Love in Catalina Cove

by Brenda Jackson

  Sawyer recalled Trudy saying something like that. He could see a young Vashti Alcindor out on the football field doing a dance routine while twirling a baton in her hand. The thought made him smile.

  “She might be able to tell you where she took her classes. I know it was around here somewhere. If the place is still in business then you might be in luck. You can ask her tonight.”

  Sawyer tried downplaying the spike of heat that flashed low in the gut. “She’ll be here?”

  “Yes. I expect her any minute.”

  Anticipation seemed to suddenly thicken the air Sawyer was breathing. What on earth was wrong with him? Instead of reacting this way to the news that Vashti Alcindor would be here tonight, he should be thinking about tomorrow and the time he would spend with Leesa. There was nothing like a quiet hotel room with the curtains drawn while their naked bodies were underneath silken sheets. As far as he was concerned he should be getting aroused at the thought of only one woman and it shouldn’t be Ms. Alcindor. Only Leesa.

  He and Kaegan talked about a number of other things before Kaegan left to welcome new arrivals. Sawyer knew his friend had a reason to celebrate. Returning to town and taking over a floundering family business hadn’t been easy, but Kaegan had done it. Now Chambray Seafood Unlimited employed a number of residents. Some who had been with the company for years could now boast of getting paid a lot more than minimum wage. No doubt Kaegan’s company was adding to the town’s economy in a positive way. People appreciated the fresh catch Kaegan provided.

  Sawyer was mentally debating whether to grab another beer when suddenly sexual tension seemed to fill his every pore. He was in a group talking to Ray Sullivan, a guy who had moved to the cove a year ago and had quickly advanced as Kaegan’s right-hand man, and another one of Kaegan’s employees by the name of Manuel Gillespie. He turned his head and saw her. Vashti Alcindor had arrived.

  CHAPTER NINE

  “THANKS FOR COMING.”

  “Thanks for inviting us, Kaegan,” Vashti said, placing emphasis on the word us, just in case he’d conveniently forgotten the invitation was meant for both her and Bryce. She felt that little bit was needed since he’d looked directly at her when he’d stated the welcome as if Bryce wasn’t there. Under no circumstances would she allow him to be rude to Bryce when she’d talked her into coming. However, their attitude toward each other made Vashti only wonder even more what in the world was going on. What had happened between them to make what used to be close friends so hostile toward each other?

  Evidently Kaegan got Vashti’s message because he glanced over at Bryce and said, “I’m glad you came as well, Bryce.”

  Now that was a lot better, Vashti thought, and gave Kaegan a radiant smile, although she knew the one he returned was fake as hell. “You said it would be a gathering of a few. There are a lot of people here.”

  “Most are my employees,” he said. “They played a huge role in helping to turn the company around and make it successful. I couldn’t celebrate without them.”

  “The house looks great from here. When you find the time tonight we want a tour of the inside,” Vashti said.

  “I’ll make sure I do that before the party ends. Excuse me while I welcome the other arrivals.”

  “Sure.”

  He headed toward the dock where some people had come by boat.

  “I feel like I’m being forced on him. I hope you realize he hated to include me in anything,” Bryce said.

  “If that’s true he will get over it,” Vashti said, glancing around the yard, her gaze landing on Sheriff Sawyer Grisham. He was standing in a group with a beer bottle in his hand and staring at her. There was something in that look that made her totally aware of him like he seemed to be totally aware of her. Fine. Let him stare. So would she. She quickly decided she liked the way he filled out a pair of jeans. She also liked the way his shirt fit his shoulders and sculpted abdomen. Any woman would appreciate the raw masculinity that seemed to be simply him. And she was a woman.

  “Hmm, I see the sheriff is here tonight,” Bryce said, cutting into her intense study of the man.

  “I see.”

  “I see that you see. I also see that he sees as well. Wouldn’t you know, there’s a couple who frequents my parents’ restaurant standing over there. I think now is a good time for me to say hello,” Bryce said, smiling.

  Vashti broke eye contact with Sawyer and glanced at Bryce whose sneaky smile wasn’t fooling her any. “And what am I to do while you’re saying hello to that couple?”

  “You don’t need an answer to that, Vash, but since you asked, I suggest you go say hello to the sheriff. For the two of you to stand across the yard and stare each other down is a waste of sexual chemistry.” Bryce then sauntered off.

  Vashti turned her attention back to Sawyer Grisham and walked toward him. He was still looking so she decided to give him something to look at with the intentional sway of her hips. She shouldn’t be doing this but the intensity of the eyes looking at her sent a restless throb through her veins. At that moment temptation thundered through her and she was well aware of the sexual vibes flowing between them. But the big question was why. What was she doing? What were they doing?

  He stepped away from the group of men he had been in and toward her, and when she finally reached him she tilted her head back to look up at him. Sensations she’d never experienced before had her pulse pounding. “Evening, Sheriff.”

  “Ms. Alcindor.”

  “Don’t you know it’s not nice to stare?” she asked him.

  His lips creased into a smile. Not a half smile this time but a full one. The result was too devastatingly sexy. “I could ask you the same thing,” was his reply.

  Yes, he could ask and if he did she would be honest and say he gave her a lot to stare at and she appreciated it all. It had been a long time since she’d given a man a second look. “Touché. I looked for you after the meeting the other night.”

  “You did?” he asked tilting the beer bottle up to his mouth to take a gulp.

  Why did his doing such a thing heighten the pounding of her pulse? “Yes, I wanted to thank you for voting in my favor.”

  He held her gaze. “That developer’s presentation was pretty enlightening. Unfortunately, this town isn’t ready for anything of that magnitude.”

  “Do you think they will ever be ready?”

  He shrugged massive shoulders. “I don’t know. You grew up here—what do you think?”

  “I was hoping things would have changed over the years, but as long as Reid Lacroix carries a lot of weight in this town then, no.”

  Instead of addressing that, he said, “What are you drinking?”

  When she said she’d take a beer, he nodded. “I took you for someone who’d prefer wine coolers.”

  “Typically, I do, but tonight I’ll take a beer.”

  “One beer coming up.”

  She watched him walk to a huge tub on ice. Her gaze followed his trek, again appreciating how good he looked in a pair of jeans. Nice tush, especially. And when he bent that tush over to pull a beer bottle out of the tub, she was convinced her heart skipped a beat.

  He moved back toward her and he was looking at her, at all of her. She felt her body warm under his penetrating stare. “Here you are, Ms. Alcindor.”

  “Vashti. Please call me Vashti.”

  “Okay and I’m Sawyer.”

  He unscrewed the cap and handed her the beer. “Thanks.” She took a sip and then looked at him and asked, “So, Sawyer, what’s going on between us?”

  * * *

  SAWYER TOOK A sip of his own beer. He could deny there was anything going on between them, but that would be a bald-faced lie when it was obviously clear that there was. Even if no one else had picked up on it, the two of them had and they were who mattered. Problem was he was ill equipped to handle the intensity of
his attraction to her because nothing like this had ever happened to him before.

  Since she’d so boldly asked the question, he decided to answer the best way he could by telling the truth. “I honestly don’t know because this is a first for me. You’re a beautiful woman and any man would be attracted to you. Now why you’re attracted to me, only you can answer that.”

  She held his gaze as she took another sip of her beer. “Unfortunately, I can’t answer that because this is a first for me as well. You, Sawyer Grisham, are a handsome man, but...”

  He lifted a brow. “But what?”

  “I’ve been in the presence of handsome men before, and I’ve never reacted this way from just a mere look from one. I guess the intensity of our attraction to each other will end up in the books as one of those unsolved mysteries.”

  “I guess so.” He wished he could be more conclusive than that but he couldn’t. “When do you leave?”

  “Tomorrow.”

  “Morning or evening?” he asked, taking another sip of his beer.

  “Evening. Are you rushing me out of town, Sheriff?”

  “No, I wouldn’t do anything like that.” However, he would put plenty of distance between them until her departure. He didn’t trust this attraction between them, mysterious or not. Honestly, he was afraid that if given too much time, he could lose his good common sense over it. At least tomorrow he would be in New Orleans with Leesa the better part of the day.

  “So, what do you do in New York?”

  Now she was the one who lifted a brow. “How do you know I’m from New York?”

  “Your driver’s license was a dead giveaway.”

  She chuckled. “Yes, that ticket. I intend to pay it before I leave.”

  He smiled. “Good. I would hate to have to come all the way to New York to arrest you.” Almost immediately he regretted saying that. Did it sound like he would find just about any excuse to go to New York to see her? He hoped she wouldn’t get that impression because that’s not what he meant.

  “I would hate for that as well. But the ticket will get paid before I leave town, and to answer your question, I’m in the hotel industry. I’m employed by a major hotel there as executive manager.”

  “Like your job?”

  Vashti’s eyes slid away and she didn’t say anything as she took another sip of her beer. “Yes, I like my job. Do you like yours?”

  There was more to the story, he could tell, but he decided not to challenge her on it. “Pretty much. Catalina Cove is a nice town. However, ultra-conservative in a number of ways.” He chuckled. “At the moment my daughter is not. She wanted that tennis resort to come here. Most of the young people did. She told me the other night she plans to grow up and become mayor one day.”

  Vashti smiled. “Good for her. I would come back to town and help her campaign for change.”

  He chuckled again. “That will definitely be her platform.”

  She smiled back at him and asked, “Tell me about her.”

  “Who?”

  “Your daughter.”

  She seemed genuinely interested so he told her. “Her name is Jadelyn but prefers Jade, and she’s sixteen. Already she wants a summer job and a car...not necessarily in that order and I’m not crazy about her getting either. She’s a good kid. Respectful. Has good manners. And not only does she keep her room clean but the entire house. She convinced me that the money I paid for a housekeeper I could pass on to her so she will have a larger allowance. I took her up on it and figured she wouldn’t last a week. She proved me wrong. Came up with this system for cleaning and was quick to tell me how to correct my old ways that had become bad habits. Like not picking up after myself.”

  Vashti grinned. “I love her. Boy, I wished I could have deprogrammed my parents’ bad habits, like not scraping food off the plates before putting them in the sink. Especially when my father refused to buy a dishwasher. I was it. Their live-in dishwasher.”

  They both turned when Kaegan called out to get everyone’s attention. “Thanks for coming tonight to help celebrate a successful two years,” Kaegan said, smiling. “Roll up your sleeves and get ready to dig in. All the shrimp, crabs and oysters you can eat.”

  “I hope you’re hungry because Kaegan has prepared a feast,” Sawyer said as he gazed down at the woman walking beside him as they headed toward the area where tables were set up. Even with his long strides Vashti was keeping up with him, her steps almost in sync with his. More than once her thigh brushed against him and each time he drew in sharp breaths.

  Most would consider him a big man at six-three and weighing close to two hundred pounds. However, thanks to a vigorous workout routine he was all muscles no fat. But next to her he seemed larger because of her small frame. But then there were all those curves she had in all the right places. Curves he liked looking at. Curves he enjoyed brushing against.

  “Grab us a place to sit and I’ll fill our plates,” he suggested and then asked, “Anything you don’t want to eat?”

  She smiled up at him. “Nope, I’m hungry and want it all.”

  Sawyer watched her walk toward one of the tables. The food line moved quickly, and he was handed a huge container that he packed with steamed shrimp, crabs, raw oysters and grilled fish. After taking the container to the table Vashti had claimed, he went back to fill smaller bowls with seafood gumbo.

  Moments later they were diving into their meal. Bryce, Ray Sullivan and several others were sharing their table. While engaging in lively conversation, the men used the utensils to break open the crab claws, making it easier for the women to pick out the meat.

  An hour or two later everyone had eaten their fill, and warm scented hand towels were passed out for cleanup, followed by more beer. At some point someone turned up the music. Vashti tried urging him into a line dance, but he declined, preferring to sit and watch. And he did enjoy watching, namely her. As he sat there, he wondered how he could manage to get her alone. Each and every time she smiled at him with those gorgeous full lips, hot sparks of desire would cause a yearning so intense it felt close to pain. His mouth ached to kiss her, a condition he’d never felt for any woman.

  It was much later when he’d been presented with the opportunity for privacy. Kaegan had taken a group on a tour of the home he was building within walking distance of his parents’ home. He took them around back to show the view of the bayou and how he’d be able to stand on his porch every night to see the setting sun.

  After the tour, when everyone was headed back to the cookout, Sawyer took hold of Vashti’s hand, no longer able to ignore the flagrant heat of that carnal attraction between them. “Come with me,” he leaned down and whispered close to her ear. His brain nearly faltered when her scent enveloped him.

  Without asking where he intended to take her she went with him. He placed his arm around her shoulders as they moved farther away from the group and toward the secluded beach. “I hope you’re aware there are alligators that come out at night,” she said, smiling up at him.

  He chuckled. “I can protect you.” Moments later when he stopped she turned to him and their gazes connected. He took in her features illuminated in the moonlight. Even after all she’d eaten, the cherry-red lipstick still shaded her lips, making her mouth that much more delectable.

  She glanced around. “What’s so special about this spot?” she asked him.

  His mouth curved into a smile. “You’re here.”

  She chuckled. “Yes, I am. I guess I should ask you why,” she said as an I-already-know look appeared in her eyes.

  “Earlier tonight you asked me a bold question.”

  “I did?”

  “Yes. You wanted to know just what was going on with us.”

  “You got an answer for me, Sawyer?”

  “Not really, but I hope this is the first step in trying to find out.” Then he lowered his mouth to sla
nt it across hers.

  * * *

  DESIRE RIPPED THROUGH Vashti the moment Sawyer’s lips locked to hers. This was crazy. She’d never been this attracted to a man before in her life. And of all people, the sheriff of Catalina Cove. The same man who’d given her a ticket a couple of days ago. But thoughts of his profession and that ticket were fading into oblivion with every stroke of his tongue. And then as smooth as it could get, he changed his technique and began lapping her up like her mouth was the next best thing to blueberry muffins.

  Every feminine cell in her body sparked to life, made their presence known and showed just how lusty nearly three years of abstinence had made them. Had it been that long since she’d kissed a man? Been held in one’s arms? Felt the hardness of one pressed against her thighs? Been made love to?

  Hot sensations from the top of her head to the bottom of her feet began swamping her. They enticed her to lap him back with matching intensity. A flare of heat speared between her legs and her breasts felt full, heavy and sensitive as Sawyer continued to ravage her mouth in a way that no man had ever kissed her before. In a way that should be deemed a criminal offense.

  Suddenly, he released her mouth and a soft moan escaped her. That was all the time allowed before he recaptured her mouth. Practically devoured it as their lips fused together again for a long, delicious and intense moment. Sawyer deepened the kiss in a way that made every blissful sensation known to man flare through her. And if that wasn’t torturous enough, the tips of his fingers seemed to be tracing erotic designs on the back of her blouse. A deep need she’d never, ever felt before had her senses spinning, had her body feeling like it was on fire to the point where she felt the need to get naked.

  Thinking of doing something so outrageous should have shocked some sense into her, and she believed it would have if Sawyer hadn’t switched techniques again. Whatever he was doing to her mouth had her practically drowning in the smothering depths of his. Never had she been blindsided by lust, but she was now.