ll probably hit the road and just drive through, so I can be at the office tomorrow morning.” I sat down and eased off my shoes, sighing in relief. “Or on second thought, now that my feet are free, I may never move.”
“That works for me.” He re-corked the wine, picked up his glass and made his way back to the small sofa, where he sat down next to me. I watched in growing surprise as he took a sip of his wine, set it on the coffee table, and then leaned forward to lift my feet onto his lap. His thumbs went to work on my arches, and I couldn’t hold back the moan of pleasure.
“That caps it. Massage my feet, and I’ll follow you anywhere. I’m here forever now.”
Cal traced one finger over the top of my foot and up my calf. “I’m on board with that.”
My heart began to pound, and my breath caught in my throat. “You keep saying that, babe, and I’m going to start believing you mean it.”
He gazed into my eyes, his steady and shining. “I think I do.”
I wanted to trust this was real and that he meant what he said. But the timing scared me. Was he only willing to cling to me because he was lost without Lucinda? Was his grief making him vulnerable, and would everything go back to normal once a little healing time had passed?
Cal must’ve read the doubt in my face, because he exhaled a long breath. “I know you’ve got to have your doubts about me, and you have every right. But you’ve got to know, Alex, that even before Lucinda—passed, I was on the verge of going to you. That afternoon, before the showing, I’d booked a ticket to Atlanta. I told her about it toward the end of the evening, and she hugged me and said she was glad I’d finally come to my senses.” He closed his eyes. “It was actually the last thing she said to me.”
I wanted to climb over his body on the other end of the couch and show him exactly what those words meant to me. What they did to me. But I didn’t move yet. I needed to be sure. “So what does this mean, Cal? Because what I said before . . . it stands. I want more from you than just a booty call when we happen to be in the same city. I want real with you. I want permanent. I want forever. I know it may take us a little while to get to that point, but I need to know we’re both heading in the same direction.”
Cal leaned toward me, snagging my hand and pulling me toward him. “I can’t promise I won’t hit bumps in the road and freak out. I can’t swear to you that I won’t regress now and then. You may have to talk me down. But I know where I want to end up, and I know it’s with you.”
My face was so close to his that I could feel the warmth of his breath washing over my lips. “What are you waiting for?”
One side of his mouth curved up into a smile. “You, baby. I’ve only been waiting for you.”
Ten Months Later
“Honey, I’m home!”
Kicking off my shoes, I nudged them into the hall closet, making sure they ended up in the spot Cal had designated for my discarded footwear early in our relationship.
“Hey, babe.” He jogged down the steps wearing nothing but a pair of baggy nylon athletic shorts, and my body surged to life. I wanted to drag him to the living room and take him right there on the sofa.
Again, because of course we’d christened that piece of furniture months ago.
But I was here on a mission, and there’d be time for that later. If things worked out the way I hoped, there’d be nothing but time for us.
“Are you ready for the wedding?” Cal grabbed my arm and plastered a fast and furious kiss on my lips before he released me and turned around to head for the kitchen. “I put together some snacks for us to take on the road. Oh, and I did end up buying a new suit. I know, I know, it’s a beach wedding, but I saw the perfect thing in a window a couple of weeks back, and I couldn’t resist.”
“Can’t wait to see it. Hey, babe, before we hit the road, can we talk a minute?”
I saw him freeze, his body going still and stiff, and I bit back a curse at myself. Cal had come a long way in the last year. I was confident that he trusted me, and our push-and-pull fights were fewer these days. But still, there were trigger words, and I’d just used some.
“Cal, this is good stuff.” I strode down the hall, wrapped my arms around his middle and pulled him back into me. “I’m excited, but I should’ve said it another way. Let’s sit down.”
We dragged out stools and sat at the granite counter, Cal gripping the edge as though for dear life. I pried his fingers off and threaded them through mine.
“Hey. You trust me, right?”
He turned his fathomless eyes to stare into mine, and I saw the struggle. After a few seconds, it eased, and his face relaxed as he nodded. “Yeah. I do.”
“Well, then, I have a proposition for you. How would you feel about us living in the same town? In the same house, even?”
Cal’s forehead furrowed. “That would be incredible, but how? Did you talk to your boss about moving here?” Living across the state from each other had been our biggest obstacle over the past ten months. Cal came to Atlanta to visit, but he wasn’t cut out for city living. Anymore, I wasn’t sure I was either. I’d made some subtle overtures to the company’s leadership, suggesting I could move to Savannah and telecommute, but it hadn’t been well-received.
I shook my head. “No, they’re standing firm on me not relocating. After that conference went so well, they don’t want to lose me, but Stan insists I have to stay at the hub if I have any hopes of advancing. No, this is even better.”
He lifted his eyebrows. “Well, do tell. What’s this ‘even better’?”
I grinned. “How would you feel about living at the beach?”
“A beach? Hell, yeah! Which beach?”
I laughed and drew him closer to me for a kiss. This guy had me totally wrapped around his finger. He was so freaking adorable sometimes.
“Crystal Cove. I had a call last night from Meghan’s mom. Remember when I went down there this spring, to help out with the act Mason had sent down to perform at the Riptide? I told you about the bed and breakfast where I stayed.”
Cal nodded. “I was totally jealous. I wanted to go, too, but I had that show at the gallery.” Lucinda’s husband Harry had continued to fund the gallery, with the caveat that it would exist only as long as Cal was willing to run it. He’d taken over all aspects of operations, but I’d noticed that his heart was less and less in it.
“Right. Well, sometimes God works in mysterious ways. Jude and Logan just bought a hotel.” Meghan’s mother and her second husband, Logan, owned a number of businesses in and around their beachfront community.
“Okay.” Cal frowned, and I knew he was trying to follow my line of thought.
“It’s an old place they’re going to restore and reopen. Jude says they want to offer the job of managing the place—it’s called the Riverside—to Abby Donavan. She’s the one who’s currently running The Hawthorne House, the B&B. So they need someone else to move in and operate that, make sure the bed and breakfast continues to do well.” I paused for effect. “They want to offer it to us.”
Cal’s mouth fell open. “Oh, my God, Alex. Don’t joke about this with me. Are you serious?”
“Deadly. Jude says we can talk to Abby while we’re in town for the wedding, and if everything goes as planne
d, we could move down there by the end of the summer.” I slid my hand down to his waist and stood between his knees so that I was gazing down into his face. “If that’s something we want, of course.”
“Something we want? Hell, is that as soon as I can move down there? I’ll start yesterday.”
Gladness swelled in my heart, and much lower, something else swelled, too. Hmm. We might not be getting on the road as fast as I’d planned.
“Not so fast, babe. Couple of things to think about. First, are you sure you’ll be okay giving up the gallery? This is going to be a totally different gig.”
Cal sighed. “The gallery hasn’t been the same since Lucinda died. I go through the motions, and it’s fine, but I’m ready to move on. It’s time.”
“Okay. Check. Second, the gay couple running a B&B? Is that so cliché that it’s ridiculous?”
He shook his head. “If it is, I don’t give a fuck. Come on, baby, you know the truth. It’s living the dream.”
I laughed and walked my fingers up over the waistband of his shorts, exploring the muscles on his back. “Check again.” My smile faded. “Third, and most important . . . this means us moving in together. It means getting serious and getting real. It means picking out linen together, sharing a bathroom all the time and committing to the long haul. I know I’m there. Are you ready for that?”
Cal gripped his hands together behind my back and pulled my head down, taking my lips in a kiss that could only be the equivalent of a hell, yeah. His tongue thrust into my mouth, intimate and demanding, and I gave back as good as I got.
When we came up for air, he was smiling big. “I am so ready for that. I’m ready to start our life together for real. It’s what I want.” He hesitated, searching my eyes. “What about you? Are you okay with leaving the city and your big-time job?”
I cupped his jaw, tracing my thumb over his smooth skin. “Babe, all you ever had to do was crook your finger, and I’d follow. I’d give all that shit up in a heartbeat for this chance to live with you. None of it ever really mattered to me, anyway. I was just waiting for the right excuse to come along. The right person.” I brushed another, lighter kiss over his lips. “The perfect one.”
Cal’s brows drew down. “Baby, I’m far from perfect.”
I slipped my hands lower to grip his ass, grinding him against me. “You’re my perfect one. We’re perfect for each other. We don’t have to be that way for anyone else.” I kissed his neck. “Ready to hit the road?”
“How about a detour upstairs first? I may, uh, need help getting my bags.” He groaned as my teeth nibbled to his collarbone.
“I was thinking about the same thing. Great minds, huh?” I trailed my fingers down his pecs.
“Baby?” Cal whispered against my ear.
“Yeah?” I circled one flat nipple.
“Shut up and kiss me.”
The End
I don’t remember how Alex came to be in Burton. I didn’t invent him. I only know that the night Meghan and Ali went to the Road Block to let loose, suddenly there he was. And then he came back, and of course he was a big part of Ali and Flynn’s story . . . and he even made several appearances in Rilla and Mason’s book.
Clearly this guy needed his own story.
I wasn’t sure exactly what it involved, until to my utter surprise, Alex and Cal crossed series lines and decamped to Crystal Cove. Now I knew where they’d end up—but how?
In reality, Alex and Cal could’ve had a full-length book. Maybe they will, eventually. But this is a start.
A huge thanks and hug to my dear friend Jimmie who consulted with me. And actually, as I think about this, now I remember how Alex came to be. Jimmie reminded me of how much we’d loved Greg Nelson, a character from the soap opera All My Children. He suggested that I needed to write someone inspired by Greg—which is why Alex’s last name is Nelson. So Jimmie really does get full credit for Alex and Cal. Thanks, darling!
Thanks also to everyone who begged me for Alex and Cal’s story. I’m happy I could share it with you.
And if you’ve fallen in love with Alex and Cal—guess what? You can find them in the Crystal Cove Romances (The Plan and The Path).
They’ll also make some cameos in the new Burton series, the Always Love Trilogy.
Because everyone needs a little more Alex.
Alex and Cal’s Play List
Photograph Ed Sheeran
One More Night Maroon 5
Bound To You Christina Aguilera
Say Yes 112
Nirvana Sam Smith
Be Mine R.E.M.
Other Books by the Author
The King Series
Fearless
Breathless
Restless
Endless
Crystal Cove Books
The Posse
The Plan
The Path
The Perfect Dish Series
Best Served Cold
Just Desserts
I Choose You
The One Trilogy
The Last One
The First One
The Only One
The Seredipity Duet
Undeniable
Unquenchable
Recipe for Death Series
Death Fricassee
Photo by Heather Batchelder
Tawdra Kandle writes romance, in just about all its forms. She loves unlikely pairings, strong women, sexy guys, hot love scenes and just enough conflict to make it interesting. Her books run from YA paranormal romance through NA paranormal and contemporary romance to adult contemporary and paramystery romance. She lives in central Florida with a husband, kids, sweet pup and too many cats. And yeah, she rocks purple hair.
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