Mostly Sunny

by Jamie Pope

  “I’ll stay here. I’ve been eating way too much on this trip. I’m going to get a big gut and not be able to fit into any of my suits.”

  Sunny slipped her hand up his shirt and touched his still hard stomach. “I wouldn’t care if your belly gets big. I would still think you’re sexy.” She kissed him and gave him a sassy grin. “Plus if you get chubby it will make me feel better about myself.”

  He touched his lips to her ear. “There’s nothing about you that I would change,” he whispered. “Not a damn thing.”

  “Are you guys looking for Angie?” Peter asked, referring to his girlfriend as he came onto the patio. “She went walking on the beach.”

  “I’ll go get her,” Sunny volunteered and hopped off Julian’s lap.

  Julian watched her as she bounced away from them and onto the sand. She really was happy here. Her happiness affected him deeply.

  “I want to give you something, son.” Peter reached into his pocket and pulled out a small box. Julian frowned in confusion at his father. “Go on. Open it.”

  Julian did as his father asked and saw that it was his grandmother’s diamond ring. “When my parents first got married they could barely afford the simple bands they wore, but my father worked and saved for twenty years to be able to afford a ring like that for my mother. I remember the day he gave it to her. She was so shocked. My father was a frugal man. If it wasn’t on sale, we didn’t own it, but on this he spent. And when my mother was convinced that it was really for her, she cried. She cherished this ring and right before she died she gave it to me to pass on to you for when you found the right girl.”

  “What?” Julian blinked at his father and back at the ring.

  “I know it’s old-fashioned and simple and that you were probably considering something more modern, but I think Sunny would like it. We’re so glad you brought her home to us, Julian. I knew you were thinking about marrying Regina and I couldn’t picture giving up my mother’s ring to that woman. But I am happily giving it to you for Sunny.”

  “But Dad . . .” He didn’t know what to say. “It’s only been a few months.”

  “You’re in love with her. I can see it in your eyes when you look at her. You smile more. You’re happy. You’re better because of her.”

  He must have been in love with her. What else could this feeling be? He had never felt it before. Never felt it with this intensity. He thought it was obsession. He thought he was losing his mind. But he was in love with her. Incredibly in love with her.

  And he didn’t want to be.

  It made everything more complicated.

  “Julian,” Galen said softly, “you can’t see a future with her?”

  “I can,” he said truthfully.

  But he wasn’t sure if it was the future he wanted.

  * * *

  Sunny walked into the bedroom she shared with Julian to find him sitting in front of the window that overlooked the ocean. It was clear he was deep in thought and she was about to walk away so she wouldn’t disturb him, but he must have heard her footsteps because he turned around and looked at her.

  “I didn’t mean to bother you. I just came to get my sweatshirt. I was going to go for a walk on the beach.”

  “Alone?”

  “Yeah.” She felt awkward. “I know we’re leaving soon. I want to spend as much time near the water as I can. I don’t care how gray it is outside.” For the past couple of days she had felt that way. He had gone incredibly quiet on her.

  She felt like he might be getting tired of her. They had been together every single day. With his family. There was no work. No real space between them.

  She was giving him his space. She had too much self-respect to force him to be around her when he’d rather not be.

  “Can I go with you?”

  “If you’re asking because you think I shouldn’t go alone, you don’t have to worry. This is not New York City. I’m not going to get snatched.”

  “I want to go with you because I want to be with you.”

  “Oh.” His statement knocked her off guard. “Of course, you can come.”

  He nodded and got out of his chair, grabbing both of their sweatshirts before they headed out to the beach. It was cool outside, damp and cloudy. The wind was blowing just a little too hard to make it comfortable, but they were alone. Everyone else was inside, cuddled up with books or in front of the television.

  They were quiet for a long time as they walked down the empty beach, watching the waves churn in the ocean. Sunny knew that there were other people on this island but it didn’t feel that way. She never thought she would like the feeling. She had grown up in New York. She had been in foster homes with many children. She didn’t know what it was like to sleep truly by herself until she had gotten her first apartment. She never thought she would be comfortable without the hustle of the city outside of the window. Never thought she would feel calm without knowing that all she had to do was step outside to see, to speak to another human being.

  But here it was different. It made her feel calm. Even though emotion was roiling inside of her, she felt more at peace than she had in years. The water was a powerful thing. She wasn’t sure how she was going to go back to life without it.

  “It’s going to storm again tonight,” he said, breaking the silence.

  “It feels like it. I love it though. I love the feeling in the air. I love the sound of the thunder. I like how the entire beach lights up when lightning strikes. It’s exciting.”

  “This is why they love you,” he said to her. “Rainstorms excite you. Simple things make you happy.”

  “Your family is incredible. I’m so glad to have been able to spend this time with them.”

  “They wish I would have brought you home sooner,” he said softly, “I never get to spend this much time with them. It is good to see everyone so relaxed.”

  “But it’s weird having me around, isn’t it? I can go stay at a motel for a few days so you can have some time alone with them.”

  “No.” He frowned at her and shook his head. “I want you with me.” She didn’t know why she was surprised by his reaction, but she was. He was too polite to tell her he wanted her away, but she thought he would take her up on the opportunity to be here without her. “You have to stay.”

  “I know your family thinks that I’m your girlfriend and that we’re serious. It has to be weird for you. I can tell them it’s not like that. That we’re . . .” she trailed off. She didn’t know what they were, only that she loved him and that she should have protected her heart a little better.

  She would be so sad when this came to an end. But she couldn’t say she wasn’t prepared. She expected that this happiness was only here for a little while. An experience for her to learn from.

  “But it is like that. You’re more than my girlfriend.” He paused and looked away from her for a moment. He looked tortured for a moment. “You’re my best friend and my life has changed since you came into it.” He grabbed her hand and pulled her close to him, wrapping his heavy arms around her. Immediately she felt warm. “This snuck up on me,” he whispered. “I was planning on spending my life with someone else and then you came along. This wasn’t supposed to happen.”

  She didn’t know what to say to him. He was right. Neither one of them had planned on this. But it had happened and it wasn’t one sided. It was intense. And when they were together it felt right.

  But maybe not for him. He was unsure. She could tell. She could feel it, but she wouldn’t waste her time trying to convince him. If he had to think so hard about them, then that was a sign.

  She wanted to spend the rest of her life with him. It wasn’t something she had to think about. It was something that she just knew. It was also something she knew that would probably never be possible. This trip was ending. Soren’s case was ending. They were going back to New York next week.

  “Say something,” he said.

  “I think it’s starting to rain.”

  “S
unny . . .”

  She looked up at him. “I think I want fried shrimp for dinner. And strawberry milkshakes for dessert. I want to bring back souvenirs for my friends before we leave, and I want to take a thousand more pictures before we go so I don’t forget this place.”

  He cupped her face in his hands and tilted it up toward his own and kissed her. “I’ve missed you these past couple of days. Why have you been keeping yourself away from me?”

  “You seem like you needed the space.”

  “I didn’t. I would tell you if I wanted space from you. I want to be with you every moment of the day.”

  She believed him. That was the crazy thing. He had barely said anything to her in the past couple of days but at night he reached for her and made slow, sweet love to her and then he held her while they slept.

  It confused the hell out of her.

  “I’m crazy about you, Mr. King. You know that, don’t you?”

  “No. I don’t. Tell me more.”

  Thunder cracked above them and then the rain started to fall. They weren’t close to the house, about a half mile down the deserted beach.

  He grabbed her hand and tugged her in the opposite direction of the house. The rain started to come down hard and Sunny could barely see, but she trusted Julian to lead her in the right direction. They came to a little shed with kayaks around it.

  Julian said something to her but she couldn’t hear him over the storm. He flung open the door and pulled her inside. There were more boats and a couple of jet skis and stacks of towels.

  “Alex and Galen own this too, but they are not much for water sports since Alex’s injury.”

  “I’m glad you brought me here. We would have been drenched by the time we got back to the house.”

  “We’re drenched now.” He unzipped her hooded sweatshirt and peeled it off her body. He grabbed a towel off a shelf and ran it gently across her face before he kissed her. “I don’t think I’ll be able to concentrate with these clothes sticking to your body.”

  “You wanted to come for a walk with me.” She pressed her lips to his. “Are you mad that I’m all wet?”

  “Mad? No.” He hooked his thumbs into her shorts and pulled them down, taking her underwear with them. “I’m a lot of things right now. I’m cold. I’m happy. I’m turned on as hell, but I’m definitely not mad.”

  “Get naked, Mr. King.”

  He pulled his sweatshirt off over his head, revealing his smooth, slightly damp chest. He never failed to arouse her. He didn’t have to do much; he just had to be.

  She stepped forward and unbuttoned his shorts, looking into his eyes as she slid them down his powerful legs.

  “Go sit on that bench,” she ordered as she kicked off her flip flops and removed her clothes completely.

  His eyes were full of arousal and she felt powerful as he did what she asked. She straddled him, keeping her eyes locked with his as she slid down on his erection.

  He groaned. She loved the feeling of him inside of her and she almost didn’t want to move. But he wouldn’t allow her to stay still. He slipped his hand beneath her shirt and squeezed her breasts. She couldn’t help herself, her hips rolled and feeling him go deeper inside felt too incredible to describe.

  “You’re so sexy,” he whispered as he took her hips and moved her hips while she rode him.

  She had never felt sexy before but he made her feel that way now. It was why she could never get enough of him. “I love you.” The words slipped out, but she wasn’t embarrassed. It was the truth. She wouldn’t take it back. She loved him. It was that simple.

  But she wasn’t even sure it registered. They both said things when they made love. Sometimes she was so far gone she couldn’t make sense of what she said.

  She could tell he was on the edge. He was thrusting into her as she moved on top of him. His fingers were digging into her skin. He deeply moaned her name and that turned her on even more. She felt her orgasm building and she wanted to slow it down. She wanted this time, like every time with him, to last longer.

  But the pull was too strong and her feelings were too intense. She broke and he took her mouth at the same moment, kissing her roughly and deeply as he came inside her.

  And he kept kissing her, but his kisses got softer and sweeter and his hands came up to cup her cheeks and she felt . . . intoxicated. Heady. Delicious. Satisfied.

  “Shit,” Julian cursed as he briefly lifted his lips from hers. “Damn.” He pressed his lips to her shoulder. “How do you do that to me?”

  “Do what?”

  “Make me wish that we were the only two people in the world so that I could always have you all to myself.”

  She smiled, but she felt like crying. His words were too beautiful. “It’s still storming.” She got off of him and faced the small window so she wouldn’t have to look at him. She would crumble if she did.

  “Looks like we’re stuck in here for a while.” He got off the bench and started to clear a spot on the floor of the shed, taking towels off the shelf and placing them on the concrete. “There’s a blanket here. Come lay with me and keep me warm.”

  He held out his hand to her and she took it, snuggling into him, feeling that immediate sense of safety whenever his arms were around her. “That was the first time I’ve had sex outside of a bedroom.”

  He kissed her throat. “It won’t be your last.”

  “I hope not.” They were quiet for a moment and Sunny could feel herself starting to drift off to sleep but she forced her eyes open. Their time here was too short to spend it sleeping. “I got a call from Mrs. Earl earlier today. They’ve closed on their house. They’ll be moving in late August. They’ve also gotten a court date for the adoption. It’s soon. In a month. They are excited and terrified at the same time.”

  “Things will work out for them.”

  “You sound so sure.”

  “I am sure. My contact from the firm called. I think we found Gracie. This will all be over soon. Things will work out because they have to. I won’t have it any other way.”

  “Do you really feel that certain?”

  “Yes. This case changed everything for me.”

  He had almost lost his job, assaulted his boss, upset his clients, spent hours with his attention elsewhere because of her. And now he was here, not even knowing the entire reason they had come. She had wanted him. It was hard not to feel guilty, but she didn’t regret anything because her life changed so much as well.

  “I don’t want to talk about any of that,” he said quietly. “We’re on vacation. Let’s talk about vacation stuff.”

  “Like what?”

  He was silent for a long moment. “Dream houses. What did you imagine your dream house to be when you were a kid?”

  “I had lots of dream houses. But I really just wanted my own room. With a big bed and lots of books.”

  “That’s it? Come on, Sunny. You had to have dreamed of more. My dream house changed a lot. When I was a kid, I thought it would be really cool to have a houseboat.”

  “Seriously?”

  “Yeah. My dad’s friend had one and I thought it was the best thing ever. And then when I was in college, I wanted the ultimate bachelor pad with flat screen TVs on every wall and video game systems and big leather recliners. And a full-sized bar.”

  “And you made that dream come true.”

  “Yeah. My first place,” he smiled. “I had so many parties.”

  “And so many women,” she said, laughing.

  “No, not then,” he said seriously. “After I had gotten hurt and the doctor told me that I couldn’t play anymore, I went through a phase where I overindulged. Too many women. Too much booze. Too much excess. I became someone I didn’t recognize. I became someone that I hated.”

  “And what changed?”

  “I cursed at my father. I had never done that before and he grabbed me by the collar and shoved me into a wall so hard the plaster crumbled. I was drunk and numb and in a fog until then. I saw how angry
I had made him, but more than that I saw how disappointed in me he was and that broke me. I decided to go to law school then.”

  “Which led you to your current dream home.”

  “Sort of. My place matches the image I wanted the world to see.”

  “You dream of more?”

  “I dream of different. But I asked you first. Tell me about your dream house.”

  “It’s not a mansion or anything. But something spacious, with a lot of windows. Something that feels homey with huge soft couches and a kitchen with one of those islands in the middle. And since I’m dreaming, I would like it to be near the water, just so I could open the windows and feel the breeze. I would like space for a garden. It’s one of the things I remember from when I was very little. My mama had a small garden where she would grow tomatoes. I would like a yard too, with a swing set and a wraparound porch so I could sit outside and just watch the evening pass by. I wouldn’t want it to be empty, either. I want lots of people and food and noise. That’s my dream.” She felt a little embarrassed, revealing her deepest desires to him. “I know that must sound so simple compared to what you and your sister have.”

  “No.” He kissed her forehead. “I think it sounds beautiful.”

  Chapter 19

  Three days later they had left that beautiful island and were back on the road headed toward what could have been Sunny’s past. She should have been more nervous. Her stomach was churning, had been for the past couple of days. But she couldn’t totally blame it on the upcoming confrontation. She had been so sad to leave the island. She couldn’t hold back the tears as she said her good-byes.

  Galen cried too, and assured her that they would all be together again. That they would make plans for Thanksgiving. Sunny nodded through her tears but she wasn’t sure of that. Julian had all but disappeared in the days before they left. She had thought after they had spent the time in the shed that things would continue on, at least for a little while longer. But he had gotten even quieter than before and then he was gone. Literally gone for hours each day following up to their leaving. He wouldn’t tell her where he was. He wouldn’t talk to her at all. She felt completely shut out, but she wouldn’t show him that it was bothering her. She spent time with his family. She had laughed. She had taken pictures. She had shown him how strong she was. They had to finish this journey.