by LK Shaw
Kyle was a former SEAL who’d been discharged from the war after he’d been injured in an explosion that took his left leg. I worked with a lot of Veterans that came through my hospital, and since I’d minored in psychology in school, I was always curious to see how Vets were adjusting to the change in status. Most of them found it difficult adjusting to civilian life after living a regimental life for so long. Add in a life-altering injury and the mental adjustments were often overwhelming. We talked for hours at dinner and at the house when he’d taken me home after our friends went their own way.
I wanted to chalk up my boldness to the wine I’d drunk for dinner, but honestly, it was loneliness. As well as recognition of the same loneliness in Kyle’s eyes. They say the eyes are the windows to the soul, and Kyle’s soul was desperate for human connection. I had no doubts the same could have been said of mine. One thing led to another, and I’d found comfort in his arms that night. And for the rest of the week. He’d pushed me away so I spent my second week there alone after my best friend left early. I hadn’t told her what had happened between Kyle and me. Not that I was ashamed or embarrassed, but she was dealing with her own life. Me hooking up with some guy wasn’t front-page news. Although, for me, it might as well have been.
I tried to tell myself it was just a fling, but I knew he felt the connection between us. Only, Kyle didn’t want to admit it, and any time I broached the topic of seeing each other after I left, I was shut down. So, I gave up. I wasn’t going to force my attention on someone who either wasn’t ready or wasn’t truly interested. We said our good-byes and that was that. I would try and spend this time not thinking about Kyle or how he’d made me feel alive again after all these years.
I finally pulled up to the beach house and parked my car in the carport underneath the house. I got out, needing to stretch my muscles after having sat for so long, and was instantly assaulted with the tang of salt in the air. The humidity was stifling, and immediately, beads of sweat popped out on my forehead. Heat always made me react that way, and I saw a lot of ocean time in the near future. Which suited me just fine.
I loved the smell of the ocean, the sound of the waves crashing against the shore, and the chatter of children splashing in the water. I was mid-30s with no kids. I thanked the Lord every day that Travis and I never had them. It had been enough of a challenge getting myself out of that relationship. I can’t imagine how much more difficult it would have been had there been kids involved. He wouldn’t have let them go without a fight. Thankfully, it no longer mattered. It still didn’t mean I didn’t want kids. Sadly, they didn't seem to be in my future. So, I’d settle for being “auntie”.
I grabbed my bags and trudged up the two flights of stairs, cursing myself for skipping my daily workouts the last two weeks. By the time I reached the top of the stairs, I was huffing and puffing, and a trail of sweat trickled between my boobs. I could hear raucous noise coming from inside. Looked like the girls had already started the party. Sounds of laughter filtered through the door, and immediately, my attitude changed. A smile crossed my face, and the anticipation of having a great vacation poured through me. I was looking forward to everything Myrtle Beach had to offer.
I punched in the security code on the keypad on the door and entered the house.
“What’s up, bitches? I’m here.”
Squeals of excitement sounded at my greeting, and I prepared myself for the rounds of hugs. Man, I’d missed these ladies. First, Skye came bounding down the hall, followed by Journey. When no one else came, I guessed Liana hadn’t arrived yet. I’d talked to her earlier so I knew she was on her way. After a roundtable of bear hugs, Skye walked me to my room, and after she left, I freshened up a bit before joining them.
“I’m so happy to see you guys,” I said when Journey handed me a cocktail. I took a tentative sip of the pink, fruity smelling beverage and sighed in pleasure as I swallowed the delicious drink.
“Sooooo, how was Miami?” This came from Skye, who was busy pulling buffalo wings out of the oven.
I wasn’t sure where to start and even though I loved these women, I wasn’t sure I was ready to share what had happened in Miami. Of course, I hesitated too long, and Skye jumped on my silence like a dog on a bone.
“Ok, spill it.”
“Miami was fine. Good. Really.” Even knowing it would be pointless in the end, I didn’t say anything else.
“Oh, no. Not a chance in hell I’m letting you get away with that answer. Something happened. Either talk about it or tell me you don’t want to discuss it. But don’t act like nothing at all happened. We’ve always been honest with each other.”
“God, I hate that you know me so well.” A sigh escaped, and I wet my mouth with my drink before telling most of the story. There were some details I’d rather leave out. “I met a guy. A Vet. We hit it off, spent a week together, but he didn’t seem to want to see where it might lead, and he pushed me away. I let him. Not much more to tell.”
Journey, always the most compassionate one of our group, sat on the couch next to me and put her arm around me in an attempt to comfort me.
“I’m sorry it didn’t work out between you guys. I know you’ve had a rough time since Travis. I wish it had gone differently for you.”
I shrugged under her touch and took another sip of my drink.
“Nothing more I can do. Either way, I’m done thinking about him. I’m ready to get our fabulous vacation started. Here’s to surf and sand.” I saluted the air with my glass before guzzling the rest of it down.
5
Kyle
I pulled into the next gas station and rolled to a stop at one of the pumps. I flipped down the kickstand and carefully dismounted. My prosthetic was state-of-the-art, but I still hesitated moving certain ways. I’d practically killed myself in physical therapy in order to normalize my gait pattern. I still had a slight limp, but it was barely noticeable I’d been told. I’d just removed my helmet when I spotted a gorgeous blonde woman filling up her Beemer at the next pump over. Except for her smaller build, she reminded me of another gorgeous blonde I would never forget but wished I could.
Being a healthy male, I couldn’t help smiling at her, running my gaze up and down her body as I ambled toward the entrance of the building. She caught me staring and quickly flashed me the rock gracing the fourth finger on her left hand. My gait briefly hesitated, and my smile vanished. No need to piss off the fiancé who might be giving me the evil eye from inside the store. I nodded slightly as I kept walking past her, my limp slightly more pronounced, careful to keep my eyes averted.
I quickly paid for my gas, filled up, and hopped back on the bike. I sped down the road, revving the engine a few times to feel the vibration of the machine under me, passing the same Beemer I’d seen a short time ago. Not long after, I reached my destination.
After grabbing my saddlebags, I knocked on the door of the enormous beach house. The sound of seagulls cooing filled the air, and the faint sound of the surf could be heard from the front porch.
I’d been enjoying the sounds when the door swung open.
“Welcome to Casa de Paradise.” Trevor and I wrapped fists and pulled each other in for a half-body man hug, bumping chests and each clapping the other on the back.
“Good to see you, man. The house looks awesome.”
“Dude, Gannon’s ex-mother-in-law outdid herself, that’s for sure. We got a pool and Jacuzzi as well as a badass game room. Your room is the first room on the left at the top of the stairs. Drop your shit up there and head out to the back patio. We got the grill fired up. Oh, and man, the chicks next door are hot. Nothing like some gorgeous babes to make a vacation that much better.”
I couldn’t help laughing as Trevor left me to find my way to my room while he headed back outside to check out the “hot chicks”. I laughed, mostly because I knew his macho attitude was just a front. Trevor was the last person to be interested in a woman just because of her looks. He was a good guy who treated all women with
respect. He was straight-laced with the biggest, most tight-knit family I’d ever seen. There were times I was so envious of his relationship with his family that I had to stop myself from hating him. It wasn’t his fault my parents were dead and any family I did have wanted nothing to do with me.
After throwing my bags on the bed in the room, I headed out to the patio, the smell of burgers grilling wafting through the air. My stomach grumbled, and I was reminded that I hadn’t eaten since this morning at the hotel where I’d spent the night in Jacksonville. I couldn’t spend more than five or six hours at a time on the bike anymore, not with my leg, so I usually had to stop somewhere during long road trips. Now that the delicious smells hit my nose, my stomach made its protest known. I grabbed a beer out of the fridge on my way out. I stepped out onto the deck and inhaled deeply. I noticed the attention of the guys were fixated next door so I had to take a look at what had them transfixed.
My eyes fell on a blonde drinking a longneck, and I stopped breathing. My heart started beating again when I realized, with a smile, that it was the blonde from the gas station. I tipped my beer in greeting and just when I lifted it back to my lips for a sip, I froze again. This time, though, my eyes weren’t playing tricks on me.
Standing just behind, and to the right, of the wrong blonde was the right one. It was the woman whose face I would never forget in all my days. Callie Foster. Her stare locked on mine. What the fuck was she doing here? Before I could puzzle it out, a crash sounded, and everyone’s gaze gravitated to the source. Blondie stood with her eyes wide in shock and her mouth slack-jawed. I turned my head to see what had her immobilized, and my eyes fell on my buddy, Gannon. From his matching expression, they both clearly knew each other. Well, this week just got slightly more interesting.
My concern quickly returned to Callie, but she was no longer looking at me. Out of my peripheral vision, I noticed blondie and another woman rush inside. I couldn’t keep my eyes off Callie, but soon I was forced to as she too followed the other women inside. I finished my beer before I noticed Gannon was no longer outside with us.
“What happened to Gannon?”
Dondre tilted his head toward the neighboring house. Well, well, well, what secrets had Gannon been keeping from us? Knowing I wasn’t going to get any answers right away, I plated some food and grabbed another beer. I joined Trevor and Dondre on the sand dune and ate in contemplative silence until Gannon joined us a short time later. Gauging by his expression, he wasn’t in the mood to talk. I could totally understand that. Respecting his privacy for now, I finished off my burger and beer and headed back inside to relax with a book. I also needed to figure out what I was going to say to Callie. A week living in such close proximity was going to be brutal, knowing the chances of us seeing each other frequently were pretty high.
Coming face to face with Callie again brought forth emotions I wasn’t ready to deal with. Arousal. Longing. Insecurity. Fear. Everything I’d ever loved had been taken from me. My parents. My fiancée. My platoon. I knew my therapist would call my feelings avoidance, but whatever. Tomorrow, I’d seek her out and we’d talk. Like normal adults. I’d enjoyed her company in Miami. Of course, I’d had to fuck it up by taking it a step further. But there was something about her I hadn’t been able to resist. Maybe it was the vulnerability hidden behind the bold and outgoing personality. Either way, I’d had a taste of paradise, and it scared the shit out of me.
After a night spent tossing and turning, I woke up early. My morning ritual followed; I did all the exercises my PT had assigned me and some light yoga to maintain my flexibility. I took a short walk along the beach. Just when I reached the pier, I saw a familiar silhouette standing at the end of it. How I recognized her from so far away, I had no idea, but I strode toward where Callie stood leaning against the wooden railing.
“Didn’t expect to see you here.” I mentally slapped myself on the forehead. What a dumb thing to say. I hated that my statement sounded accusatory. As though she had no right to be here.
She sneaked a quick glance at me before returning her attention to the vast ocean in front of us.
“Yeah, well, it was a shock to see you here as well.”
When she didn’t say any more, I shuffled nervously, hating the awkwardness that hung in the air. Everything had been effortless between us two weeks ago.
“I’m sorry.” It was the only thing I could think of to say, although I couldn’t pinpoint exactly what I was sorry for. There were so many things. Sorry I let things get as far as they did. Sorry I pushed her away with no true reason. Sorry I didn’t think I could give her the things she needed. Sorry I was a coward.
Callie shrugged, as though my words were of no consequence to her.
“I’m not sure what you have to be sorry for. We had a good time together. We screwed a few times, and then we parted ways. You don’t have to apologize for that. Men do it all the time.”
“I don’t do it all the time. Like I told you, it’s been over a year since I’ve been with anyone. I’m not some guy who picks up chicks to fuck and then moves on. It’s not the way I was built, Callie.”
Finally, she turned toward me, her posture remaining defensive as though warding off my words.
“And I’m not some woman who begs for a man’s affection. You made it perfectly clear where you stood Kyle. I wasn’t asking for a ring on my finger. Hell, I wasn’t even asking for the promise of a ring. We don’t even know each other. The only thing I was looking for from you was friendship with the chance to see if it became something more. You seem like a good guy, and we hit it off well. Look, I think it would be best if we just avoided each other this week. If you’ll excuse me, I’m going to have breakfast with my girlfriends.”
She breezed past me, shoulders stiff and proud. Her words replayed over and over in my mind as I watched her trudge down the sand back toward their house. Everything she said was true. We had gotten along well. Don’t get me wrong; the sex had been out of this world, crazy good. But that wasn’t what had drawn me to her. It was her spirit. She had this personality that rocked me to my core. She listened as though she could hear all the hidden meanings behind your words, but it wasn’t like she was analyzing you. She accepted you just the way you were, flaws and all. It was nurturing almost.
Suddenly, it hit me that she was the type of person who would never leave you. She would stick with you through thick and thin. No matter your relationship. Callie was the type of person you wanted to be friends with, because you knew she was the real deal. I hated that I’d caused her pain, and I swore I would do what I could to repair our relationship, even if we wound up just being friends. I needed all the friends I could get.
6
Callie
After I walked away from Kyle, I headed back into the house to see about breakfast. Skye and Journey’s bedroom doors were still closed, so I assumed they were still sleeping. Liana’s was open, but the house was quiet. I peeked outside and saw her and Gannon sitting on a sand dune. Looked like they were having a pretty serious conversation. I was curious to know what was going on between them, but it wasn’t any of my business. Since it seemed as though breakfast was going to be on my own, I remembered this sensational diner my parents and I went to regularly each year. It was a little dive-y, but the prices were low and the food fantastic.
After writing a note to the girls, I jogged down the stairs and hopped in the car. I rolled the windows down and cranked the radio up when my favorite song just happened to come on the radio, even though it was still practically the ass crack of dawn. I bobbed my head up and down to the music as I headed down the road.
Sooner than I thought, I arrived at the diner. The waitress at the end of the counter shouted for me to have a seat wherever I wanted. I slid into a booth at the far end of the restaurant away from the rest of the crowd. The waitress brought me a menu, and I was so focused on deciding what I wanted that I didn’t see the man headed toward my table until I was jarred to attention when he slid into the b
ooth on the other side of my table.
“Kyle, what are you doing here?”
He took the menu out of my hand, and his eyes moved side to side as he perused the menu now in front of him, acting as though he hadn’t a care in the world.
“I’m getting breakfast, of course.” He said it like my question was the dumbest thing he’d ever been asked.
I snatched the menu back from him and pulled it to my chest as though I was guarding it against some type of wrongdoing. I had the childish urge to stick my tongue out at him. Just then the waitress returned with my coffee.
“What can I get you to drink, darlin’?” She was lucky she was sixty if she was a day, because I wanted to scratch her eyes out at the syrupy sweet drawl. Even more so when Kyle gave her a slow sexy smile that showed off his white teeth.
“I’d love a coffee too, please. With cream and two sugars.”
The older woman blushed as though no one had ever smiled at her before as she asked if we were ready to order. We both placed our orders, and the waitress scuttled off.
“I like a woman with a healthy appetite. Nothing worse than a woman who orders a salad on a date when she really wants an eight ounce ribeye.”
“This isn’t a date.” I hated that his charm was starting to work on me again. I hated that I couldn’t figure out what his game was. Everything that needed to be said had been said either in Miami or on the pier earlier.
“Never said it was. We’re just two friends having breakfast together.” He cast that same charming, toothy smile my way when he said it. But, when I looked closer, I saw the tension around his eyes and the white-knuckled grip he had on his hands. As though he was fervently grasping his hands in prayer that I wouldn’t walk away from him this time. Wondering if I was making the second biggest mistake of my life, I nodded.
