“Hi, Janie. It’s so good to hear from you.”
“Hello, Maxwell! Same to you. I wanted to confirm your 5:00 p.m. photography appointment for your girlfriend, Vada Finley.”
I look over to glance at her and see she’s smiling in her sleep. Her arms wrapped lovingly around a plump feather pillow. I skate my fingers down the length of her arm before answering.
“Yes, we’ll be there.”
“Okay, well, I just wanted to confirm, because it’s 3 p.m. now. It’s going to require an hour in hair and makeup, not to mention custom fitting for the costume.”
I assure Janie, Photographer’s assistant, that Vada and I will be there. The package wasn’t cheap, and I can’t get a refund this late in the game. I quickly hang up and pick through my suitcase to find something to wear.
Hearing Vada stirring, I pop my head out from the bathroom as I’m running a comb through my messy hair.
“Baby, I need you to wake up.”
She growls a mean, “fuck off, buster” retort and rolls over.
I know she’s exhausted; we both are. The alarm screamed at the top of its lungs at 4:00 a.m. this morning, so we could be ready to catch our flight in time.
“I need a nap; you wore me out,” Vada murmurs and turns her face to smile in my direction.
I lean down and kiss her cheek.
“I’ve got some fun things planned for us, V. So I need you to get your sexy ass moving,” I say, spanking her luscious booty.
She squeals, followed by a low giggle.
I’m bubbling with excitement right now as we take the drive down to the beach. I blindfolded Vada, so she has no idea what’s going on or where we’re going, and it’s driving her nuts.
“Maxwell Vahn, tell me where we’re going this minute,” she says and crosses her arms over her chest, but I see a sneaky smile tugging at the corner of her lips.
I put a hand on her knee and squeeze gently.
“You’re just going to have to wait and find out when we get there,” I say, turning the radio up a little more.
The photographer, John, has a hairstylist, makeup artist, and seamstress who work for him and provide fun mermaid themed photos to all of Key West during the warm months. Vada has told me before how fun it would be to dress up like a mermaid but wasn’t sure if she could pull off the costume.
Please! This woman would look amazing dressed in trash bags.
When planning the trip, I knew this had to be a staple. When we pull into a free parking space, I notice Vada has lifted one side of her blindfold.
“The beach?” she asks, sounding curious as she unbuckles her seatbelt.
We both exit the car, and I don’t say a word as we walk down towards the water, hand in hand. Vada squeezes my fingers when she sees a large tented area, where Janie is flagging us down. A thin man with a shaved head and tattoos, holding a large camera, waves too, and I turn to look at Vada.
She stops in her tracks and looks at me.
“You know my brother is a photographer, right? He could take our photos when he gets home, smart ass,” she challenges with a sarcastic tone but still owns that shit-eating grin.
I pout as I pretend as though I’m about to cry, and she playfully jabs me in the ribs. She’s right, but Jack doesn't take those types of photos. He’s into “high fashion” and shooting weird-looking runway models in Europe. Though I’m sure if Vada wanted them, he would have done it.
As we walk closer and finally come face to face with Janie and John, and another woman comes around the corner, a custom made mermaid tail draped over her arm. Vada’s eyes light up like a kid on Christmas, and I can’t help but melt. I love seeing her excited.
“Hello, Vada. You’re a lucky girl! Your boyfriend wanted to surprise you with a custom photoshoot! You get to be a sexy siren,” Janie says as she shakes Vada’s hand.
Vada turns to look at me, and I’m sure her cheeks ache from smiling so hard.
“You did all this?”
I nod and stroke her cheek with my hand.
“We should get you into hair and makeup; we’ve got a lot to do in a short time,” the woman says, who’s holding the mermaid tail. Janie stops her for just a second, putting her hand on the platinum cured silicone material.
Wow, this costume looks so real. The color is Vada’s favorite, pink that fades into a light orange just at the bottom, towards the fin.
“Is this the correct color?” she asks me, sounding skeptical, but Vada answers for me, quickly nodding her head with anticipation.
“Those are my two favorite colors. Max, this is perfect,” she says softly, her hands gliding over the smooth medium.
The woman with the tail introduces herself as Maggie and takes Vada inside the tent to get her ready. John dismissed Janie for a break, so she and I sit on the sand, small, talking about our day as my beautiful siren gets prepped and ready for her pictures.
“How long have you two been together?” Janie asks, nodding towards the tent.
I blush and pick up a hand full of sand, watching it escape through the slats of fingers. Taking in a deep breath, I scoop another handful before answering.
“We’ve known each other for just over five years now, but we just began dating. Hell, we were barely friends before that.”
Janie looks confused, and I chuckle.
“I know it sounds unconventional, and that’s because it is. I was a whole other person before Vada and I got together. She tamed me and calmed my crazy ass down. She reminded me of the person that I used to be.”
Janie smiles and leans back on her open hands.
“I can tell from the way you two were looking at each other, and it was like you’ve been together for years. Did she always have such beautiful confidence about her?”
I sit up straight and dust the sand off my hands.
“No. Vada’s been through a lot, but she’s still tender and warm on the inside.” I smile at the corniness in my own words, thinking she’d laugh at me for being trite.
However, corniness is just one of the many things Vada loves about me.
“Vada’s always wanted these kinds of photos done but didn’t want to show off her body.”
The wind picks up a little, and I shiver.
Janie looks to Vada, her light green eyes examining her soft feminine figure.
“I admire her. I was always skinny, and it gave my peers a reason to mock me,” Janie confides in me. “I’d be over the moon if I had your girlfriend’s killer curves.”
All I can do is smile as the assistant continues to praise the woman I love.
Vada
“I know it’s tight, but just do a little shimmy,” Maggie says, as she helps wiggle the mermaid tail onto my legs. This is beyond cool. I’ve always wanted to do something like this, though I wasn’t sure how I would look in a two-piece costume and having to expose my bare midriff.
I glance over my shoulder, and I see Max and Janie. His smile is so big; it just encourages me to keep going. He went out of his way to make this memorable for me, and I don’t want to disappoint. As Maggie fits me with a seashell bra, Barbra, the hair and makeup artist, applies my makeup. I feel like a celebrity or a model on location for a shoot. John, my photographer, is prepping, taking test shots, testing the light. I take in a deep breath, taking in the salty sea air, and steal another glance at Max.
“The way you look at that man, I’d think you’re in love,” Barabra says, with a cheeky glint in her eye as she applies some gold highlighter and blush to the apple of my cheek. I can’t help but smile like an idiot.
“He makes my insides feel all gooey, like a cheese pizza,” I say, with a low giggle.
Barabra’s dark eyes twinkle with a sense of recognition, knowing what I mean. The waves crash against the massive rocks near the shore, exploding like fireworks. Her tall frame hovers over me, and she clicks her tongue in thought. I open my eyes to see she’s applying some lash glue to a fair of false eyelashes.
“That’s the best
way to feel about someone. It’s a heady feeling when they’ve got your stomach exploding with butterflies every ten seconds. However, love is a struggle, too, sometimes. I’ve fought hard to claim the man I’ve been married to for over ten years now. We started rocky, at first. He had this ex-girlfriend who just couldn’t understand the fact that he was off the market.”
My eyes widen as she says, “ex-girlfriend.” Feeling my skin prickle, I have so many questions to ask her, but I don’t want to pry. I don’t say anything else but find that I’m rubbing my hands together in a nervous manner. It’s an obvious tell when I’m nervous or anxious about something. Still, Barabra doesn't notice and continues to apply the lashes to my upper lids gently.
“How’d you get through it?” As words leave my mouth, I realize I hadn’t meant to be so nosey.
Barabra tucks a stray curl behind her ear, a bobby pin-tucked between her lips as she fits a heavy but gorgeous seashell crown to my head.
“Well, I told Todd, my husband, that this psycho woman wasn’t going to stop until he put his foot down. He’s a good guy and hates conflict. I swear he’d rather bite his tongue off and choke on the blood then get into an altercation with someone. Still, Kristina, the crazy stalker, ex-girlfriend, just kept throwing her two cents in, believing what she said. She would come to find me at work, threatening to beat me up. She keyed my car and trashed my house. Finally, I had enough. I told Todd, it’s either me or the demon bitch from hell. He, of course, chose me, and we both filed a restraining order.”
I’m rubbing my hands a little harder now, this time down the length of my tail, and I think I might start a fire. Barabra notices and places a loving hand over mine.
“Whoever your Kristina is, she’s got nothing on you. You’re gorgeous and have the heart and affections of your boyfriend, Vada. Look at the way he’s staring at you. Those are the eyes of a man deeply in love. I wouldn’t worry about any other women trying to come in between you two.” Barabra’s words are like a shot in the arm, and I feel a new level of confidence exploding through my veins.
It’s not long until I’m ready, and my makeup artist helps me from the makeup chair. I laugh, unable to stand on my own because of the tail-fin, and hold onto her shoulder for support. She looks out over her shoulder and motions for Maxwell to come over. I swallow hard, feeling a nervous excitement rush through me as he comes closer, his dark blue eyes softening as he takes in my new look.
“Wow, Vada. You look absolutely incredible.” Max notes, embracing me for a hug and following with another, “Wow!”
I couldn’t ask for a better or unique experience on a fun getaway such as this, and being with the man I’m head over heels in love with just makes it so perfect. Barabra adds a few more fish scales to my arms by using a unique stencil and pink eyeshadow, then looks at Maxwell.
“I need you to take our mermaid out to the rocks for her first shots,” Barabra says and mists my skin with a special spray.
I look up to Max and giggle.
“Not a problem,” he says, and without any effort, he picks me up and heaves me over his shoulder as if I weigh nothing at all.
I gasp, followed by a loud laugh and squeal at the top of my lungs.
He snorts a laugh, and I can tell he’s doing his best to restrain himself from spanking my ass right now. Max walks as softly as he can, taking gentle steps on the bone-white sand beneath us. There are so many people out here enjoying the beach at sunset, and here comes this big heathen of a man carrying a mermaid. It’s definitely a comical sight.
An older couple sits in matching beach chairs, and the woman grins wide in my direction. I throw up a hand and wave over Max’s broad shoulder.
“I look ridiculous right now,” I say, as I let my arms dangle down the length of his muscular back, but the view of his spectacular ass from this vantage point is fantastic, so I don’t complain too much more.
Feeling the vibrations of Max’s laugh come from his chest, he ungulates against my thighs, which is a weird turn on, but I enjoy it all the same.
“Here’s your beautiful model,” Max says to John, sitting me down on a large rock, facing the ocean.
My photographer shakes my hand again and pulls me in to kiss my cheek in greeting. He gives me some simple directions on how to pose, good posture, and remember my light.
“The rest is up to me,” he says, and Janie is by his side, holding some of his lighting equipment and another camera. Everything on my body has been transformed, including my dark, reddish-brown hair, but now a platinum blonde with pink highlights just at the bottom, which is just a lace front wig but looks so real. I’m not used to wearing this much makeup on my face, but I feel so pretty, like an Aquatic-Barbie doll come to life.
The setting sun is a breathtaking backdrop as John shoots frame after frame, the shutter snapping quickly in the background. Janie helps me onto the sand to lean back on my open palms, my hair covering my chest and meeting just at my waist.
I look to the left, smiling as John shoots more frames, and I see Maxwell standing off to the side. He looks so proud.
The photoshoot lasts for another half an hour before John announces we’ve run out of time. He hugs me again, thanking me for such a fabulous shoot, and asks me if I’d like to model for his website. I look at Max, and my eyes dance with both shock and pure excitement.
“I’ll have to think about it. I’m a full-time nursing student back in Miami, plus I work part-time.” I reply, beaming at his kind words.
“If you decide that nursing isn’t what you ultimately want to do, modeling would be a perfect avenue for you,” John tells me while offering his business card. “We’ll have your images back to you within a few weeks.”
Now that I’m free of the tail, bra, cumbersome shell crown, and wig, I feel a little more like myself again. Still, it was so much fun getting to play dress-up for a while. Since Max paid for the tail and bra, I get to keep them. The drive home is quiet but enjoyable. We ride, hand in hand, as Maxwell drives with his free one. We pull into the driveway about twenty minutes later, and as we walk back up to the house, I can’t help but stifle a laugh as I watch this male alpha carry a mermaid tail across his brawny shoulder.
He turns to look at me, giving me a mock-serious face, his sharp, manly jawline and full lips being illuminated by the bright porch light.
“Are you laughing at me?” Max asks me in a low, husky tone, bordering on a sexy growl.
I pull my lips into my mouth, doing my best not to laugh at his silly attempt to be “aggressive.” This man doesn't have a mean bone in his body. I slip past him, fishing the key from my purse when I feel Max pick me up again the way he did back at the beach and tossing me over his other shoulder. A gasp leaves my lips before I’m playfully smacking his ass, laughing like an idiot.
He says nothing and continues to walk through the house. I know I’m no match for this giant wall of muscle, but I at least have to try.
“You want your steak for dinner? Or should we order a pizza?” Max asks, standing in front of the open fridge as if he doesn’t have me slung over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.
I try to wiggle out of his hold, but he catches me on the way down and holds me close.
“Where do you think you’re going?” he asks, as his lips come into close contact with my forehead.
A feeling of perfect contentment washes over me, like the waves lapping at a mermaid sunning herself on the beach.
Today was a perfect day.
Max
By the time Sunday night rolls around, Vada and I are exhausted from our busy weekend. Snorkeling, swimming with marine life, and hang gliding. Plus, those fancy drinks with tiny umbrellas that we enjoyed made us more than a little tipsy.
This morning, Vada decided to lay out by the pool with a said fancy drink and relax. I left her to have some alone time while I checked my phone. I saw that I had a few missed calls and two texts from Jack. I sat on the edge of the bed, watching Vada through the open French doo
rs as she floated around on a neon green pool lounger. I went into my voicemail to check the messages and saw that they were from Jack. He knows we’re on vacation, so he must only be calling out of necessity.
“Hey, Max. I’m so sorry to have to be a buzzkill and bother you on your vacation with Vada, but I needed to let you know. It’s Bianca. She’s been blowing up my business cell with both calls and texts, demanding information about you. She’s been on social media, dragging your name through the mud. I’m sorry, buddy. We can fix this.”
That was this morning’s message, and Jack’s words haunt my mind repeatedly.
I’ve blocked Bianca on every social media platform possible, but she’s still been able to stalk and troll me. I’ve been quiet for most of the day, trying to avoid putting too much stress on Vada. I gave her the keys to my Audi about a half-hour ago, asking her to pick up some ice-cream from the store.
I need a way to release this anger, and I think I have a solution. I had eyed a small workout room during the tour with Ben on Friday afternoon and thought this would be a perfect time to take advantage of the heavy bag hanging from the ceiling. With each punch, I picture Charlie. It drives my body harder with each hit.
Even though I’m beyond livid with Bianca, I’d never think about hitting her, even metaphorically. When working with heavy bags in the past with cardio training for hockey, it’s worked for me to envision my deadbeat dad's toothless grin and sunken eyes on the bag.
I jab cross, hook, and uppercut, over and over, each hit becoming more potent than the last. The bag swings wildly on the iron hook as I keep my eyes focused on my target.
“You want to talk about it?” Vada asks from the open doorway.
I look up, taking the earbuds from my ears, and the heavy base of hip hop music resends. I stand there, a sweaty mess. Sweat drips down my naked chest. Vada does her best to keep her eyes connected to mine, but they eventually drop to my hard stomach. I inhale deeply, taking the towel next to the weight bench and elliptical, wiping my brow. She puts the ice-cream down and walks into the room.
He's The Goal Page 18