Delia Bay

by Lauren Cooper

  “I’ll be back” I nod in Gus’ direction, the old man sat at one of the round bistro tables drinking his cappuccino smiles and nods. He’d rightly kept his smart mouth closed all day, choosing to take my one liner responses as the sign I’m not going to talk to him about Luna. I’m not going to lie and say that coming here wasn’t a bad idea, it was for all intents and purposes a good idea. Gus has settled in well; his neighbor seems to be bringing him more than just a bag of sugar when he needs it. I hadn’t forgotten Bancroft or Aurora and my parents, but they were somehow further away in my mind these days and that made me feel awful. Instead of wallowing in a murky puddle of my own shit I head for the beach, watching as the blonde bombshell who’s turned my life upside down but the right way up, fill up a tin bucket with balloons.

  “What are you doing?” I laugh as I notice they’re water balloons.

  “How old are you?” I ask, shoving my hands into my pockets, unable to wipe the smile from my face no matter how hard I seem to try.

  “Younger than you, old man” she winks, her small hands going to her hips. The small denim shorts she has on risen way too far up her gorgeous ass when she bends to collect the bucket.

  “Gimme’ that. I’m not old” I take the bucket from her, giving her my death glare.

  “What’s the matter? Afraid I’m going to beat you?” she turns her head to the side a little, resting her chin on her shoulder and looking as innocent as sweet apple pie.

  “You’ll never beat me” I tut, following her across the beach to where the other games are being set up, my eyes firmly trained on her backside.

  “I can feel you looking at my ass Blackbird” she giggles, her long curly hair swooshing around her back.

  “It’s a nice ass. One that shouldn’t be so visible for the whole of Delia to see I might add” I huff, raising an eyebrow at her when she glances over her shoulder towards me.

  “It’s my ass. I’ll do what I want with it” she winks.

  “As long as you’re with me, it’s my ass and I’ll do what I want with it” I growl, her cheeks flushing and the hairs on her arms standing up.

  “Like that idea little love?” I lick around my teeth when she grinds her thighs together in an attempt to ease her horny little discomfort.

  “Need a hand there?” I nod towards her pressed legs and she huffs, immediately separating them and continuing down the beach making me laugh as she sways her hips in a deliberate attempt to goad me.

  “Too easy” I cluck my tongue and laugh even harder when she huffs loudly.

  We did, in fact end up participating in a water balloon fight, however neither one of us won owing to the little kiddies we’d let win instead.

  Bastards.

  The town kids had begged and begged Luna to let them have a game and her protests that it was still too early in the day had fallen on deaf ears. Instead she’d shook her head from side to side and joined in with the little terrors fun. I’d been smacked around the back of the head and dowsed with water as I was finishing up filling the old canoe by Austin’s surf shack with beers. Id turned on the spot with the full intent of burying the little fucker in the sand but instead I was met with a girlish giggle, and the mischievous grin of the little dove that shares my bed with me every night.

  The day went by in the bat of an eyelid, the whole town pitching in to help set up for the party tonight. I’d helped with the heavy lifting, the hanging of string lights and nodded and bitten my tongue when the throng of old ladies told us we were doing it all wrong.

  I’d hung out with Cash and Austin for a while before Wyatt headed down from the bar with an old grill from Gus and joined in on our man-talk. It was a bunch of bull-shit, men never grew up. We acted as if we did around our women but when it was just us, the testosterone fueled conversations led us to talking about sex, beer and parties. It was the way the world worked in small towns like this. By the time the sun started to set over the bay, the beach cast in a gorgeous orange glow, the sand covered in the tiny little shits from the town, I was ready to crash. Someone had already lit a bonfire further down the sand and the smell of roasting marshmallows and hot dogs filled the air, mixing with the salty scent from the sea and making my stomach grumble. I turned on the spot with the intent of looking for Luna, instead I was met with the gorgeous laugh of a little gremlin. I spot the offender running in the distance, his little legs kicking up beneath him as he tried in vain to outrun his Pop. The shriek and laughter that followed once his Pop had wrapped him up in his arms, tipped him upside down and tickled him silly had my stomach in knots and tears in my eyes.

  What the fuck was I supposed to do with that? That could have been me. Should have been me.

  Shaking my head and ignoring the itch in my feet to bolt back to the cabin, I turn my attention back to the sand and to searching for Luna.

  I spotted Luna the second I started to look for her, the pull we had to each other was unnatural for someone like me. Perfect blue eyes remained on the waves crashing against the shore, her twitching fingers were enough to tell me she desperately wanted to be out on the water rather than held back here on the sand.

  Mrs. Perry had plodded along the sand, her feet heavy as she made her way towards her daughter with Ms. Bethel, the two old ladies stopping and chatting with everyone they encountered. The beach is crowded with town-folk, soft music was playing from speakers somewhere and the chatter of the old ladies had the beach suddenly alive.

  That feeling of total lightness washes over my chest again, the light hearted, easy-breathing feeling forces me to swallow my bottle of beer a little too quickly, the fullness a foreign feeling to me, even as the beer starts to flow between us boys and the whole beach seems to gravitate towards the bonfire.

  “Lovely to see you again Reid” Mrs. Perry throws her arm around me and I’m left no option but to bend to her height and plant a social kiss to her cheek.

  “Mrs. Perry” I nod once after she releases me, the expectant Bethel waiting in her fold-up beach chair next to her. Reluctantly I bend to plant a soft kiss to her cheek too, these damn old ladies will be the death of me I’m sure. The soft smile on both their wrinkled faces makes it worth it I suppose. Somewhere far in the distance I hear my Ma’s praises for doing the polite thing but still, it isn’t enough for my selfish self.

  I spot Luna dancing with some of the kids, her ass shaking from side to side in those too-revealing denim shorts has my cock hardening and I have to excuse myself abruptly from the girl’s mother. Honestly, she’s trying to fucking kill me, or at least get her Ma’ to pull the shotgun out on me, either way Luna Perry will be the fucking death of me.

  As if she knows I’m thinking about her the blonde beauty turns on the spot, her bare feet parting the sand as she does before her gorgeous blues land on my dark green eyes.

  Abandoning the kids behind her, leaving them to their own devices she stalks towards me on toned limbs, her eyes never leaving mine. The music turns to something much more upbeat, the tempo has my blood thrumming the closer she gets to me. I don’t know what it is about her, but I feel like a savage whenever she’s near. I want to eat her alive, rip her to shreds and make her see all of the shit in the world rather than the pure, innocent stuff she’s seen so far. Does that make me an asshole? Probably. Luna deserves nothing less than the best and here I am, the dark, irreparable man from the city wanting to drag her down the pits of my self-made hell.

  Before I can think any more on the subject, the practically empty beer bottle I had in my hand is dropped onto the soft sand and Luna’s tiny, warm hands replace the cold glass. Before I know it, she has me dancing on the beach, in front of the whole goddamned town but with her baby blues glaring up at me, that dangerously innocent smile plastered on her cute, dimpled cheeks, I could give a fuck. My entire world is concentrated on her right now, the past I was running from seems too far behind to worry about, the future I thought I’d never have seems a million years away and all that matters in this moment is the larger t
han life town girl, swaying her curvy hips in my arms and smiling up at me as if her life depended on it.

  Fuck knows I did.

  My heart cracked as it beat for the first time in years, the organ finally realizing what it was put in my tar-slicked chest for.

  Deep Sea’s & Lost Keys

  THE BEACH PARTY HAD been a massive success, but this year it felt all the more fun with Reid there. It was a chance for him to see the entire town together, to hang out with the guys, to feel the sand between his toes and finally let go. Even it was just a little bit, I was sure he was waking up a tiny bit happier every day and that made all my worry and sickness for him worth it. The lyrics to his songs remained less and less about Aurora’s death and instead became songs about how much he loved her. I’m not going to lie and say it hadn’t stung just a tiny bit, but I was happy to see him making progress. I’d accepted that Aurora was a major part of his life, someone he’d loved with every inch of him. What I also accepted was that the love we shared between us was totally different to the one they shared. It was the same, maddeningly, passionate love that any two people could share, but it was different because he was a different person now to the one he was back then, and that was okay.

  I was lucky to have Reid and I knew that, it would just take a hell of a long time for him to realize he deserved it too. It had been a few weeks now since the end of the summer, Delia was still busy with tourists that enjoyed the glum seaside during the fall, but it was nowhere near as hectic as it had been. I both loved and hated this time of year, if the sea was calm enough then I could still surf but the weather could change dramatically, and I’d been caught in a swell one too many times to know I had to choose my timings wisely.

  Today the sky was a gloomy grey, smatterings of cloud here and there allowing the occasional ray of sun through. Reid and I were taking mama to the Fall market in Lordell, she’d been begging us to get her out of the house for a little while and the nurses assured us a little day trip wouldn’t do her any harm. It had been a mere six weeks since her Heart Attack, but she did seem okay. Hell, she and Bethel had partied hard at the beach party and I was sure they’d collapse right there on the sand. I wasn’t banking on her not falling sick again because she’d appeared fine before it happened, like fuck was I taking any chances on that one.

  I wasn’t taking any chances on Reid either, he was the realest thing I’d had when it came to a relationship since...well forever, and I wasn’t going to rush it with my stupid girlie tendencies with talk of babies and weddings. Besides if it ever got to that, my mama would talk for the whole damned town. Instead, I’d been choosing my words carefully around him, not officially calling us a couple or anything when nosey town-folk asked. Why did we need a label anyways? Whatever we were I was happy with and Reid seemed so too.

  We’d all bundled into my newly fixed Chevy, all thanks to Jock working his magic and we headed out of town for the day. It was a tradition Mama and I started when I was little, only then we’d had to catch the bus because we didn’t own a car, not that I minded. As a little girl I loved watching the rolling hills with wild horses running about on them whiz past the condensation covered window.

  “So, what are you looking to get today mama?” I ask as we round the first bend out of town. The radio is on but only as background noise, some old-time country song that has the old girl tapping her foot.

  “I’m not sure. I’m just so happy to be free” she claps her hands together in front of her, her elbows constricted between Reid and I. Reid bursts out laughing, his mop of hair falling over his eyes no matter how much wax he’d tried to shove into it this morning.

  “What?” Mama gawks in his direction. She’d insisted on sitting in the middle of my truck, something about it being the best seat and all that crap and she’d wormed her way between my man and I. Mama was the only woman I’d ever let do that.

  “You weren’t a prisoner Mrs. Perry” Reid offers, his laughter dying down slightly.

  “It sure felt like it” she huffs, crossing her arms across her chest and making me roll my eyes. Mama had nonstop moaned for the last few weeks, her nurses were reverting to wearing ear plugs around her. Well, they weren’t but I could tell they really wanted to. We reached Lordell in record time thanks to the rain holding off on us. The small down was busy as was expected but I managed to park the truck close to the market entrance. Reid wrapped my arm through his the second we got out of the car, and that’s how he kept it for most of the day.

  The market was beautiful as always. Decorated in typical fall colors of Reds and Oranges, the spicy scents wafting around us filling us too full before we’d even had a taste of anything. I was, obviously, drawn to my pumpkin spiced coffee, but I’d yet to stumble across the stall housing the orgasmic beverage.

  Lordell’s market was famous for its variety, the fall market was home to the best pumpkins you could buy for a good few miles around. The pumpkin spices were my favorite this time of year, I’d add them to any soup or stew I was bound to cook up over the next few months just for the sake of that autumn flavor.

  “You prepared for the winter?” I smile up at Reid whose eyes are flicking between the many different stalls selling a variety of homemade trinkets. Mama was walking on ahead of us, in her element.

  “Sure” he shrugs in his denim jacket.

  “You’re going to need a better coat” I chuckle, wrapping my own, thicker one further around my midriff when a gust of wind catches us.

  “I’ll be fine” he wraps his thick arm around me, ever the attentive male.

  “Reid, it gets freezing over the winter, especially up in that cabin” I wrap my free arm around his waist as best I can.

  “I’ll think about it” he muffles into my hair, failing to hide the smile that’s so obviously spread across his lips.

  We spent the day much the same, entwined in each other same shape. It was either our hands tied together, our limbs looped around the others, or our lips locked in a heat of the moment kiss. Mama kept glancing back at us with a knowing smile on her lips. I was just pleased Reid was finally breathing on his own.

  Of course, I hadn’t said it to his face, but for a few weeks now he’d had this light airiness about him. He just had to realize that on his own and we’d be on the right track.

  Hell, Reid on the right track would put me on the right track and God knows what beautiful places that could lead us.

  “These are beautiful” I stop at a flower stall, inhaling the spicy cinnamon and orange scents that decorate the fall flowers.

  “Pick your favorites then” Reid nods in the direction of the gorgeous plants, a twinkle in his eye. Anyone would think he was this innocent, sweet boy with ink on his hands just buying me flowers but I knew differently. I knew beneath those layers of clothes lay deeper ink, deeper secrets and deeper pain, Reid was just a professional at hiding it.

  “I’ll pick the flowers if you let me take you clothes shopping” I counter, fluttering my eyelashes up at the sternly handsome man knowing full well it won’t work.

  “Try again. Pick the flowers you want” he tilts his head towards the stall, mama laughs and walks away.

  Traitor.

  “Reid, you’ll need appropriate winter clothes”

  “I’ll be fine”

  “Then I’ll be fine without the flowers” I shrug my shoulders even though I really want the flowers. I think I’ve lost the argument for a brief second as deep green eyes burrow into mine, Reid licks around his teeth before he shrugs his arms with his hands shoved into his pockets.

  “Fine. You get to choose three items. A coat, boots and some jeans or something” he waves one of his hands now free from his pocket around and I almost jump up and down with high-school giddiness, but I refrain when a dark eyebrow cocks in my direction. Instead, I settle on rolling my lips together and picking out some flowers that will look gorgeous on my kitchen island. Some red and orange, while I add some wild snakeroot to bring it all together.

  �
��Thank you” I inhale the scent when the vendor hands me my wrapped bunch and Reid hands over cash.

  “Always” he places a soft kiss to my forehead that means more to me than anything he could ever buy me. The hand-picked daisies he’d handed me on our first real date had lasted weeks in the small vase in my window. I couldn’t help it, every time I caught a glimpse of them they made me smile. Something so simple, yet so meaningful. In a world where money and social media rule everything a bunch of handpicked daises was enough to make me realize what had been in front of my nose this whole time. Reid could give me a pebble and I’d cherish just the same as any rare diamond he’d give me. It was the effort, the thought that went into things that meant more to me than the value. It was how mama raised me.

  We stopped at a small pop up tent for some traditional Chicken Noodle Soup, the heat warming us from the inside out. It didn’t escape my attention that Reid seemed to have a bit more color to his cheeks after the hot meal. I was even more determined to get some winter attire for him now. There was no shame in admitting you needed something, but Reid was too damned proud for that.

  Instead I decided I’d rummage through his clothes rail later, find out his sizes and pick stuff up for him without him knowing. It was easier that way anyway, he’d only argue with me black and blue and Reid could argue as much as the old goat on the corner of Mama’s street that liked no one except her cats.

  We picked out a few pumpkins for the shop display, the tiny miniature ones that no one could carve would look perfect for my fall window theme.