Too Much Love to Hide (Summer Lake Seasons Book 2)

by SJ McCoy

  He rolled his eyes. “If you say so.”

  Her eyes twinkled, she loved teasing him. “I say so. All soft and sweet.”

  He narrowed his eyes and took hold of her hand, bringing it rest on his crotch. “Not all soft.” Just the feel of her hand covering him had him rock hard again.

  Her eyes widened in surprise. “I thought he’d be worn out after today.”

  Zack chuckled. “So did I, but he needs to prove to you that he’s not soft.”

  “Well, I’d better take him to bed and see what he has to tell me.”

  Zack frowned. He hadn’t thought this out. Of course, he wanted to take her to bed again, but they needed to talk about what they were going to do—tonight and tomorrow.

  Her smile faded. “You don’t want to?”

  “You know I do, but let’s talk about it first. If we want to keep what we’re doing a secret, then I don’t think my truck should be parked outside your house all night, do you?”

  “Oh! No, of course not.”

  “And what time do you have to go to work in the morning?”

  “I usually leave here around nine, but I can go later. The store doesn’t open until ten.”

  He nodded. “And what time do you finish?”

  “Six.”

  “How would you feel about your car breaking down?”

  She frowned. “I’d be screwed.”

  He couldn’t help it. He landed a kiss on her lips. “That’s what I’m aiming for. What I mean about your car, though, is that if it’s out of action then you’re going to need a ride to work and home again, until it’s fixed, right?”

  A smile spread across her face as she understood what he was getting at. “Yes, please.”

  “Okay, so your car just broke down. That will give me an excuse to spend time with you every morning and every evening this week, and since we’re doing that, it wouldn’t be unreasonable for us to maybe have a dinner together one night—since we’re such good friends.” He smiled. “Maybe you’re buying me dinner to say thank you for all the rides.”

  She nodded. “That sounds like something I would do.”

  “But it doesn’t help us out tonight.”

  “You’re right. Your truck has been outside all day. I didn’t even think about that. But I don’t want you to go. I want you to stay with me, or I’ll stay with you.”

  Zack thought about it. “You need to get ready for work in the morning.”

  She shrugged. “I can bring what I need with me and get ready at your place.”

  He smiled, glad that she was looking for solutions rather than problems. “Always the positive peanut, right?”

  She slapped his arm with a laugh. “I don’t think I like that.”

  He held his hands up. “I mean it in the nicest possible way. It’s supposed to be a compliment.”

  She pursed her lips. “Okay. I might let you off, as long as you figure out how we get to spend the night together.” She stopped and looked up at him. “Does that make me sound terrible?”

  “No. It makes me happy that you want to—and that you’re comfortable enough to say so.”

  She relaxed. “That’s right. That’s what it is. It’s just because I’m so comfortable with you. I wouldn’t be like this with some other guy. I don’t want you to think that.”

  Zack clenched his jaw. He didn’t want to think of her with some other guy at all, let alone think about how willing and eager she might be to spend the night with him. “I don’t. We’ve been friends for long enough that we don’t need to be coy. I want to spend the night with you, you want to spend it with me. All we need to do is figure out how to make it happen without anyone knowing about it.”

  “Well, the way I see it, I could come with you in your truck and stay at your place.”

  “Or, I could take my truck home and walk back here. So that it looks like I’m home.”

  Maria smiled. “And maybe leave a landing light on to make it look like you’re there?”

  “I could.” He was glad she was getting into the idea of what they needed to do. Even though she seemed to be treating it as a game, at least she was going along with it. “I think I’ll do that. I’ll take the truck now and then come straight back.”

  “I’ll leave the backdoor unlocked so you can some straight in.”

  “That’s a good idea. I’ll just come around there and let myself in.”

  She nodded happily. “Maybe I’ll be waiting in the kitchen for a repeat performance.”

  He raised an eyebrow at her and smiled. “Maybe I want to take you upstairs for something new and different?”

  Her eyes widened. “Ooh! I’m in, either way.”

  Chapter Nine

  Maria looked over at Zack as he pulled the truck out of her driveway the next morning. “Thank you.”

  He smiled at her. “What for?”

  She shrugged. “For staying with me last night. For finally opening up to me. For everything.”

  “I’m the one who should be thanking you. For being so understanding about the situation I’m in, for still being open to this after I treated you as just a friend for all this time. Especially, for not meeting someone else while I was hiding how I felt. Every time I fly back in here, I’m scared that I’m going to hear that you started seeing someone.”

  She reached across and took hold of his hand. “There was no danger of that happening. I was too busy crushing on you. And since I’m such a positive peanut, I never stopped hoping that one day something might happen between us.”

  He squeezed her hand. “I’m glad you had enough faith for both of us. I spent half the time telling myself that nothing could happen and the other half hoping that you wouldn’t meet someone else.”

  “Well, all that’s behind us now. Now, we get to find out what’s ahead of us.”

  His brows came down and for a moment, she panicked. Was he thinking that there wasn’t anything ahead of them? That they’d already done what he wanted—slept together—and that was it? No. She forced herself to breathe deeply. That was a stupid idea and she knew it. He didn’t just want to sleep with her. He liked her, he cared about her. He’d already said plenty of things that indicated he wanted them to have a real relationship.

  Instead of letting herself get carried away worrying, it was better to just ask him. “Why does that bother you?”

  He glanced over at her. “Because I dread what might be ahead of us. I won’t be able to relax and really look forward to the future until …” He shook his head. “I still don’t think I should tell you about it.”

  She nodded. “That’s up to you. I trust your judgment. But once that’s all taken care of …” She stopped herself before she asked the question that might seem like she was getting ahead of herself.

  He smiled and answered it anyway. “Yes. I do want to see what’s ahead for us. I’m very hopeful about what’s ahead for us—and I’d like it to last a very, very long time.”

  Her heart raced happily. She would too.

  She looked out the window when Zack came to a halt at the red light on the end of Main Street. The guy in the truck beside them turned at the same time and grinned. It was Logan. He rolled his window down and gestured for her to do the same.

  “Morning guys! You two are out and about early.” He raised his eyebrows. “Or are you on the way home?”

  Maria laughed. “We’re not all alley cats like you, Logan. Zack’s a gentleman. He’s giving me a ride to work because my car broke down.”

  Logan cocked his head to one side. “I can take you. I’m on my way over to Four Mile.” He leaned forward to look past her at Zack. “There’s no need to go all that way out of your way, bro.” He grinned at Maria. “I’ll be happy to give her a ride.”

  Maria’s heart raced. She could feel Zack’s agitation beside her. There was no way she was getting out of his truck to get in with Logan—even though it was nice of him to offer and would make much more sense. She turned to look at Zack. He leaned forward to smile a
t Logan. “Thanks bud, I wish I’d known you were going over there, but I said I’d stop in and see Roxy while I’m there anyway.”

  Logan shrugged. “Okay. But remember you can’t hog all the hot chicks.” He winked at Maria. “Next time you want a ride you come see me.”

  She rolled her eyes at him. “Not going to happen, Logan.” She was glad when the light changed, and Zack pulled away. He pressed the button and the window rolled back up.

  “That’s all we need.” Zack looked irritated.

  “It’s not a problem. I don’t know why he’s going in so late today, but he’s usually over there by seven and doesn’t leave till late.”

  She smiled to herself as she noticed his jaw clench tight.

  “The only reason I know that is because he was giving Angel a ride every morning when her arm was in a cast. I don’t pay attention to his comings and goings as a matter of course.”

  He smiled through pursed lips. “I really am a jealous asshole, aren’t I?”

  “Not an asshole, no. But don’t go getting jealous, okay? If I wanted to see someone else, I would have. I’ve told you before, I only had eyes for the tall, dark, handsome mystery man who kept me in the friend zone.”

  He smiled and reached over to rest his hand on her thigh. “You’re not in the friend zone anymore.”

  She laughed. “I know. I’m now firmly in the fuck zone.”

  To her surprise, he didn’t laugh with her. “No. That makes it sound cheap. That’s not what you are to me. You’re more than that, much more than that.”

  She’d only been joking and was surprised by how seriously he’d taken it. “What zone am I in now, then?” she asked, trying to lighten things back up.

  “You’re in the girlfriend zone—if you want to be.”

  That put the smile back on her face. “I want to be.”

  ~ ~ ~

  Zack couldn’t believe how quickly the week flew by. Usually, his time off here in Summer Lake dragged a little. Not this week. He and Maria quickly fell into an easy routine. He spent his nights at her place. And in the morning, he ran back to his house to get his truck and drove over to pick her up. In the evenings he went to the store in the plaza at Four Mile to collect her and bring her home. On Monday he’d pretended to drop her off then gone and left his truck at home and walked back to her place. And that had become the routine.

  Now it was Thursday. The week was almost over. He’d dropped her off at work this morning and brought himself to the Boathouse for a late breakfast.

  He smiled when he saw Adam, Clay’s security guy, sitting at the bar sipping a coffee.

  “Morning.”

  “Hey, Adam. How’s it going?”

  Adam smiled. “It’s going well. Has Clay told you about the change of plans yet?”

  “No.” Zack’s heart sank. He loved his job flying for Clay, and up until this week, he’d enjoyed the uncertainty of it. There was always a chance that Clay would call in the morning and say he needed to go somewhere that day. It had suited Zack well to not have a fixed schedule or location. Now he could only hope that Clay hadn’t decided he needed to go back to Nashville today instead of on Monday.

  Adam grinned. “Don’t look like that. He’s decided he’d going to stay another couple of weeks. You’ll still have to go to Nashville on Monday, but it’ll just be a quick turnaround. You’ll be picking Autumn up and bringing her back here.”

  Zack smiled. “Okay.”

  Adam cocked his head to one side. “Does that suit you? I never know with you. I know Luke wants to spend as much time as he can here because of Angel, but you don’t have anyone here. I thought maybe you’d be happier in Nashville. There’s more to do—more opportunities.”

  Zack bristled at his statement that he didn’t have anyone here. His first instinct was to set him straight and tell him that he did have someone, but he forced himself to bite it back. It was good that Adam had no clue. “I enjoy spending time here. I have good friends here.”

  Adam nodded and gave him a puzzled look. “Is there a girl?”

  It chafed to have to say no. He didn’t like to lie, but more than that, he didn’t want to deny that he was with Maria. He wanted the whole world to know that somehow, he’d gotten lucky enough that the curvy, upbeat, beautiful Maria was interested in him. That she was sleeping with him every night, and that she was happy for him to call her his girlfriend—even if he couldn’t say it in public. He shook his head.

  Adam gave him a rueful smile. “I know the feeling. With jobs like ours, it’s difficult, right?”

  “Right.”

  He turned when the door opened, and two girls came in. They both had shoulder- length hair—one blonde, one brunette—but despite their different coloring, it was obvious they were sisters.

  “Nice.”

  He turned to look at Adam and raised an eyebrow.

  “I meant for you, not for me. They’re a bit young for me, but just when you were lamenting that you don’t have a girl, those two walk in. You should go say hi … it might be fate.”

  Zack shook his head. “Nah. I’m not interested. I’m just here to eat.” He made his way to a corner booth and picked up the menu.

  The girls sat down just across from him. They were attractive, he could see that, but they did nothing for him. He only had eyes for a short, curvy, dark-haired beauty, who … he checked his watch … he’d be able to see again in another seven hours.

  He watched as Austin came in through the doors and looked around. He smiled when he spotted the girls and came straight to them.

  “Hi, ladies. What’s the news on Lenny?”

  “She’s doing well, thanks. I’ve just come back from the hospital. She’s eager to get home and said she’d rather I was here getting things ready than sitting around there staring at her.”

  Austin chuckled. “That’s good. It sounds like she’s getting back to normal.”

  Zack watched Austin curiously. These were obviously Lenny’s granddaughters who Logan had been teasing him about at the weekend. He’d thought it was probably just Logan joking around as he did but seeing the way Austin’s ears had turned red and the way he shifted from one foot to the other whenever the blonde sister looked at him, there might be something in it.

  “She is doing much better, but I want her to stay at home for a while. She’s talking about getting straight back to work, and we can’t let her do that,” said the blonde.

  “No. She’s going to need to rest up for a while,” agreed Austin. “Is she going to come and stay at the house with you?”

  “That’s what we’d hoped,” said the darker haired of the two, “but she insists she wants to go home. “I guess we’ll have to take turns to stay with her and work the post office.”

  “Well, there are plenty of folks in town who’ll be happy to pitch in and lend a hand. Your grandmother is well-liked and respected. Don’t hesitate to ask if you need any help, will you?”

  They both smiled at him.

  Zack felt bad for eavesdropping, but he was curious whether Austin was here on business or just to check in with the girls. He knew Nadia would not be pleased if it were the latter. He coughed. It was only fair to let Austin know that he was there.

  Austin turned and looked guilty as hell when he saw Zack. He recovered quickly, but not before he’d confirmed Zack’s suspicion that he was interested in the fairer sister.

  “Oh. Hey, Zack. I didn’t see you there.” Austin smiled. “I should introduce you. This is Zack Aguila, he’s a friend and part-time Summer Lake resident. Zack, this is Amber and Jade Kerrigan. They’re Lenny’s granddaughters.”

  Zack smiled at them. “Nice to meet you ladies. I hope your grandma is feeling better?”

  “She is, thank you. We’re expecting to get her home tomorrow,” the blonde, whom he now knew was Amber, gave him a friendly smile.

  Jade arched an eyebrow at him. “How come you’re only a part-time resident here?”

  Zack stared at her for a moment, a little
taken aback by such a forthright question. He wasn’t used to answering direct questions about himself. He was a private person by nature, not just because his circumstances required it. Added to that, he didn’t like to advertise that he flew for Clay McAdam. He respected Clay’s right to privacy as much as his own.

  Austin chuckled to cover the awkward silence that was developing. “Zack’s a pilot. He graces us with his presence every so often.”

  Zack smiled and nodded and looked up gratefully as the server hurried toward him brandishing a coffee-pot. “Hi, sorry to keep you waiting. Do you want a coffee to get you started?”

  “That’d be great, thanks.” He smiled at Austin and the girls. “It was nice to meet you,” he told them and then returned his attention to studying the menu. Hoping they’d take the hint that as far as he was concerned, the conversation was over. Austin might be happy to chat with them and not be concerned about what his girlfriend might think, but Zack had no interest in any female other than the one he couldn’t even say was his girlfriend.

  He was relieved to see Luke walk in. He hadn’t talked to him much this week. He raised a hand when Luke looked around, then he thought better of it and got to his feet, taking his coffee and his menu with him. He’d rather go and sit somewhere else where he and Luke could catch up and talk freely without those girls—especially the dark-haired one being able to listen in.

  “Hey, bro. What are you doing here?” asked Luke.

  “I could ask you the same thing.”

  Luke shrugged. “I’m going out of my mind. I’ve done everything I can think of at the house—I even cleaned behind the fridge.”

  Zack laughed. “Damn, it must be bad.”

  Luke nodded. “I love being back here, but it sucks being at a loose end all day while Angel’s working and only getting to see her in the evening.”

  “Tell me about it.” Zack wished he could take the words back as soon as they were out.

  Luke gave him a puzzled look. “Are you going to eat? Do you want to grab a booth and you can tell me what you mean by that? Though I think I can probably guess.”