by A. C. Mason
Umm that was unexpected. Why would he pay for her? It wasn’t a date. Men like Tim dated a woman of high moral standards—the kind that wore pearl necklaces, only had sex three times a week and still wore a slip under her dress.
“My treat,” Tim insisted with a smile. “One bill please.”
In his own way, he had charm. An awkward one at that but charming all the same, yet there was no parade of women in and out of his life unlike Liam. Why? There were rumors he was gay but she ignored them. Liam would’ve told her if he was.
“Will you just be having desert?” Dot asked and picked up Tim's menu.
“Tim here has never had peach cobbler so I want make sure we have room for every bite. If we’re still hungry after we’ll pick from the menu.” Indy could be territorial with her menu and hated when it was removed from the table.
“You’re in luck then. Aunt Bee is just finishing up a batch of fresh ones.” The young woman pointed to the kitchen.
“Great.” She tapped Tim’s forearm.
He glanced down.
“I’m sorry.” She brought her hand to her face. Don’t fondle the man. “Liam and I are always up on each other. I don’t mean anything by it.” Okay, Liam didn’t mean anything by it. She, on the other hand, couldn’t help but touch Liam. Now she was invading Tim’s personal space and making him feel weird. Why else wouldn’t he meet her gaze?
“I live in a reality of patients in pain.” He shrugged. “Touch is not often wanted in my line of work so please excuse my reaction.” He gazed off into the distance then back at her.
That had to be hard. She hadn’t given much thought to what being an anesthesiologist was like. She always just thought of him as a doctor but not the type of medicine he practiced. A life surrounded by people hurting from illness or injury. Agony. Not much room for touch, even the comforting kind.
“Have you let your father know you’ve landed safely and we’ve stopped for something to eat?” Tim's dark blue gaze lifted to meet hers. The corner of his pink mouth cured up with hint of something playful. Shit, he was hot. Last time she'd seen him was this past summer poolside and he had a built body. Not that he’d be into her. He probably had his pick of nurses and the uptight ladies he crossed paths with. Somehow she pegged him as the type into a librarian.
“You’re so responsible.” She pulled out her phone and texted her Daddy that her flight had landed, she was safe and that she and Tim had stopped for food. Yale had been Daddy’s dream. Indy just didn’t fit in with hard-edged east coasters. Whenever anyone gave her a hard time about the way she spoke she went into total surfer talk with over the top valley girl.
“I don’t want him to worry since he charged me with picking you up,” Tim explained.
Her father charged him. Who talked like that? Oh right, Tim did. As if St. Tim wouldn’t have everything in order. Shit. Those were Liam’s words. Come to think of it, everything she knew about Tim was from Liam. Aside from seeing Tim over at the Boyd house and him being a little fatherly with Liam and stiff… She looked down at his package. The table obstructed the view. Maybe formal was better word to describe him, she barely knew the man. Liam acted like a moron at times so she didn’t blame Tim. Actually Liam was an ass most of the time.
Her father texted back: Of course you’re safe. Tim picked you up, not Liam.
She laughed. Daddy didn’t like Liam and didn’t try to hide it. The only saving grace, in his eyes, was that Liam hadn’t put the moves on Indy. Yet she’d hoped Liam would realize she was the one up until two weeks ago when he’d said he was staying with Brenda’s family for Christmas.
“Is everything all right?” Tim’s brow creased.
“Yeah, Daddy just thinks he’s a comedian.” She flipped her cell closed. “I’ve told him lawyers don’t have a sense of humor.”
Tim half-smiled and his blue eyes sparkled. “Anything I should be aware of?”
“Daddy isn’t a fan of Liam. No surprise there.” She shoved her cellphone back in her purse.
“Ah, yes. Well, not many parents are. But the two of you have been best friends since your family moved in next door.” Tim flipped his palms up on the table.
“Sometimes, I think I need a better best friend.” Not ones who didn’t see her when it didn’t stroke his ego. Not one who tossed a few compliments at her here and there to keep her following along. In all fairness to Liam, maybe he didn’t know how she felt about him. He’d been the very first friend she’d made in Malibu, and he’d looked out for her at school. Until they went off to school in different states, they’d done everything together—aside from having sex.
Dot arrived with a tray. “When I explained to Aunty Bee that your date here had never had cobbler, she made me wait for a fresh one.” Removing the utensils, pie slices covered in ice-cream and cups of coffee items, she arranged them in front of them.
A man seated at the counter gaze travelled over Indy and then shot Tim a glare. He shook his head and looked away.
Her date? Tim made eye contact but didn’t correct the woman. Did it matter what other people thought? Perhaps it was a compliment that the women thought she could snag Dr. Tim Boyd.
“Enjoy,” Dot said.
“Thanks. We will.” Indy opened two packets of sweetener and emptied them into her black coffee. “There’s a technique to eating peach cobbler. You need to get the right ratio of crust, peach and ice-cream on the spoon.”
“And what’s the right ratio?” Tim asked.
“It’s different for everyone. I like to make sure part of my ice-cream has melted into the peaches and crust before I start. By the end, the melted ice-cream is filled with brown sugar, peach juices and a few rogue oats.”
“Do you mind doing a spoon up to give me an example?” He held out his utensil for her. “I’d hate to miss out on this experience.”
The idea was intriguing. Set up a blend of the tastes for him experience the time to pop his cherry, so to speak. She picked up his spoon, scooped a thin amount of crust, some peaches and ice-cream. When she lifted it and brought it forward, Tim opened his mouth and his full lips covered the spoon. His gaze locked with hers as she pulled the spoon out.
A broad smile spread across his lips and a thrill shot through to her toes. Tim was so freaking hot. Was it wrong for her to be checking him out? She was a virgin, not a nun. Granted, she’d gotten off to the thought of him, but that was no biggy. Except that being a yard away, in her own bedroom, felt distant and safe. This was up close.
She put his spoon down on his plate and waited for him to finish the bite she’d created for him. Not once in all the time she’d know Liam had Tim ever brought a woman home. Surely he dated? He was a Boyd, after all, and between Liam and his father there wasn’t a woman in Malibu they hadn’t conquered—other than the ones in her house.
“That is incredible.” Tim smiled and picked up his spoon. “Liam definitely hadn’t given me the impression I was missing out on much.”
She let out a little laugh. The man at the counter looked her over a second time.
Tim must’ve noticed her quick retreat and glanced at the man. “I can’t really blame him.”
The top of her cheeks felt warm. That was a compliment. Wasn’t it? Dr. Tim Boyd had praised her. She hadn’t known he was aware she was alive until the week before summer holiday was over.
She picked up her spoon and dug into her cobbler too. There was a new awareness sizzling through her body and it was directly linked to Tim.
Chapter 3
Tim balanced a box with bottles to stock up the small fridge next to the outdoor fireplace by the hot tub. It wasn’t like he was expecting company this holiday. But he was a creature of habit unlike his brother once he liked something he stuck to it. It was hard to understand why Liam disliked The Diner so much. Everyone there had been welcoming. And the food was delicious. Indy seemed to like being there, despite all the male attention she didn’t appear to want.
The phone rang and he shifted the box t
o one hand to answer it. “Hello.”
“Hey, bro.” Speak of the devil, he'd just been thinking about him.
“Liam.” Tim clamped the phone between his head and shoulder.
“I sent you my flight information for the redeye I’ll be taking home. Did you get it?”
Nothing like waiting until the eleventh hour to book his flight. Typical. “I saw the email you sent but haven’t checked it yet.” He removed bottles from the box and slid them into the fridge.
“Is Indy in safe and sound?”
Why did his brother think he’d have any clue? “Haven’t you talked to her since she got in?”
“Not yet. I just figured since her mother said you picked her up you’d know.”
His heart pounded. Act relaxed, Liam probably didn't suspect his intentions toward Indy. “Right. Safe and sound.” Overreacting would put his brother on high alert. Like when Liam caught them talking on the patio the night before she flew out to Yale. He wouldn’t let up about it for weeks.
“Good.”
This was his chance to find out what was going on with Indy. If his brother flipped, he’d back off. “So what’s the deal with her?”
“What do you mean?”
“I don’t know. She seemed kind of quiet.” It was hard to put a finger on the awkwardness. “I figured you’d know what’s going on.”
“Nothing as far as I know. Tim, I hate to break it to you, but you’re not the kinda guy people chitchat with.”
Not a newsflash. “I’ve been in a car with Indy before and she spoke without a pause for air despite my lack of small talk.” The memory of her moving those full lips made him smile.
“Honestly?” Liam’s tone didn’t lean to confidence in Tim.
“Yes.” As if Tim would make something like that up. Liam hadn’t said much about Indy this last semester. Maybe she’d been seeing someone. “Was she involved?”
“Indy, see some next dude? Ehh, no. She would have told me.”
“You know her best. She was different.” Distracted. Sad.
“Noted.” Liam huffed. “Look, I’ve got to run to some tree cutting thing with Brenda’s family.”
“Sure, bye.”
“Later, bro.” A click came from the phone.
He wiped his forehead despite to cooling evening air. A record heat wave was under way this year. He couldn’t deny feeling the effects, but the main culprit was a rum-skinned beauty. The flames flickered and danced in the Malibu night. Only one thing could’ve made this better: someone to share it with. Indy. There was definitely potential from his perspective, but what about from hers?
He pulled off his swimming trunks and sank into the salt-water hot tub under the awning gave him some privacy from the neighbors. Warm water wrapped around him, and he melted back against the seat.
Had he said too much when the man had been checking Indy out? After his comment, Indy had got quiet and stayed that way through most of the wonderful meal. For whatever reason, she seemed more animated around Liam and more settled when it was just Tim and her. Sometimes—okay, most times—his attempts at flattery backfired. Unlike Liam, he didn’t have a handy selection of lines to get women naked. Not that his primary objective was to get Indy’s clothing off. Eventually that would come, if things developed between them.
Tomorrow, he and Indy would do some car shopping. Not that he really knew if anything would be open. Nor would he do his usual of calling ahead to find out. If they spent time driving around to closed dealerships that was still time alone with her, which was his primary objective. He needed to find out if the attraction was mutual.
There was a knock at the gate.
Shit. Maybe Mr. Kent needed something. Given he had nothing on, it wasn’t like he could rush to the gate.
“Yes?” Tim asked.
The gate door swung open and Indy bounced into his yard wearing a smile and a big beach towel. “I saw the lights and fire on back here and thought I’d join you.”
To say this was unexpected would be understating the situation. Not that he was complaining but at that moment, there was nothing but his hands and the bubbles from the jets covering his penis.
“I just got back from a bike ride. It helps clear my mind.” She closed the gate behind her and clutched her towel. Was she nervous?
The question was what had caused her mind to be unclear to begin with. Or maybe the more pressing question was what she had on underneath that towel. What if she was naked? Fat chance of that, but a man had to have dreams.
When she reached the hot tub, she slipped off her sandals and glanced up. “If that’s all right with you?”
How would she take his revelation? “This is going to be awkward,” he said and put his head down.
“Oh, did I interrupt?” She looked into the house through the patio. “Do you have someone over?” Concern, evident in her eyes, she stepped back.
He held in a grin. Did that mean she didn’t want to find out he was with another woman? “No. I don’t have anyone else over it’s just that…I’m in the buff beneath the water.”
Her gaze darted to his package and she burst out laughing. When a man brings up his genitals he doesn’t expect nor want a woman to have a good chuckle.
“And?” she asked, head tilted sideways.
What did she mean and? The situation was self-explanatory. Wasn't it?
“Are you embarrassed about your size?”
He smiled. “No.” Women had commented that they enjoyed his size.
“Liam and I shower together but if you’re uncomfortable with me seeing you naked, you can put your bottoms on. Unless this is a hint for me to go?”
“I don’t want you to go.” They showered together? That seemed like something only lovers would do. But when he’d spied on them through the crack of Liam’s door he hadn’t gotten the impression they were anything more than friends.
“Good. Then, when you’ve decided about whether you need a bottom, adjust as needed.” She removed her towel. Flimsy white material covered her breasts and between her legs. Peaks showed through the thin fabric. She lowered herself into the water. He had a feeling the color of her swimsuit was meant to tease.
“So you and my brother mess around then?” Tim asked. Better he get to the bottom of this sooner rather later.
“Hell, no. I think I’m one of, like, a handful of female residents in Malibu that hasn’t sleep with one of the Boyds.”
He was open to remedying that tragedy. “Let me get this straight, you and Liam sleep in the same bed and shower together but you’ve never had sex?” Maybe he’d lost his mind but that sounded like something in a work of fiction. He put his arms on the sides of hot tub. Could be some kind of strange younger generation thing? A decade didn't make him that much older than them. Did it? It sounded nothing like his brother though. The man screwed anything that might have a pulse. Though he was sure they were all having more sex than when he was younger.
“Correct.” She nodded. “I’m still a virgin.” Her cheeks turned pink and she covered her mouth.
He covered his stiffening privates. “What?”
“I shouldn’t have told you that. But the cat is out of bag now.” She flicked her hand while rolling her eyes. “It must be a Boyd thing to act as though that’s an affliction.”
He reached over, pulled his swimming trunks under the water and put them on. “I don’t mean it like that. It’s just not common for a woman your age.”
“I know. I just suck—”
He groaned at that word coming out of her lips.
“I suck at opening up to people,” she continued. “Sure I can joke and be fun, but when it comes down to really connecting with people, I’m no good at it. It’s one of the reasons Liam’s such a close friend. He doesn’t push. At some point in high school it became a thing with the guys to see which one could pop my cherry. I don’t want sex or my first to be hollow.”
“I can appreciate that. I haven’t dated anyone since I finished school. I
can get off on my own. I don’t need to bring someone else into the mix unless it’s meaningful.”
“She hurt you badly, didn’t she? I remember Liam saying something when you moved back.”
He nodded. “Only as much as I let her.” It hurt to be nothing more than a pawn for Celia to move around in her sick game of emotional warfare. She had played him well.
So much of games reminded him of his own father and Liam's behavior. It scared him for his brother future. However, he couldn’t blame his father or Liam for their true nature.—and didn’t—but nor did he want a life like that.
“We had very different views on what a content life looked like. In many ways I’m lucky she set me free when she did. Others weren’t so lucky.” Eventually Celia had poisoned everything around her. “There are those that amuse themselves at the expense of the emotions of others.”
“I know someone like that.” The question she should’ve asked herself was whether Liam did it knowingly or not. For Tim, the verdict wasn’t in on his brother yet. “But that was a while ago so why no one since?”
“Some wounds are harder to heal than others.” He laid his head back on the ledge of the hot tub. “I’ve had women.” One or two he could hardly remember, though it had never been his thing to sleep around just to get off. “Now I’ll wait for the right one.”
“Very unBoyd of you, boarding on noble.”
If only he was. “I’m selfish.” Perhaps his view would appeal to a woman who didn’t sleep around. “I don’t like wasting time.” A lot had already slipped away on him. “Would you like a drink?”
“Whatcha got?” She peeked over the side then over his bare chest. Hunger glimmered in her eyes.
If she was good he’d let her touch, if she liked.
She gazed away into the house.
“Beer or coolers?” he asked.
“A cooler, please.”
Tim stretched out of the water to the fridge and pulled them out a drink each. They were the twist tops. “May I open it for you?”
She shook her head.
Reluctantly, he handed over the bottle.
