Seventeen
Rachael had been acting strangely all day. Merrick had called just before they’d gone back to the hotel with his aunt and her perfectly annoying family to have lunch, and Rachael disappeared before they even ate.
Now she was jittery and kept looking up in the sky like she expected someone to drop down out of it at any moment.
The sun was setting, throwing an orange glare into his eyes.
“MJ, come make a wish.” Holly sat on the edge of the fountain holding a penny out to him. “The mermaid grants all wishes. Rachael said so.”
“Did she?” He scooted his chair out from the patio table and sauntered over to the fountain. “Thanks.” She dropped the penny in his hand, and MJ closed his fingers around it, but didn’t know what to wish for.
“You have to blow on it before you throw it in,” Sam said, swirling his hand through the water.
He wished his dad…
He wished Maddie…
He took a deep breath and blew on the penny sitting in his palm. He wished for once in his life he’d find somewhere to belong.
The coin plunked down into the water and sunk to the bottom, and that was when he heard it. The whomp, whomp, whomp of helicopter blades.
Sam and Holly shot to their feet, shielding their eyes with their hands to watch it fly over the hotel. “Is Uncle Merrick back?”
“No,” Rachael said from where she sat at the table with Heidi and Roger. “It’s a friend of mine and MJ’s.” She gave him a pointed look.
No. It couldn’t be.
Still, his stomach tightened in anticipation. Rachael stood and tipped her head toward the shelter beside the tree line where a few golf carts sat. “Why don’t you ride to the landing pad with me?”
His heart lunged forward, but his feet stayed rooted to the patio. Maddie was going to murder him first and ask questions later.
Sam reached out with his foot and pushed the back of MJ’s leg making his knee pop. MJ jolted forward and darted a look back at the two kids who were now laughing like cracked-out monkeys.
Hell, if he stayed here, he’d probably end up getting wrestled into the fountain by his crazy little cousins. “Yeah, I’m coming.”
He followed Rachael across the lawn and slid into the passenger side of the first golf cart. She turned the key and pulled out from under the awning. “What’s going on with you and Maddie?” she asked.
“Nothing.” It might not have been entirely true, but it wasn’t exactly a lie either.
“MJ,” Rachael put a hand on his arm, “Merrick told me you took her engagement ring. Something’s going on.”
“Maddie told him? It’s…” He bounced his knee and tapped his fingertips together. “We used to be together, okay? Now we’re not. That’s it.”
She put her hand back on the wheel to navigate a curve in the path. “So, you’re not a believer in second chances?”
He bobbed his knee up and down. “It’s not about chances anymore.”
“You took her ring for a reason. You want her to come to you. She’s here. What are you going to do?”
MJ pounded his fist on his leg. “Hell, I don’t know. This wasn’t exactly a well thought out plan. I just took it, okay?”
Rachael swerved around a corner, leaning into him. “If you love her, don’t write her off without knowing how she feels.”
He held up his hands. “Don’t start preaching to me about something you know nothing about.”
His thought trailed off as they arrived at the landing sight. The black copter glinted with reflected sunlight, its blades rotating slowly.
Beck and Maddie rounded the side of the helicopter, his hand pushing the top of her head down, protectively. Her wild dark hair blew out around her, and he swore he could see those piercing blue eyes from all the way across the field.
He couldn’t deny the rush of warmth in his chest, the dreamy, gooey feeling flowing through his brain. He was gone over her.
Completely and helplessly gone.
Rachael had hopped out and was waving a hand over her head. He followed suit and stood, straightening his shorts for a distraction.
As they neared, he couldn’t help but stare at Maddie’s long, tan legs and let his mind wander back to when he had them around his waist as he pinned her against the wall in the stairway. He had to close his eyes for a moment and gather his senses before he went totally insane… and hard thinking about it.
“Hi!” Rachael called.
Beck took his hand from the top of Maddie’s head, and they both waved. Her smile faltered for only a second as her eyes locked with MJ’s, and she saw right inside him. He felt her there, just like always.
He was so transparent to her.
She gave Rachael a hug. “Thanks for letting me come and sending Beck to get me.”
“Anytime! You’re welcome here whenever you want to come.”
Beck whacked MJ on the back and leaned in to whisper in his ear. “Lucky for you I’m taken.”
MJ bristled. What was with this guy? Every time he opened his mouth, MJ got the urge to smash his face in.
Maddie took slow, deliberate steps toward MJ, her eyes hard enough to cut glass.
He didn’t know what to do with his hands. He wanted to reach out and pull her to him, but couldn’t, so they just hung like dead fish against his legs.
“Give me my ring so Beck can take me back.”
He leaned in close, drilling his eyes into hers. “Tell me why you left and I’ll give it back.”
Her eyebrow quirked. “Give. It. To. Me. Now.”
He stood straight and smiled. “Those aren’t the magic words.”
Maddie lunged forward and shoved him as hard as she could, which only made him take half a step back. “Give it to me!”
MJ laughed. “We’re not little kids anymore, Mads. You can’t yell and push me around to get what you want.”
She fisted her hands, jabbed them to her hips and MJ swore it sounded like she growled at him. “I’m trying so hard not to kill you right now,” she said.
The lethal tone of her voice made MJ cringe a little.
“Are we going to stand out here all afternoon, or can we go back to the hotel?” Beck asked. “I’m starving.” He tossed Maddie’s suitcase in the golf cart and got behind the wheel. “Bus is leaving. If you want a ride, get in. If not, you’re walking back.”
Rachael climbed in the front passenger’s seat and left MJ and Maddie to hop in the back. She folded her arms and angled her knees away from him.
As the cart bumped down the path, he couldn’t help watching her from the corner of his eyes. He could sense her excitement in the way her fingers tapped against the seat beside him and from the way she darted her eyes from side to side. Her breath came in short bursts and she smiled despite her anger.
“It’s beautiful,” she said, gazing around at the lilies and water. “I can’t wait to see the hotel.”
“It’s great,” MJ said, then looked down and coughed.
“I wasn’t talking to you,” she said, but she relaxed against the seat and shifted her body, not toward him, but at least not away either. “It smells good, like flowers and warm grass,” she said, turning to look at him. “Like back at the lake.” Her eyes widened. He was surprised how easily she fell back into talking about their past. Apparently, it surprised her, too.
“It does smell like back at the lake.” He wanted this ease with Maddie. He’d missed it. He’d missed her, for so, so long.
She smiled, and her eyes glassed over. She blinked a few times and turned away. He wondered if she was crying. He wanted to tell her he was sorry for treating her the way he had.
Maddie dared a sideways glance and met his eyes. They held for a long moment, then she looked away. “Why didn’t you tell me you were leaving to come here?” she whispered.
“I just…” He didn’t know what to say. Instead, he rested his hand on her thigh and squeezed gently.
Maddie sucked her lips in, and a tear slipped down her cheek as she lowered her head to his shoulder. He took a careful breath and held it, not wanting to break the trance they were in—the bubble of Turtle Tear where they could pretend nothing had ever come between them. Gingerly, he lowered his cheek against her hair and felt its soft, silkiness press against his face.
She was shaking and even though he didn’t know what the future held for them, he put his arm around her shoulders. “Don’t cry,” he whispered.
What did he tell Rachael about chances?
He had no willpower when it came to Maddie. He had to have her back. No other man could have her. She was his and always had been.
As they reached the hotel, the aroma of grilled steak and chicken filled the air. MJ’s stomach growled, making Maddie laugh. “It smells incredible,” she said, brushing her fingers under her eyes. He could barely tell she’d shed a tear.
The four of them left the cart under the awning and made their way across the lawn to the hotel. “Wow.” Maddie’s eyes wandered, taking in the exposed beams, tile roof and mosaic patio.
“Pretty nice, huh?” His hand brushed against hers, and he fought the urge to grasp her fingers and thread his own between them. His mind couldn’t keep up with the constant push and pull of their relationship, and his heart just wanted to give in.
“I’ll send someone out to bring your suitcase in,” Rachael told Maddie. “Sit down and relax. I’ll bring you a drink.”
“Is that Maddie?” Heidi jumped up and scurried over to them, embracing Maddie in a quick hug. “I haven’t seen you for such a long time. How’ve you been?”
Maddie beamed. Heidi had been like an older sister to her when they were growing up. Whenever Maddie wasn’t with MJ, he knew he’d find her with Heidi. “Good! How are you? Look how the kids have grown!”
MJ’s grandfather had always made sure his cousins came to visit when he was away at school. Maddie got to know them, but he never did.
He stood there while they chatted, wondering if he should sit down or wait for them to finish their catch-up session. Rachael and Beck went inside. Maybe he’d go in, too, and help get drinks.
One step toward the door and Maddie caught his arm, breaking off her conversation with Heidi. “Show me around inside?”
He had a powerful urge to take her up to his room and show her a lot of things. “Sure.”
She kept her hand on his arm as they strolled through the door into the lounge. “This is where guests would hang out,” he said, sounding stupid, but it wasn’t like he was a Turtle Tear expert.
“Are Rachael and your… is Rachael going to open it to the public?” She held on a little tighter, like she was afraid her almost slip of mentioning the D-word would make him pull away. MJ hated putting her on edge like this, making her feel like she was on eggshells around him. It had never been this way between them.
It wasn’t his fault they were apart, and he wouldn’t feel guilty for the strain in their relationship. What did she think would happen when she left?
The mental tug-of-war was killing him.
Was there something wrong with him that he couldn’t let go of the anger? He hated the grudge he kept between them, like a big box packed with memories he held pressed between his chest and hers, keeping them apart.
If he’d packed their memories away in that box, why couldn’t he move on?
“MJ?” Maddie tilted her head looking up at him with curiosity, probably wondering where she’d lost him.
“Sorry.” He rubbed the back of his head. “I’m not sure what Rachael’s plans are.”
He led her down the hallway to the grand entryway. She spun in half a circle, gazing up at the mural-covered walls and high, beamed ceiling, still hanging on to him. “This is amazing.”
He loved the way her eyes lit up as they darted around trying to take in as much as they could. He loved the look of awe on her face, and the clean, soapy scent of her hair as it swung toward him. He loved her, even if he didn’t want to.
He did want to.
More than anything.
Rachael’s laughter made MJ and Maddie turn their heads toward the kitchen.
“I’m telling you,” Beck said, out of sight, talking to Rachael, “he’s gone over that chick. He’s trying to play it cool, but Junior can’t hide how p-ssy-whipped he is.”
Son of a bitch. MJ was going to kick that guy’s ass.
Beck and Rachael, who was flushed from laughing at Beck’s comment, stopped abruptly under the large archway separating the entryway from the kitchen. MJ met Beck’s eyes, and Beck couldn’t possibly miss how pissed he was.
Beck smirked and lifted his chin.
Rachael glanced from one to the other, then stepped between them, breaking the tension. “Here’s your drink, Maddie.” She handed Maddie a tall glass filled with something clear, a lime wedge stuck on the rim. “Dinner’s almost ready. I’m starving. Let’s go back out and sit down.”
“Good idea,” Maddie said, steering MJ back down the hallway by his arm. “Are you okay?” she whispered in his ear.
“That guy’s an ass,” he whispered back, his nose brushing her cheek. He wanted to keep it there and nuzzle her neck.
She stifled a laugh by putting her fingers to her lips.
“What’s so funny?”
She glanced up at him smiling her beautiful Maddie smile. “You.” She squeezed his arm, pressing her chest against him in a hug.
They pulled two round patio tables together, and MJ held a chair out for Maddie to sit. The chef, Carlos, brought out baskets of tortilla chips, strips of steak and chicken sizzling on cast-iron skillets, and painted ceramic bowls filled with grilled peppers and onions, guacamole, shredded cheese and every topping a person could want on a fajita.
As they ate, Maddie’s thigh rested against his. Once she reached for the salsa and her breast brushed his arm. He wanted to pull her body against his and keep her there for the rest of the evening. All through the night.
“How’s your father, Maddie?” Heidi asked between bites. “It’s been too long since I’ve visited.”
Maddie drew the tines of her fork through her rice, contemplating something. It wasn’t the first time MJ wished he could read her mind. He put his hand on her knee, and she flinched at his unexpected touch.
“He’s good,” she said. “I wish I could spend more time with him. Wish he’d retire.”
Heidi took a sip of her water. “I don’t know what my father would ever do without him. Those two are like Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson.”
“More like Jekyll and Hyde,” MJ muttered and shoved a chip in his mouth.
Beside MJ, Rachael let out a small laugh that she tried to hide with a cough. Across from him, Roger scooted his chair back and joggled his empty beer bottle back and forth. “I’m going in for another. Anyone need anything?”
Rachael jolted up from her seat. “I’ll get it for you. I should’ve kept the staff here for the entire week.”
Roger waved a hand. “No, no. I’ve got it. Sit and relax. Enjoy your dinner.”
MJ wondered what Beck and Joan’s job descriptions were. Obviously not the waitstaff.
“I’m stuffed,” Maddie said, tossing her linen napkin on the table. “I need to go for a walk or something.”
Rachael glanced over from MJ to Maddie. “Neither of you have seen the entire island. Let me grab something. I’ll be right back.”
MJ watched Rachael dash into the hotel. In less than a minute she was back and handing him a key. “You go with her,” she told him. “She shouldn’t be out walking alone. Gators come out at night.”
He wasn’t sure if he should believe Rachael or not, but then he didn’t want to risk Maddie becoming gator food. Not that he could fight one off if it came after them. “Okay. What’s with the key?”
“There’s a little house that way.” She pointed over his shoulder. “You’ll know it when you see it. Merrick built it for me. It’s incredible. You have to see it.” The corners of her mouth turned up into a sly smile as her eyes darted between him and Maddie.
MJ didn’t know why, but he had the distinct impression Rachael was up to something.