by Sybil Bartel
“I can do that.” She stood. “You’ve been home for an hour. You probably have to get back to work.”
“I’m my own boss, Siren. Sit and rest, I got this.”
“I’d rather stretch my leg out. I’m not used to this.” She followed me into the kitchen with our plates.
“Meanin’?”
“I usually work out. I like to run.”
I ran the beach every day. I shoved down the thought of sharing that with her. “You’re not ready for a run but I’ll take you for a walk on the beach tonight.”
She set the plates in the sink. “I can go this afternoon.”
I turned and caught her by the chin. “You’re not goin’ anywhere alone. You hear me?” No fucking way. Not after Randy’s bullshit today.
She tried to hide the fact that I’d startled her but this time I saw through the mask she wore like a second skin. “You can’t follow me everywhere,” she countered.
I’d fucking call André and have him send one of his men if I had to. “You’d be surprised what I can do.” I covered my warning with half a smile.
She pulled out of my grasp. “I don’t doubt that.”
“Then what do you doubt?” I challenged.
She stared at me like she could read my mind. “I used to think your eyes were green. When I first met you, you were wearing an olive-colored shirt. It made your eyes look green.”
Not many people noticed my eyes were actually a combination of blue and brown. That she’d noticed wasn’t what surprised me. Her remembering the first time we met was. “And now?”
“They’re half-brown, half-blue. The green, it’s an illusion.”
“White flowers on a blue background,” I said, describing the pattern of the dress she’d worn that night.
Her back stiffened in surprise.
I fingered a strand of her silky blonde hair. “Do you know what I’m talkin’ ’bout?”
“The dress I had on that night,” she said quietly.
Staring into those complex eyes, I fought to restrain myself. I wanted her small body in my arms and her taste in my mouth. The memory of this morning taunting me, all I could think about was kissing her. “Do you know what I thought when I first saw you?” I traced her bottom lip with my thumb.
She didn’t answer.
A bar full of women and she’d stood out like a fucking sunrise. Yeah, I’d noticed her. I’d noticed her under Randy’s arm. I’d noticed how she hadn’t looked at any other guy. I’d noticed how nothing in her expression had given away a single emotion, except one thing had stood out above all else. “You were fuckin’ beautiful—and miserable.”
“Talon.” My name whispered across her lips.
The air between us snapped and I almost lost my train of thought. All my blood rushing south, my voice low and rough, I gave her the truth, “I saw through you.”
She grabbed a handful of my shirt and my mouth was on hers.
I sank my tongue into her heat and fucking lost it. One hand tangled in her hair, the other caught the back of her knee and I wrapped her leg around my waist. Pushing into her, I kissed her. I kissed her to feel. I kissed her to forget. And I kissed her because I was fucking desperate for her.
Groaning into my mouth, she pressed into me like she needed me as much as I needed her and I got off on it.
I didn’t ask permission. I pushed her underwear aside and stroked. My fingers came away wet and I growled. “I’m gonna make you come so fuckin’ hard.” Commanding her mouth, stroking through her heat, I sunk two fingers inside her and she melted into me.
We both groaned.
“Jesus, Siren.” Hot and so fucking tight, she clamped down on my hand and my dick throbbed in response.
Her head fell back and I ran my tongue across her throat. My fingers deep inside her, I nipped then sucked her flesh against my teeth because I wanted to fucking mark her as mine. The wild, uncontained cry coming from her lips only spurred me on. Dragging my mouth along her neck, leaving openmouthed kisses, I brought my lips to her ear. “Next time it’s going to be your clit between my teeth.” Grinding my palm against her, I gave her a taste of what I’d do to her if we were both naked.
“Talon,” she cried, grasping my arms.
“Let it go, Siren.” I curled my fingers and stroked in and out of her. Feeling how close she was, I rubbed her clit hard and demanded she give me a piece of herself. “Come.”
As if her body was made for me to command, she fell apart in my arms. Constricting around my fingers, her legs shaking, she said my name over and over. I gripped a handful of her hair, sunk my tongue into her mouth and devoured her with a kiss. My balls drew tight and I could’ve come on the spot.
I rode out her orgasm with her and when her leg fell away from my waist, I slowly pulled my hand out. Her eyes closed, her breathing heavy, she was so damn gorgeous, I could’ve stared at her all day but I wasn’t finished. “Look at me.”
Lazy, hooded, her eyes met mine.
I put my fingers in my mouth.
Heat flared behind her eyes as I sucked the taste of her off my hand then covered my lips with her scent. I groaned, thinking about how sweet she’d be when I finally got my mouth on her. Still gripping her hair, I brought her in for a kiss and her soft moan filled my head with images of her under me naked.
Reluctantly, I released her and touched my lips to her forehead. “That wasn’t me takin’ advantage. That was me makin’ you feel good.”
She opened her mouth to speak but I put a finger to her lips.
“Leave it.” I didn’t want to know what she was going to say. “I’ll be home after six.” I dropped my hand and walked out with a raging fucking hard-on.
The shop was busy all afternoon. Not wanting to deal with Kendall’s shit, I’d sent her home after I’d gotten back from lunch. A few minutes after four, my cell rang. I looked at the display and smiled. “What’s up, gorgeous?”
“Talon?” Siren asked tentatively.
I straightened, my smile dropping. “What’s wrong?”
“Oh. Nothing. I was just wondering if you were going to be here for dinner? Do you want me to cook?”
Relief washed through me that her prick ex hadn’t shown back up. “One-handed?”
“I can manage.”
Jesus, I loved the softness to her voice. “I’m sure you can but you’re gonna take it easy on that wrist. I’ll pick up a couple of steaks and grill ’em.” I no longer gave a fuck that I was catering to her. This should’ve been a huge red flag but I was still riding the high from making her come apart in my arms. If I was smart, I’d put some distance between us but I wasn’t thinking with my head or my dick. I was so caught up in not having the weight of the grief I’d carried for two fucking years bearing down on me that I wasn’t going to do shit to fuck with the high I was feeling. If I was only going to get a week, I was taking it.
“Okay. Thank you.”
“No problem. What do you want with ’em?”
“Anything’s fine.”
“Siren,” I said sternly.
“Baked potatoes and Caesar salad,” she said instantly.
I chuckled. “Done. See you in a couple hours.”
She hesitated. “Okay.”
I frowned. “What’s wrong, darlin’?”
I heard her intake of breath. “I should probably tell you—”
“Dude!” Braige walked in. “Where’s my board?” He flipped his white-blond hair and scanned my shop. Two of his surfing buddies trailed in behind him. “Tahiti’s calling, brah. I need some action.”
“Siren, hold on a sec.” I held a hand up to Braige.
“No, it’s okay. Go ahead. You’re at work.”
I turned my back to Braige and the guys. “I got time.” For her, I’d make the time.
“I’ll just see you later.”
“You sure?” I wanted to know what she was going to say.
“Yes.”
Shit. “All right. See you tonight.” I hung up and tu
rned to Braige.
“Talking to a hottie?” Braige grinned, his blue eyes full of the type of mischief chicks dug.
“Wouldn’t you like to know.” I smirked.
Braige only cared about two things, surfing and women. Most of the time, I was glad to see his crazy ass. We’d either hit the waves or the bars. He’d taught me a few things on the water and he spent mad cash on my boards. He’d also recommended me to everyone he knew and despite his various endorsements, he used my boards almost exclusively.
“Oh, oh!” He laughed. “She must be blazing if you’re setting up some afternoon love. Surf’s up, dude.”
I shook my head. “I gotta finish a board for some washed-up shredder.”
His eyes went wide then he burst out laughing. “You wish you had my skills.”
I’d surfed Mavericks and the North Shore with him. He was fucking fearless on the water. “You’re probably right. But someone’s gotta keep makin’ you boards.”
“Truth.” He nodded seriously. “So.” He looked at the surfboards lined up on the back wall. “Where’s my new board?”
“Workin’ on it. Gimme a couple days.”
His faced screwed up. “Braaah.” He exhaled. “You know there’s weather coming to the South Pacific.” He gestured at the other two surfers in the front of the shop trying on sunglasses. “We’re flying out soon. I wanna bring my latest girl.”
“It’ll be ready in time. If not, you can pick whatever you want from stock.”
“I got a better idea.” He smiled.
Christ. “What?” I asked but I knew what was coming. He’d been bugging me for six months to let him make his own board.
“You know what.” He grinned wider.
“Get the fuck outta here. You can make your own boards when you get your own shop.” My tools, my rules.
“Never say never, dude.” He laughed again and left with a promise to call in a couple of days.
By seven I was grilling steaks on my deck while Nic stood at the railing.
“It’s beautiful here,” she said wistfully.
I stared at her ass. She’d been melancholy as fuck since I’d gotten home and we’d been dancing around each other. “Gorgeous,” I commented, tipping the beer to my lips. The ice-cold carbonation was doing nothing to quench the desire ripping through my veins. “You never told me what you were gonna say.”
“When?”
“On the phone earlier.”
She was quiet a moment. “I was just going to thank you…for this afternoon.” She turned to face me. “Your house is amazing.”
Instinct told me she was lying, the way she paused when she spoke, the tone of her voice going quieter, but I let it go because it might’ve simply been her inexperience with men showing. “I can’t take the credit.” I flipped the steaks. “I got a friend who’s a contractor. He gutted the place and redid it after I bought it.”
“How long have you lived here?”
“Almost two years.” When most women found out I had beachfront property, they wanted to know the size of my bank account but I couldn’t tell if Siren was fishing. She didn’t do small talk but her tone of voice was the most casual I’d ever heard.
“Oceanfront property isn’t cheap. Your surf shop must do well.”
She was fishing. “Can’t complain.” The shop held its own but it sure as shit didn’t pay for the house. My ex-wife had. Leigh had left me everything when she’d died. A few months after her death, I’d bought the business and the house. It hadn’t even made a dent in what I’d inherited.
“Why Daytona Beach?”
“Came here on vacation years ago. It stuck.” I didn’t tell her the last memory I had of Leigh was on this beach. I’d taken her to dinner then we’d walked along the shore and I’d asked her about starting a family. She’d said she’d always thought she’d have kids. I’d been so fucking ecstatic, I hadn’t noticed her detachment or the way she’d phrased her answer. The next morning, she’d said it was over and she walked out. It was the last time I saw her alive. “Steaks are done. Grab the salad out of the fridge?”
“Sure.”
She disappeared inside and I inhaled to clear my head. Instead of a lungful of ocean, I got jasmine laced with memories. A week ago, the thoughts of Leigh would’ve ruined my mood.
Siren came back, set the salad on the table and took a seat. “It smells really good.”
I plated our steaks, wondering if I’d simply traded the thoughts of one woman crowding my head for another. “Hope you’re hungry.” I sat.
She studied me a moment. “You okay?”
I took in my surroundings and for the first time in two years, I didn’t have to force my past out of my present because it was naturally taking a back seat. It felt good, really fucking good. “Steak on my plate, beautiful woman next to me, the ocean at my feet—doesn’t get much better.” I wasn’t flirting.
She blushed. “Thank you.”
“Quit thankin’ me. Eat.”
Like she seemed to do everything else, she gracefully held the fork in her splinted hand while using the knife in the other to cut her steak.
I got off on watching her movements but the urge to cut the steak for her was overwhelming. “Need help?”
“No, thank you.” She put the bite in her mouth and her eyes closed.
It was the same look she’d had this morning in my kitchen and my dick stirred at the memory. “I am wonderin’ one thing though.”
“Hm?” She took a bite of her potato, savoring it.
I wanted to pull her across the table. “How much of that steak you actually gonna manage to eat? It’s bigger’n you.” I winked.
She laughed.
She fucking laughed. Musical, delicate, honest. Everything disappeared except that laugh and I grinned.
“You’d be surprised what I can manage.” She smiled coyly.
No way. “Did you just flirt with me?”
“Yes.” Still smiling, she took another bite.
“Damn. I knew you were a siren.” Now I was wondering at all the things she could manage.
“Hardly.”
“Oh, darlin’,” I teased. “Life’ll be much easier for you when you realize I’m always right.”
“Except for when you’re wrong.”
“Never happens.” The second the words left my mouth, the nagging feeling about André I’d pushed away all day hit me hard.
I’D TRIED ANDRÉ BEFORE NIC and I went out to the beach but he hadn’t answered. My instinct telling me something was off, I cut our walk short and turned us around after a mile.
Nic glanced behind us. “Can we go a little further?”
“Not tonight.” Ariel was right, André didn’t go off the grid. I needed to find out what was going on. And I had an errand to run.
“I’m okay, really.”
I glanced at her. Long legs, hair blowing in the breeze, she was more than okay. I’d rushed like fuck to get home to her. “I know, darlin’.” I wrapped my arm around her shoulders. “We’ll go further tomorrow.”
“Okay. Can I ask you a question?”
“Anythin’.” Didn’t mean I’d answer it.
“What do the matching bird tattoos on your chest mean?”
Absently I rubbed at one of them. “They’re swallows. They’re supposed to bring sailors good luck. I got the left one when I first enlisted in the Navy. Swallows always return every year to the same location to nest and mate. Tattooing the first one was supposed to guarantee I came home but if I didn’t, legend says it’d carry my soul to heaven. After my first tour, I got the second one as a symbol that I made it home.”
“I thought you were in the Marines.”
I smiled. She’d paid attention, I’d give her that. “The Marines don’t have their own medics, the Navy provides ’em. After the Navy trained me, I went Green Side and was assigned to a Marine Force Recon unit.” I didn’t tell her it took two years of advanced Navy and Marine Corps training as well as the Army’s Special
Forces Medic course to earn the distinction of SARC.
“And the stars on your arms?”
I didn’t want to talk about the first five Marines I lost. “What about your ink?” I deflected. “I’ve never seen work like that.”
She shrugged. “I wanted to cover up my scar but I also didn’t want to draw attention to it. I saw a flesh-colored tattoo once and got the idea. The hibiscus was my grandmother’s favorite flower.”
“Were you close to her?”
“Yes,” she said simply.
I waited but she didn’t elaborate. “What about your folks? Were you ever close to them?”
“Are you close to yours?”
I chuckled. “Touché. And for the record? I love your ink. It suits you.” And it was sexy as hell. “You’re a beautiful girl, Siren.”
“Thank you.”
Hearing the quiet shyness in her voice made me want to pull her close and kiss the fuck out of her but I kept my mouth shut and my thoughts to myself. Every step we took, my instincts nagged at me more about André. He’d called me for help, he should’ve followed up by now. It wasn’t like to him to let something like that go unchecked for too long. And he never turned his phone off. Ever.
Siren broke the silence. “Dinner was nice.”
“Glad you enjoyed it.” I kissed her forehead because it felt natural as hell.
“Did you enjoy it?”
I glanced down at her, taken off guard. “Of course.”
“You seem tense. Is it because of this morning?”
Jesus, she had a way of stripping me down. “It’s not about this mornin’ or this afternoon.” I stopped walking and watched the waves. “Just got a lot on my mind.”
“I didn’t mean to pry.” Her arms went protectively across her stomach and the carefree vibe she’d been giving me since she’d laughed at dinner disappeared.
I stepped in front of her and gently unfolded them. “Don’t do that with me.” I tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. “I’m not lyin’ to you.”
She didn’t say anything.
“You hearin’ me?”
“Yes.”
No, she wasn’t. “This afternoon was amazin’. It’s got nothin’ to do with now.”