***
Fiona was starting to get annoyed with all the secrecy about what Booker planned for the day. She liked a surprise but when it was with a man she barely knew, it made her feel apprehensive. She knew she could trust Booker, at least she thought she could. If anything happened she did let Finn know she was going to be with Booker all day and that she would check in with him periodically to make sure Booker didn’t abduct her or anything. At least she was covering her bases.
When Murphy came over this morning for a surprise breakfast, she thought she was going to have a heart attack. She didn’t want Booker thinking he spent the night, which even with her superior attempt of ushering him out of her apartment, Booker still showed up early and saw Murphy. She knew she shouldn’t have over-reacted to Booker’s accusation, because she knew what it looked like but she couldn’t help herself. She couldn’t be a push over where he was concerned. That was what happened with Steve and why she was hurt so badly by him.
She needed to keep herself grounded. She was giving Booker a chance, she still didn’t know why but she was, so she needed to make sure she was level headed in her decisions. She couldn’t let him sweep her off her feet because once she completely let go, that’s when something bad would happen. It always did.
She was just about to ask one last time where they were headed when he turned into a small airport. She looked over at him with a confused look while he was just sitting their smiling with a huge grin on his face.
“Booker…”
“Just relax and let me take care of you.”
“That’s what I’m afraid of.”
He parked in the middle of a tarmac right next to what looked like a charter plane. Were they flying somewhere? She had never been on a plane before. Her forehead started to break out in a sweat and her hands became very clammy.
Booker must have noticed her uneasy-ness because he squeezed her hand and asked, “Are you ok, babe?” She just nodded her head. “Are you sure? You look a little pale.”
Her head was cast down looking at her hands twisting in her lap until his hand met her chin and twisted her head so she was looking straight into those beautiful blue eyes. “Fiona, you can tell me. What’s wrong?”
She exhaled and said, “I have never flown in an airplane before.” She clamped her hand over her mouth. “Oh my God, I’m so rude for assuming we are flying.”
“You assumed right. I promise we are safe. If you let there be an exception to the rule, I will hold your hand the entire time.”
That made her smile. “Seems to me like you are taking advantage of my nerves.”
“I might be, but I also want to make sure you are taken care of.”
She nodded her head in agreement and before she knew it they were up in the sky, floating with the clouds. She had never done anything so incredible in her life. She wished she had her camera. She would be taking all the pictures she could of the marshmallow-like clouds.
“Bet you wish you had your camera.” Booker startled her right out of her thoughts.
“Yes I do, I was just thinking that. It’s so beautiful up here. I thought I would be scared to death while flying but I’m not. This is so amazing.” She squeezed his hand. “Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me yet. Check under your seat.”
She glanced under and saw a black bag. She looked up at the grinning Booker and pulled out the bag. Inside was a brand new Cannon Rebel with every attachment she could think of and multiple memory cards.
“I can’t accept this.” She said while shaking her head and inspecting all the goodies she dreamed of owning.
He laughed. “I’m pretty sure you can, plus where we’re going, you’re going to want that.”
She didn’t even answer. She attached everything, put in a memory card and took a picture of booker. He laughed.
“Where are we going?”
“Are you going to keep asking?”
“Yes, so please just tell me, the suspense is killing me.”
He pulled a bag out from under his chair and pulled out a pair of hiking boots, and a bikini. What the hell? She gave him a confused look.
“What you can’t put the two together?”
“Not really. Please just tell me.”
“Alright, alright. Can I get a kiss first?” She just raised an eyebrow at him. He exhaled. “Fine, we are headed to Puerto Rico, mainly to go to the El Yunque which is the only rain forest in the United States.”
Fiona thought the wind just got knocked out of her. She had never been anywhere nearly as amazing as where Booker was taking her. This was all too much. He was way too good to be true. A rain forest? Where did he even come up with such an idea in such short notice? And the camera? Who does all this for a random bar maid?
She felt him nudge her arm, looking for some kind of reassurance that he what he planned was alright. She replied, “Booker, I can’t believe you did all this for me. It’s too much.” She felt herself get choked up. She saw him as he unbuckled his seat and knelt down next to her seat.
“Listen, I more than have the means to do whatever I want and I wanted to do something special for you. I have been down here before and I wanted to share it with you. Please don’t think about what it took to make this little excursion happen, just sit back, take pictures and enjoy…please.”
She felt a huge lump form in her throat. He was way too good for her, but she was going to enjoy him while she could. She grabbed his face in her hands and kissed him, kissed him like they were never going to see each other again. If anything she could show her appreciation with kisses.
He met her lips with his and she felt her insides starting to melt from his touch. It was never like this with Murphy. It would never be like this with Murphy. There was something special between her and Booker and she felt it every time he was around, every time he touched her and most certainly every time he kissed her.
He smiled his brilliant smile at her. “I thought there was a no kissing and touching rule.” He teased.
She just shrugged and looked him in his dreamy eyes. “Thank you so much for everything.” She gave one more quick kiss on the lips. “So tell me about this little trip you have planned.”
He smiled and sat back down in his seat. He took a sip of his soda that he got when they first boarded the plane. “We will be going to El Yunque like I said and we will be visiting one of El Yunque’s best kept secrets, the Juan Diego falls. It’s quite a hike, but I know you are up for it.”
At that moment Fiona looked down at her attire. “Uh, I’m not quite dressed for hiking, let alone tropical weather.”
“Not to worry babe, I have that all covered. Once we get to the falls we will eat a little picnic lunch I have ready for us. I ordered tripleta sandwiches, they are the answer to the Cuban sub and they are damn good. Then we will take a little dip in the falls’ pool, it is something you will never forget. You can take all the pictures you want and then I made reservations for dinner where we can eat and do some salsa dancing.”
Fiona couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Every time Booker brought up something new they were going to do on their trip, the excitement that was boiling up in her body got higher and higher and once Booker said salsa dancing she thought her pot was going to boil over. She wasn’t going to think at all what it took to put this all together, no, she was going to savor every minute of this once in a lifetime experience. If anything she was going to enjoy her limited time with Booker.
“That sounds incredible. I don’t even know what to say.”
“You don’t have to say anything, babe. Just enjoy.”
She smiled at him and grabbed a hold of his hand. There was no way she could ever give anything to Booker in return to the magnitude of his gift, so she decided to give him herself. She squeezed his hand and pulled him in for another kiss. He seemed to be enjoying her affection because that gorgeous smile of his never left his face.
***
Finn was pacing his apartment trying to figure
out what the hell he was going to do with Blaire tonight. God, she was so hot. Apparently they were staying in at her place tonight but he thought that he should at least bring over dinner…or maybe dessert. His stomach felt like it was being twisted around with a rusty fork as if his intestines were spaghetti. Why was he so nervous? Oh that’s right, because he hadn’t been with a woman in a little while and he was nervous that maybe things had changed since the last time he was with a woman. It hadn’t been that long but due to the lack of woman in Warblers Point and Bradon’s man whoring, there weren’t many options for him.
Blaire was one of a kind, women like her don’t come around more than once in a life time. He felt like a girl because he could already see himself falling for her. She was sassy, beautiful, funny and outgoing. She kept him on his toes and he liked that in a partner. He liked a woman who could stand on her own.
He thought about making his famous shepherd’s pie but he wasn’t sure if Blaire would like that and if he understood her properly, he didn’t want to be eating anything too heavy since they might be conducting in extracurricular activities later. Maybe he would just bring some wine and chocolate covered strawberries. Sophie makes great chocolate covered strawberries at her bakery. That would be perfect, if Blaire didn’t make dinner than they could either go out, or order in. He prayed for the latter.
He grabbed his coat and scarf and headed for his car. On the way down the stairs he sent a text to Sophie to make sure she was still at the bakery he knew she closed early on some days. Thankfully she was still open.
When he pulled up to her shop he noticed Liam’s car was there. What was he doing at Sophie’s bakery? It didn’t look good if they hung out so soon, especially with the divorce still in the works. Finn walked in the cozy little bakery and instantly noticed Liam’s proximity to Sophie was a little too close. They were both behind the counter with their backs to the front door while, what looked like were cleaning something.
Finn cleared his throat and they both separated quickly and turned around. Liam gave Finn a guilty look. Finn just raised a questioning eyebrow at his brother. “Hey you two. What are you up to?”
Sophie looked at Liam with a look that said, “What should we tell him?” Liam took the lead. “I was actually showing the divorce papers to Sophie.”
What an odd thing to show somebody, Finn thought. He voiced his opinion. “That’s a weird thing to show someone.”
Liam shrugged his shoulders. “It doesn’t seem real unless the papers are confirmed as real by someone else.”
Finn could understand that but why not show one of his brothers or his parents, not his ex-girlfriend who was his high school sweetheart and who was accused as an adulterer and the main reason for the divorce. Not smart, Finn thought. Sometimes Finn really was confused by his older brother and his actions.
Finn just nodded in agreement. Sophie pulled herself from the awkward conversation and asked, “What can I get you Finn?”
“Do you have any chocolate covered strawberries?”
Sophie gave him a flirty smile. “And why would you need chocolate covered strawberries.”
Liam chimed in. “He has a hot date tonight.”
Sophie’s smile faded for a second but was right back in place again. Finn thought that was odd but was not going to look too much into it. He never could look too much into Sophie because of Liam. Finn always felt a connection with Sophie that he thought Liam never had with her, but he could never, ever act upon that connection because that would be breaking the man-brother-best friend-every kind of code you could think of. Sophie was strictly off limits and Finn accepted that but occasionally he could see it in her eyes, that if circumstances were different, there could have possibly been something between them.
“I do have a date, a really hot date.”
Sophie put her elbows on the counter and her head in her hands. “Tell me about it.”
Finn pulled up a chair, while Liam handed him a cup of coffee. “It’s the Sheila’s sister.”
Sophie’s mouth dropped. “The Sheila? He has a sister?”
“Yea, and she is drop dead gorgeous.”
“Like Photoshop gorgeous.” Liam chimed in.
Sophie punched him in the gut. “No need to make me feel bad.”
Finn laughed. “You are gorgeous Sophie and you know it.” That made her smile.
“Give me specifics.”
“Well I don’t know her bra size but if I had to guess…” That comment gave Finn a punch to the stomach.
Sophie walked away. “Men…”
Liam leaned in and said, “What do you think The Sheila’s sisters bra size is?”
Finn leaned in further and said, “No less than a C.”
Liam patted Finn on the shoulder. “Lucky dog.”
“Don’t I know it? I’m just grateful Bradon wasn’t there last night. Can I be honest with you for a second?” Liam nodded his head. “I’m kind of nervous about tonight. Last night Blaire made it seem like we will be staying in all night and I haven’t really been with a woman in a couple of months.”
Liam was actually respectful in his response which was comforting because Finn knew if he was having this conversation with Bradon, he would most likely be laughing in his face by now.
“I’m going to tell you this Finn, coming from a guy who has had a rollercoaster of a sex life. Sex is like riding a bike. You never forget, you might be a little wobbly at first but you never forget.”
“I sure hope so. My only hope is to focus on her needs and hold out as long as I can because Lord knows once I get in there I will explode in two seconds.”
Liam laughed out loud. “As long as you have a plan of attack then you should be good.”
Sophie came out of the back with a wrapped box that had a clear top so Finn could see the giant chocolate covered strawberries. They looked amazing. He could only imagine how they tasted. He thought about how he was going to get wine for tonight but decided not to, instead he was going to pick up some champagne. He needed all the help he could get tonight.
Sophie rang him up. “I hope these help with your date tonight.”
“I know they will. What girl is going to turn me down with these in hand?”
Sophie looked at him shyly and said, “So you plan on, you know…getting some tonight?”
Finn couldn’t help but laugh at her little attempt at being coy. He did feel slightly awkward having this conversation. They could talk to each other pretty much about anything but when it came to sex it always got awkward and Finn always wondered if it was because of the tension between them.
“Uh, yea I hope to get some tonight. If I don’t then she’s an awful cock tease.”
Sophie’s face scrunched up. “Is she a hooker or something? She already offered herself out to you?”
Liam cut in, “She’s not a hooker. She just couldn’t resist an O’Leary boy.”
“Ha, believe me, it’s not that hard.” Sophie scoffed.
In unison both Liam and Finn said, “Hey!”
“You give yourselves too much credit, honestly the only good looking one out of all of you is Fiona. The rest of you just work that damn Irish brogue and you get any lady you want. It has nothing to do with your scruffy faces.”
Liam turned to Finn and said, “Looks like our little lassie here is wearin’ a shade of shamrock.”
Sophie rolled her eyes and tore Finn’s credit card out of his hand. Finn matched Liam’s Irish accent. “Tis quite a shade of shamrock. Not t’at t’all flatterin’, if I do say so me-self.”
“You guys are idiots.” She handed Finn the receipt and the packed up the strawberries. “Now get out of here, both of you. It’s time for me to close up and I don’t need you bothering me.” She shoved them both out the front door without being able to get out a word. When she closed the door on them and locked it, Liam turned to Finn and said, “Well, I guess the Irish brogue doesn’t work on all women.”
Finn chuckled. “Guess not. I should get go
ing anyway. I have to pick up some champagne and then get back to my place to freshen up before my date.”
“Well don’t blow it tonight…and I mean don’t blow it too early.”
Finn didn’t miss Liam’s innuendo and punched Liam in the arm. Liam raised his eyebrow up insinuating if you do that again I will knock you to the ground. Finn raised his hands stating he was backing off but said, “Listen, don’t talk to Bradon about what I said earlier. He will never let me live it down.”
Liam gave Finn a sympathetic look, that older brother look that defined Liam. “Don’t sweat it. I know you would never tell him about my horrible sex life, so I wouldn’t do that to you. That man is like a machine. I swear he has a new girl every night which is confusing because where the hell do they come from. It’s not like we live in a metropolis or anything.”
“I have no clue, but all I know is when its tourist season it’s like putting a kid in a candy store for Bradon. I don’t know how he has the stamina for it.”
“It will come back to bite him in the ass.”
Finn nodded in agreement and shook Liam’s hand. “Thanks for the talk. I will give you the details tomorrow.”
Finn took off in his car thinking about all the possible ways he could pleasure Blaire before he sunk into her. Just thinking about his moves got him all worked up causing his need to cool down before he went into the store to get the champagne.
***
Fiona was in heaven, she wondered if the plane actually crashed and she was in heaven. The hike up to the Juan Diego falls was a little labor intensive but she could handle it especially since the scenery kept her moving forward, she wanted to see more with every step she took. She already filled up one of her memory cards and was on her second one. When they finally made it to the falls, she had never seen anything so spectacular in her life. The water was beautiful and the way it ran off the rocks and the moss was breath taking. The foliage in the forest was nothing she had ever pictured before. She had seen photos on her computer of exotic places but pictures don’t do the places justice. Puerto Rico might just be her new favorite place.
Beers, Hens, and Irishmen (Warbler's Point Series) Page 19
