This Can't Be Love

by Maria Geraci

“She’s come around, sure. Zeke is a great guy and Claire and Cameron are gold and no one would change that. But you have to admit, Mimi beat some pretty shitty odds.”

  “What do you think?”

  “About my sister’s choices? It doesn’t matter what I think. Like you said, it turned out all right.”

  “But you wouldn’t have done the same?” she persisted.

  He hesitated. “Let’s just say my sister thinks with her heart and not her head.”

  And I think with my head and not my heart. He didn’t have to say that out loud but the message was clear.

  It was like opening a little window into his soul. They’d been living in the same house for over a week now but this was the first time they’d shared anything real between them.

  “Hey, Sarah!” Cameron yelled from the shoreline, wrenching them back into the present. “Watch this!” He threw the stick to Toby, who obediently ran to retrieve it.

  She applauded. “Way to go, Toby!”

  “I think Cameron has a crush on you,” he said quietly. “Toby probably does, too.”

  “It’s the bacon,” she said, feeling flustered. Which was silly. It wasn’t like he was the one who had a crush on her. They were talking about a thirteen-year-old boy and a dog here. Except the way he was suddenly looking at her…

  “I’m sorry tonight didn’t turn out the way you planned,” he said. “I know you were looking forward to a night alone at the house.”

  “Oh, no, this is good.” It was better than good. As a matter of fact, Sarah couldn’t remember the last time she’d enjoyed herself more. Oh God. It had happened. She liked Luke. This was bad on so many levels. Time to get out of here. “I think the fire is almost dead.”

  “Not yet,” he said. “There’re still a few embers left.”

  His words sounded more like a challenge than a statement. If she got up to leave now, it would seem as if she was running away. She mentally frowned. Running away from what? From him?

  She closed her eyes and leaned back in her chair. Between the salty gulf air and the sound of the waves, she should be sleepy. But there was something else that hadn’t been there before. Or maybe it had and she’d been able to shake it off. But now, sitting so close to Luke…she couldn’t deny what it was. This was more than just like. This was red-hot attraction.

  She opened her eyes to find him staring at her.

  “I promised myself I wasn’t going to do this,” he said.

  Her pulse kicked into overdrive. “Do what?” she squeaked.

  He leaned over and cupped the back of her head with his hand. “Just this one time,” he whispered. “So we’ll both know.”

  Then he kissed her. Softly at first, and she couldn’t help but kiss him back. It was a nice kiss, until it wasn’t. His tongue found a way inside and the nice kiss turned into something more demanding. More urgent. And she couldn’t help but respond to it as well. She moaned and leaned into him, placing her arms around his neck, and before she knew it, he’d pulled her from her chair and onto his lap.

  She probably shouldn’t be surprised that Luke kissed exactly the way he looked. Gorgeously perfect. He held her against his hard body, one hand snaking down to run along her calf and up to her knee until she melted against him. Just like the marshmallows they’d roasted tonight for the s’mores. She squirmed, wanting more and he laughed a little without breaking contact. Suddenly, she felt him tense.

  The sound of Toby barking cut through Sarah’s scrambled brain. She broke off the kiss and jumped from his lap just in time for Toby and Cameron to come running back onto the patio.

  “Toby loved the water!” Cameron said, oblivious to what he’d just interrupted. Thank God, because how embarrassing would it have been to be caught by a thirteen-year-old? Sarah felt her cheeks heat up at the thought.

  “I think the fire has died out,” she said to no one in particular. “So, I’m off to bed!” She sounded like a blithering idiot, but she couldn’t help herself.

  “See you tomorrow,” Cameron said. “Remember, we’re going to play Monopoly.”

  “Sure. Of course,” she said, finally sneaking a peek at Luke. He seemed completely composed as if they hadn’t just been making out like a couple of love-starved heathens.

  She scurried back in the house, brushed her teeth and settled herself on the inflatable mattress, but sleep eluded her. Every little sound in the house seemed to be magnified times ten. She could hear Cameron and Luke as they talked a little, then went off to their respective beds for the night. Cameron was sleeping on the living room couch and that part of the house went instantly quiet. After today, the kid had to be exhausted.

  She listened as the water ran in the bathroom. That would be Luke, probably brushing his teeth. But then she heard the shower, and her body stilled. Luke was a morning shower person, but, of course, he’d gone fishing today, so maybe he simply wanted to wash the day’s grime off. Or maybe this was the aftereffects of their kiss.

  Was he taking the proverbial cold shower?

  She would have had to be dead not to have felt his raging hard-on when she’d sat on his lap. Even now, almost an hour later, she could still feel the thrill of discovering that he wanted her.

  Her legs thrashed restlessly against the soft cotton sheets. She wouldn’t mind a cold shower herself. What would happen if she snuck into the bathroom and joined him?

  Images of hot shower sex (not that she’d ever had hot shower sex, but she had a good imagination) flashed through her brain. This was terrible. Tonight had been an utter disaster. Not only did she like Luke, she wanted him.

  Just this one time. So, we’ll both know.

  Well, now they knew all right.

  In a month, she’d be gone from here. And he’d be who knew where. She wasn’t a casual sex kind of girl. And he wasn’t the kind of guy who wanted a relationship. Poor Perfect Victoria was a prime example of that.

  The shower water turned off and she imagined him drying off that body of his. Lucky towel. She flipped to her side. This was more than bad. More than disastrous. If she wasn’t careful, she’d do something she’d regret.

  The house went completely silent. Good. Maybe now she could get some sleep.

  She’d thought sharing a house with him would be no problem, but tonight she’d found out that wasn’t the case. The solution, of course, was obvious. She simply had to avoid being alone with Luke. No more quiet dinners on the patio or anything else that could lead to temptation. In the evenings when he was home, she’d be at The Bistro, baking and getting ready for the next day. She’d come home late, too tired to even talk. She’d hit her bed and start all over again the next day. They’d be polite roommates and eventually they’d both go their own way, and they’d remember their kiss as a nice but impetuous gesture, and nothing more.

  * * *

  Sarah was in the kitchen making a cup of tea when Luke walked in on her. “I hope I didn’t scare you last night,” he said quietly. Cameron was still asleep in the living room and he didn’t want to wake him. He knew Sarah woke up early and he wanted to talk to her before she headed into work.

  “Scare me? Oh, you mean that kiss?” She laughed but it sounded nervous. “It’s just my luck. Kids, dogs, and old men. They all love me!”

  “Old men?”

  “Well, you are thirty-seven. That’s old to me.” She stirred some milk into her tea, then took a sip, but she had trouble meeting his gaze.

  If she wanted to pretend that last night’s kiss didn’t mean anything, then that was fine by him. He’d come in here to apologize. To tell her that he’d meant it when he said it was just a one-time thing but that in the moment he’d taken it too far. No way, however, was he going to let that old man remark go unanswered. “Thirty-seven isn’t old.”

  “But it’s not young either, is it? Don’t men’s testosterone levels start decreasing at thirty-five?”

  “There’s nothing wrong with my damn testosterone levels and we both know it.”

  She fl
ushed.

  “Yeah,” he said, unable to hide a smirk. “I was pretty sure you felt it, too.”

  “I stand corrected. Your testosterone levels are up to par.” His smirk deepened and her face flushed at the realization that she’d just made a double entendre.

  “Let’s start again,” she said. “Thanks for a lovely evening, but you were right when you said that kiss was just a one-time thing.”

  “I agree. It would be a mistake to take things any further.”

  “Well, that’s a relief. I was afraid I was going to have to let you down gently.”

  He was about to say something about her being a smartass, but he let it go. Despite her protests or talk of him being too old, it was obvious she used sarcasm to deflect her discomfort. And his kiss had made her uncomfortable. In the same exact way it had made him uncomfortable, too. Last night’s cold shower had ended in a quick hand job that had only partially done the trick. Knowing that she was sleeping just a door away had made him hard again within minutes of crawling into bed.

  She grabbed her backpack. “I have lots to catch up on today, so I won’t be home for dinner, but tell Cameron I’ll be in time for that game of Monopoly.” She paused. “If we’re still on for that.”

  “Of course.”

  “Good, I’m looking forward to it.” She glanced his way, still not fully meeting his gaze, then slipped out into the early-morning dawn.

  Luke watched the door close behind her. It was exactly what he’d wanted. To make sure she didn’t have any unrealistic expectations after last night. He should feel relieved. But instead he felt the opposite. Which made no sense at all.

  He felt off, for lack of a better word. Probably due to yesterday’s sequence of events. First, there had been Cameron’s confession about the soccer club, then the revelation about Mimi and Zeke’s separation, Toby’s escape into the wild, and, last but not least, the kiss he’d shared with Sarah. Not to mention how he’d told her all about Mimi’s teenage pregnancy and his mother’s plan for the adoption.

  He’d never told anyone that story. Not even Torie. So why had he told Sarah? The woman had an uncanny way of making him say things he normally wouldn’t. He shook his head. It had probably been the effect of too much leftover Toby-induced adrenaline and all those s’mores.

  He picked up his cell phone and dialed Ethan. It rang five times before his best friend answered in a groggy voice. “What the hell? It’s five-thirty in the morning. You better be dead or in jail, Powers.”

  “Not in jail and obviously not dead either.”

  “What’s wrong? Is Luke okay?” Julie, Ethan’s wife asked in the background.

  Damn. He really hadn’t meant to call this early. “Tell Julie I’m sorry.”

  “Luke is fine,” Ethan reassured his wife, before turning back to their conversation. “So, what’s the scoop?”

  The “scoop” was that ever since last night he hadn’t been feeling like himself and he needed his partner to get him back on track. “What’s the word on the Alaskan contract?”

  “I was going to call you later, at a decent hour, but I have good news. It’s down to us and one other outfit out of Seattle. We should know by the end of the month.”

  “That long?”

  “These things take time. The second I hear anything you’ll be the first to know.”

  “Yeah, thanks.”

  Julie whispered something in the background. “Oh yeah, I almost forgot, Julie and I ran into Victoria last night. Met the fiancé, too.”

  “Oh?”

  “He’s not as pretty as you, but he seems like a decent enough guy.” Luke ignored the pretty remark. Ethan was a good judge of character and he was relieved that his friend thought Torie’s fiancé was okay.

  “Got to admit it was weird seeing her with another guy. And, I have to tell you,” Ethan continued, “for some reason, Victoria thinks you’re going to the wedding. You know where she got that idea?”

  “She has it in her head that she wants me there, so my mother RSVP’d for me.”

  “Explain.”

  “Apparently, my mother and Victoria are texting. Mom is helping plan the reception.”

  “That’s fucked up, man.”

  “Tell me about it.”

  “Julie and I were going to ditch the wedding, but now we wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

  “Glad I could provide some entertainment for you and the wife,” Luke said. “But I’m still not going to the wedding. Speaking of weddings, when does Julie plan to divorce you? It’s been two years. She should be sick of you by now.”

  “Never gonna happen, my friend. The woman’s crazy about me. Now go catch some more fish or do whatever it is you’re doing there, and send some positive vibes up the Alaska way. We win this contract and we can probably open up that second office.”

  “I’m counting on that,” Luke said before hanging up.

  He walked back through the quiet living room. Toby lay sound asleep at the foot of the couch and Cameron was out cold. The kid would probably sleep for another couple of hours. He should get some more shut eye as well.

  But sleep didn’t come easy. He lay in his bed, tossing and turning. The Alaska job would be a dream come true. He’d been there a couple of times to fish and hike but never in a professional capacity. Ethan was right. This job could take their company to the next level, and now it was down to just them and one other outfit.

  Normally, news this good would have his pulse racing, but all he felt at the moment was…flat. They’d put in bids for Northwestern contracts before, but they’d never gotten down to the last two contenders. Shouldn’t he be more excited?

  He thought about it awhile. His caution was probably due to the fact that it was far from a sure thing. Yeah. That was it. No use getting his hopes up yet. There would be plenty of time to celebrate once they got the contract. Then he’d be packing his bags and the first one on the plane.

  Chapter Fourteen

  If Luke had known that half the town would be at the preschool silent auction, he would have asked his mom for his old high school yearbook so he could have brushed up on putting names to faces. He was currently talking to someone whose name was either Jim or Joe that had been in the class below him. So far, he’d avoided having to call the guy by name. Luckily, after a few minutes of small talk, Jim or Joe had gone off in search of refreshment.

  His mother came up and unnecessarily straightened the lapels of his black tuxedo. Why he’d had to wear a tux for the event, he didn’t know, but she’d shown up at the house this morning with the monkey suit, claiming that it was “expected” of him, so he’d gone along with it because, hell, why not? The night couldn’t get any stranger.

  The event was taking place in the Methodist church parish hall, which was currently decked out to look like something out of a high school prom scene. There were streamers and twinkling lights and food stations and, just like prom night, no alcohol, which was too bad because he could really use a stiff drink right now.

  “Stop fidgeting,” his mother said. “Aren’t you having a good time? Wait. Don’t answer that.”

  His sister and Zeke caught the tail end of the conversation. “Nice dodge, Mom. Some things are better not to know.” Mimi handed Luke a cup of overly sweet punch. It was his fourth (or fifth?) of the night. With any luck, he’d go into a diabetic coma.

  It was the second time he’d seen his sister since the weekend he’d watched Cameron. He wanted to ask her about the separation, but he wasn’t sure how to go about it without revealing that it was Cameron who’d told him and he didn’t want to risk breaking his nephew’s confidence.

  Zeke slapped him on the back. “How does it feel to be Whispering Bay’s most sought out bachelor?”

  “You mean Whispering Bay’s only bachelor?”

  “Not true, my man. Rusty is still single,” Zeke said referring to his middle-aged deputy. “Although he’s dating my receptionist so I guess technically he’s not available.”

&nb
sp; “Plus, there are several of the Gray Flamingos who are either divorced or widowed,” Mimi added, her blue eyes shiny with laughter. “But none of them were gullible enough to be talked into the auction.”

  “Good thing you’re a girl and pregnant,” Luke warned.

  “Sorry, big brother but I haven’t had this much fun since the time you got poison ivy on your butt after mooning my friends through my bedroom window at my ninth grade slumber party.”

  “Stop teasing your brother,” Mom said. “No one is interested in bidding on some old—” she turned to stare at him, “that’s how you got the poison ivy?”

  “Oops,” Mimi said.

  “Sorry.” Zeke took his wife by the hand. “She can’t seem to control herself. It’s the pregnancy hormones.” The two of them took off toward the food tables.

  Luckily for Luke, his dad came by at just that moment to share in some of the heat.

  “Alex, did you know how Luke got his poison ivy when he was a junior in high school?” Mom demanded.

  Dad shot him a conspiratorial look. “Uh, I believe he was helping your father cut down some brush around the beach house. Isn’t that right, son?”

  “It’s no use, Pop. That story won’t fly anymore. Thanks to your big-mouth daughter, Mom knows the truth.”

  Dad stuffed a shrimp in his mouth then mumbled something about checking the status of one his bids before deserting him.

  “Coward,” Luke muttered.

  Mom sighed. “Am I always the last to know everything about my own son?”

  Leave it to Mom to remind him that he’d botched up the Victoria announcement. He leaned down to kiss her on the cheek. “How’s the bidding going?”

  Mom perked up. “You’re up to nine hundred dollars.”

  “Nine hundred—who in their right mind would pay nine hundred bucks to go out on a date with anyone?”

  Stacey and some of the other women he recognized from the Mom’s Day Out group surrounded him. “Oh, that was fifteen minutes ago, Ann. Luke is up to twelve hundred now,” Stacey said.

  “See? I told you you’d practically get us the playground equipment all on your own,” said Jody.