Nights at Seaside

by Addison Cole

  “I think I’m done with second thoughts,” she answered. “I can’t fight what’s between us. It’s too big.”

  “I want to fall into you, Sky, and never find my way out.”

  She pressed her hands flat to his back and whispered against his lips, “Fall, Sawyer. I’ll be right there with you.”

  LATER THAT MORNING, on her way to work, Sky stopped at a yard sale and found the perfect chair for the shop. The paisley fabric was a mix of blues, wines, creams, and yellows. It had an old-fashioned look to it, though it was obviously much newer and in perfect shape, save for the comfortably used look of the cushion. The guy who sold it to her loaded it into her car, and once her busy afternoon was over, she’d have Blue help her carry it inside.

  She spent the first hour at the shop researching Parkinson’s. She read about the progression of the disease, the symptoms and eventualities that Sawyer and his family were facing. She wanted to know as much as she could, to better support Sawyer, and the more she read, the more she connected dots between her father’s alcoholism and his father’s disease. They weren’t the same, of course, because her father’s deterioration into alcoholism was voluntary and Sawyer’s father’s disease didn’t have a remedy waiting behind the doors of a medical facility, the way her father’s had. But her father had dealt with a disease that was stronger than him, the same way Sawyer’s father was. The same way her mother’s life was stolen from her. She wondered what it felt like to be a man, the pillar of strength for a family, and to feel that strength slipping away. For her father, she thought perhaps he readily gave it up in order to keep his sanity after losing his wife. He probably saw it as a reprieve from the pain and loneliness—and she knew just how lucky they were that he’d done well in rehab and had remained sober ever since.

  Sawyer’s father didn’t have that option, and even without having met the man, he had her love and her respect. And she already knew she’d do whatever it took to help his family.

  She spent the rest of the day moving between painting the final touches on the sign out front and tattooing customers. She’d barely had a chance to breathe. She didn’t even have time to slow down and fill Lizzie in about her and Sawyer when she popped in at lunchtime. Her mind had been drenched in thoughts of him ever since she’d left his arms that morning, when he’d said he had a surprise for her tonight. He wanted her to get to know all sides of him.

  She was pondering how many more sides he could have when Cree breezed through the front doors waving something above her head.

  “I love your new sign,” she said as she slapped a napkin on the counter. “And the yellow really livens up the place.” She knelt to lace up her worn black boots, then tugged on the bottom of her tank top, pulling it over the hips of her black miniskirt.

  “Thanks. I painted it yesterday. I didn’t expect you back so soon.” She wondered if she was just killing time before her shift started at Governor Bradford’s.

  “I didn’t expect to be back, but I forgot I had this, and I really wanted to get it done.”

  “Great.” Sky read the writing on the napkin. I’ll take it all. Hear it through. Wrestle your demons to remain beside you. She lifted her eyes to Cree, wondering if this was some type of trick Sawyer had put her up to. Those were the exact words he’d said to her after they’d made love the first time.

  “Where did you say you got this?”

  “Some guy left it on the bar a few nights ago. Why?” Cree was way too casual for this to be a trick.

  “I think my friend wrote it. I just wonder why he’d leave it there.”

  Cree shrugged. “I guess he didn’t like it. His loss is my gain. I have to get to work early tonight. Do you have time to tat me up?”

  “Sure, of course.” Sky took her into the back, and for the next forty-five minutes she permanently inked the words Sawyer had said to her after they’d made love onto Cree’s body. The words had seemed so heartfelt and sincere and had touched her so deeply that now jealousy snaked through her. She didn’t like tattooing Sawyer’s lovely words onto Cree, like they were hers for the taking.

  A steady stream of customers kept Sky busy all afternoon, which was a good distraction from the tattoo that had her mind spinning. Blue arrived sometime earlier to work on the renovations, and as Sky finished up a tattoo that had taken two hours on a guy’s calf, Blue finished applying a final coat of paint on the back wall.

  After the customer left, Sky closed up the shop and headed into the back to join him. She plopped onto a chair with a loud sigh, thinking about Cree’s tattoo.

  “What a day. I swear someone must be out there singing the virtues of tattoos or something.” She rubbed her stiff fingers.

  “That’s a good thing. It would suck if you had no customers.” Blue set the toolbox and painting supplies on the table next to Sky. “I’m just about done with the painting. I have some spackling and painting to get done upstairs, I want to build the shelves for your supplies behind your screens over there, and I think I can make a great row of built-ins upstairs. Then the place is all yours. Good as new.”

  “You’re the best, Blue. Thank you.” Not for the first time, she thanked her lucky stars for Blue’s friendship.

  “Paybacks are expensive. You’re going to give me free tattoos for life and get me into Sawyer’s next fight, right?” He shoved his hands in his jeans pockets and cocked a smile.

  “Free tats? You’ve never let me put a lick of ink on you, but if you ever do, absolutely. And as far as Sawyer’s fight goes, I don’t think I’m going to go to it, but I’ll ask him for a ticket for you.”

  “Was it that bad watching him train?”

  Sky fidgeted with her bracelets. “It was like what I imagine it would be like to watch Merlin mangle a mouse.” She met Blue’s gaze. “The same way I can’t imagine my sweet kitty hurting anything, I don’t want to envision Sawyer hitting someone. But I saw it, so I know it’s real, unlike Merlin, who I can still pretend doesn’t ever kill mice.”

  She got up and paced. “You should have seen the two of them. Even I could tell that the other guy had no business being in the ring with him. He was smaller, and none of his punches connected with Sawyer, but Sawyer’s punches?” Her eyes widened with the memory. “Blue, he hit the guy hard.”

  “He’s supposed to. That’s what training is all about—perfecting his technique.”

  “Well, he sure perfected it. The other guy had a huge welt on his neck.” Sky stopped pacing and leaned on the counter beside Blue. “I’ve never been in this situation before, Blue. I really like him. I like who he is and I like everything about him—except the fighting.”

  “Well, that’s a big thing, but it doesn’t have to be a make it or break it thing, does it? What if he were a lawyer who defended criminals or a stripper or—”

  “A stripper? Really? I would never date a stripper.”

  “Wow, you are uptight.” He laughed with the tease.

  “I’m being serious. He’s fighting for a noble reason—to earn money to pay for his dad’s future medical care—but still…I don’t think I can watch him fight again.”

  Blue shrugged. “I don’t see the problem. So don’t go to the fight.”

  “His mom won’t go to his fights either. Oh, let me show you something else.” She headed up to the front and grabbed the basket of tattoos she’d collected. She fished out the one Sawyer brought with him and the two Cree had brought in and handed them to Blue. “Same handwriting, right?”

  “I guess. Close anyway,” he said as he looked them over.

  “Well, I think Sawyer is the P-town poet.” She crossed her arms and tapped her foot.

  “And?”

  “I asked him if he was and he said no.” She grabbed the napkins and papers and read them again before setting them back in the basket. “And that one on the napkin?” She pointed to the napkin on top of the pile. “That’s what he said to me the other night. Those exact same words.”

  “What are you worried about, Sky?
That he’s hiding that he likes to write poetry?”

  “No. It’s just…Why would he hide something like this?”

  “This is why I don’t date. Weird stuff comes up and then everything falls apart over notes in a basket.” Blue reached for his tools. “He doesn’t seem like he’s the kind of guy who’s hiding anything. Show him the papers and ask him about them. It seems like a simple thing.”

  “I’m going to, but I asked him already.”

  “I don’t know, Sky, but if you’re having trouble with his fighting and you don’t trust him—”

  “I totally trust him!” She grabbed the basket again, knowing she wasn’t making any sense, but she had to know if the man she was falling for was the same man who wrote all the beautiful sayings she’d been saving for two years.

  “Then why are you questioning this? If he said he’s not the guy, he’s not the guy.” He reached for the back door. “I have to run. Lizzie asked me to come by and fix a leak in her roof.”

  “She did? Good. Go.” She shooed him toward the door.

  “Don’t get any ideas. It’s a leaky roof, that’s it.”

  “Yeah, and I’m going to walk away from Sawyer,” she said sarcastically.

  “So you are really into him!”

  “Geez, Blue. Guys are so slow sometimes. Of course I’m totally into him. I told you I really liked him. Otherwise why would I care if he told me the truth about being the P-town poet or not? Now, go see Lizzie, and tell her I said hi.”

  “You’re bossy when you’ve got a boyfriend.”

  She blew him a kiss, closed the door, and leaned her back against it. The basket sat on the counter, taunting her with the little slips of paper and crumpled napkins. She snagged it and headed out to her car.

  An hour later, freshly showered and wrapped in a towel, Sky stood in the cottage with Bella, Amy, and Jenna, staring into her closet.

  “Everything is long and flowing,” Bella said as she flicked one of Sky’s skirts.

  “That’s what I like to wear.” Sky took a skirt from the rack and held it up against her. “The miniskirt I wore today isn’t long or flowing. I could wear that.”

  “But it doesn’t say Tell me all your secrets, does it?” Jenna asked. “Why don’t you wear this?” She held up a black silk tank top.

  “I love that. And what skirt?” Sky asked.

  “Just the shirt!” Jenna said, holding it up against her pregnant belly. “Look, it comes to my thighs. We want answers, and the best way to do that is by being ultrasexy so he can’t think about what he’s saying.”

  Sky held the shirt up in front of herself. “It comes to your thighs because you’re four foot eleven. I’m not. This would barely cover my coochie.”

  “Even better,” Jenna teased.

  “No. No way. I’m not going to get answers by flashing my naughty bits.”

  “At least you’re not wearing Hello Kitty shirts,” Amy said. “They had a field day with my clothes when Tony and I finally got together, remember? Luckily, he likes me best with no clothes on.” She leaned in close and whispered, “Saves on clothing expenditures, too.”

  Sky grabbed a black miniskirt. “This will work, with a few long necklaces and my bangles, don’t you think?”

  Jenna rolled an assessing eye over the dark outfit. “I like it. It’s sexy, but with your accessories it’ll be understated enough that he won’t feel like he’s under attack.”

  “Says the girl who wanted me to go with no bottoms,” Sky said.

  “Oh, he’ll be under attack, all right,” Bella said. “Didn’t you hear Sky say that every time she kisses him she can’t stop?”

  “I was too focused on the basketful of romance to hear that part.” Jenna rummaged through the back of Sky’s closet. “Don’t you have any scarves? It might be chilly tonight.”

  “I think I left them all in the apartment.” Sky opened a dresser drawer. “I’ll take a sweater.”

  Amy pushed the drawer shut. “Bad idea. You can’t get cold if you wear a sweater. Jenna taught me that. Jenna, can’t you lend her a scarf?”

  “I’m on it!” Jenna headed out the front door.

  “You guys have dating down to a science. It’s kind of scary.” Sky smiled at her friends.

  “You’re lucky, Sky.” Bella sat on the bed with a hand on her burgeoning belly and pulled Sky down beside her. “None of us were very good at the whole dating thing. We learned as we went along. Sweaters keep you warm. Scarves leave room for a chill. You want the chill so you can snuggle up to your man. See? You get to benefit from our mistakes.” She sucked in a breath, eyes wide. “Oh my goodness. Feel this.” She grabbed Amy’s and Sky’s hands and placed them on her belly.

  “Oh my gosh! Is she kicking?” Sky asked. “Or is that a knee? Or an elbow?”

  “I’m not sure, but I wish she’d come out already.” Bella sat on the bed and leaned back on her palms. “It’s hard to breathe with her in there sometimes, and when she kicks my bladder, you better make room for me to dart to the bathroom.”

  “I know what you mean,” Amy said. “I swear I have to pee every five minutes. Speaking of…” She headed for the bathroom just as Jenna came in the door with an armful of scarves and dumped them on the bed.

  “Wow, thanks, Jenna.” Sky began sifting through them.

  “You can’t pick out a scarf until we pick out your shoes. They have to match. Flip-flops, sandals, or…” Jenna picked up Sky’s favorite ankle boots. “Take-me-now boots?”

  “Let’s go with sandals, please. I don’t even know where he’s taking me, but just in case, I think I better not look like a hooker.” Sky took the boots from Jenna and tossed them in the back of the closet.

  “You never look like a hooker.” Jenna scrambled to pick them up, despite her burgeoning belly. “You can’t just toss your boots.” She set them up beside Sky’s other shoes and sandals, then began lining them up so the toes of each pair aligned.

  “Jenna,” Sky said. “You know I’ll just mess them up tomorrow when I grab something to wear.”

  “Then I’ll come back and line them up again,” Jenna said with a smile.

  Merlin sauntered into the closet and rubbed against Jenna’s leg. “Merlin will be my watch cat. He’ll claw at you if you mess them up.”

  “Good luck with that. Merlin’s more likely to lick me to death.” She picked up her kitty and kissed him, then set him down and began getting dressed.

  Amy came out of the bathroom with a bottle of perfume. “This is so yummy, Sky. You should wear it.”

  “Okay.” She held out her wrist and Amy sprayed it. Sky waved her hand in the mist. Then she pulled her tank top over her head and put on several bracelets and two long necklaces. “What do you think?” She spun around, and all the girls smiled.

  “Stunning,” Amy said.

  “You always look hot,” Jenna said.

  “Is it too much?” Sky hated the idea of looking like she’d tried too hard.

  “No! You look comfortably sexy,” Bella said.

  Jenna sifted through the scarves and draped a pale blue one around Sky’s neck and wiggled her brows. “Scarves are so handy. Feel free to play, if you know what I mean.”

  “Oh my gosh.” Amy grabbed Jenna’s arm. “Have you gone all Fifty Shades on us?”

  Jenna laughed and turned beet red. “No. Not all Fifty Shades. Besides, Bella has fuzzy handcuffs. What’s wrong with scarves?”

  “And don’t you try to look innocent, Amy.” Bella narrowed her eyes. “You told us all about your little hands-behind-your-back escapade with your sexy surfer husband.”

  “Hey, I never heard about that,” Sky said. “Where was I?”

  “That was the night you and Sawyer were learning the ins and outs of each other,” Jenna said with a loud laugh.

  “I thought we told you about Amy’s sexy romp,” Bella added.

  “I think I’d remember Kitten getting tied up,” Sky teased.

  There was a knock at the door, and they a
ll gasped.

  Amy peeked out the bedroom window. “He’s here, and ooh la la, he looks yummy.”

  They stumbled over one another to fit through the bedroom door.

  “I feel like I’m in high school.” When Sky opened the door, her heart nearly stopped. She was vaguely aware of sounds of appreciation coming from behind her. She’d seen Sawyer wearing jeans, shorts, and completely naked, all of which were enough to make her go a little crazy, but she’d never seen him look like this. His broad shoulders were even more powerful in a black dress shirt tucked neatly into a pair of dark slacks, opened at the top to reveal a smattering of chest hair.

  His eyes took a slow drag down her body, making her feel hot and electric at once. He touched her hand as he kissed her. The scent of his cologne embraced her, and when he spoke, it was like she was hearing his voice for the first time, sending her stomach into flurries.

  “You look gorgeous,” he said with an easy smile. “You ladies look gorgeous, too,” he said.

  “Thank you,” they said in unison.

  Sky glanced over her shoulder at the girls and caught sight of the basket sitting on the table. Somehow it didn’t seem as pressing now as it had earlier. She didn’t want to get into a serious conversation about poems right now. Did it really matter if he was the P-town poet? Not enough to sidetrack what was sure to be a lovely evening.

  “They were just leaving,” Sky said.

  “Right,” Bella said, but she made no move to leave. “What’s the plan? Can’t you clue us in on your secret date?”

  Sky shooed them toward the door. “Come on, my married and preggers friends. Stop drooling over my man and prying him for information.”

  The girls wished them a fun evening and filed out the door in a gaggle of whispers.

  “Sorry. I think when we all get together we turn into teenagers.”

  “I wish I’d known you as a teenager,” he said in a voice that could melt butter. “Then we’d have had even more time together.”

  Chapter Fourteen