Chosen by a Stranger (Craved Series #5)

by Kelly, Hazel

  Her sweetness was in my milkshakes. Her smile was in the sunshine. Even the swaying of the palm trees reminded me of how her hips moved when she walked.

  What the hell was she doing right now?

  I pictured her from behind- the way her curves tapered in at her waist as she sat at her desk, exceeding client’s expectations. I pictured her head cocked as she stood admiring the flowers I got her in their new vase. I pictured her holding my watch in her delicate fingers and hoped it was still warm from being worn, hoped she could still feel how badly I wanted her even from so far away.

  But the visions offered no relief.

  None of them were as good as the real thing.

  I turned off the shower and grabbed my undersized Thai towel off the bar behind me.

  "You're killing me, Audrey," I said when my eyes peeked over the towel and into the mirror.

  Suddenly, there was an enthusiastic knock on the door, a knock I would recognize anywhere.

  I rubbed the towel over my head brusquely and wrapped it around my waist, walking the short distance to the other side of my apartment.

  "Jin," I said, opening the door.

  He gave me a big hug, acting as if he hadn't noticed I was still dripping wet and only half decent.

  "I missed you," he said, slapping my bare back.

  "Come in," I said, stepping back and gesturing to my well-worn futon.

  "You look like shit," he said.

  I shrugged. "That's what too many long distance flights do to a man."

  "And not shaving."

  "You're probably right," I said, feeling my short stubble.

  A set of keys came at me in an underhanded toss, and I snatched them from the air.

  "Did you get a new bike?" I asked, looking at the key ring.

  "No," he said. "You did."

  "What?"

  "My parents wanted to get you something to thank you for helping Lucky with her English… and whatever else you helped her with," he said, choosing not to dwell on the fact that my classes often touched on more risqué topics. "And I told them you needed a new bike."

  "I can't accept this," I said, knowing full well that his parents needed the money they had. "They have a wedding to pay for."

  Jin shrugged. "You've met my parents," he said. "I wasn't going to argue with them."

  "Maybe I'll just use it until I have a chance to replace my old bike," I said, trying not to sound ungrateful. "Then you can look after this one for me."

  It was obvious that he loved that plan from how pathetic of a job he did trying to pretend he didn't. "I know better than to argue with you too," he said.

  "Thanks, Jin. And thank your parents for me." I set the keys down on the kitchen counter. "Or better yet, maybe I could take them to dinner some night. You could help me choose a place they’d like."

  "Sure," he said. "Sounds good."

  "I don’t know what’s in the fridge," I said, going to the bathroom to shave. "But help yourself to whatever."

  Jin nodded once and walked to my short, turquoise fridge, opening it as I ran a razor under the tap.

  "Any movie scripts cross your path when you were away?" he asked.

  "No," I said. "But you know I'm always on the lookout for you."

  "I know," he said, letting the fizz out of a can of Coke.

  I lathered some shaving foam on my face and leaned close to the mirror.

  "So are you going to tell me what happened with Audrey or what?"

  I froze, the razor suspended over my face. "Or what."

  A moment later, he was leaning in the doorway. As an only child, I wasn't used to being crowded in the bathroom by people I wasn't sleeping with, but I made an exception since the idea of personal space was a completely foreign concept to Jin.

  "Well?"

  "She needs time," I said, straightening back up.

  "Time for what?"

  "Time to decide if she's going to marry me."

  "You proposed?"

  I nodded, leaning my chin back towards the mirror.

  "I didn't know that was the plan."

  "Neither did I," I said, shaking some shaving cream off into the sink. "It just sort of happened."

  "Congratulations?"

  "Maybe not just yet," I said. "But I'll let you know when I hear from her."

  "So you're waiting for her answer?"

  "Yeah."

  Jin laughed.

  "What's so funny?" I asked, sliding the razor down my neck.

  "I never saw a girl play you like this."

  "What do you mean?"

  "You know, keep you guessing," he said. "Maybe you finally met your match."

  I smiled. "I hope so, Jin."

  "Maybe you should get busy hoping she thinks so instead."

  I raised my eyebrows. "No shit."

  "You teaching today?"

  I nodded. "Yeah, at nine."

  "I'll let you get ready then."

  "Thanks for stopping by," I said. "And for the wheels. That's really too kind of you."

  "Mai pen rai," he said. “No worries.”

  I bent over and splashed water over my face, rinsing my stubble down the drain.

  "Better," he said when I righted myself again.

  "Agreed."

  "You want to come by the club for drinks later? Let me know how the new bike's treating you?"

  "Maybe.”

  “It would be better than staring at the phone and hoping it rings.”

  I shook my head. “You watch too many American movies."

  “Still.”

  “We’ll see,” I said. "Depends on whether my jet lag catches up to me."

  But the truth was I felt like the club would remind me too much of Audrey and the antics we got up to on the roof. Then again, I was starting to feel like there was nowhere on Earth that wouldn't make me think of her. Certainly Thailand made the memories of her come flooding back. And being in the States hadn't been any better.

  In fact, I was starting to feel like I'd never belong anywhere she wasn't, like she was the closest thing to home I would ever know.

  And I still didn't even know if she loved me back.

  The little moped Jin gave me got me to the club in record time. It was cheap and cheerful, but the gesture was so grand I was beside myself, and the salty sea air blowing in my face seemed to lift my mood almost immediately.

  When I pulled up, Sammy and Mai were already waiting outside, drinking Thai coffee and eating seaweed chips.

  "Sawasdee khap," I said, slipping the keys from the ignition.

  They greeted me and stepped away from the doors.

  "You guys are early today," I said, opening the metal gate across the club's entrance.

  "Mai has big news for you, Jack," Sammy said, speaking out of turn as usual.

  "Oh?" I turned to Mai's small frame. "What might that be?"

  "Remember when I told you about the handsome man who was buying the coffees from me?"

  "Of course."

  Unable to control herself, Sammy grabbed Mai's hand and shoved it in my direction.

  My eyes settled on the modest ring immediately.

  "You're getting married?" I asked, looking into Mai's brown eyes.

  "I'm getting married."

  "Congratulations," I said, wrapping my arms around her. "That's wonderful news."

  "It never would've happened without your excellent advice," Sammy said. "That's what Mai told me anyway."

  Mai nodded. "It's true."

  "Well, I hope I can meet the lucky guy sometime," I said. "I can only imagine how happy he must be."

  Chapter 16: Audrey

  It was easy to find out where he would be. Everyone I asked seemed to know him or someone who did.

  But as I followed the trail of coffee vendors, banana pancake sellers, and shop keepers, I became increasingly nervous.

  I tried to take deep breaths, reminding myself what I was doing as I did it.

  I was going to find him.

  I was g
oing to tell him I loved him.

  And then what?

  Hopefully my mouth would be so full of his tongue I wouldn't have to say anything more.

  That was the plan.

  Of course, if he needed an answer, I had one for him. After all, chances were he'd been thinking about that last morning in my apartment as much as I had.

  And I knew I shouldn't be as nervous as I was, especially since I already knew how he felt. But it was still nerve-wracking.

  I mean, I don't think the bucket of coffee I drank on the twenty hour flight was helping to calm my nerves, but it wasn't just that. It was the fact that I was totally out of my comfort zone.

  My whole life I'd let men dictate the events of my relationships. I'd been a victim of how things played out, never a catalyst.

  But for once the future of my love life was up to me, and I was taking it into my own hands. I just hoped I didn’t blow it. Or say the wrong thing. Or misread Jack and the situation.

  For all I knew I'd already fucked it up by forgetting to tell him I loved him because I was so obsessed with catching my own breath.

  But it didn't matter how badly my fingers were shaking or how scared I was to make my voice heard. Because the truth was, I was far more scared of losing him than I'd ever been of anything before.

  Besides, there was no going back. I wasn't on a holiday here. I was on a mission, and if I had to go home with my tail between my legs, it was going to be with the knowledge that- at least for once- I tried to reach out for a worthwhile relationship with both hands when I had the chance.

  And what's the worst that could happen?

  Suddenly, my mind shot off in a thousand different directions, flashing with the idea of everything from Jack being with another woman to not being here to-

  I shook my head like a wet dog, refocusing all my energy on the specific instructions I had for how to find him. And when I located the building between the two shops selling inflatable ocean toys, I was confident I had the right spot.

  "Breathe," I said to myself as I leaned against the wall beside the front door, flattening my palms against the siding and wondering what I would find when I went inside.

  Jack with his scuba gear?

  Jack working out with a bunch of guys?

  Jack alone and naked waiting for me?

  I smiled. Unfortunately, it probably wouldn't be that last one.

  And then I heard his voice.

  It was almost inaudible, but I was sure I hadn't imagined it because my whole body swelled up in goose bumps.

  He was here. I found him.

  I knew I couldn't linger too long as I risked losing my nerve, or worse, losing the element of surprise. And I'd gone considerably out of my way to make sure I had it.

  So without wasting a moment, I turned the corner and took several steps down a dark hallway towards Jack's voice.

  "I know it sounds stupid to you guys, but Westerners don't expect fish bones in their fish, and they definitely don't want the knuckley bits of chicken in their curries," he said.

  But to whom I couldn't see.

  "What is knuckley bits?" a soft voice asked.

  It was followed by what I can only assume was an explanation in Thai by someone else, a woman with a very strong voice.

  "Thanks, Sammy," I heard Jack say.

  "What are we supposed to do?" the soft voice asked again. "Waste good chicken? Not cook fish?"

  "Of course not," Jack said. "All I'm saying is that if you’re trying to impress a guy in the beginning of a relationship, he'll be more impressed by a curry with the white meat he's used to eating in it than he will be with your ability to use every part of the bird."

  At that point, I was so curious to figure out what the hell was going on, I couldn't stay in the dark another minute.

  "I'm trying to impress a Western guy," I said, peeking my head out of the shadows and stepping into the room.

  Jack was leaning against a pool table with his arms crossed in front of a group of women seated at small tables with open notebooks. As soon as his eyes met mine, his arms fell with his jaw as he braced himself on the table’s edge.

  "Do you have room for one more?" I asked, clasping my hands in front of me to keep them from shaking as I tried to ignore the fact that everyone’s eyes were on me.

  He blinked like he wasn't sure I was really there. "Of course," he said. "There's absolutely nothing I wouldn't do to accommodate you."

  I smiled, my desire to run towards him with open arms growing stronger every second.

  "Unfortunately," he continued. "Class is over for today."

  "But it's only-" a lady boy in the front row began to protest.

  "I'm treating you all to breakfast at Fah's Place instead. Right now. Get your stuff and follow Sammy." He turned towards the lady boy. "Sammy, tell Fah I'll be by to pay her for anything you guys order before the end of the day."

  "Is this your girlfriend?" a quiet voice from the side of the room asked.

  Jack looked at me. "No," he said. "This woman is a lot more than my girlfriend."

  "Your wife?" she asked again like she was going to guess until she got it right.

  He shook his head. "Not yet," he said. "But maybe if you all get the heck out of here right now, I'll have good news like Mai's for our next class."

  Suddenly, they all jumped into action and scurried out like skittish crabs, each looking me up and down as they left like they weren’t entirely pleased I'd stolen Jack away from them.

  As soon as the last woman disappeared into the hallway, I started walking towards him.

  He met me halfway, putting his hands around my face first before running them down over my shoulders and arms until he was holding my hands in his.

  "What are you doing here?" he asked.

  "I'm surprising you."

  He smiled. "Yes you are," he said. "More and more every day."

  "I'm sorry. I clearly interrupted you there."

  "Don't apologize," he said, tucking a strand of frizzy hair behind my ear. “I’m so glad you’re here.”

  And then his lips were on mine with a hunger that let me know his feelings for me hadn't been damaged by the days apart.

  Immediately, I felt my stomach stir up a warmth inside me that I knew only he could release, and I realized that every fiber of my being was leaning into him, craving him.

  And between his freshly shaven face and his tacky Bermuda shirt, he was completely irresistible.

  "What exactly did I walk in on by the way?" I asked.

  He shrugged. "It's nothing. Just a class I teach to give myself something to do-"

  "Why is it all women?"

  "Cause the subject we tend to discuss most is how to charm Western men."

  "What?"

  "You know… how to dress, what to feed him, how to let him know you’re interested, how to give a great blowjobs-"

  "No!"

  "Scout's honor," he said, raising a hand. "Though I think you should probably be teaching that last subject."

  I covered my mouth with my hand.