“Thanks,” she said and slipped her arms into the sleeves. “I wasn’t going to stay outside for long, but there’s something soothing about the sound of rain.” She took a deep breath.
They remained silent for a moment; then she turned toward him. “Yes.” She shook her head. “I have the next few days off. If you need something . . .”
“I’m off starting tomorrow as well.” He smiled. “Maybe we could do lunch?”
“Oh, I didn’t . . .” She bit her bottom lip, and he watched the movement like his life depended on it. The simple innocent act was one of the most erotic things he’d seen to date. “I guess I haven’t looked at your schedule.”
He chuckled. “With so many employees, it’s no wonder.”
“We only have a little over a dozen.” She rolled her shoulders. “We could use more, but . . .” She looked off into the darkness again.
“Give it time.” He watched the rain with her. “Why don’t you hire more?”
She glanced sideways at him. “It’s not that easy.”
“Sure, it is. You must have enough people applying.”
“Yes, we do. Plenty.” Her tone turned sharp, and she started to remove his jacket.
He thought about the tone and knew it must be a sore subject if she felt so touched by it. He knew the area was known for difficulty in keeping employees and wondered if she’d had problems before.
“Meet me for lunch tomorrow?” he broke in before she could say anything else.
“I . . . can’t,” she answered.
“Can’t or won’t?” He placed his hands on her shoulders and moved a step closer to her.
“Won’t,” she whispered.
“Is there someone else?” he asked, his eyes glued to hers, and he felt his heart skip. He didn’t know what he was expecting. That she would confess to being with his father? To hiding him somewhere? To taking the family’s money? Whatever it was, he hadn’t expected what came next.
“No.” She shook her head and stepped back. “There hasn’t been for a long time. I can’t afford . . . entanglements.” She removed his jacket and handed it back to him. “Thank you, good night.” She walked back into the building.
“Crash and burn.” He heard the purr of a woman’s voice and groaned inwardly when Ryan walked out of the darkness, a lit cigarette between her teeth. “I didn’t know you three could ever be denied anything. Especially from a woman.” She moved closer until the smoke from her cigarette blew in his face before she tossed it to the ground.
“Ryan.” He tried to step around her, but she stopped him with a finger to the chest.
“Tell those brothers of yours I’m not a patient woman. I will leave here on the arm of one of you and be connected to good high-society contacts while being wined and dined, or”—she raised her hand to his face—“your little secret will be exposed.” Her finger moved up and scraped his jawline. “You’re lucky I like older men.”
She chuckled as she left, and he felt a shiver run down his back.
The following day, he decided to do a little more legwork. Since he had some time off, he drove around the small town of Pelican Point and played tourist. He hung out in the small coffee shop and had breakfast in a corner booth. All the time hoping to see Elle walk in. Two hours of wasting time, but he had a good meal. Then he walked across the street and made his way down the row of small shops nearby and thought about spending some of his family’s money.
He mentioned to the clerk that he worked at the camp and asked in a roundabout way about Elle and her grandfather. The woman seemed unbothered about telling a complete stranger everything she knew about Elle and her family.
Including a nasty rumor that Elle’s father was up for parole soon. Which, of course, had him pulling out his cell phone and doing a quick search to see if it was true.
Once again, the only article he could find online mentioned her mother’s death and her father’s involvement but nothing about his release or even if he could be up for parole during his life sentence. As he drove through town, he noticed a small library and pulled into the parking lot.
Inside, he asked the clerk if they stocked old newspapers. She offered to help him search the catalog and was just about to show him to the section when he turned to see Elle stroll in.
He quickly made an excuse to the clerk and rushed over to Elle’s side.
“Hey,” he said, causing her to jump slightly. “Small towns. Gotta love ’em.”
She frowned over at him and almost dropped the armful of books she’d been carrying. “What are you doing here?” she asked as she set the books down in the return bin.
“Same as you. I read,” he joked with a smile.
“You don’t live in town.” She walked into the stacks. “There is no way Heidi would allow you a library card.” She searched the first row, then moved quickly onto the next. He followed her easily enough.
“I don’t need one to enjoy a local library.” Her eyes flicked toward him, then back to the row of books.
He knew he was pushing it, but seeing the slight irritation on her face was totally worth it. Besides, maybe he could find out more answers directly from her instead of scanning old smelly newspapers or, worse, having to scroll through microfiche.
“So, what about some lunch?” he asked when she had a few books in her arms.
“It’s ten in the morning,” she said, not sparing him a glance.
“Brunch?” He shifted to block her, and her eyes finally locked with his. “What else do you have to do besides go through that stack of Mary Higgins Clark books?” His eyebrows shot up a little. “I would have expected something more in the Danielle Steel genre.”
“I love all books,” she said as her eyes narrowed at him. “Do you have a problem with Danielle Steel?”
He held up his hands. “No, a good book is a good book. I’m not book-ist.” He tilted his head and thought about it. “Or is it genre-ist?”
When she giggled, he smiled. “Come on, do something with me.”
Just then an older woman walked around the corner and gasped at them.
Liam’s arm rested on Elle’s shoulder. From their outward appearance, they were close: not too close, but close enough that running over his last words had him cringing.
“Well, really, Elle.” The woman spun on her heels and marched away.
“Great, now Mrs. Willow thinks we’re doing it.”
He couldn’t help it and chuckled. “What are you, in high school?”
“Shut up,” she hissed and grabbed another book.
“Hi, Heidi.” She smiled brightly as she approached the checkout counter. Heidi had directed him to the papers.
“Hi.” Heidi nodded, then looked at him. “Did you want to know where the old newspapers are?”
His back teeth ground. “No, thanks.” But it was too late. Elle shot him a sideways glance.
He remained silent as she checked out her new stack of books and put them into a bag she had.
“So?” He tried to pick up the earlier light mood as they left the building.
She stopped just outside a white Jeep and ran her eyes over him. “I was going to head to the beach and read.” She motioned to the relevant supplies in the back of the Jeep.
“Perfect.” He clapped his hands together. “I’ll tag along.” He figured he could get her to open up about her past or say more about the business.
“You don’t have a towel or a chair,” she pointed out, but he had skirted her Jeep and jumped in. She’d removed the doors and windows, and he was looking forward to enjoying the wind on the drive to the beach.
“I’ll be fine. If you want, stop by the store on the way out of town. I’ll buy us some fixings for lunch.” He watched her climb in. “You know, to thank you for saving me from boredom on my day off.”
She sighed heavily, then started the Jeep.
It was fun walking through the store with her. He picked out a few French rolls along with turkey for sandwiches, then tossed in so
me hummus and guacamole and a bag of chips for fun. When he picked up a six-pack of Cokes, she reached for two bottles of water as well. He took the bottles from her and put them in the buggy.
“Anything else?” he asked.
“No.” She shook her head, and as they made their way to the checkout counter, he paid as Elle talked to an older man in line.
From what he could tell from the raised eyebrows and harrumph noises, the guy must have been an old family friend of her grandfather’s. Before it was his turn to pay, she explained that he was a friend who worked at the camp.
When she introduced him as Liam Rhodes, it threw him for a moment, and he felt like shit for lying to her. He’d completely forgotten about the fake name until he heard her saying it.
It was like everything came crashing down on him again. All the weight of searching for their father and the money that was missing. The possibility of losing the hold on the family business.
Not to mention the fact that the woman across from him was suspected to be his father’s latest mistress. He spared a glance in her direction and just couldn’t imagine it. Even though Elle was totally his father’s type, he was beginning to doubt that his father was Elle’s.
He kept his mouth shut as she drove across town and finally turned down a dirt road just outside of town.
“I don’t know of any beaches this way,” he said over the sound of the engine and wind.
“Public ones? There aren’t any.” She turned down another trail and smiled when the Jeep started bumping down a narrow muddy lane.
“Off-roading it?” He held on to the handle as the Jeep bounced down the lane, the mud flinging up over the hood turning the white Jeep a dull-brown color.
Glancing over, he felt his heart skip a beat when he noticed the look of pure enjoyment on Elle’s face.
“I wouldn’t have pegged you as someone who liked off-roading.” He laughed when she purposely aimed the Jeep for a large mudhole.
“Joe used to take me out here. It’s the reason I bought the Jeep.” She slowed and then pulled into a small area that looked like someone had parked there often. “We hike from here.” When she turned off the Jeep, he got out, and before she could grab anything, he tossed her beach chair over his shoulder, secured it with the strap, and gathered the bag of food and drinks he had purchased.
“Lead the way.”
With a grin, she pulled out a beach bag and her book bag from the back seat, and he followed her through a narrow walking trail that opened up to a raised wooden walkway.
“Joe and a few of his buddies built it.” She glanced over her shoulder.
“Who owns this land?” he asked, keeping in step with her now that he could walk beside her.
“Joe, no . . . I do. Now.” She shrugged. “Still, his buddies and their families have been using it for as long as I can remember. There wasn’t a Saturday in the summer growing up that I didn’t hang out here. That or the camp’s beach, whenever camp was in session.”
The tree line cleared and opened to a small secluded white sandy beach. They unpacked what they’d brought from the Jeep onto the pristine sand. Since he hadn’t dressed for the beach, he waited until she laid out a large towel, then set the supplies down and sat down to pull off his tennis shoes.
He was thankful he’d worn his shorts, which doubled as swim trunks. He pulled off his shirt, tossed it onto his shoes, and turned toward her. When he noticed the look that she was giving him, he frowned.
“What?” He glanced down at his chest, thinking there was something on it.
“Nothing.” She flushed a pretty shade of pink and looked down.
He chuckled. “Sorry.” His smile grew, and he had to admit, he puffed out his chest a little more.
It was hard to tell now, but at one time in his childhood, he’d been a skinny kid with arms like noodles.
“You should come with a warning label,” she said before pulling off her tank top and slowly peeling off her white shorts. It was his turn to stare now.
“So should you.” His wolf whistle set her laughing. As she sat down beside him, she pulled out a book and held it out.
“You said you can read.” She handed it to him.
“I’ve read this one.” He nodded to the one he’d been wanting. “That one I haven’t yet.”
She handed him the book and then pulled out a large foldable beach hat and put it on her head, then a pair of dark sunglasses.
“Why sit on the beach and read if you’re going to cover yourself up completely?” He shifted to get a better look at her.
She leaned the sunglasses down and rolled her eyes at him, and he smiled.
“To keep the sun out of my eyes while I read.” She shifted in the chair. “Are you sure you’re going to be comfortable down there?”
He’d set up her chair next to the towel she’d laid out for him.
“Yup, perfectly fine,” he answered and, to prove his point, opened the book.
Still, it was hard to read when the view was so amazing. He’d grown up in the Panhandle, and still he wasn’t immune to its beauty.
So, instead of reading, he watched the shoreline and horizon.
They had been there less than half an hour when they heard another vehicle pull up. Moments later, a young couple walked out of the tree line and called out to her.
“Elle.” The woman waved.
“Hi, Carrie.” Elle waved back.
The couple approached them. “We knew you’d be here on your first official day off.” Carrie hugged Elle, shooting Liam a questioning look over her shoulder. “Rob was pretty sure you’d forget to bring something to eat, so we packed extra.”
The man set a large cooler down in the sand next to Elle’s chair.
“Hi, Elle,” Rob said, his eyes following what Carrie’s had by looking at him in question.
“Carrie, Rob, this is Liam,” Elle said easily. “He works at the camp.”
“Nice to meet you.” Then Carrie turned to Rob. “Can you get the chairs?” When Rob turned and disappeared back down the pathway, she said to Liam, “My brother.” He shifted slightly under her regard.
“Carrie and Rob are Bob’s kids,” Elle continued, as if that explained everything. “The man I was talking to at the grocery store.”
He could see the resemblance now. Carrie was pretty enough, with light-brown hair and pouty brown eyes, but next to Elle, she faded into the background. Rob was a younger version of his father.
“Dad told us that he ran into you and noticed when you turned down the drive, so we thought we’d head out here and hang with you today.” Carrie glanced in his direction. “What he didn’t tell us was that you already had a friend along.”
Rob returned with the chairs, and he held in a chuckle when Carrie moved hers to beside Liam.
“What do you do at the camp?” she asked while Rob and Elle chatted.
“Well, I fill in behind the bar, and I run the woodworking shop.”
“Oh.” She scooted closer. “What kinds of things do you build?”
“Easy, sis,” Rob said with a chuckle. “Sorry, Carrie doesn’t know how to be subtle.”
“You’re just jealous,” Carrie joked. “Rob here has dated every single man in the Panhandle.” She rolled her eyes. “I swear, he’s even stolen a few good ones from right underneath my nose.”
“As if.” Rob laughed. “I didn’t have to steal anyone.” Rob gave him a wink. “But don’t worry: I can tell that even though you are one delicious piece of eye candy, you scream heterosexual.”
“Uh, thanks, I think.” He shrugged as Rob laughed.
As the talk turned toward a series of questions asked by Carrie aimed in his direction, Elle set her book down and pulled out her iPad. As far as he could tell, she was working on the camp’s budget.
“I thought you were going to read?” he asked her after a moment of silence between Carrie’s interrogation.
“I am reading.” She nodded toward the iPad.
“Ficti
on?” he clarified.
Elle shrugged. “I had a few things to go over first.”
“Never a day off for a business owner?”
“I’m sitting on a beach instead of at my desk.” She smiled and glanced around. “This is a way better view.”
“True,” he answered; then Carrie asked him a few more questions and took his attention away.
“I’m heading in,” he finally said, breaking the questioning. Placing his book down, he was surprised when Elle stood up as well.
“Me too, I need to cool off.” She set her iPad down, then tossed her hat off, keeping the sunglasses on.
“Not me.” Carrie finally relaxed back. “If I’m going to keep any hint of tan for the winter months, I need to be at least three shades darker than I am now.”
She pulled on a dark pair of sunglasses and leaned her beach chair back all the way.
He walked with Elle toward the crystal-clear water and stepped in, then turned and watched her glide in beside him.
“Is there anything you don’t do gracefully?” he joked. “You even get into the ocean like a princess.” He reached down and splashed water her way. He could have sworn that her eyes had narrowed behind the sunglasses. “That was a compliment,” he added and moved deeper into the water.
She followed him until they were in shoulder high.
“Why are you really here?” she asked after he’d dunked his head under to cool off.
Slicking back his hair, he realized he was probably due for a haircut. He hadn’t tried to grow it longer, but it was almost the length where he could tie it back, if he didn’t mind all the man-bun jokes he’d get. He’d had it longer in high school at one point, but in the past few years, he’d tried to keep it to just above his shoulders.
“I’m here, princess, because you asked me to come along with you today.” He smiled, keeping his shoulders under the water. He wanted to pull her closer, but she surprised him by laughing, then ducking her head under and mimicking his move by pushing her long blonde hair away from her face.
He’d thought she’d been beautiful when she’d been all dolled up the other night, but seeing her face clean and glowing in the sunlight, he realized just how beautiful she really was.
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