Our lips met for a brief but powerful kiss, one that didn’t make me think of sex, but it sure as hell unlocked something inside me I never knew was there.
She stepped back , surprised at herself and pressed her fingers to her lips.
“I…” Talk Tai. I needed to do the talking this time and not any of that bull shit I’d been dishing out for the last few weeks. Pulling in a steady breath I continued. “I didn’t keep in touch because I thought it was best to stay away.” Her mother told me to stay away, made me feel like scum. “I cared so I wanted to do what was best for you, and I never got to give you that. Look at you, we both know you can do better than me.”
She shook her head at me. “There’s nothing better than what you want. My mother was out of line, and completely horrendous. I’m so sorry she said those things to you.”
“Forget it.” I didn’t want to remember. It wasn’t one of my finest moments.
“I don’t think I ever will.”
“I want you to. Your mother isn’t here now.”
A little smile pulled at the corners of her mouth. She tried to hide it.
“No, she’s not.” She held my gaze and I saw the reflection of the same desire that coursed through me.
My pulse raced, same as my thoughts as I thought up all the ways I wanted to get nasty with her.
Couldn’t tame the bad boy in me for too long, and I could see from the way her nipples were still pressing against the fabric that she was turned on. Not just cold from the water.
“Let me put that on you princess.”
She handed the necklace back to me and turned flicking her long luscious hair over her shoulder.
The hair away from her neck revealed more tats.
Two on the back of her neck, the Japanese symbols for wood and earth. They were miniature, feminine and sexy.
I had those same characters going down in a row on my abs, along with the earth and water characters.
She would have seen those when she knew me before.
I undid the tiny latch on the necklace and placed it around her neck. It settled in between her cleavage. She moved to turn but I held her in place so I could get a good look at her ass.
“Tai, are you looking at my ass?” She looked back and gave me a saucy grin.
“I’m totally looking at your ass.” Fuck it was perfect. Her tiny waist only served to accentuate the curve of her hips and her firm, perfect ass.
I ran my fingers down the smooth skin of her back and rested on her left cheek.
It took everything in me not to say bend over.
“Where’s water and metal baby?”
She turned back to face me with a little smile. I watched her pull away the edge of her bikini bottom, on the opposite side to the hummingbird, showing me the characters. Showing me so much more of her pelvis.
There they were black and inky against her sun kissed skin, leading straight to the jackpot. Now I was having a hard time not thinking about her pussy.
“Bad girl, you went ahead and inked yourself.”
“I wanted to be a tattooed freak.” She rested back against the wall. I ran my fingers across the flat of her stomach
“It’s sexy.”
“Thank you, so are yours.” She reached up and caressed my chest with her dainty hands.
“Anymore, or anything else? Piercings.” My eyes went straight to her breasts.
She shook her head and smiled. “I wanted to get my nipples pierced but I didn’t think it would suit me.”
Fuck it, we were in here and no one could see us. I couldn’t control myself and I didn’t want to.
Eleven years I’d wanted her like this, and here she was served up to me in this barely there bikini.
I ran my hands up to fill them with her luscious breasts. “Show me.” The ache in my voice was very evident.
“I have to think about it.” She teased but let out a little moan when I flicked my fingers across her nipples.
“I’m dying here Phoebe. Show me.”
She giggled.
I lowered and kissed her neck, then traced kisses down to the swells of her breasts, over the silky material of the bikini and closed my mouth over her nipple so I could suck her through the fabric.
She moaned into each suck and when I pulled back her lips parted. I lowered to kiss her pushing my tongue into her hot wet mouth. I didn’t stop playing with her gorgeous breasts though.
Again I left her lips but moved over to her ear. “Let me suck your tits princess.”
I could have thank the angels when she gave me a wicked smile and moved back one side of her top, releasing the strain on her breast. The little nipple was rock hard, begging me to suck it.
I went straight for it like my life depended on it, and nearly embarrassed myself by bursting out of my pants.
Fuck, she tasted so good. She arched her back into me allowing me the pleasure of filling my mouth with as much breast as I could get. But then fuck, she pulled away.
“What the hell Phoebe? You’re going to kill me.”
There was a playful smile on her face. I winced as she covered her delicious breasts and laughed.
“Enough.” She teased.
I frowned. “Is this come back for my it’s complicated line?”
“No, but there’s still the issue of your maybe girlfriend. We’re not doing anything if she’s in the picture.”
Damn it. Candace.
“She’s not a maybe girlfriend.”
“Does she know that?” She tilted her head to the side.
“I’ll sort it out.” I said firmly pulling her back to me.
She stood on the tips of her toes and planted a soft kiss on my lips.
“Let me know when you’re free.”
She stepped out of my grasp and truly stunned me by loosening the bikini top and taking the damned thing off. I got a good look at her tits, both of them. The one I sucked and the other that called to me.
She smiled when she saw my reaction and tossed me the top. I caught it, still keeping my eyes trained on her.
“I’ll see you tomorrow Tai.”
I swallowed hard and willed myself to move, but my legs were concrete holding me in place.
I watched the siren back away into the water wearing nothing but the shiny pearl necklace I gave her and her bikini bottoms.
I instantly recalled the other day when she said she’d changed and I’d insisted she hadn’t.
I’d never been proven more wrong.
Chapter 21
Phoebe
“Oh my God I can’t believe you did that.” Mitsuke shrieked laughing so hard her skin turned red.
I couldn’t believe I told her what happened with Tai.
It kind of made up for not telling her what happened between Tai and I all those years ago, and still holding my silence on it.
When the time was right I’d tell her. Apart from the pain I went through I didn’t want the added embarrassment of how mom behaved. I found it hard to physically tell Mitsuke how my mother treated Tai.
But this, tonight was juicy and so completely unlike me. Me the sweet girl next door type giving Tai a good tease.
It was so unlike me.
“So that was it?” Mitsuke asked regaining her voice.
“Yes, I’m not about to get involved with him and he has Candace. I don’t know if I should be getting involved at all.” That was my inner insecurities talking, because boy did I ever want him to just grab me and take me. Take me in whatever way he wanted.
I didn’t even care what that meant. Tai was this badass alpha male who I was sure knew exactly what to do in the bedroom, or in or case not the bedroom.
Mitsuke pouted. “You know you want to. Come on.” Her face brightened with a smile. “The other hand please.”
She was doing my nails. Refused to allow me to go into the cave tomorrow looking like I lived in a cave. We’d sat on the floor of my bedroom for the last half an hour talking and doing each other’s nails.
/> This was the longest day ever. But probably the highlight of my year so far.
I was enjoying swimming around like a mermaid then Tai came along and zapped me into that confident woman.
It was the way he looked at me. That look that devoured me, then the way he kissed and I swear to God when his mouth was on my breast I had to hold back from screaming out in orgasm.
I was crazy. What was I even entertaining this for?
I still wasn’t ready.
“My God girl stop thinking so hard. Your brain will explode. Just promise me you’ll give this a shot if you have one.”
“Mitsuke, I’m hyped up on happy hormones. I don’t even know what I’m saying right now.” I laughed. “I can’t promise anything. Tomorrow I could fall back into my depressive state.”
I hardly even remembered that stupid email from yesterday about the lake house. That house had been so important to me. It was all I thought about, as if a house could really bring happiness.
Tai made me feel wild and free, hopeful just like it used to be when I came to Japan.
“You don’t have to. Phoebe, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you look so happy and hardly anything’s happened. Unless there’s something more that happened in that cave and you aren’t saying.” She narrowed her gaze.
“No,” I chuckled. “Weird as it is I would tell you.”
“What’s weird?”
“He’s your cousin.”
“And I’m your best friend. We have to talk right? Plus I like talking to you about this stuff. For a while it felt inappropriate. You know, while you were going through your divorce. Your divorce got finalized around about the same time he got back and things were so messy with you and Jason. It felt weird to talk about men, or Tai.”
“It’s okay. I understand.” I’d already assumed that to be the reason. “Thank you for always being there for me.”
“Don’t be silly. That is part and parcel. Sisters forever remember?”
I nodded. “We are.”
I glanced down at my pearl nestled between my breasts and smiled. I’d never had such a beautiful, thoughtful present.
“Mitsuke. Candace…”
“Don’t worry about her.” She could see my concern.
“But I do, and I feel bad. I shouldn’t have kissed him if he’s with her.”
“But he’s not. Phoebe he’s not seeing her.”
“He loved her. He told me he used to and that he was giving their relationship some thought. ”
“Phoebe, things happen in life and you just can’t get them back. I won’t sugar coat anything and say that he didn’t love her, because he did. But I told you her competition just walked back into his life in a massive way.”
“How do you know what he’ll do? He may surprise us both.”
She gritted her teeth and instantly looked guilty. “Okay, please don’t be mad. Remember I love you.”
Oh God what did she do?
“What?” I pulled back my fingers as she was about to apply the gloss on my baby pink nails.
“I’ve been thinking of ways whereby I wouldn’t have to tell you this but I think that I should to give you a heads up.”
“Suspense Mitsuke, what did you do?”
“I went to see him at the garage earlier and told him about Jason. I told him you got married and you divorced Jason’s cheating ass.”
My eyes widened. “Mitsuke, did you tell him anything else?” Of course I immediately thought of my health concerns.
“No, no.” She rested her hands on my shoulders probably guessing what I was thinking. “Phoebe, he should know about Jason. That was common knowledge. He just missed it because he wasn’t here. Anything else would be out of line to speak of.” She assured me with a nod. “That’s for you to tell.”
“I… don’t want to have that conversation with anyone.” It was so awful for me. fearing to fall in love with someone who wanted a family of their own and having to tell them I couldn’t do it.
It tore at my heart every time I thought about it.
“Don’t worry about it now.” Mitsuke reached out and gave my hand a gentle squeeze.
“It worries me a lot.”
“All I want you to do is give yourself a break, with a nice guy who adores you.”
It sounded nice.
Really nice.
“A break.”
“A break.” She cooed.
Just then my phone chimed next to me. I frowned when I saw it was mom.
She’d called earlier too just before I was about to head out to the beach and I didn’t answer.
“I’d better take that. I’ll put the top coat on later.”
“Don’t let her upset you.”
That was almost a given.
“Mom, hey. How are you?”
“Phoebe I’ve been so worried, you didn’t answer any of my calls.”
Since we spoke last week and she was talking about reasoning with Jason about the lake house I’d avoided her calls.
“I’ve been busy and the time zone doesn’t really work does it?”
“It’s super early here.”
“Thanks for calling.”
There was always this air of anticipation when we spoke. It was almost always guaranteed that she’d say something to upset me.
“Of course I would call. Phoebe you’re in Japan by yourself, I always worry when you go so far away.”
“I’m with Akito I’m fine. Mitsuke’s here too.” An idea came to my head. Just popped in there. What would she think of Tai now? Tai had served in the Marines for eight years. He was a lieutenant. Surely she’d have some respect. “Tai’s here too.” I offered off -handishly.
“Who?”
“Tai Ferreira, Akito’s nephew. You remember him right?”
Her tension gripped me from here and I heard a sigh.
“Oh, him.” Flat cold, no emotion. It was clear that she remembered and clear what she thought. But I wanted to prod further.
“He just came back from the Marines.”
“God, I still can’t believe they allowed someone like him to join.”
“What do you mean?” I straightened up and brought my knees up to my chest.
“Well dear, maybe you we’re too young to remember what that ill-fated boy used to get up to. Completely unambitious and unsavory. I can just imagine him being some sort of jarhead. Thank God they let him go.”
Jesus Christ I had to stand. What a complete insult.
“Mom. That is highly offensive. Tai left the Marines on his own accord, he was a lieutenant.”
“Oh Phoebe you wear your heart on your sleeve and don’t see people for who they are. That was probably the only thing he had going for him in life.”
“Tai has a business degree. He practically runs the center with Akito. What is wrong with you? Why would you say such things?”
“Nothing is wrong with me. I’m just going on memory. I don’t exactly have fond memories of someone who tried to defile my daughter. God, thank heavens I intervened when I did or else you could have ended up with someone like him, probably pregnant and a single mother at eighteen.”
“I can’t believe you. Do you think who I ended up with was better?”
“Of course. Phoebe, Jason is the Governor of Illinois. Think, if we were talking about a resume. Yours would be outstanding. You can hold your head high and say that you were married to someone of noble social status.”
Maybe I’d fallen asleep and landed in hell because she couldn’t really think that.
“You think my life is a resume?” I shook my head even though I knew she couldn’t see me.
“It kind of is. I don’t mean it in the literal sense but we all talk about what we’ve done, what we’ve accomplished. You can be proud when you tell people you were married to the Governor of Illinois. I don’t know how you can’t see that.”
“Mom, I’m not proud I married Jason. He cheated on me. If it wasn’t for him I would never have been in that accident.”
“Look Phoebe, things happen and you can’t keep blaming Jason for something he didn’t do. You make it sound like he tried to kill you.”
My hands stilled and so did my breath. “Mom I caught him cheating on me. In my head he’s as much to blame as if he were in the truck that crashed into me. I can’t have kids.”
In her eyes it was poor Jason. During the time I filed for divorce I’d even heard her apologizing to him. Telling him how sorry she was. But she wasn’t sorry for our situation. She was sorry for him.
Never mind that I nearly died.
There were no words of comfort for me.
She never supported me emotionally when I was so crushed.
“Phoebe, I’m sorry but this is where I have to reiterate my former arguments. You were always so cold towards Jason. It’s understandable that the man cheated.”
“You think it was understandable?” My voice shook. “Really? That’s what you think? Because I was cold to him you think it was okay for him to disrespect me by fucking his secretary and prostitutes.”
“Phoebe.” She snapped, chiding me. “I can see that Tai’s influence is rubbing off on you and you’ve barely been there. It’s bad enough you went and defamed your body with those God awful tattoos, which are so unladylike. But you never say that word.”
“What? Fuck?” A tear ran down my cheek.
“Phoebe I won’t talk to you if you’re going to swear at me.”
“Mother,” more tears came. “I’m going to enjoy myself while I’m here. It’s people like you who look down on others and treat them as if you’re so much better. I won’t allow you to do that to me, and I won’t allow you to talk that way about Tai either, I –”
“Phoebe you barely know that man.”
“Don’t, don’t interrupt me. Please… don’t call me again.”
“Phoebe –”
I hung up.
Chapter 22
Tai
I rested back against the headboard on my bed with my phone in my hands.
Blossoms of The Heart Page 18
