A Modern Love Story

by Jolyn Palliata

  With a deep, thought-clearing sigh, Luc closed his eyes and soaked up the warmth. Just focus on the sun, the relaxation, the ambient noises—

  “I don’t know about you guys, but I’m ready to call it a day and hit the bar.” Lizbeth said. “What’d ya think?”

  “I’m game,” Robbie answered. “But I think I’m going to take a quick dip first to cool off.”

  Luc heard her ruffle around in her bag.

  “I’ll come with you. Conrad, you joining us?”

  “Naw. I’m just gonna sit here and enjoy the show. Make sure you ease in nice and slow. Same thing when you get out, too.”

  Lizbeth laughed, and Luc heard the slap of what he imagined was her hand on his arm. She was always touching his arm.

  “You coming, Luc?” Lizbeth asked.

  He refused to open his eyes. “Nope.”

  “Your loss. Both of you.”

  Luc could infer what was happening with the sounds around him. The pitter-patter of feet was Lizbeth heading towards the pool. The girlie squeal was her easing into the cold water. The whistle was Conrad’s version of a compliment. The rustle of fabric right next to him was Robbie taking off her shirt-thingy. The second set of pitter-patter was Robbie—

  “Holy shit,” Conrad muttered. “Dude. You’ve got to see this.”

  “What?” Luc peeled an eye open to peer at Conrad. Noting his mouth hanging open like a damn fool, he followed his line of sight.

  Luc jolted straight up when he saw Robbie. “What the hell is that?!”

  Conrad made a strangled-laughing sound. “I think it’s a bikini.”

  “Holy fucking shit. A single tug at two different knots and she’d be naked. That’s not a fucking bikini. That doesn’t have enough material to be considered anything near a bikini.”

  “I don’t know, man.” Conrad gestured at the poolside. “She’s not the only one wearing something skimpy.”

  “But she’s the only one I give a shit about.”

  Luc was stunned. There was Robbie—his sweet, innocent…curvy, sultry Robbie—prancing around in three swatches of forest green fabric. Fuck no, that wasn’t a bikini. That was an excuse for men to paw at her. That was an invitation for Luc to start kicking some gawkers asses. That was his own personal torment and temptation at its finest. Jesus fucking Christ. The enduring simmer of heat in his belly suddenly flash-boiled over.

  “I’m heading up,” Robbie called out to Lizbeth. “I’ll meet you in the room.”

  “All right,” Lizbeth responded, dunking her head back again, then shooting a wink at Conrad.

  Robbie walked up the submerged stairs, wringing her fiery red hair out as she went. Her hips rocked, her shoulders swayed. Her entire 5’6” frame moved sinuously with every footstep that brought her closer.

  “I’m heading up.” Her voice sounded distant to his ears, as if she were talking to him with his head underwater. “You okay?”

  “Uh huh.” His tongue ceased all functionality when she bent over in front of him to grab her bag. Fuckin’ A.

  “Come by the room when you guys are ready to head down. We’ll need about an hour.” Robbie straightened when she heard a whistle a few chairs down, and blushed. She was fucking pleased with herself!

  Luc still hadn’t regained speech when she walked away, strolling right past The Whistler’s chair.

  “Hold up. I’m gonna see if I can hit that,” The Whistler said to his friend, tossing down his towel to stalk Robbie.

  Luc was up in a flash, fury pumping through his veins. He vaguely heard Conrad call his name as his long strides brought him closer to target. Robbie looked back right as Luc fell in step behind the worthless piece of shit, hooked his hand around his bicep, and dumped his ass into the pool.

  She spun to confront him. “Luc!”

  “He’s fucking lucky that’s all I did.” Luc gestured with a nod of his head. “Keep it moving.”

  She threw her hands up and turned back toward the resort. “You’re like an overprotective Neanderthal.”

  “Hey, if that’s what it takes to keep his hands out of your pants, or lack thereof, then so be it.”

  Robbie stopped and turned on him again, jabbing a finger at his chest. “Maybe I want his hands in my pants. Ever think of that?”

  “Over my dead and rotting corpse!”

  “That can be arranged,” she mumbled, crossing her arms.

  Luc made it a point to look back at The Whistler as he started to heave himself out of the pool, but one look at Luc’s glare had him slithering back down again.

  “For Pete’s sake.” Robbie sighed.

  Luc turned back to her. “Are you fucking brain-dead, Rob? Have some damn sense. Do you really want someone like that?”

  “Oh, shut up. I don’t need a brother-type telling me who I should, or shouldn’t, want touching me. And quit swearing at me!”

  “Dammit, Robbie! I’m not your fuc— I’m not your damn brother, I’m your friend.” He glanced back to see The Whistler getting slapped by a girl in the pool. “And doing you a favor by the looks of it.”

  Robbie glared her response and stormed away.

  He couldn’t help but admire her form. “Brother type, my fucking ass,” he mumbled, jogging to catch up with her. He caught her elbow when she got to the lobby. “Hey. I’m not done talking to you about this.”

  She jerked her arm away, and fisted her hands on her hips. “What if I wanted that guy? Hmm? Or any guy? Say, that one.” She gestured toward a man at the guest counter just as a young couple wandered into their eye line.

  Catching the comment, the man smirked and pulled his shoulders back a measure. The woman backhanded him in the chest, and shot Robbie a glare.

  “Not you,” Robbie said, as if it should’ve been obvious. “Behind you.”

  The couple shifted to reveal an elderly couple directly behind them. The old man smiled a toothless grin as the old lady gave him a little shove towards Robbie. “You can have him, dear. But he’s no Lothario.”

  The young couple snickered and walked away as Luc doubled-over with laughter.

  “Oh, my God,” Robbie mumbled, face flushed. She punched Luc in the arm before stalking off.

  Luc held his gut, his laugh dying off as he caught up to her just as the elevator arrived. He followed her in.

  “Look, Rob. I’m not gonna stand by and let you bang some stranger. You got an itch? I’ll scratch it.” He was almost as surprised as she was by his offer.

  He nearly flinched as he watched for her reaction, certain a fist was about to jab out at him. Instead, her face froze before it went straight from boiling fury to dumfounded shock. And then she laughed. Hard.

  “My God! You almost had me going there.” She pulled her hands through her hair. “Damn, Luc. You better be careful. I nearly took you up on that.”

  She had? He cocked a brow and her cheeks went pink.

  “Okay, okay. Point taken. You win this argument. No hot-stranger-sex.”

  They walked out of the elevator, turning toward her room. When they got there, she turned and hugged him. He nearly groaned from the contact, her warm, firm body pressed against his, slipping across the sun block still slicking the surface of his chest. And then she almost undid him altogether—to his certain detriment, and to hers—when she cupped his face and gave him a quick, hard kiss on the lips.

  “I know you’re just watching out for me. Thanks for that, Stretch.”

  He cleared his throat. “Uh huh. No problem.”

  “Come get us in an hour.” She slipped into her room.

  Letting out a huge breath, he turned toward his own suite. “Damn. I need a fucking cold shower.”

  *****

  The night held her. She was a slave to it, to the possibilities it held, and the moments it promised. And because it did, Robbie never wanted it to end—even despite their fight a couple of hours ago. Or maybe, she mused, studying Luc over the rim of her Mai Tai, because of it.

  Now, just what would he have
done if she had taken him up on his offer? While she was dying to find out, she knew it was better left unrealized. At least, that was what she kept telling herself. Would he have rejected her again? No. She didn’t think he would have. Not if he thought he was her only solution, that he’d be helping her out by sleeping with her. No. She knew Luc would do anything for her, and she wasn’t about to put him in that position. You don’t do something like that, manipulate a man like that, if you really loved him. But, what if she told him she was in love with him, that she always had been, and that was the reason she wanted him? Not because she was hard up, but because being with him would mean everything to her.

  She continued to watch him as he scanned the crowd, contemplating what she knew deep down was not a real option, and monumentally selfish of her in the end. Luc would rather walk off a cliff than hurt her. How could she possibly put him in a situation to where he’d have to sleep with her with the sole purpose of not hurting her feelings? No. She couldn’t do that to him either.

  Robbie blinked as she looked into Luc’s gloriously dark eyes. “Huh?”

  He chuckled. “What are you thinking about?”

  “Oh.” She shook her thoughts clear, sipped her Mai Tai. “Nothing. Did you say something?”

  “I asked about your apartment hunting. Are you sure that’s your first drink?”

  “Shush. You know it is.” She absently flipped her hair back. “Lizbeth was gonna check out another place when we got back, but I think I like the one over by you and Conrad the best. God. No more dorms. I can barely believe it.”

  “Was it that bad?”

  “Are you kidding me? No space. No privacy. Public bathrooms.” She took another sip, and then slid a peanut from a little foil package to pop into her mouth. “Did I ever tell you we had to walk down the hall in just our robes when we went to shower?”

  Luc froze, his beer an inch from his mouth. “Weren’t there guys on your floor?”

  She pointed at him and nodded. “My point exactly. Now you’re catching up.”

  He took a long pull off the bottle and set it down. “Yeah. It’s good you’re getting out of there.”

  “So, on to you. You excited to get started on your business courses?”

  “Not especially. It’s still school.” He shrugged. “But I’m excited to get going on the business itself.”

  “I still can’t believe Mick is selling you Hooligan’s. Picture it,” she said, spreading her hands in the air. “Luc Cintrone—bar owner and business man. It suits you. It really does. You gonna keep the name?”

  “I’m not sure. Thinking about it. What’re your thoughts?”

  She laughed and put her hand over his. “It suits you. Keep it.”

  “Ha. Very funny,” he grumbled, signaling the waitress for another round. “I probably could skip the courses, but I figure if I’m going to do it, do it right.”

  “And Mick is showing you the rest of it, off hours?”

  “Yup. Every damn thing there is to know about the bar business is getting grilled into my head. By the time I turn twenty-one, I should be able to run that place with my eyes closed. And the schooling will make sure I turn a profit while I’m doing it.” He glanced her way and smiled. “I think Mick is angling to have me sign the papers right on my birthday, followed by a stellar party, of course.”

  “But not at Hooligan’s.”

  “Nope. Don’t worry. I didn’t forget you wouldn’t be of age yet. We’ll find another venue.”

  Of course he had taken her into consideration—even though it was his day, his moment, he still thought of her. God, how she loved this man.

  She thanked the waitress as she set down her drink, and then noticed as Luc flicked a glance at a passing woman. Sipping her drink, she watched as he casually scanned the woman over while taking a pull from his beer.

  Ew, she was skanky. “You can do better than that.”

  Luc jolted and looked at Robbie with raised brows.

  “What?” she asked. “I’m not allowed to have an opinion on the girls you go after? Sounds like a double standard to me.”

  He arrowed a steady gaze at her. “You don’t ever meet them.”

  “Yeah.” She ripped open another bags of peanuts, tossed one in her mouth. “Why is that?”

  “I don’t date like you date.”

  “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

  He held up his hands. “Just that I’m not looking to get serious. When it’s someone who matters, you’ll meet her.”

  She tried to shrug off the ache in her chest, but it turned her tone sour. “Fair enough.”

  “What?”

  “What?” She flashed him a conjured smile. “Nothing.”

  “I know that tone. Spill it, Squirt.”

  “I just feel bad you haven’t found anyone to matter yet.” Someone like her.

  “Who says I haven’t?”

  “But you…” Jealously mixed with flat out curiosity. “What’s the problem then?”

  He took another drink, scanned the room. “She doesn’t see it yet.”

  Even though she wanted him for her own, she felt nothing but hatred toward the girl who would deny him. “Then she’s an idiot. Not worth your time.”

  He chuckled and tipped his head as if in agreement.

  Robbie bit her lip as she worked her angle on what she wanted to ask. Best to just go with direct. “Is it Kelly Marquette?”

  Luc looked stunned. “How do you know about her?”

  She gestured vaguely, took a long swallow of her Mai Tai. “Conrad shares more than you do.”

  “Oh.”

  “So…is it her?”

  “Hmm? Oh, no.” He seemed distracted, lost in his thoughts.

  “What is it?”

  His eye darted around before coming back to hers. “What did Conrad tell you about her?”

  “Not much. Just that you were dating her for awhile. Why? Was there more to tell?”

  “I didn’t know if he told you… Well, she had a pregnancy scare. We had a scare.”

  “Really? What would you have done? If she had been?”

  “Stuck.”

  “You loved her?”

  He sat back and let out a breath. “No, not at all. But you don’t abandon your kids. That’s why I was with her so long, otherwise I probably would have broken it off long before then.”

  Robbie realized how tight her chest had become during the conversation, and she made herself relax. “I’m glad it turned out for you, Luc.” And me, she thought, nearly cringing at her own selfishness.

  “Me too.” He tipped his bottle at her, took a swig. “Thank God you never found yourself in that position.”

  “Yeah.” Suddenly, the room felt very hot, and anywhere else was better to look than at Luc. He seemed to notice this with perfect clarity. She laughed, nervous-like, and shifted in her seat.

  “Who the hell was it?”

  Did she know his eyes could get that dark? “It was nothing, Stretch.” She gestured—nearly grabbed in panic—at the passing waitress. “Could I get another please?”

  Luc leaned forward, tugged on a tendril of her hair. “It’s okay, Squirt. Just talk to me.”

  Robbie froze a tick, surprised by his sudden calm. “Who are you, and what did you do with Luc?”

  He kicked back with a grin. A strained grin, but a grin nonetheless. “Go ahead.”

  “All right. If you really want to hear about this.”

  He gestured his bottle at her, indicating he did.

  Okay. This was different. “The guy’s name was Robert Matthews. Second month of college, he had the great honor of being my first.” She watched his passive expression. “We hadn’t planned on… Well, we just hadn’t planned ahead. One thing led to another, and a month later I was hyperventilating in a paper bag thinking I was prego.”

  His brow winged up. “A paper bag?”

  “Lizbeth’s idea.”

  “Hmm. Go on.”

  “Anyway, it turned
out I was just late. End of story.” He nodded, shrugged, but the white knuckles gripping his bottle belied his calm. She smirked and leaned in. “But, you know what I learned from that little situation?”

  “Not to ever have sex again, too much trouble?”

  She laughed, a deep throaty sound, and trailed a finger up and down his arm. “No way. I like sex.” He nearly spit out his beer, but she continued…and without losing her cool. “In fact, I love sex. But what I learned was how to get very, very, very skilled at putting a condom on a man.” She glanced around, then leaned in further. “There’s a trick to it, you see. Slight touches, gliding my fingers across that sensitive skin, and since my mouth is usually near…” She licked her lips, shrugged. “There are things that I learned to do, through lots and lots of practice, that would drive any sane man crazy, all by simply partaking in safe sex.”

  Every muscle in Luc’s body tensed to the point where Robbie nearly felt it. His eyes looked like they were about to roll right out of their sockets, and if he clenched his jaw any tighter, she was sure shattered teeth would be involved.

  She couldn’t hold back anymore.

  She clapped her hands together as she threw her head back and laughed harder than she had in a long time. Tears squeezed out the corners of her eyes as she tried to catch her breath. “Jesus, Luc! You actually believed me! You should have seen your face!”

  “Yeah, I bet it was real funny.”

  “I’m sorry, Stretch, but you had that one coming.” She held her stomach as she sat back. “Honestly, where I left off, that was the end of the story. Safe sex every time after that, and only with the one guy. Is that better?”

  He sniffed, the corner of his mouth twitched. “Yeah. Much.” He dug out his wallet, threw a few bills on the table. “Come on. Let’s call it a night.”