He sauntered around the bar and took a seat beside me. “So who is Lexi Swafford?”
“Well, I already told you that I just graduated from college. I guess you could say I’m a girl who’s ready to get a taste of the real world.”
“The real world sucks.” He took a huge bite of his sandwich.
I studied his profile a moment as he chewed. I’d had a taste of the sucky real world, but I refused to allow my one bad experience to mar my belief that the world was still out there, waiting for me to conquer it. What had he experienced? “Why would you say that?”
He took a sip of juice. “Sorry, I shouldn’t try to taint you with my version of the real world.”
“You don’t like bartending?”
“I love bartending, which is a good thing because I have no other options.”
“Options don’t just appear like some magical portal to our ideal world. We have to pursue them. Sometimes, we even have to create them.”
“You sound a lot like my old roommate.”
“She created her own options?”
“He. And yeah, once he set his mind to something, it was going to happen.” He turned to face me. “Anyway, back to you…do you have any brothers or sisters?”
“I’m the only child of an only child.”
He flashed a smile, revealing straight, white teeth. “So is it safe to say that you’re pretty rotten?”
“Maybe a little bit.” Bittersweet memories flooded my thoughts. “My papaw spoiled me the most. When I was growing up, I used to spend the night with my grandparents a lot. He would spend hours playing dolls with me.” Melancholy seeped into my soul as I remembered how much fun I’d had with him. “One time, we had a tea party. I made this terrible concoction of milk, grape soda, and pickle juice. I don’t know how many little pink cupfuls he drank, but he managed to do it with a smile on his face, promising me the whole time that I made better tea than Mamaw.”
One side of Mason’s mouth twitched up in a grin. “You’re lucky to have memories like that.”
“Yeah, I am. He passed away a few months ago, so those memories are even more precious now.” I took a bite of my sandwich as I thought about how much I missed him.
Mason laid his hand on my shoulder. “I’m sorry.”
“I appreciate that.” Before I lost control of my emotions, I turned the conversation back to him. “Do you have siblings?”
“I have a sister named Haley. She’s four years younger than me.”
“What about parents?”
“My dad died when my mother was pregnant with Haley. Some kind of freak accident while cutting down a tree. My mom’s around.”
“Your mom and your sister live in Creekview?”
“My mom travels around some, but she does have an apartment about an hour from here. My sister’s away at college.”
“A college girl, huh?”
“Yeah, it’s a great opportunity for her.”
“What’s she majoring in?”
“Nursing.”
“Good choice. Nurses are in high demand.”
“What did you major in?” he asked, holding his sandwich in one hand.
“Business.”
After we finished eating, Mason put our dishes in the sink, and I followed him into the kitchen and loaded them in the dishwasher.
Mason leaned against the counter, his arms crossed over his chest. “You want to walk the perimeter of the complex? I can show you where the pool is. There’s also a playground if you get the urge to ride a merry-go-round or seesaw.”
“Sure. I’ve been hunting a good merry-go-round since I hit town.”
“Then I’ll grab my shoes and a shirt.” He pushed off the counter and disappeared down the hall. I waited a moment, trying to avoid being too close to his half-naked body, and then I went to retrieve my shoes.
We met back in the living room, and I followed him out of the apartment and down a flight of stairs. It was a short walk to the sidewalk that meandered around the manicured complex. Up until now, I hadn’t explored, and I was delighted when we walked through a mini garden. A stained wooden bench was centered on pavers, blooming knockout roses in a deep pink surrounding it. A row of multicolored flowers bloomed at the edge of the concrete: pink geraniums, purple petunias, and an assortment of impatiens.
“This is beautiful,” I said as we passed through.
“Yeah, they do a good job with the landscaping.” Mason continued walking, and as we curved around the clubhouse, the pool came into view. Even though the water looked inviting, I imagined it was still cold at this time of year, and there wasn’t a soul in sight.
“It’s already open,” he said as he unlatched the gate and held it for me while I entered the pool area.
I sauntered to the edge of the pool, staring into the lucid water. Mason approached from behind me, grabbed both my arms, and faked throwing me in. When he pulled me back, I stumbled against him, my back pressed against his chest. He held my arms firmly, attempting to steady me, and my heart raced.
“Whoa!” He chuckled. “I wasn’t really going to do it.” His hands were warm against my skin as his long fingers encircled my biceps. I liked his touch more than I wanted to admit. My mouth went dry, and I swallowed, trying to compose myself.
I hadn’t known Mason long, but I was quite sure he was popular with the ladies. I got it. He was handsome with a perfectly chiseled face, dimples to make a girl’s heart melt, and a hot body. He exuded charm and personality. I couldn’t say I’d been around a lot of guys like Mason, but if I had to pick my type, it wouldn’t be him.
So why was I holding my breath?
He loosened his grip, but his hands remained on my arms. “I wasn’t really going to do it today, but once I get you out here in your bathing suit….” He clicked his tongue. “No telling what’ll happen then.”
I turned to face him, breaking his hold. “I just remembered that I need to make a call, but I forgot my phone. Can I borrow yours?”
Patting his pockets, he said, “Sorry, but since we were just going on a short walk, I didn’t bring anything with me. Not even my keys. You didn’t lock the door, did you?”
I maneuvered behind him and shoved with all my strength.
I watched as he plunged into the pool, wondering what in the hell had come over me. I never did stuff like that.
He came up sputtering and splashing, and he disappeared back under the water. I watched, beaming, pretty darn proud of myself for besting him. He wasn’t expecting that, and this could very well mark the first time ever that I’d gotten someone before they had gotten me.
I waited for him to surface. When he didn’t, my smile wilted, and victory gave way to worry. Finally, he appeared, gasping for air.
“Help me,” he pleaded, bobbing awkwardly in the water. Submerging again, he quickly recovered and pulled his head above the water. “I can’t swim.”
“Yes, you can.” I put my hand on my hip, refusing to fall for that.
He didn’t respond, just sank below the glittering liquid.
“Shit.” I stared a moment more. When he didn’t surface, I dove into the water, the frigid temperature shocking my system. I couldn’t believe I’d pushed him in. What a foolish thing to do! I thought I was being so careful by making sure that he didn’t have his phone on him. I never even considered that he couldn’t swim.
I finally reached him and wrapped my arms around his torso, kicking to the surface. Once our heads were above water, I held him firmly with one arm while trying to swim to the nearest side of the pool.
I heard him laughing, and I stopped mid-stroke and turned to look at him as my teeth began to chatter.
It was evident from looking at his face that he’d never been in distress. “That was mean,” I grumbled.
“And pushing me in wasn’t?”
He had a point.
I started for the ladder, and he reached out and grabbed my wrist, pulling me to him. “Backfired, didn’t it?”
I
stared at him. “You scared me.” My heart pounded. He’d done worse than scare me. I was terrified, afraid that he was drowning and it was my fault.
“I’s just messing with ya.” He pulled me against him, wrapping an arm around my waist as he kept both of us upright in the water.
“I should’ve let you drown.” Clasping my arms around his neck, I could feel the displacement of the water as he kicked.
He barked out laughter. “You remember that I wasn’t really drowning, right?”
I rolled my eyes. “Merely a technicality. The sentiment’s the same.” My words came out broken and breathy as I fought the deep chill permeating my body.
“You’re freezing.” He nodded toward the ladder. “We should get out, so you can warm up.” He released me, and relieved to put some distance between us, I swam to the edge of the pool. Mason swam to the opposite side and easily lifted himself to the edge.
I climbed up the ladder, water cascading down my body. Goosebumps covered my flesh, and I clamped my teeth together in an effort to stop the chattering. I walked around the pool and met him on the other side.
He pointed beyond the pool. “The playground’s over there. See it?”
I shielded my eyes from the sun and focused on the direction in which he pointed. “Yeah. I see it.”
“I would take you over there, but considering we’re both drenched, maybe we should sit on the bench we passed earlier and dry off a bit—unless you’re ready to go back to the apartment.”
“The bench is good.”
We backtracked, leaving a trail of water and wet shoeprints in our wake as we made our way back to the garden.
The warming rays of the sun beckoned me, and I lifted my face toward the sky. I sat down on the bench and took off my shoes and socks, laying them on the pavers in front of us, so that they could begin drying.
Mason peeled off his dripping shirt, hanging it on the back corner of the bench, and then he sat down and removed his shoes and socks, placing them in the sun beside mine.
“The sun feels good,” he said.
“It does.” Water trickled down my scalp, and I rubbed my fingers across it to rid myself of the icky feeling. I gathered my hair in my hands and squeezed out the excess liquid.
“Well, I guess you know where the pool is now,” he said, stretching his arms across the back of the bench.
“I guess so.”
“Maybe next time we’ll try it with our bathing suits.”
I stole a glance at his profile. He talked like we were going to be best buddies, hanging out at the pool all summer.
He caught me looking and amusement lit his eyes. “Unless you want to skinny dip?”
Definitely not. His back was pressed against the back of the bench, and I glanced at his tattoo, my eyes following the design down to his well-defined abs. Absolutely no skinny dipping.
“Is that a ‘yes’?”
My eyes flew to his face, and I could feel a crimson heat flooding up from my neck as I realized that I hadn’t answered him.
His smile widened. “Well, it wasn’t a ‘no’.”
Chapter 5
Rusty Nail
Mason
Even though I’d already been turned down for a couple of loans, I’d spent the last two weeks searching for new places to apply, thanks to Lexi’s comments about creating options. I’d had a business opportunity presented to me a couple of months ago, but I couldn’t secure the funds to turn it into a reality.
“Well, shit,” I mumbled as I hung up my phone after being notified of another rejection. Bankers were a strange breed. They wanted you to have money before you could borrow money. How the hell did that make any sense? Apparently, my flat-ass busted bank account was doing nothing to prove that I was worthy of a loan.
Attempting to push the disappointing phone call out of my head, I concentrated on training Lexi behind the bar. She could make the most popular drinks with little input from me, and she often helped me take orders from patrons. Since it was Monday, we weren’t overly busy, and I watched her as she talked and laughed with an older gentleman at the end of the bar.
When she turned and searched for me, I knew he’d probably ordered a drink that was unfamiliar to her.
I stood motionless as she sauntered toward me, her dark curls swaying as she moved. Her red lips broke into a smile, and as I often did, I watched them as she spoke, “Can you help me make a Rusty Nail?”
“You know it.” With only two ingredients, it didn’t take long. She delivered it, and I continued to watch her.
I’d thought about her a lot since the morning she’d pitched a fit about the naked chick in our kitchen. Her words haunted me. …if you want to spend your life chasing meaningless relationships, that’s your prerogative. Ever since I’d destroyed everything that had meant anything to me, that’s exactly how I’d been spending my life. My friends knew I dallied in meaningless relationships. The chicks I passed time with knew our relationships were meaningless. It was strange how someone who I barely knew was the one who called me out on it. Something about the way she’d so easily dismissed me that day wrenched my gut.
She leaned against the bar, the older gentleman still demanding her full attention. When her laughter floated through the air, I suddenly had the urge to interrupt them.
I didn’t know why it bothered me. Hell, he was old enough to be her daddy. And even if he wasn’t, she was nothing to me—just a temporary roommate.
Some women liked older men, and for some reason, that thought spurred me into action.
Picking up a bar towel, I began twisting it while I watched her shapely ass wiggle from side to side as she shifted her feet while she talked.
Closing in on her, I let the towel go with a flick of my wrist, and a loud crack filled the silence as the tip of the towel whacked her butt with a sonic boom.
“Ouch!” She turned around and glared at me before her peal of laughter rippled through the air. Satisfied that she was smiling at me now, I couldn’t stop the grin that shot across my face.
She rubbed her ass. “What’d you do that for?”
“Because I can.”
Her plump lips curled into a smile as she approached me and poked her finger into my chest. “Now I owe you one.”
“Oh, I’m counting on it.”
“Did you need something, or do you just enjoy inflicting pain?”
“I don’t inflict pain. I inflict pleasure.”
“So you needed something?”
“As a matter of fact, I do.”
Her finger dropped to her side, and she shifted her stance. “So what can I help you with?”
“It’s almost closing time. Let’s get everything stocked up, so we can get out of here. I thought we could hang out for a bit when we get home.”
“What? No hot date?”
“Not tonight. How about you?” I motioned toward the man sitting at the end of the bar, just out of earshot. “Going home with grandpa?”
She turned and looked. Spinning back around, she frowned at me. “I’m not into one-nighters.”
“So he offered?”
Leaning forward, she whispered in my ear. “Get your mind out of the gutter. He was telling me about his grandchildren. And if I’m not mistaken, it was you who told me that people just want someone who will listen.”
Before I could respond, she walked away.
I glanced at the man as he stared into his drink as if the answers to life’s questions would magically appear.
Bringing the glass to his lips, he downed the rest of it, tossed a tip on the bar, and left.
After we closed, I walked Lexi to her car, as I did most every night, and followed her home. Once we were in our apartment, I poured a glass of whiskey. Holding it up, I asked her, “You want one?”
“No, thanks.”
I took a long swig to get started and then took a sip to appreciate the nuances of this particular whiskey.
“So have you enjoyed being back in Creekview?” I asked
as I sat beside her at the bar.
She watched her fingers as she tapped her nails against the counter. “I haven’t really done much since I’ve gotten here, other than working at Spanky’s.”
“We’re both off tomorrow. We should go do something.”
She turned to look at me. “Like what?”
“We could go for a hike.”
“I didn’t know you had an interest in hiking.”
“There’re a lot of things you don’t know about me.” I took a sip of whiskey.
“I know you drink too much.” She watched me, her eyes scanning my face. I didn’t know whether she was judging me or just stating a fact, but I saw no signs of condescension.
I took another sip as if to prove her right. “Shit, I know it. It’s the only way I can stand my life.”
Closing my eyes as I realized that I’d said too much, I wondered what in the hell had gotten into me. By nature, I was a private person, and I’d just invited a whole lot of questions.
“Why do you say that?”
I knew it was coming. I opened my eyes and smiled at her, trying to dismiss the awkward moment. The emotion I saw on her face nearly took my breath. She looked genuinely concerned with her eyes opened wide, her delicate brows knitted together.
For a moment, I felt something warm and tender spread through my chest, a feeling that I hadn’t felt in a very long time. She was drawing me to her by making me feel like she actually cared.
I watched her slightly-parted lips as she awaited my answer, and I had the urge to lean into her and press my lips against hers, to taste her, to feel her warmth against me—just an innocent kiss because she moved something inside me, an innocent kiss filled with appreciation, not lust.
Pushing that thought out of my head, I replied, “Eh, no reason.”
I nursed my whiskey, her gaze burning my skin.
Relieved when she said nothing further, I turned the conversation to her. “So you haven’t hooked up with any of your old friends?”
“The only one I’d really kept in touch with was Seren, and she just graduated from college. She’s supposed to move back to Creekview soon and start looking for a job.”
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