by Hadley Quinn
Teague pretended not to hear him as he stepped through the sliding glass door onto the deck. Like he’d ever forget. He leaned forward against the railing and looked out at the Pacific where the sun had just disappeared into the water. After a minute, he patted his chest out of habit, finding nothing there. The nicotine craving had been manageable for barely a day; now he was wearing down.
“You really don’t have to quit, you know,” a now familiar voice said.
Teague whipped around to see Camryn coming through the back door. She jabbed a thumb over her shoulder and said, “Jay let me in.”
Teague glanced her over briefly. She looked sexy in a pair of jeans, a thin sweater, and the one jacket she came with. “I thought you were headed for the beach. I was just babe watching for you.”
She smiled as she joined him at the railing. “I’m tired. And I figured we got our share of sand last night.” She gave him a side-glance and he laughed.
“Yeah, I don’t need more sand on my cock. But it was worth it,” he added quickly.
Glancing over him in a pair of jeans and a t-shirt she said, “Don’t you ever get cold out here?” Even then she shivered.
Teague stepped behind her and wrapped her up in his arms. She relaxed against him and he answered, “Nah, not really. It feels…refreshing to me. Like…I can breathe instead of being smothered by things in my life.”
There was silence between the two of them as they watched the waves crash ahead. Teague pressed his mouth against the top of her head and slowly breathed in. She always smelled good, this time kind of…peachy.
“What kind of things smother you, Teague?” she asked softly.
He froze, hit with mixed emotions and not exactly prepared that she would actually ask about it. Why the fuck did he have to say something so personal?
“My dad,” he finally answered. “He’s a dick. Can’t ever do anything to please him so I just stopped trying.”
Camryn didn’t reply but he could feel her take a slow breath in and release it. Then she gently pulled his arms off of her and stepped away like she wanted to take in the view from the other end of the deck. Teague watched her lean over the edge and look along the side of the house and then back towards the water. He gradually joined her but didn’t touch her again. She was putting up another wall.
“This place is really nice,” she observed. “How long have you lived here?”
He barely shrugged. “Not long. Did you want something to eat? I’m a little hungry and… Well, you didn’t even get to eat dinner, did you?”
“Oh,” she said brightly. “I brought you dinner.”
“You did?”
“Yep, it’s in the kitchen,” she pointed. “But Jay kind of looked like a bear that’d been hibernating so I’m not sure if there’s anything left.”
“That fucker,” Teague joked with a laugh. He motioned for her to follow him inside, and sure enough, Jay was at the table scarfing on a huge plate of food.
“This is fan-fucking-tastic,” he said, pointing to it with the fork. “What the hell is it?”
“You don’t even know what you’re eating?” Camryn scoffed. “And I told you to back off; that’s for Teague so I hope you left him something.”
“Hey, I’m the younger cousin. He’s gotta take care of me.”
“How much younger?”
He took another full bite and mumbled, “Eleven months. I’ll be twenty-three next month.”
She laughed and shook her head. “Um, yeah, I think a twenty-three-year-old should be able to take care of himself.”
“Yeah, you’d think,” Jay kidded. “Anyways, there’s plenty,” he added, motioning to the kitchen. “You plan on feeding an army?”
“Or a gluttonous animal,” she remarked, following Teague into the kitchen. “It’s just a ham and potato casserole,” she informed him. “I made it this morning for my mom, but she wouldn’t touch it. I forgot she doesn’t eat ham.”
“Good thing for me,” Teague stated.
“You can just microwave it for a minute or so.”
“You have to heat it?” Jay asked with his mouth full. “Oh.”
Camryn playfully rolled her eyes as Teague smiled and stuck the casserole dish in the microwave. Jay was up from the table by then and he just shoved his plate in the fridge as-is. “I’m heading to Grady’s,” he said. “See ya tomorrow, fucker.”
“Stay out of trouble, asshole. I’m not coming to get you tonight.”
Jay flipped him the bird on his way out the door.
Teague winked at Camryn and said, “We have a very loving relationship.”
“I see that. He seems warm and cuddly.”
“Nah, he can be. Jay’s a good guy. The only person I can trust, really.” He removed the food from the microwave, and then motioned for her to join him on the couch after he grabbed forks and drinks. “I’d offer you a beer but there’s no alcohol in this house,” he informed her. “Oh wait, you stopped drinking.”
She cocked an eyebrow at him as she sat down. “You think so, huh?”
He smiled as he turned on the television. “Well, I’m pretty sure. You don’t really drink a lot, do you.” It was a statement, not a question, because Teague was confident that he knew the answer.
Camryn barely shrugged and said, “No, not really. I’m around too many people that live it up with alcohol. I’d rather remember the dumb things I do.”
He smiled with agreement. “Exactly my feelings, too. I mean even Jay pisses me off when he gets shitfaced. He doesn’t exactly realize all of the crap he says and does, and how he involves me in it. I, uh, used to drink a lot not too long ago. It got a little out of hand so…I just stopped altogether. It definitely doesn’t solve any problems, that’s for sure. You wanna just chill in front of the TV?” he asked, just to change the subject.
She nodded as Teague flipped through the channels and ate at the same time. He complimented her on the food, and even though she only ate a little of it, they shared it between them.
“So tell me about these rowdy people you have to be around,” Teague said after a while. “Who are you around that parties a lot?”
She set her bottle of water on the coffee table and sighed. “Well, I’m a dancer, right? So I’m around a lot of…high profile people because of my job.”
He stared at her as he uncapped his water. High profile people? Shit, what exactly did that mean? The images were coming to him vividly. “You mean you… Wait, I guess I never really asked what kind of dancer you are.”
“We only established that I’m not a stripper.”
He smiled at her dry humor. “Yeah, pretty much. So where do you dance? Hey, are you a booty shaker in those music videos and stuff?” he joked.
“You’re not far off,” she informed him with a shrug. “I kind of started there. And then I did the live music tours instead.”
Teague stared at her with a blank expression.
“I’ve danced with big time performers,” she clarified.
He blinked and tilted his head. “Really,” he stated.
She nodded. “But now I mainly do choreography for just a few of them. None of the huge productions quite yet—I’m still pretty young—but for a lot of music videos and some of the tours. I’m just barely transitioning from dancer to choreographer, so I do both.”
Teague leaned back against the couch. “Wow. That’s kind of a lot more than ‘just a dancer’.”
“Who called me ‘just a dancer’?”
“No one,” he laughed, shaking his head. “Sorry, I guess I just did. But transitioning? What does that mean? You don’t want to dance anymore?”
“Well…yeah, I do if it works out that way. But the lifespan of a dancer isn’t all that long. I mean it can be, but there are other things I’d rather accomplish, too.”
“Like what?”
When she smiled, she actually blushed. Teague thought it was pretty cute, but it also intrigued him.
“Like what?” he asked again, his c
uriosity entirely piqued.
“Well, um, I’ll just say that I’d rather not be having kids into my forties.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Ah, I see. A family girl. Hmm.” So not what he needed to hear right now. Time to move the conversation along. “So your life as a dancer is pretty busy?”
“It does get pretty busy. I’ve worked with a lot of great people. And also a lot of not-so-great people. But I’m getting a little more established in the industry; I have more options now. I teach a lot, too. I have friends that have studios I teach at sometimes; a former teacher of mine runs huge conventions and competitions all over. There’s a lot of variety to get involved with.”
He slowly nodded. “Yeah, sounds like it. So…do I get to see some of your work?”
“Um, I suppose,” she smiled. “There are some things online I’m sure you could find.”
“You mean if I Google you?”
“Yeah, I guess. Or I could just point you in the right direction.”
“You mean prevent me from seeing something you’re not proud of?”
She laughed a little. “Well, I can only think of a few jobs that I wish I hadn’t done just because of the people I had to work with or whatever, but the end products are all pretty good.”
“Well I’m sure it is if you’re in it.” He got up and retrieved a laptop from a chair in the corner and brought it to the couch. “Okay, so catch me up on the professional life of Camryn…?”
“Jacobs,” she snickered. “You don’t even know my last name.”
“Actually I did,” he protested with a smile. “Just forgot it for a second. I’m just used to calling you Trouble.”
Chapter Ten
The beach was warm this time. California warm. She was in Teague’s arms, standing in the surf. Ahh, this was the kind of weather she liked. It was sunny, eighty degrees, and the beach was empty.
Wait…what’s this? And they were both naked. Camryn smiled. She liked seeing Teague naked. His body was beautiful—smooth, hard and chiseled—and she fit against him perfectly. His hands—oh lord, his hands—were sexy and strong, and when he slid them down her body he whispered dirty things in her ear—
“Did you hear me?” a voice screeched.
What the hell was her mom doing here? Oh God, and they were both naked—
“Camryn, I know you’re awake. If you’re going to play games I’ll just tell Teague to go home—”
Her eyes shot open only to find her mom standing over her bed. “What the hell?” she mumbled, rubbing her face as she sat up.
“You weren’t honestly asleep, were you? You were smiling and then frowning…”
Camryn cleared her throat and blinked. “I was having a dream,” she muttered, throwing the covers off. Just as quickly, she threw them back on, risking a glance down her body. Thank God she was dressed!
“What’s the matter with you?” her mom frowned. “Are you hungover? Camryn, I know you’re an adult, but I’m worried if you’re spending your time with men getting drunk and—”
“I’m not hungover,” Camryn interrupted, climbing out of bed. “You scared the shit out of me, waking me up like that. Of course I’m a little out of it.”
“Well it’s almost nine in the morning. What time did you get home last night?”
Camryn looked at her suspiciously, wondering who this woman was. She couldn’t recall that question coming out of her mom’s mouth a single time growing up.
Last night Teague held her as they watched TV for a while, but other than a simple kiss on the head, neck or cheek, he kept his hands to himself and was a perfect gentleman. He walked her home around eleven, kissed her on the cheek again and told her goodnight. The time with him was surprising, and for some reason, his chaste actions had caused her to have dirty dreams about him.
“And why are you up at this time?” Camryn countered.
Serena’s frown was almost a scowl. “I told you, Teague is here. If you’re going to invite people to come over this early, maybe you could at least be up to answer—”
“I didn’t know he was coming over,” Camryn defended herself, heading for the bathroom. “If you don’t mind, I’ll get dressed now.”
Her mom shrugged and left the room.
Teague was here? After going to the bathroom, she washed her hands and face, and then quickly brushed her teeth. She ran a comb through her hair and tied it up in a messy up-do. Since she was in just a tank top and booty shorts, she threw on some sweats and a hoodie.
Teague was sitting on the couch when she came out and he made a face. “What, no see-through nightie or teddy?”
She chuckled. “What I wear to bed is actually under this,” she motioned down her body.
He cocked an eyebrow and stood. “Ah, now that’s a lovely image.”
“Well no need to get excited. Nothing special.”
“Oh, now that’s where you’re wrong. Anything on you is special. In fact,” he said, taking a step so he was right in front of her, “I’m kind of impressed that you obviously just woke up and look absolutely gorgeous.”
“Pssh,” she scoffed. She wanted to make a smart remark but for some reason she was too embarrassed. She could even feel her cheeks heat up.
“And I’m not sure if I should be insulted or impressed,” he added, “but you didn’t feel the need to throw on makeup or anything, either.”
She slowly smiled. “I only wear eyeliner and mascara, anyways. Take it however you feel necessary.”
“Hmm, I think I will,” he nodded, sliding a hand behind her neck. He stepped even closer to her and pressed his lips against her cheek. “You still smell good,” he said softly. “Makes me want to march you back to your room and see if I can sweat it right off of you.”
Her body reacted to his bold insinuation. It was risky, but she wanted to flirt right back. “I thought I already did from the dream I just had about you.”
He leaned back with a huge grin on his face. “Really, now. Tell me about it. No, wait… Let’s reenact it.”
She bit the corner of her lip and glanced down his body. “Okay, take off your clothes.”
His jaw dropped playfully. “Another naked dream, huh? Holy hell, you have it bad for me.”
She smiled good-naturedly. “Apparently I’m at least attracted to you.”
“Hell, I’d say so. The feeling is mutual, beautiful.”
They stared at each other for a few seconds without saying anything. Teague was probably waiting for her to continue the banter but she finally shrugged and asked, “So what’s up? Why the hell are you here interrupting my dreams about you?”
“Because the real thing is better than a dream.”
He smiled, stepping back to give her a better view as he motioned to himself. He even turned around to give her the entire view, and if his ass in a pair of jeans made her mouth salivate, she might as well bag the idea of seeing him naked. She’d never be able to handle it.
“But actually,” he continued, turning around to face her again, “we’re gonna go hang out for a bit. You can have my body later, but right now, you’re heading to the dunes with me.”
“The dunes?”
“Yep. You’re gonna drive your first dune buggy.”
Laughing, she said, “I thought you were joking last night.”
“Nope, I never joke about playtime.”
“What about my surf lesson? You said we could do that while I was here.”
“I said maybe we could. But this will be better, trust me. Even in a 5/3 wetsuit you’ll probably feel pretty cold. And I’d rather you not learn with so much thickness fighting against you.”
She barely shrugged. “Okay, whatever all that means.”
“It means we’re going dune buggying.”
“Okay,” she chuckled. Looking down at herself she said, “So what do I wear, then?”
“Well let’s head to your room and I’ll…”
He left it at that and smiled at something behind her. Camryn turned around to fi
nd Kyah cautiously descending the stairs.
“I don’t even want to know,” Kyah joked, waving them away.
“Hey, Ky,” Teague greeted her confidently.
“Morning, Teague.”
Camryn was speechless because she had no idea how much of their conversation Kyah had heard. It was obvious that Teague didn’t care, but he waited until Kyah made it to the kitchen before he said, “Okay, go get dressed and we can stop for breakfast along the way.”
“Um, okay. But really, what do I wear?”
“Just layer it—jeans, sweatshirt, and a coat. I’m sure Ky has one you can borrow, or we can stop at Columbia and grabbed you one.”
She shrugged. “Alright. Be back in a few.”
“Oh Camryn?”
“Yeah?” she turned back around.
He reached for her hand and placed something on her palm. “I brought you a gift.”
Looking down, she paused as she stared at the white heart in her hand. Then he took his finger and traced around it. His touch not only tickled her skin, but it traveled low, all the way to the very bottom of her abdomen.
“Your bar of soap, beautiful girl,” he winked at her.
She walked back to her room still holding her palm flat with the carved heart carefully in place, like she was afraid to move it. She could still feel the heat of his touch on her skin, as if his heart had been permanently etched on her hand…
***
After breakfast, Teague took Camryn to meet up with a few of his friends at Sandlake, including Jay. Their buddies had a pair of dune buggies that the group was sharing, and Teague couldn’t wait to take Camryn for a ride.
“I’m the only girl here,” she observed as she climbed into a vehicle with him. “Are you sure you want me tagging along? Maybe you’d rather just hang out with the guys—”
“No way,” he scoffed, putting an arm around her from the driver’s seat. He pulled her to him and added, “You’re way more fun than any of them,” and kissed the top of her head.
“You sure you’re not humoring me for other reasons?” she asked as he helped her into a helmet.
He raised an eyebrow but felt guilty because he knew what she meant. “Like what reasons?” he asked anyways.
