by M. Ullrich
But rock climbing was never on her must-do list. Caroline didn’t like heights, and no amount of harnesses or safety equipment would ease her fears. Emma’s confident pep talk didn’t even work, because all she could think about was the kiss and the rain and the inevitable story that’d follow. She’d fall victim to so many rumors. She felt a sharp tug on her harness.
“You’re all set,” Julio, their instructor, said. “Take your time and don’t overextend.”
“Don’t overextend. Got it.” Caroline looked back at the top of the structure and swallowed hard.
“And if you get tired, just wave your free hand and we’ll be ready for you to let go.”
Caroline looked at Julio like he was insane. “I will not let go.” The hot sun above them only added to her panic. Sweat trickled down the center of her back. She could say no, unbuckle herself, and walk away. But Emma’s smile was brilliant even from the other side of the wall. The humidity was making it hard to breathe.
Emma shot her a thumbs-up before shouting, “You got this, Caroline. I’ll race you to the top.” She did a squat and stretched her arms over her head.
Caroline shook her hands out and bounced from foot to foot. “Okay. I can do this.”
“All right, ladies, go ahead and start climbing.”
Caroline watched Emma attack the wall with gusto, hopping and stretching her body out. Caroline could do it. She grabbed the first climbing hold, as Julio called it, and placed her toes on one below her knee. She simultaneously pushed and pulled herself up. A triumphant smile appeared on her face.
“I can do this,” she muttered again to herself. She reached for the next hold and moved her other foot cautiously. Just as easily as the first time, she moved herself higher up the wall. After another three strategic moves, Caroline made the mistake of looking down. She was at least twenty-five feet above the ground. She turned to Emma, who was approaching the top of the fifty-foot wall.
She froze.
“Looks like you’ll be buying dinner tonight,” Emma called out. “Caroline?”
Caroline couldn’t bring herself to look at Emma again. She was equal parts mortified and terrified. She felt stupid for even trying. She wasn’t built for activities like this. Her arms started to burn, and her feet wanted to do anything but stay right where they were. Caroline could swear her body wanted to just let go.
“Caroline?” Emma’s voice grew louder. “You can do this, I know you can.”
Caroline pressed her forehead against the hard surface and willed herself not to cry. Not today. She had done enough of that lately.
“Julio, would you please check on her?”
“No,” Caroline said forcefully. She took a deep breath and reached for the next hold. Sure enough, she managed to pull herself up again and again and again. Caroline didn’t look down, but she did look to her right in search of Emma, who was still at the top and watching her with a smile.
Julio applauded. “Whenever you both are ready, let go, and we will slowly lower you to the ground. Unless you’d like to climb back down. It’s up to you.”
“Wanna race back down to the bottom?” Emma asked with a devious smile and sparkle in her eye.
Caroline felt her knees go weak. Definitely from the climbing. “I’ll let go.”
“Okay. On three,” Julio said. “One, two, three.”
Hesitantly, Caroline let go of the holds she was gripping for dear life and swung slightly away from the wall. They lowered her slowly, foot by foot, to the ground. The nearest employee unhooked her, and she stood around awkwardly as Emma climbed her way back down. Caroline was so excited, she had to step away. She walked calmly around the corner of the small stand that collected the money. Once she was alone, Caroline let out a squeak and leapt into the air. She jumped and laughed and spun in a circle because she was so proud of herself. She stopped at the sound of laughter, yelping when she saw Emma watching her.
Caroline’s smile fell away. “Don’t laugh at me.”
“I’m not laughing at you, I’m laughing because I’m happy for you. You really pushed yourself back there. It was awesome.”
“I’m afraid of heights.”
Emma’s eyes widened. “Why did you agree to this then? We could’ve done anything else today.”
“Because things were tense enough between us this morning. I didn’t want you to think I was being difficult because of—” Caroline couldn’t say the words. The discomfort she felt at even hinting at the subject started in her toes and traveled up. She felt like the skin of her bare legs was actually crawling. In fact, the crawling was more intense on her left leg not too far below the hem of her shorts. Caroline looked down to find a small lizard staring back at her from her thigh. She screamed and jumped in Emma’s direction.
“Okay,” Emma said, trying to save the small reptile from being thrown to the ground. She pulled back as Caroline flailed. “It’s okay, Caroline. Stop moving.”
“Get it off me.” Caroline hopped on her right foot as she extended her left leg to Emma. “Hurry up,” she yelled.
Emma gripped Caroline’s thigh and held her in place. She reached out slowly and cupped her hand around the lizard. “He’s very cute,” she said as she lifted him up and brought him over to a safe and open area. “Please tell me you at least like cute and fluffy animals.”
“As long as they don’t crawl up me without my knowledge, sure.” Caroline could still feel Emma’s hands on her.
“Do you have any pets?”
Caroline shook her head. “Ann had a bird, but it didn’t like me very much. I think that was because I never talked to it.”
“Why didn’t you?”
Caroline considered her answer. She listened to the birds around her and imagined they were joining the conversation, too. “I felt silly, I suppose. It was a bird.” She shrugged.
“They have a lot of personality, all animals do. Sometimes you have to talk to them to find that out.” Emma looked up at the sky and closed her eyes. The sun brightened her golden skin.
“I’m not surprised you’re such an animal lover.”
“Are you not one? Because this fake relationship will never work if not.”
“I guess I was never really around animals enough to know whether I loved or liked them.”
“No family pets as kids?”
Caroline crossed her arms over her chest and looked around. Her secluded space for celebration was suddenly too small and private. “No, we couldn’t. We weren’t allowed to have pets.” She dropped her arms and clapped her hands together. “What do you want to do now?”
Emma grinned, clearly forgetting their previous topic and moving on. “Pool bar.”
* * *
Caroline never had a real piña colada before. She remembered one of the wine coolers she snuck as a high school freshman was piña colada flavored, but that was as close as she had come. She took another sip from the frosty hurricane glass and smiled. Decidedly, she loved real piña coladas. She dangled her feet back and forth in the clear water surrounding her barstool. Emma had swum off nearly thirty minutes ago and Caroline hadn’t turned once to see where she was. This moment was about the sun, Caroline’s self-care, and the sweetness of coconut and pineapple and rum on her tongue.
A mixture of music filled the air around them. Latin vibes changed to pop music and even some hip-hop. Caroline bopped along to the music, and the easy smile of her red lips never faded. The strong sun had made her lazy and relaxed. The feeling of accomplishment was still in her chest. Even after a disastrous evening the night before and a rough morning, today was shaping up to be very good for Caroline.
“Can I get you another?” the young bartender said. His smile was gorgeous, the dimple on his right cheek peeking out from his trimmed beard.
Caroline looked at her half-empty glass and back to his dark eyes. They sparkled. “This is already my second. I should probably slow down.”
“You’re on vacation, right?”
Tricky question
. “I suppose I am.”
“Then I suppose you should have another drink. If you’d like.”
She took a deep breath through her nose and tilted her head back. The air smelled of chlorine and fruit. Her head felt pleasantly fuzzy. “Okay,” Caroline said with a nod. She smiled at her bartender.
“What’s your name?”
“Oh, the tab is under my room number.”
“I wasn’t asking for your tab. This one’s on the house. I’m Bruce.” He extended his hand.
“Bruce?” Caroline tilted her head before taking his hand and shaking it. “I’m Caroline. I didn’t know anyone was named Bruce anymore.”
“Did you think we all just disappeared?” Bruce laughed and went about making Caroline’s drink.
Caroline giggled. “No, but you’re so young.” She looked Bruce up and down to decide on a fair age estimate. “What are you? Twenty-two?”
He poured the white, slushy drink from the blender into a fresh hurricane glass and picked up a wedge of pineapple for garnish. He slid the freshly prepared drink to Caroline and tucked a small paper umbrella into it. Bruce pointed to the discarded pineapple rinds beside Caroline’s glass. “You like pineapple?” Caroline nodded. He added an extra wedge to her glass.
Caroline had watched his every move.
“I can’t imagine I’m much younger than you, if at all,” Bruce said. “And I’m not about to ask a lady her age.”
“I’m thirty-six,” Caroline blurted out. She drank up the rest of her second piña colada and moved on to the third. She took a wedge of pineapple from the rim of her glass and pulled it between her lips.
Bruce cleared his throat. “Is this your first trip to Florida?”
“Yes.” Caroline chewed the pineapple and was amazed with how they managed to have perfectly ripe fruit at the resort. She should tell Emma to put that in her review. The fruit was so juicy, it ran down her fingers. She captured the juice with her tongue and licked it away.
“Hey,” Emma said as she took the stool next to Caroline. “I was thinking…” Caroline turned to Emma, expecting her to finish her sentence. Instead, she watched Emma’s blue eyes move between her mouth, fingers, and a slack-jawed Bruce. “Hey, buddy, would you mind giving us a minute?”
Bruce turned and walked away.
“His name is Bruce, and he was very nice. He gave me this drink for free.” Caroline wrapped her hands around the full glass in front of her. “He even gave me extra pineapple.”
“Are you drunk?”
Caroline pulled back, aghast. “No. I’m not drunk.”
“You are tipsy, though.”
She held her hand up, forefinger and thumb millimeters apart. “A little bit.”
“When was the last time you drank? Before this trip, I mean. You don’t frequent bars or go out much, and I can’t really picture you having a bar at home. Doesn’t fit the Caroline Beckett I’ve gotten to know.”
Emma’s blond hair was slicked back from swimming, and the water clinging to her exposed cleavage had started to dry. Caroline licked her lips and met Emma’s eyes. “It’s been a while, and you’re right. This Caroline Beckett does neither of those things. Nor has this Caroline Beckett ever had one of these,” she said, swinging her hand toward her drink and nearly knocking it over. She shook her head. Maybe she was a little more than tipsy.
“Okay.” Emma grabbed the glass. “Let me help you with this one.” She started to drink, and Caroline couldn’t stop watching her lips. Emma pulled the straw from her mouth with a pop. “That’s very good. Your boyfriend makes a good piña colada. Not the best I’ve ever had, but very good.”
“Bruce is not my boyfriend.”
Emma waved off the protest. “He was flirting, you were flirting. I’d tell you to get a room if you didn’t already have one you’re sharing with me, your girlfriend.”
“I would never cheat on you.” Caroline was genuinely offended. Fake relationship or not. Caroline turned when she saw movement behind the bar. Bruce froze in front of them.
“Keep moving, buddy.” Emma shooed him away.
“Number one,” Caroline said, raising her index finger. “I’m gay, and as cute as that dimple of his is, no thanks. Which leads me to number two.” Caroline waved her hand at Emma’s chest. “If you were my girlfriend, how could I possibly want anyone else?”
Emma’s cheeks turned redder than the sun-kissed pink they were earlier. “You’re a cute drunk.”
Caroline ducked her head and giggled.
“But I’m cutting you off,” Emma said, taking the drink away and standing up. “You’re saying a lot of things you wouldn’t normally be comfortable saying, and I remember how you felt last time. I don’t want you regretting anything.” Emma licked her lower lip. “Regretting anything else.”
Caroline opened her mouth but closed it right away. She knew Emma was right. Being too chatty was one of the many reasons why she didn’t like to drink. Liquor-loose lips spill secrets. “You’re right.” She sank from her bar stool into the pool. She let her feet slide out from beneath her, and she knelt in the shallow water. She laid her head back and let the water clog her ears. The silence was nice. Emma’s shadow loomed over her. The water drained from her ears as she lifted her head.
“You’re getting very pink. We should grab some snacks and coffee, and head up to the room to sober you up.”
Caroline took the towel Emma offered, wrapping it around herself quickly enough to cover her body. Her bathing suit didn’t reveal much, but she was exposed nonetheless. She tucked the towel under her chin and held it there until Emma came back with the sundress she’d discarded on a lounger.
Emma was silent, her face serious and contemplative as they walked into the resort.
“What were you thinking about?” Caroline said quietly.
“Whether we should make you eat a loaf of bread or if your usual salad would sober you up.” Emma sifted through the contents of the small lobby market’s food section. They had all the junk food you could want, but anything of substance would have to be procured from a restaurant.
“Not what are you thinking, what were you thinking? When we were in the pool, you said you were thinking.” Caroline spotted a colorful bag behind Emma. “I’ll take the barbecue chips.”
Emma handed the bag to Caroline. “I was thinking about the kiss.”
“Oh, we don’t have to talk about that.”
“Yes, we do.”
Caroline held the chip bag up to cover her face. She felt Emma take her wrists gently and encourage her to lower the bag.
“That kiss was very, very nice,” Emma said with a smile and soft eyes. “But we’re here as professionals. I’ve learned a lot from you during the past few days, and I think you’ve made me take my job more seriously.”
“Have I really?”
“Yes.”
“Wow,” Caroline said, completely in awe. Why was her urge to kiss Emma now even stronger than last night?
“Now let’s pay for this junk and get ourselves together.”
“Together for what?”
“First, I want to grab my camera and take some shots of that pool bar we were at. Then we’re going to have dinner at the small taco stand we passed on the bike the other day, and we’re ending our night in Cam’s room.”
Caroline arched her left eyebrow. “Cam’s room?”
“Yeah. You didn’t know this because you were too busy giving Bruce a boner with the way you were licking your fingers, but they invited us back to their room for game night when I saw them in the pool earlier.”
Even if Caroline wanted to argue with Emma, she couldn’t. She thought about giving Bruce a boner and groaned. “The fruit here is very ripe and juicy.”
Emma snickered. “Yeah, it is.”
“You should put that in your review.”
“I’ll consider it.” Emma looked at Caroline with an easy smile.
Caroline smiled back.
Chapter Sixteen
Emma r
ushed toward the elevator. “Please hold the door,” she shouted, overcome with relief when a hand stuck out for her. The bags in her hands were getting heavier by the second. She got on the elevator and smiled at her savior, Sydney. “Thank you.” Emma pushed the button for her floor and waited for Sydney to do the same, but she didn’t. Emma spoke to fill the uncomfortable silence as Sydney stared at her. “We haven’t seen you during group.”
“The whole group scene wasn’t really our thing.”
“I get it. I fought Caroline about it at first, but now I enjoy going. Sometimes I forget how much fun it is to meet new people, you know?”
“I do.” Sydney bit her lower lip and shot Emma a coy smile. “I definitely do.”
Emma had nearly forgotten all about the night at the bar and Sydney’s overt advances, but the vivid memories came back now. Sydney looked picture perfect in a pink bikini and a sheer covering. The elevator stopped and the door opened. “This is me,” Emma said, stepping into the hallway. She took a long, calming breath when Sydney followed.
“Are you going to game night at Cam’s?” Sydney pointed to the bags. “Or is that just for you two?”
Emma held up the bags of beer and liquor. “Game night, yeah. Are you—will you—” Emma looked away with an airy laugh. “Will we see you and Will there?”
Sydney pushed the button to call the elevator again. She looked back at Emma and flipped her long hair over her shoulder. A practiced move. “We’ll be there.”
Emma watched Sydney get on the elevator, and she waited for the doors to close before relaxing. Part of her wanted to skip game night and take Caroline out instead, but she was really looking forward to spending time with Cameron and Barry, and Emma was sure Caroline would benefit from less one-on-one time with her. The tension between them was a top priority. Sydney was not. Emma ducked into the small alcove with an ice and soda machine, pulled out her phone, and dialed Christie.
“What’s wrong?” Christie said by way of greeting. “You never call me when you’re away.”
“I don’t talk to anyone while I’m away.”
