by Jamie Pope
“I didn’t mean to make you upset, Virginia.”
“But you did, and I have to go now, Mother. I’ll speak to you later.” She hung up and pulled the covers back over her head, just as she heard a knock at her door.
“You up?”
She peeked from under the covers to see Carlos standing in the doorway. “I’m up.”
“You promised me breakfast and the beach today. Let’s get moving.”
* * *
Carlos couldn’t take his eyes off Virginia as she sat in front of him in the small boat he had found in the garage. They were kayaking in the ocean. She had challenged him to do something that he had never done before, and this was one of those things. He had seen people in these skinny little boats, paddling out, and he had wondered what the allure was.
But now he was out in the middle of the ocean, with quiet all around him and the lush island scenery surrounding him, he understood. His mind had gone peacefully blank. For a little while there were just clear ocean and blue skies and a beautiful brown-skinned woman sitting in front of him.
She had tied her hair up. But there was one loose piece that was trailing down the back of her neck that was distracting. It was so alluring. He wanted to lean forward and kiss her there, but he couldn’t. If he got up he might tip the kayak over.
Last night it had taken everything in his power not to take her. He had thought about her all night, as he’d laid hard in his bed. Even this morning when he went into her room, he wasn’t sure if he could keep himself in check. She was so responsive to his touch, so giving of her body, so unself-conscious that it would have been easy for him to slip inside her, easy for him to spend the whole night with her. But for once he wanted to give something without receiving anything in return. It was the first time in his life he had ever felt that way about a woman.
But there was something wrong with her this morning. Something off. That easy happiness that usually floated around her was gone. As though her light had been dimmed. He had overheard just a snippet of her conversation before he walked into her room this morning, but he could tell she’d been talking to her mother.
They’d had breakfast together, and for other people it might have been the normal amount of conversation. But not for them. He missed her chatter. Most of his days were filled with silence, filled with his own thoughts. He hadn’t realized how much the sound of her words had come to mean to him.
“Let’s turn back,” he said to her.
She glanced over her shoulder at him and nodded. “I didn’t think I would like this, but I like it a lot.”
“You could have said no when I brought up the idea,” he said to her as they began to paddle back to shore.
“I rarely say no to trying new things. You never know what you’re going to like.”
She was right. He was discovering that more and more with each day he spent with her.
“There’s...” She stopped paddling for a moment. “Are those horses?” She turned around to look at him. “There’s a man with horses on your beach.”
He just shrugged. “Let’s go see what’s up.”
They were back to shore in a few minutes and he watched her climb out and run up to the two horses that were there.
He didn’t get out for a minute. She was wearing a bright red bathing suit with strategically placed cutouts down the center. It was sexy, and the way it clung to her behind made him hard as a rock. He felt like a teenage boy when he was around her, barely able to control his body.
It took some kind of woman to do that to him.
He rose and went to her, watching her as she petted one of the horses. “She’s a beauty, isn’t she?” the owner, Tom Judith, said to Virginia. “Real sweet, won’t give you any problems while you ride her.” He looked at Carlos. “It’s so nice to meet you in person, Mr. Bradley. We’re honored that you’ve decided to make your home on the island. Everyone in town is really excited to have you here.”
“Thank you. I appreciate that.”
“I hope your tendon rupture is healing, because the team hasn’t been the same without you. Baseball hasn’t been the same without you.”
There was a twinge in his gut at the words. For the past few hours he had forgotten that he had been hurt. He had forgotten that empty feeling that not being able to play left inside him. But now he was reminded that he was really nothing without it.
“Did you rent us horses for the day?” Virginia looped her arms around his neck and kissed his cheek, letting her lips linger there for a moment. “You’re amazing,” she said softly. “Just amazing the way you are right this moment.”
He didn’t know if she knew he needed to hear that, but he did. And it was nice to hear it from a woman who hadn’t met him until after he’d left the game.
“You said, ‘do something that you’ve never done before’ and this is it.” He looked back at Tom. “What are their names?”
“The mare is Kia. The gelding is Leroy. If you head west down the beach, you’ll run into a nice trail that will take you into the state park. It’s some nice scenery.”
They put on their shorts and shoes, and a few minutes later they were both riding off down the beach toward the tropical forest.
“You look mighty fine sitting on that horse, sir,” she said to him, giving him a sexy smile. “All you need is a cowboy hat. Maybe some assless chaps?”
“Why, thank you, ma’am.” He tipped an imaginary hat to her. “I’m just trying to act cool up here on this horse. It wouldn’t be manly of me to admit I don’t know what the hell I’m doing.”
“You know what you’re doing. You are one of those people who is annoyingly good at everything they do. I, on the other hand, have trouble walking in a straight line.”
“I’m not good at everything I do. I can’t figure out what’s been bothering you today.” They came up to the tropical forest that bordered his property. The land was protected and could never be built on. It was the reason his nearest neighbors were miles away. It was the reason they felt so secluded.
“I’m fine,” she said looking around her as they entered the park. There was a thick layer of leaves and branches above them, so thick that only tiny hints of the sky could be seen through them. “This place is amazing.” He could hear the awe in her voice. He was a little awed himself as they traveled farther in. He had never considered himself a nature lover. He had spent his life outside on baseball fields because that was his job. But he had never done much else until he had come here.
There was kind of a magical hush that surrounded them. The sounds of birds chirping, dragonflies buzzing and horse hooves clopping on the earth beneath them made him feel almost as if they were exploring new land instead of traveling a well-worn trail that was just minutes from his house.
“You’re quiet today.”
She looked over to him “I’m enjoying my time with you.”
“Tell me,” he urged. He felt the heaviness about her and he didn’t like it.
“My mother just drives me crazy. It happens.”
“A lot?”
“I love my mother. She’s brilliant and we get along fine when we aren’t discussing my career or future.”
“You seem as though you’re doing pretty well for yourself to me.”
“She’s so sure I’m going to fail that she’s secured me a teaching position at her university for when I do.”
“Have you ever failed before?”
“She thinks my painting career was a failure. Any career that I choose that’s not stable and steady is the wrong career to her. I get it. It’s not the life she would have chosen for me, but I’ve never once gone to them for money. I never once got in the position where I couldn’t take care of myself. I may not be who they wanted me to be, but who I am is pretty damn good, too.” She shook her head. “Let’s chang
e the subject. I feel like I’m whining. I hate whiny people.”
She wasn’t whining. She was being honest and he liked that about her. “Why did you stop painting? Because of her?”
“I loved it.” She shook her head. “I don’t know. When I told her Burcet left me, she said, ‘I told you so.’ She said she knew it was going to happen. That he was all wrong for me. That he was just another poor choice I made. I thought maybe she was right. He was bad for me. Every man I have ever dated was bad for me, and I had this annoying habit of chasing them wherever they went. Giving up everything to follow some man’s dream. I could do that with painting. But I thought if I had my own business with an office, that maybe I could break that cycle and prove to my mother and myself that I could be creative and practical. That I could put down roots on my own terms.”
“You’ve given up painting to put down roots? That doesn’t make sense to me, Gin.”
“I painted some pictures for the Rosecove Inn because the owner knew my work. I hadn’t found anything else I wanted to paint until I got here.”
So she was the artist. He remembered the painting hanging in his room over the bed. A little brown girl sitting under a tree with her face turned up to the sun. He never noticed art, never stopped to take in paintings, but that had caught his attention. The way she had used color so vividly, the way she had painted the light to hit the child’s face, the way she had captured the emotion of such a simple pleasure, had made him feel as if he could crawl into her work. It had made him remember what it felt like to sit outside as a kid and just soak in the sun.
“Let’s go get you some paint.”
“What?” She looked up at him, confused. “But we’re horseback riding in the middle of this enchanted tropical forest. I don’t want to go yet.”
“No. Not yet.” He didn’t want their adventure to end yet, either. “I’ll take you for a nice lunch, and then we’ll go find some paint.”
“You want to go into town?”
He didn’t really. He didn’t want to be faced with the questions and reminders of his vanishing career, but he would go today. For her. Because it was important for him to see her doing something she loved. “I want you to paint again.”
* * *
“Is that Carlos Bradley?” Virginia heard somebody whisper as they browsed the only shop in town that had painting supplies.
She looked over at Carlos, who was busy fiddling with a toy robot, and felt sad for him. They’d had a good day, probably one of the best days of her life. He kept surprising her. The sunset picnic yesterday evening, then peaceful kayaking and horses that met them on the beach today. Not to mention the orgasm he’d given her, how he’d taken his time to make sure she was satisfied without asking for anything in return.
This wasn’t her life. The past couple of days she’d felt as though she was in a dream that she didn’t want to wake up from. Mostly. Little parts of real life had infiltrated. Her mother’s call, but that she could handle, that she could ignore. But she couldn’t ignore all the people who came up to him asking about his injury, expressing grief over his inability to play. She understood him better now. It would be like people asking her why she couldn’t paint every time she left the house. A little reminder of the thing that affected him the most right now.
She could tell by the look on his face that he knew he had been recognized, but he pretended he didn’t hear. He must be used to all the whispering by now.
“That is him. I’m going to go over there.”
“Mom, don’t.”
“I have to.”
Virginia left the limited oil paints and walked over to him, looping her arm through his. “You want to go?” She pressed her cheek to his arm.
“No,” he said softly. “It’s part of the job.”
“But even you are entitled to a little off time.”
“I’ve had it.” He kissed her forehead. “Go pick out your paint.”
“Excuse me, Mr. Bradley.” A woman appearing to be in her sixties walked up with a young woman trailing behind her. “You don’t know me, but I run the food pantry in town and I’m also the mayor’s secretary and aunt. He wouldn’t tell me who donated the money to help out our needy families, but I know it was you.”
“No, ma’am.” Carlos smiled shyly, and Virginia caught a glimpse of the man she saw on billboards and magazines. “It wasn’t me. I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“My foot, it wasn’t you.” She rolled her eyes. “This isn’t an island of rich people, honey. You’re it. You’re putting people to work. And you’re minding your manners and that means I like you. And if I like you, I feed you. We want to throw you a little party at the community center. Next Saturday. Dress nice and come with an empty stomach. Bring your cute girlfriend, too.”
She walked away before he had a chance to respond. He just shrugged and went back to fiddling with the robot.
Virginia guessed they were going to a party next week.
* * *
There were very few paint supplies on the island for serious painters like Virginia. The closest thing they had found was a beginner’s oil-painting kit and some small canvases in the toy store. He bought them for her, even though she’d resisted and wanted to pay for them herself. He had never dated a woman who didn’t seem at all interested in his money. Except for his last girlfriend, but she’d been too busy using him to propel her career. At the time he hadn’t minded, chalking it all up to that kind of thing being a part of his life now, but it was different with Virginia.
And then he remembered it was different because he wasn’t with her. They weren’t dating. She worked for him.
Except for today. He wasn’t her boss and she wasn’t his employee. Today she was his friend, and as selfish as it was, he wanted more of her.
“The sun is starting to set,” she said as she walked over to the glass doors that led out to the patio. “This day went by so fast.” There was almost a sadness in her voice, as if she didn’t want the day to end. He didn’t want it to end yet, either.
He watched her as she stared out the window at the setting sun. She had showered and changed before they sat down to a fresh seafood dinner that he’d had delivered to the house. He should be used to looking at her by now, but he couldn’t take his eyes off her. The curve of her neck, her chin, her shoulders. They were all places that he wanted to touch with his lips. Run his mouth over her soft skin, kiss her there.
“Today was a very good day for me, Carlos. It was one of my best days. Thank you for that.”
He walked over to stand beside her, his need for her heavy within him. “You say it as if you’ll never have another day like that. Tomorrow can be like today.”
“Can you top horseback riding? What are you going to do next? Charter a hot-air balloon?
“I can if you want. I can do so much more.”
He could whisk her away to a private island, but they were already surrounded by pristine beach and sand. He could take her to see the world, if she wanted. To Paris. To Buenos Aires. Anywhere her heart desired. He could give her things. Cars. Jewels. Whatever she wanted.
“I have to go back to work tomorrow.”
But she didn’t want any of that. She wanted him to respect her for what she could do.
“What if I don’t want you to go back to working for me?” He pulled her into his arms and held her close. “What if I wanted to take you away? Name a place you’ve always wanted to go. Bora Bora? Australia? Africa? Nobody will know me there. No one will bother us.” He kissed up the seam of her neck slowly, enjoying the way she went pliant in his arms. “Wherever you want, and we can leave tomorrow.”
“I don’t want to be your mistress,” she said quietly, but with enough firmness in her voice so that he knew she wasn’t going to take him up on his offer.
She slipped he
r hands under his T-shirt and rubbed his back as if to soothe his ego. No woman had ever turned him down before; no woman had ever rejected something he wanted to give. It stung a bit, but it made him want her even more, if that were possible. And now she was touching him. He wondered if he could make it to one of the bedrooms or if he was going lose control and strip her naked right there.
“A mistress is something you keep on the side. Somebody you use only when you want to. I’m not asking that of you.”
She looked up at him. Staring him right in the eye. “What are you asking of me?”
It was a good question. It was one he didn’t know the answer to.
Cupping the back of her neck, he covered her mouth with his own, kissing her deeply, the way he had thought about doing all day. Her mouth tasted sweet, like the wine they had been drinking after dinner.
“I’m not your type, you know,” she said, pulling away from him, but she didn’t go far. She lifted his shirt, softly kissing his chest. “I’m ninety-nine percent sure that you only want me this much because you haven’t gotten any in a while and I’m the only woman around.”
“I could have any woman I want, but I only want you, Virginia Andersen.” He pulled her into another kiss.
“Tomorrow we go back to the way it was before. You’re my boss. I work for you. No more of this.”
“No.” He hiked up her dress, grabbing her behind, kneading her flesh between his fingers.
“Yes.” She pulled away from him, unbuttoning his shorts, yanking them down until he was completely exposed to her. He had been hard since he’d first tasted her mouth, but when he saw her go down to her knees he became like steel. “It’s my turn to do something for you.” She kissed his head, rubbing it across her lips.
He hissed, surprised by her boldness, turned on by her touch. “Let me take you to bed.”
“No.” She kissed his shaft. “I want to do this just for you. Let me take care of you.” She slid her wet, warm mouth around him and he knew he was a goner.
Chapter 8
The next morning Virginia was in the kitchen placing fruit in the blender for her morning smoothie when she heard heavy footsteps behind her. Her breath quickened, but she tried to control it. She never saw him this early in the morning. Sometimes she would hear him in his gym, but he never ventured into the kitchen when she was there.