by Elena Aitken
“What?” Jade tried to catch his eye. “What were you going to say? Is there something else?”
He shook his head and forced a smile. “Nope. It’s all good, Jade. How much longer do you think we’re going to be today?” He changed the subject smoothly, but Jade wasn’t falling for it.
“I know what you were going to say.” She sighed. She looked over her shoulder at where Bridget was reading through the script out loud. Jade shook her head and looked back to Cal. “She’s terrible.”
Of course he was thinking it, but the last thing he expected was for Jade to say it. Cal couldn’t help it—he laughed.
“It’s not funny.”
“It’s kind of funny.”
“No,” Jade said, but this time there was a glimmer of a smile. “Whatever it is that she’s doing with her voice is making her sound like a sick frog and she can’t remember her lines for even five minutes. Just between you and me, I don’t know how she was a big star in Australia.”
“It’s because she looks good in a bikini,” Cal said matter-of-factly. “I’m not trying to be an asshole, and I don’t know if you ever watched any of her episodes of Beach Bodies, but she really didn’t have many speaking parts. And the ones she did have weren’t that great.”
Jade dropped her head in defeat. But a moment later, she looked up and straightened her shoulders. “Well, that would explain a few things for sure. But I don’t really have a choice in where we go from here. So I’m going to need to whip her into shape and I would really appreciate your help.”
The last thing Cal wanted to do was help Bridget in any way. But it was Jade who was asking. And she was his sister-in-law, after all. “Okay,” he said. “I can’t promise that I’ll be helpful. But I can promise that I won’t be an asshole.”
“Good enough.” She gave him an impulsive hug. “Now let’s get this done with so we can get out of here at a decent time.”
That was something Cal could definitely get on board with. He had a date with Milena later and he needed the timing to be just right for what he had planned.
The sun was starting to dip low in the sky when Milena and Cal arrived at the Dockside for their date.
“What are we doing here?” Milena squeezed Cal’s hand and something low in his gut tightened. Just having her close made him happy and sparked all kinds of feelings in him. Some of which involved getting her alone. Later.
First, he had a surprise.
“You’ll see.” Cal led her down the dock toward the main office.
“We’re not going for a boat ride, are we?” Obviously she wasn’t the patient type. Cal tried not to laugh. “Because I love boats. My dad still has an old fishing boat. He used to take me out all the time.”
“It’s not a boat.”
“It’s not?”
“No,” Cal said. “Well, not really.”
They walked through the door into the little office and shop where Ian ran the Dockside from. His oldest brother stood behind the counter. “Hey there,” Ian greeted them. “Are you guys ready for this?”
Milena gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. “I might be if he told me what this was.” She shook her head in exasperation but Cal only laughed.
“It seems that someone doesn’t like surprises very much,” he told Ian. “She’s been trying to guess what we’re up to ever since I picked her up. She’s relentless.” Cal dodged to the right as Milena teasingly smacked his arm.
“Well, I think you’re going to like this,” Ian said. “At least, judging from what Cal told me.”
“Okay, enough.” Milena put her hands on her hips and it was so cute that Cal had to resist pulling her close for a kiss. “Tell me what we’re doing.”
“I’ll tell you,” Cal gave in. “But you have to calm down, otherwise you’ll ruin your Zen.” He put his hands in a prayer position and brought them to his chest while making an Om noise.
Milena eyed him suspiciously. “What exactly are you doing?”
He laughed and Ian groaned. “I’m practicing my yoga.”
“Yoga?”
“Yes. That’s your surprise. Remember the day I met you under the gazebo?” It hadn’t been the first time they’d met, but as far as Cal was concerned it was the day their relationship really started.
“I remember.”
“You told me later that you were there because you were supposed to try paddleboard yoga but it got rained out.”
She nodded, but the suspicious look on her face didn’t move.
“And remember when you told me I had to try yoga?”
“Yes…”
Judging by the small smirk that was starting to creep across her face, she was obviously catching on to what he had planned.
“That’s what we’re doing today,” Cal declared. “Ian reserved us two of his best boards.”
“They’re all great.”
Cal ignored him. “We’re going to try paddleboard yoga.”
Milena’s smile was nothing short of stunning. Making her happy was definitely one of Cal’s top three favorite things to do. The other two had a lot to do with making them both happy.
“Seriously?” She laughed. “You’re going to do yoga? On a paddleboard?”
“Of course.” Cal took Milena’s bag for her and handed it to Ian; he’d take care of it. “And I’ve actually been practicing a few moves, too. You’re going to be so impressed.”
She crossed the room, put both her hands on his face and kissed him thoroughly. “I already am.”
Cal jumped up onto the paddleboard the second it hit the water, almost flipping it in the process as he found his balance. Milena laughed, but she was impressed. There was no way she was going to have as much balance as he did. He made everything look so effortless. It would be frustrating if he didn’t look so damn sexy doing it.
“Come on,” Cal called to her. “Let’s do this.”
She looked to Ian, who was crouched on the dock, holding her board in place for her. “Whenever you’re ready.” He smiled encouragingly. “There’s nothing to it, really. You’ll be fine.”
She wasn’t nervous about the board—well, not really. She was definitely nervous about trying to balance in her yoga positions on the board without going for a swim. Either way, she wasn’t going to let it stop her.
Milena was just about to step out onto the board when Cal called to her again. “Leave your top on shore.”
She straightened and stared at him. She was only wearing a sports bra underneath her top. She never exposed her stomach. Ever.
“You’re just going to get wet.”
It was a good point. And he had seen her naked. On more than one occasion. She glanced down at Ian, who shrugged. “It’s true. Even the best paddleboarders get wet. It’s usually good to leave some dry clothes behind to come back to.”
“Good point.” She shrugged. It wasn’t as if she would be totally exposed. She tugged the tank top over her head and handed it to Ian, who held out a hand and helped her step onto the board.
He gave her some brief instructions and handed her the paddle. There wasn’t much to it: stand as strong in your legs as possible and dig the paddle into the water.
She wobbled and almost fell a few times but after a few paddle strokes, she got the hang of it and brought the board up next to Cal’s.
“Good work, sweetheart.”
It made her heart melt a little every time he called her that. She’d never before been with someone who was so affectionate and caring about her feelings. It was nice.
Really nice.
“So what’s the plan? Are you ready for a little downward dog?”
Cal laughed. “Not here. It gets too busy by the dock. Let’s paddle for a bit over to the bay. Besides, I have another surprise for you there.”
“More?”
“Always.”
He stared at her with such intensity she shivered and had to look away. “Well, lead on, Mr. McCormick. I can’t wait to see your moves.”
With
a few strong paddle strokes, Cal quickly shot out in front of her and led them for a few minutes to a bay just far enough from the main beach that tourists didn’t usually visit. There were a few people on the beach, probably locals, but it didn’t matter to Milena anyway, because they were far enough out for it to still be private. There was no one swimming or on the raft tied out in the water. They wouldn’t be disturbed while Cal tried to impress her with his moves.
They left their paddles on the raft so they wouldn’t get in the way. Milena was just about to bend down into a downward dog position when Cal stopped her.
“I have a full flow prepared.”
“A flow?”
He nodded smugly. “I don’t just haphazardly plan these dates, you know? There’s research involved.”
“Oh, I’m sure there is.” She shook her head and tried not to laugh.
“First things first.” Cal pressed his hands into a prayer position and bowed to her. Milena followed suit.
“Now raise your hands to the sun and fold from the waist,” Cal continued.
She did, almost losing her balance as she did so.
“Press your palms to the board and step back.”
To her surprise, Cal made it look easy. But Milena was practiced. She followed his instructions and moved into plank before dropping to the board and raising her head up into the cobra position.
After a few moments, it got easier to balance and flow through her movements. Milena forgot about the fact they were on the water and just let herself fall into the familiar blissfulness of the yoga practice.
Every once in a while, she would be pulled from her concentration by Cal doing something goofy or calling out a new move by some completely ridiculous name.
“Now let’s do mighty oak.”
Milena laughed and tried not to rock her board. “You mean, tree pose.”
“Sure.” Cal winked and pulled his foot up onto his leg in the pose. The board rocked violently, but before it could tip over, knocking him into the water, he dropped both his feet and crouched to regain his balance. “That was close.”
“What’s wrong?” she teased. “You don’t have enough balance, Mr. Yogi?”
“This is hard,” he finally admitted.
“Whatever. You make it look easy.” Milena had been practicing yoga for a few years now, and she still struggled with a lot of the positions. Of course, there was always the guy who made it look easy. And she was dating that guy. She shook her head, but it didn’t bother her. Not really. Tree was one of her favorite poses and she was determined to at least give it a try.
With a deep inhale, she brought her arms over her head. She centered herself on her exhale and on her next breath in, brought her right foot up to the inside of her left thigh. She squeezed her eyes shut so she could focus on the pose. When she finally felt strong and stable, she opened her eyes and focused her gaze forward.
“Damn, girl.” Cal stared at her with open admiration on his face. “You’re the one who makes it look easy.”
She answered in the form of a smile but didn’t break her concentration. Milena kept her gaze facing forward, toward the shore, but she could hear Cal paddling around her. Still she didn’t look, but let herself sink deeper into the pose.
“Umm…I don’t think I’ve ever seen a sexier tree.” Cal’s voice came from just behind and beside her but Milena couldn’t see him. His words shook her a bit, but she held firm. “In fact, I think I’d like to run my hands up that tree trunk and slide my fingers over those delicious-looking apples.”
Milena couldn’t help it. She burst out laughing, lost her balance and the next thing she knew was falling ass over teakettle into the lake. A moment later, she surfaced with a sputter, still laughing. She grabbed onto the board, slicked her hair back out of her face and looked at Cal, who still stood on his board, a grin on his face, his desire more than evident in his shorts.
“I think someone could use some cooling off,” she said.
“You think so?” Cal shrugged. “I don’t know—I was just getting started.”
“With my trunk and apples? I think you should work on your metaphors.” Milena laughed, kicked hard and dove under the board, popping up next to his. She grabbed on to it, and with a strong flip, sent Cal flying into the water.
It was clear when he surfaced that he hadn’t expected that from her. But it only took him moments to recover before the chase was on. Cal was a strong swimmer, but so was Milena. She was pretty confident that even if she couldn’t outswim him, she could definitely hold her own. If she wanted to.
She didn’t.
Cal caught her easily and wrapped his arms around her, pressing his body up against hers, and they both kicked to keep themselves afloat. “I’ve got you.”
“There’s no place I’d rather be.” She turned in his arms and kissed him hard.
They definitely had a thing for water. Some of their sexiest moments had been in the water, and the lake was no different. Only this time they had to work at keeping themselves afloat at the same time. After a few moments, it was Cal who pulled back and reached for a board. “Come on. This date is far from over.”
Chapter Eight
The tent, tucked away on the shore, was the perfect way to continue the date.
Cal made a mental note to do something nice for Declan as a thank-you. He’d been complaining about how the cabin, and how even Mitch’s house, was starting to get too crowded and he wanted a place to be alone with Milena, even for one night. It had been Declan who’d come up with the camping idea. Although Cal had never been a huge camper, he had to admit, it was perfect.
Laying snuggled up on top of a pile of sleeping bags with Milena in his arms while they looked at the stars starting to appear through the top of the tent was pretty much as close to perfection as he could hope to achieve. He pulled her closer and let his fingers trail over her arm. “I hope this is okay.” They’d already eaten the picnic dinner he’d had prepared by Jax Carver and were still sipping on the bottle of wine, but mostly they were enjoying each other’s company.
It was easy, simple, and perfect.
Milena turned over and propped herself up on one elbow. “Cal, this is the best date I’ve ever been on. Thank you.”
It was a pretty awesome date, but even so, had Milena really never been spoiled before? She deserved to be spoiled and treated to the very best of everything. He told her as much.
“I want to give you everything, Milena. All the dates. All the fancy dinners, the restaurants, the vacations, the—”
“I don’t need all that.” She stopped him with a finger to his lips. “I just need this. Just you.”
Her words hit him in the gut. Never before had he felt this way with a woman. “You have me.”
“Good.” She rolled to her back again and tried to snuggle in, but he still had questions he wanted to ask her. It was Cal’s turn to roll up on one elbow and examine her.
“Tell me about your past relationship.” She flinched a little, and maybe he shouldn’t have asked so abruptly. But he wanted to know everything about her, and the very little she’d said about her ex had given him the impression it hadn’t been a great relationship. “You know about Bridget,” he added when she still didn’t say anything.
Milena laughed. “That’s different. Everyone knows about you and Bridget. Even the parts that aren’t true.”
Cal knew she was referring to the magazine article and the pictures that had run in that stupid gossip rag. He’d hoped they would pick up on the pictures of him and Milena at the party, and tell the real story. Of course, that was a misguided hope because the real story wasn’t sensational enough. But that was fine with him. As long as Milena knew they were solid, he didn’t need Stars Secrets magazine to tell the truth. It wasn’t about that.
He reached over and threaded his fingers through hers. “You know how I feel about you, right?”
She nodded and dipped her head to hide her smile.
But she didn’t know
how he felt. Not really. Because he hadn’t found the right time to tell her that he was pretty sure he was falling in love with her. It was happening so fast, but he didn’t care. He just didn’t want to scare her away. So he’d wait for the right moment.
Until then, Cal was going to make his mission to learn everything there was to learn about Milena Hill.
He squeezed her hand.
“I know,” she said. “And I told you I’m not worried about that article. And I’m not worried about Bridget.” Milena shimmied herself closer to him and kissed his cheek. “I believe you when you tell me it’s over between the two of you. I trust you.”
The love in his chest swelled for her. Damn, this woman.
“I’m glad.” He lifted her hand and kissed the top of it. “But I still want you to tell me about Michael.” That was all he really knew. His name.
Her smile dimmed, but she didn’t pull away. “Okay,” she said. “But you need to know that I’m not the same person that I was when I was with Michael. In part, maybe a big part, my relationship with Michael is what gave me the courage to be who I am today. I’m proud of who I am now, but I can tell you, I’m not proud of who I was.”
Cal wanted to interrupt her and tell her how proud she should be of every part of herself, including her history, but he stayed silent.
“When we started dating, Michael was super attentive and sweet,” she continued. “He made me feel good. But not really good about myself. Just good that he was with me. I was young, only eighteen and just finishing high school, and he was older. I felt pretty cool to be with an older man, and it’s not like I had any experience with other men. I was always the chubby friend who tagged along on dates and never had a date of my own. So when Michael started giving me attention, it felt really good.
“I think I got sucked into a relationship with him because of that. Maybe if I’d had more experience, or had more self-esteem, I wouldn’t have settled for him. And that’s what it was. Settling. I knew it too, and I think that’s why I don’t like the person I was back then. I knew I deserved more, and for too long, I let myself stay in a relationship that was just wrong.”
