“Now don’t eat all those yourself,” she told the woman, handing her the box. “But if they don’t make it until your anniversary, come back and I’ll box you up another assortment.”
The woman laughed. “Our anniversary is tomorrow. If I can’t resist eating them for the next twenty-four hours, I’ve got a problem.”
Adeline gave the woman a conspiratorial smile. “I serve all types here, and I don’t judge. In fact, I prefer chocoholics.”
The woman laughed again. “I’m sure you do.”
They said goodbye, and then Adeline turned her full attention to Bree. “As for you,” she pointed to the stool that sat at her counter, “spill.”
Bree tried to keep from smiling, but her face felt like it might break from the effort. “He said I can at least do the written test that people do when they certify, and that he’d train me how to use the equipment and stuff.”
Adeline’s eyes shone as she said, “Congratulations.” The way she said it, though, it held more meaning than that simple word.
“Don’t look at me like that,” Bree said, feeling a blush creep into her cheeks. She hadn’t even told Adeline about her panic attack, or the way Caleb had held her after. And how she’d wanted him to continue. He’d looked at her in a way that her ex-fiancé never had.
“I’m not looking at you in any certain way,” Adeline said, her grin now matching Bree’s. She leaned forward, her elbows resting on the counter. “When do you start?”
Bree checked her phone, just in case Caleb had texted in the short time since she’d left his store. In her resolve to start over, she’d also gotten a new number, knowing her ex-employer could get ahold of her through email. The only people she’d given the number to were her parents, her sister Melinda, and Adeline. And now, Caleb. But there were no new messages since the one from her mom asking how she’d managed to ruin a perfectly good phone, and then questioning Bree’s decision to run away to the coast.
“Monday, I think. I have a lot to learn before things start picking up.”
Adeline still wore her wide smile, nodding and listening, but not seeming to care about the answer. “So, it will just be you and him, huh? Alone. In his shop.”
Bree felt the heat spread from her cheeks down through her neck. She didn’t want to even know how red she was. “And all the customers, not to mention that he’ll be gone for most of the day with his diving school.”
“Uh-huh.” Adeline obviously didn’t believe a word of it.
“Stop,” Bree said with a laugh, whacking her friend on the arm. “There’s nothing going on there. You know I’m not here to date. That’s the last thing I need right now.”
“So you’ve said.” But something outside had caught Adeline’s attention, and she suddenly seemed distracted. “Did you tell him that?”
Bree turned and saw that Caleb stood just outside Starlight Chocolate Confections. He seemed nervous, like he was unsure if he should enter. “He probably just wants to buy some chocolate. People do that, you know.”
“Yes, he frequently comes by for ‘free samples,’” Adeline agreed, using finger quotes. “But he never acts like he’s scared to come in.” She refocused her attention on Bree. “Which means that you are the reason he is here.”
Bree’s hands suddenly felt moist, and she wiped the sweat on her pants. Oh, gross. Now she had wet spots. “Maybe he—”
The door swung open, and Caleb strode in. His gaze immediately landed on Bree, and he froze mid-stride. “Oh. Hi.”
Bree placed her hands over the most conspicuous damp spots on her pants. “Hi.” An awkward pause followed, especially considering that Adeline wasn’t even pretending to not listen. She was watching them like she was at a movie. All she needed was popcorn.
“I was going to text you,” Caleb said.
He didn’t continue, so Bree said, “Why didn’t you?”
Another pause. “It seemed a funny thing to do when you were probably right next door, hanging out with Adeline.” Caleb shifted from side to side, and both Bree and Adeline watched him, waiting for him to continue.
“Did you come by to tell me something about my job training?” she prompted him.
That seemed to snap Caleb out of his stupor. “Yes,” he said. “That is why I’m here. About your training. Maybe we could we go on a walk to discuss it.” Bree’s obvious surprise at the request caused him to quickly follow it up with, “You know, because there are logistics we need to work out, and I’d hate to interrupt Adeline while she’s at work.”
Adeline snort-laughed.
Bree tried to ignore Adeline, who now had a tray of chocolates in lieu of popcorn, though she was popping them in her mouth just as fast. Her friend was an emotional eater, which didn’t bode well for her little shop. Hopefully, she wouldn’t eat through her entire inventory by the end of the day.
“Yeah, that would be fine,” Bree said, standing to join him.
Adeline made a noise of protest, but it proved difficult to speak with a mouth full of chocolate. Instead, she waved her arms, with a look that said, what about me?
“It looks like you have things covered here,” Caleb said, his lips quirking up into a smile. And as Bree passed him to leave, he rested a hand on the small of her back and followed her out.
She felt the warmth of his hand through her shirt, or maybe it just felt like that because her nerves were freaking out. In the past, when her ex-fiancé had done the same thing, she’d immediately pulled away, as if she’d been burned. And then she’d have to come up with a lame excuse to cover up the action.
Not now. With Caleb.
Instead, the simple action ignited a flame of desire in Bree. It was such a foreign feeling for her, she thought she might need to pull away before it consumed her. Thankfully, Caleb’s hand dropped as soon as they’d exited the shop, and her steps fell in line with his as they walked down the boardwalk and toward the beach.
“I’m realizing how much there is to teach you,” he said as they started over the sand. He tossed a side glance her way. “I hadn’t realized how much until Isaac stopped by. You’ll need to learn the basics of scuba diving, in addition to the ins and out of all the equipment, including simple repairs.” A surge of panic washed over Bree, and Caleb quickly said, “You won’t have to learn everything right away. We’ll just start with one thing at a time. Once you master that thing, we can move on to the next, so that by the end of the summer, you could run the shop yourself.”
Master it all, just in time for her to leave. Caleb wouldn’t need her once the tourist season was over.
Bree didn’t need to say it, she saw the realization of what he’d said spread across his face. It was followed by a brief flash of pain.
What about that thought had hurt him?
“I can’t wait to start learning,” she said, hoping to ease the tension. “This is a completely different world for me, and you’re so patient with my ineptitude. Thank you.”
That seemed to do the trick. Caleb visibly relaxed, even as he fixed his gaze on something in the distance. Maybe the horizon or a boat, or nothing at all. They walked on for several minutes, not speaking, but enjoying a comfortable silence. “I know we talked about you coming into work on Monday, but can you start tomorrow morning instead?”
“Yeah, I’d love that,” Bree said, her words escaping too quickly. She winced. “I mean, that works fine. Whatever you need. You are my boss, after all. You get to tell me where to be, and when.” She knew she was overcompensating but didn’t know how to stop it.
This time, it was his turn to wince. “I’d prefer if you thought of this as a partnership,” he said. “I want to know your opinions. If there is something I can be doing better—more efficiently—I’d like to know.”
They had walked far enough that they were now quite alone, the lifeguard shack just a dot in the distance. Waves gently rolled against the sand and back out again. Bree paused, turning to face Caleb. “But it isn’t a partnership. You hired me. I am your empl
oyee.” She didn’t know why the thought of it being something more bothered her, but she didn’t want Caleb to call it something it wasn’t.
“I know—I just…” He rubbed a hand over his face, like he was frustrated with the direction the conversation was going. “Would you feel more comfortable if you thought of us more as friends than partners? Would you come to me with your ideas then?”
“As your friend?” Bree asked cautiously. She liked the idea, but her thoughts toward him had certainly not been ones she would have toward a friend. Maybe a friend with benefits, though that wasn’t at all her style.
“Yes. Will you be my honest-to-a-fault friend?” he asked. “That I just so happen to pay to help run my store?” He took Bree’s hands. “Please?”
Her breath hitched. How could she say no when he looked at her with such tenderness, and her nerves fired with desire? “Of course,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper.
Caleb didn’t drop his gaze, nor did he drop her hands. Instead, they stood still, her studying him and trying to figure out what was running through his mind, and him probably doing the same.
And then they moved closer. Bree was unsure who had moved first, or if it had been both of them. It didn’t matter much, when it ended the same—with his arm wrapped around her waist, holding her tight, as their lips met in the middle. Her arms moved to his neck, her fingers playing with his hair, drawing out a shudder.
Bree liked that she could still have that effect on someone. When she and Mark would kiss, right up to their wedding day, their kisses had been stale—mechanical. He’d never shuddered. Sometimes she’d wondered if he enjoyed kissing her at all.
She didn’t have to worry about that with Caleb.
Their kisses were gentle, unhurried, syncing with the ocean. Their lips explored the other, Bree pausing occasionally to catch her breath. In those pauses, Caleb would nibble on her bottom lip, sending a new wave of passion coursing through her and causing her to crush her lips against his, each kissing round slightly more urgent than the last. She couldn’t get enough. Caleb’s body felt firm against hers. Immovable. Steady. Bree melded into him, like they were meant to be there, in that moment, together. Maybe they were.
It could have been minutes, or hours, before they finally broke apart, their breaths heavy.
Bree stumbled back.
Caleb seemed to be in shock as well, his hair tousled.
They both stared.
Her heart rate wasn’t coming down. She wanted more—to feel his muscles pressed against her.
But the reality of the situation crashed into her.
Bree had just made out with her boss. Her roommate’s friend. A man she barely knew.
She was in so much trouble.
14
Caleb stumbled back from Bree, and she did the same.
What. The. Heck.
Isaac had said to ask the woman out, not kiss her brains out. Or was it Bree who had been kissing him? It was impossible to tell and didn’t matter anyway. Because he had wanted it. And enjoyed it. A lot.
But she was the one woman in Starlight Ridge he couldn’t date. Not when she would be gone at the end of the summer. There was nothing to keep her here.
She’d leave. Just like his mom. And Kayla. It had been a long time since his mom had left for greener pastures, and it didn’t hurt as much as it used to. But Kayla—that one was still fresh.
He wouldn’t let Bree become another Kayla.
Caleb could already tell that that was going to be difficult. Bree still seemed a bit shell-shocked by what had just transpired, and her hair was a little more tangled than it had been, but she still looked beautiful, the ocean’s horizon as her backdrop. She gave him a shy smile, and she traced shapes in the sand with her toe.
“That was…” Bree was just as lost for words as he was.
Caleb gave a nervous laugh. “I know. I’m…” He almost apologized, but then stopped. He couldn’t tell her he was sorry for kissing her. Because even though it shouldn’t have happened, he didn’t regret it. That had been the most connection he’d felt with someone in a long time.
It couldn’t happen again, of course. But for that moment, it had been worth it.
Caleb cleared his throat. “So, you still good with tomorrow at eight o’clock?”
Bree started, like she didn’t know what he was talking about. “Tomorrow?”
“Yeah. For training?”
Bree’s expression cleared, and she gave a small laugh. “Of course. Eight o’clock sharp.”
Silence fell, and they both looked everywhere except at the other person. Earlier, he’d thought asking Bree out on a date was going to be incredibly awkward. She might not have read too much into it, though, depending how he managed to phrase it.
Now? There was no way she wouldn’t read too much into it.
But Caleb had promised Isaac he’d do it before they met up that evening. And if he didn’t, Isaac might not keep his end of the bargain—might not delete his online profile. He knew it sounded benign—a lot of people enjoyed video games.
But Isaac was back on the path he’d been on last year, and Caleb couldn’t watch his friend destroy himself, lost in a virtual world. Not again.
“Shall we head back?” Bree asked. “Adeline will start to worry.”
Caleb doubted that, considering Adeline knew Bree was out with him, but he agreed that they should probably return. He didn’t want the town gossips to get ahold of rumors, or to start any themselves.
As Bree stepped past him, though, he placed a hand on her arm. She paused, her eyes questioning. “Before we do, could I ask you one last thing?”
She nodded slowly.
“Can I take you on a hike tomorrow afternoon?”
“A hike?” she repeated, looking thoroughly confused.
“After work. I thought we could go to Starlight Ridge, considering you’ve never been, and the town is named after it. And we can grab some dinner after, if you want.” His words tumbled out, making his nervousness obvious. It had been so long since he’d asked someone out.
Bree took a step back as she studied Caleb. Her lips twitched up, like she was amused. “You’re asking me on a date?”
“Trying to, yeah.” When Bree hesitated, not looking entirely excited about the prospect, Caleb hurriedly added, “It would just be as friends, but I understand if you don’t want to. With you working at my store and...stuff…” Maybe he’d get lucky and she would turn him down and then he’d be off the hook. Though that didn’t seem as desirable as it had when Isaac had first issued the challenge.
The hesitation Bree had shown dissolved into a fit of laughter. She didn’t seem to be laughing at him, but it instead held pure, genuine amusement. “You’re asking me out on a date. As friends. And you think I’m worried because we work together. After what we just did.”
Well, when she put it that way…it sounded stupid. And he probably sounded even stupider when all he could come up with was “Uh-huh.”
Bree laughed again. “Was that as friends as well?”
“Um…”
“Maybe all of your friends receive the same kind of benefits?” she asked, though her eyes were teasing him. Bree didn’t seem to think he was that kind of a guy. Or at least, he hoped she didn’t.
But Caleb didn’t stumble over this answer. “Nope. Not in the slightest.”
“And you don’t ask all of them to go on dates either?” Her tone still held amusement, but he could tell Bree was also curious. She was fishing for answers.
“No,” he said, his voice softening. “I don’t ask them out.”
As a rule, Caleb didn’t date anyone, friend or otherwise. But he didn’t want Bree delving further than needed. She didn’t need to know that Isaac had strong-armed him into asking her out. And she didn’t need to know that, although he had put up a fight, Caleb hadn’t been disappointed by the challenge—he’d really wanted to ask her out. But if it hadn’t been for Isaac, he never would have.
&n
bsp; Bree’s laughter lines smoothed, and she seemed to be taking him in for the first time. “All right. Let’s go on a hike. And dinner sounds nice.”
Caleb finally allowed himself to smile, to enjoy the moment and not let his fears take over. He tried to not think past their date and pretend that nothing existed beyond the next twenty-four hours. What would he do differently? “Would it be all right if I cooked for you? At my place?”
Oh. Apparently that was the type of thing he did when he wasn’t caught up in his anxiety. He wasn’t sure he liked it. Cooking for Bree on their first date—it seemed so…intimate. And formal. Had he just scared her away?
Bree certainly looked surprised. She cocked her head to one side, as if she hadn’t heard correctly, and her hair fell over one shoulder. “You know how to cook?”
Caleb raised his hands and gestured to their surroundings. “I’m a bachelor in a town that doesn’t have a single fast-food restaurant. Yup, I cook.”
She seemed more surprised by the fact that a man could produce something edible in the kitchen than she was that he’d invited her up to his apartment in the first place. “Then yes, I’d love to see what kind of delicacies you come up with.”
Oh, no. The pressure was on. But it was too late to retract his invitation. “Don’t expect anything fancy like a souffle or something like that,” he hedged.
“Let me guess, you make a mean macaroni and cheese,” Bree said with a laugh.
Caleb returned her smile and took a step toward her. “The meanest.”
“Are you going to make it like my dad always did when we were young, and add canned pork and peas to make it a complete meal?”
“You actually ate it like that?” he asked, wrinkling his nose. “No offense to your dad or anything, but I would never subject you to that kind of torture.”
“Are you prejudiced against meat in a can?” she asked, turning and making her way back down the beach toward town. “My dad says it is the most underrated and the most discriminated against.”
“It’s not meat,” Caleb called after her.
Bree glanced over her shoulder, her eyes seeming to laugh at him. “I know. That was a test, to see if it really was safe to let you cook for me. You passed.”
Diving into Love Page 10