A woman walking her dog past the cottages turns to us, her eyebrows low in judgment.
“Don’t ever come at me like that again, okay.” It’s as much as I’ll give him and he bitches as I leave him behind and head to Cal’s. I manage to keep my cool long enough to push inside and lean against the door. Sliding down to my ass, I cup my head and practice the breathing techniques the VA therapist taught me.
In through the nose. Out through the mouth.
One thing is for sure, I absolutely would’ve broken Brice’s wrist.
Six months ago, if someone grabbed me from behind like that, the least of their worries would’ve been a fractured arm.
Back then . . . I would’ve killed ’em.
SAWYER
“Yeah, Dad, things are moving right along.” I spin in a slow circle, counting all the boxes. All the empty boxes.
I’ve been there three days and have completed about three hours of work, if that.
All because of Aden.
When I walked out this morning to see him hunched into the fridge, shirtless, all that smooth skin just beckoning to be touched, I had to white-knuckle my sheet to keep it around my body when all my instincts demanded I tackle him to the floor.
And then he said he wants to spend time with me? I’ve never received an offer so tempting in my entire life. I almost lost my sheet altogether right then and there. What is happening to me? I’d never consider pushing off my responsibilities for . . . sex. That’s gratification at its basest form. I had a moment where my insecurities flared, but when he kissed me so sweetly as if I was delicate and he didn’t want me to crumble, my heart did just that. It shattered, but not in a bad way. It was more like shaking off a tough exterior. I felt exposed and protected all in the same moment, which would’ve confused Sawyer, but Celia would just roll with it and never look back.
So I did.
I showered as quickly as I could, threw on a breezy pair of pants and a tight tank top that shows a tiny strip of my stomach. It’s risky but Aden said he loved my skin. The freckles were always something that made me self-conscious in the past, but with him they feel like a superpower. And by showing them off I’m hoping it’ll serve as a gentle reminder to him of what we did.
I never understood what they meant in movies when they would say the sex was “earth-shattering,” but oh boy do I get it now. Just thinking about it warms my skin and my body yearns to relive it again and again.
“Sawyer . . . did you hear me?”
I jerk at the sound of my dad’s voice and rip my eyes from the view of the ocean. “I’m sorry, I got distracted. What did you say?”
“Distracted? Are you okay?”
“Yes, Dad, I’m fine. I was watching the waves and . . .” This is not something Sawyer would’ve done. I’d never get distracted by something as ridiculous as the view. So I lie. Something I’m apparently getting pretty good at. “I haven’t been sleeping well so maybe that’s it.”
“I’m sure it is. Take your time, okay? Don’t run yourself into the ground to get back here. And please, Sawyer, call if you need me.”
“Thanks, Dad. I will.”
We say goodbye and I drop onto Celia’s couch hating the guilt trickling in. It’s one thing to honor my sister’s wishes but I’ve completely sidelined my responsibilities. I have about five minutes until Aden will be here so I’ll check my e-mail and see if things at work are running smoothly in my absence, hoping it’ll alleviate the self-directed disappointment.
I have two e-mails from Dana. She needs my signature on a document, but I don’t have a printer or scanner. I add searching for FedEx Office to my list of responsibilities expanding the day’s productivity and making me feel better in the process, when a knock on the door is followed by a click of the handle and Aden strolls in.
His tall body takes up the door frame and I try not to stare at how sexy he looks in a pair of board shorts and a simple brown tee.
I smile, but quickly frown with the intense way he’s glaring at me. “Aden, is everything okay?”
He crosses to me, pulls my phone from my hand and drags me to my feet to press a kiss so slow and sensual on my lips I lose the ability to stand on my own. Thankfully, he holds me up. “Better now.”
“Whoa.” I blink. “What was that for?”
He smiles, but it’s tight. “Tell me about you and Brice.”
Dammit.
As hard as I try I cannot force myself to look him in the eye. “There’s not much to tell.”
“He seems to think you two are a thing, that true?”
No clue, Aden. Maybe you should ask my sister! “A thing?” I shake my head. “No.”
“You done with him?”
“Mm-hm.”
“And the ex from Arizona?”
God, I sound like ho! “Uh-huh.”
He presses a kiss to my forehead and I resist the urge to flop my arms to cool off my sweaty armpits. I don’t know what Aden did for the military but it must’ve been something dealing with interrogation because he’s fantastic at it.
I’m still recovering from his questioning when he hands me my phone back. “Did I interrupt something?”
“Huh?” I follow his line of sight and coherent thought comes back online. “Yes, er . . . no, I mean, I was answering some e-mails while I waited.”
“Everything okay?” He releases me and I miss him instantly.
“Yeah, although you wouldn’t happen to know if there’s a FedEx Office nearby would you? I need to find a printer and a scanner—”
“There are both at Cal’s place. I’ll let you in after breakfast and you can work there as long as you need to.”
“Really?” I’m smiling so hard it hurts.
He chuckles and shakes his head. “Don’t look at me like that, freckles.”
My grin expands. “Why not?”
“Because. You’re going to ruin my reputation of being a hardass dickhead.” If I’m not mistaken, I’d swear his cheeks turned the slightest shade of pink as he ducks his head and turns to the door.
“We wouldn’t want that.”
“Come on, I’m starving.”
“Yes, sir.” I salute his back and happily follow him out the door.
Hardass dickhead?
Sergeant Psycho?
It’s possible he’s showing me sides he rarely shows anyone else.
“This is so cool!” I’m sitting up as tall as possible to see up over the railing of the pier from the rusted chair on the café patio. I broke into a cold sweat as I walked down the wooden planked structure with waves crashing under my feet, but with Aden’s arm around me I melted into his safety. “I’ve never eaten on a pier before. I’ve never even been on a pier before.”
Right when the words come out of my mouth I look over to see Aden’s dark brows pinched together. “With all the traveling you’ve done how have you never been on a pier?”
Excellent question.
Dammit!
“I don’t know.” I sip from my orange juice and hope like hell he’ll drop the subject.
He’s leaning back in his seat, one ankle resting on his powerful thigh, and his arms propped on the armrests. He’s the epitome of masculinity and with the sun baking his skin the scent of spice and cedar penetrate the ocean air. “Out of all the places you’ve been, where was your favorite?”