Please tell me I didn’t just gasp. It was getting harder not to react as he got bolder. He knew I was turned on. But I was stronger than that. Stronger than my impulses. I hope.
“You know, I think a bit of sunshine will do us good,” I said as I took in a breath, forcing my voice to be chirpy instead of deep and breathy.
Abbot grinned and slid a piece of nicotine gum into his mouth, chewing as he kept his eyes locked on mine. He was really taking this no smoking thing seriously. I gave him props for that. He even had a sexy chew.
“Then let’s go. I’ll buy you lunch.”
We bought sandwiches from a little cafe then headed to Geelong Botanic Gardens to eat and stretch our legs on my request since I’d been sitting hunched over for too many hours to count.
It was pretty there, the sun offering a gentle warmth on an autumn day, heating my skin and making the world seem more alive and colourful.
“My neck is killing me,” I complained as I dropped my empty packaging in a nearby bin then pressed my fingers into the tight muscle to relieve it. “I think I’ll be glad not to see another safe again once I’m finished with this one.”
Abbot dropped his rubbish in the bin along with mine then gestured for me to move closer to him. “Come here. I’ll fix it for you.”
He led me to a bench seat then stood behind me, picking up my long hair and sweeping it to one side. “Why do I feel like I’m about to get a dick pressed into me?” I joked as the breeze drifted over my skin, tickling.
“Relax. This is not a seduction attempt.” Then he pressed his fingers into my trapezius and I just about howled in pain. “Breathe,” he said with a calm voice. “Oxygen helps, tensing up and holding your breath doesn’t.”
“Can’t I just stretch?” I grunted as his fingers found every knot across my shoulders and up my neck then proceeded to press directly into them. I’d had massages before, but they’d been relaxing. This was torture.
“Stop being a baby. Surely you’ve done some sort of sports therapy where they do this.”
“Nope. I’ve never had an injury.”
“You’re lucky then,” he said, just as I felt the knot he was working on click and release, a warmth spreading all across my shoulders and causing a slight moan to fall from my lips.
“OK. You know what you’re doing,” I said as I relaxed into his hands and felt all the tightness in my muscles drift away.
“I’m glad you noticed.” His fingers lightened their touch then he moved my hair to the opposite side and worked on my other shoulder. I was grunting in pain again.
“Where’d you learn to do that?” I asked when he was done and took a seat beside me.
“Remedial massage. I did a course when I was, like, twenty-three, I think. Thought I might get out of the family business, do things my own way for a bit. But that didn’t go down so well, so I dropped out and I’m still here. Lucky you, huh?” He stretched his arms out across the back of the bench as he relaxed into his position.
“That really sucks. Do you regret dropping out?”
He bounced a shoulder. “I dunno. I mean, I thought it would be a good job at the time. But I like the flash cars and the easy life I have now. This life gets in your blood, you know?”
I nodded, making a thoughtful sound because even after all the years of walking the straight and narrow, I’d slipped easily back into life around the Cartwrights. It was like a song I hadn’t heard for years but still remembered the lyrics to. Bad notes and all.
“I want to tell you something,” I said after a while of watching birds pick for bugs in the grass. My mind was filled with memories of the past becoming clearer each day. It made my actions feel more current, and I knew I was going to have to deal with them by talking to Toby. But, I needed to talk to Abbot first. This thing between us was fun, and it worked because we were being honest with each other. I didn’t feel right continuing this without coming clean.
“I’m listening.” He turned so he was giving me his full attention.
A tightness crept up my throat and I cleared it away so I could speak. “Do you remember my last summer with you?”
“I remember all the summers.” The fondness in his gaze made my stomach flicker.
“God, you’re sweet when you want to be,” I said under my breath. I was glad he’d made it clear he didn’t want anything long-term because I’d struggle not to fall for him otherwise.
He grinned. “What about this last summer?”
I took a deep breath for courage because this was something in our shared history that I’d been keeping to myself. “I was kind of fucked up that year. You guys were pulling that credit card scam.”
“The one where we copied them with a strip reader.”
“Yeah. I was scared of getting caught, so I refused to be a part of it.”
“You were scared? I thought you were just trying to get with Toby since you kept getting him to take you to a movie while the rest of us covered for you.” I sat up a little straighter. Wait. Did he know?
“Um…” I touched my forehead, slightly rattled by his perception of things. “I was scared of going to juvie. Felt guilty over teaching Nate how to pick locks and, I don’t know, there was a lot of shit going on back home with my mum and...” I frowned then looked at him, distracted by the plainness of his statement. “You really thought I was trying to get with Toby?” I wasn’t, well, at first…
He shrugged. “We all did. You kept going off with him and whispering together. It was obvious something was going on.”
“And that doesn’t make you feel weird pursuing me now?”
“Why would it? It’s not like anything happened between you two.”
Oh my God. He knew. Fucking Toby.
“What makes you so sure?” I said each word carefully.
He ran a hand through his hair. “Because Tobes is a monk. Always has been. He warned us all away from you the moment we hit puberty. And there was no way he was going against his own rule. He’s rigid as fuck about honour and stuff like that. Well, unless your name is Holland.”
“What?”
“Point is, Toby never mixes business with pleasure, and any relationship he’s ever had has been in secret. I didn’t even know if he liked girls until he kissed Holland and he and Nate had a massive blue over it.”
“He kissed Holland.”
“Yeah. It’s like the one time Toby showed feelings for anything other than his dog.”
I narrowed my eyes. “So, he never told you anything about me?”
He mirrored my expression. “No. Why? Are you saying something happened between you two?”
“No.” I practically shouted the word. “Absolutely nothing happened.”
“Then why all the questions? Did you want something to happen? Wait. Do you still want something with him now?”
“No.” I grabbed his hand. “Absolutely not. But…I did kind of embarrass myself in front of him.”
“Does this embarrassment have anything to do with why you left and never came back?”
I nodded, rubbing at my forehead because I really didn’t like reliving this memory. But I needed to get it off my chest after holding on to it for so long. “I should give you some context first.”
“I’m listening.”
“So, when I arrived in Torquay that year, I’d been fighting with my mum, and I was in shit with Pop over finding that stash. The idea of getting caught felt all too real for me, and I couldn’t deal with that stress on top of everything else. So, I told Toby I wanted out the first night I was there, and he said he understood, that he hated the life too and offered to help me so Jasmine wouldn’t get the shits over me not pulling my weight. While you guys covered for us, we kicked back and had a lot of conversations that summer. We grew close and I ended up confiding in him about what happened with my mum.” I paused and shook my head, hating how pitiful this made me sound, but it was important to explain my state of mind. “I hated her so much at the time. You see, I had never had a
boyfriend before because I was always the friend and never the girlfriend. But when she showed up that year, I was getting serious with my first one. She made a big deal about it and we talked, like, I don’t know, how best girlfriends would talk, you know? Giggling and shit, sharing details.” I closed my eyes, feeling sick as the words hit the tip of my tongue. “She fucked him.”
“She what?”
I pressed the pads of my fingers together. “My mother had sex with my eighteen-year-old boyfriend.”
“Fucking hell.” He breathed out the words as he leaned back against the seat. “Did you catch them?”
I nodded, refusing to cry over something from so long ago, but it still hurt. Even after I’d forgiven them. “I was messed up when I got here, and I mistook Toby’s understanding and friendship for something else. It wasn’t even that I was super into him, I just wanted a guy to choose me for a change. So…I threw myself at him and Pop basically saw everything.” I said the last part really quickly because it was the most embarrassing.
“That’s what he and Jazz were fighting about?”
I nodded, feeling shitty. “Toby told me he couldn’t see me in that way because I was more of a sister, and I lost my shit, crying and carrying on. I ran out of his room and Pop caught me, thought something else had happened and lost his shit at Jasmine. I came clean with him after we got back to Rochester, which I guess is why he still worked for you guys on occasion, but I was always too embarrassed to come back, and Pop never offered. I think he was relieved that I was happy being the straight-laced one in the family.”
“I had no clue, Sloane, I…” He let out his breath. “Your mum sounds like a piece of work.”
I leaned back so we were shoulder to shoulder. “She’s…interesting. I hated her for a long time, but I’ve learned to accept her now. Just like I learned to accept that I was just a little out of my mind that summer and that it didn’t have to mean anything.”
“But you still didn’t come back.”
“Well, I didn’t really have my catharsis until a couple of years ago when my relationship with Mark blew up and I was forced to do a lot of soul searching. Then Pop died, and I kind of expected to see you guys at the funeral.”
“I’d have been there if I’d known.”
“I know. But do you know what’s weird?” He shook his head. “Jasmine sent flowers. I thought that maybe I’d skipped notifying her, but when we went to my place to get my things, I checked the condolence cards and hers was there. She knew.”
He placed his hands on his thighs as he quietly absorbed that information.
I nudged him with my shoulder when the silence stretched too far. “Seems we’re all pretty fucked up, huh?”
He lifted his brow. “Well, our parents certainly are. Jury’s still out on the rest of us.”
A smile crossed my lips as a burst of air left my nose. “You know, Abbot, I’ve missed you all these years.”
“Me, or Toby?”
I nudged him again. “All of you. Are you jealous now?”
“That you threw yourself at Toby? Fuck, yeah.” Was he serious?
“It was a mistake,” I said, still feeling regret over my brazen actions. I’d gone to his room in nothing but a robe and dropped it to the floor dramatically. He turned away and told me to cover up. He didn’t want me like that. My seventeen-year-old self-esteem shrivelled up and died then and there.
“A huge mistake. You picked the wrong brother. If you’d come to my room, there’s no way I’d have turned you away.”
“You were twelve.”
“Yeah, well, I would have done my best to make you feel like a woman.” He was so ridiculous.
“You are fucked in the head. The jury just came back on that one.”
“Were you a virgin at the time?”
“No,” I responded, laughing and shaking my head at the same time.
“OK. I don’t feel so slighted now.”
“You are so weird.”
He shrugged. “I prefer honest, but sure.”
“If it makes you feel better, if I was going to throw myself at any brother now, you’d be my first choice.”
A huge grin spread across his face and he wiggled his brow. “Then my plan is working.”
“I take back the comment I made about you being sweet.”
“You can’t. It’s already been said and I’m keeping it.” He stood and held out his hand. “Come with me.”
“Why?”
“Because I’m taking you out as per our agreement.”
“You don’t want to back out now that you know Toby saw me naked?”
“He saw you naked?” His eyes bugged open and he dropped his hand to his side with a slap.
“For, like, a second. Then he looked away.”
“Is that all? Fuck, I’ve seen you naked for longer than that.”
“When?”
That cheeky grin of his reappeared along with the suggestive eyebrows. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”
“Yes, actually.” I jumped up and pushed him in the chest playfully.
“Besides recently in my dreams, over twenty years ago. I’m not quite as pervy now as I was as a kid.”
“You are unbelievable.”
“And yet, you’re smiling.” He winked then grabbed my hand, lacing our fingers together. “Let’s go.”
A grin stretched across my face. “Where and why?”
“You’ll see. We’re going to do something fun.”
“Like what?”
“Woman, can you quit questioning me for five minutes and trust me?”
“I’m trying to ascertain whether this is some kind of trap.”
With a laugh, he pulled me closer to him. “You’ll have to come with me to find out.” He leaned down slightly, his mouth so close to mine I could feel the heat of his skin. But he pulled away, taking my breath with him. Damn.
“Fine,” I said, falling into step beside him, our hands still joined. “I guess I can trust you.”
“Good. Because I trust you too, Sloane Slater,” he said, lifting our joined hands and pressing a kiss against my fingers.
My heart leapt in my chest.
Careful, Sloane.
It’s just a game.
Chapter Twelve
Cat and Mouse
“Mini golf?” I asked with a laugh when we pulled up in front of a fenced-off property on Bellarine Highway.
“Not mini golf.” He turned down the private road that took us inside the parking lot.
“Then what?” I asked, looking around until I saw some more signage. “Oh. A maze.”
He pulled into a parking spot and cut the engine. “We’re going to play a game.”
“What kind of game?” I sensed a hint of tomfoolery in his plan.
“The kind of game kids play. But I assure you, it’ll be a hell of a lot more fun when we do it.”
Getting out of the Jag, I looked over at the giant wooden maze. “Why am I suddenly afraid?”
“Don’t be. It’s totally innocent.” He pushed his door shut. “Ish,” he added.
“Innocent-ish. I’m gonna need more information than that, buddy.”
“All in good time, my dear. All in good time.”
After going inside the main building and paying our entry fee, Abbot and I stood at the mouth of the maze.
“Rules,” Abbot stated.
“I don’t even know the object of this game yet.”
“First one to the end of the maze, obviously,” he said with an expression on his face that read, ‘duh’.
I rolled my eyes. “That’s it?” With a shrug, I turned to enter the maze, but he caught my arm.
“Not quite. There’s a catch.”
I relaxed my shoulders. “Of course there is.”
“I’m going to give you a five-minute head start.”
“That’s a big head start. I’m fast, you know. Sure you want to handicap yourself like that?”
“Absolutely, little mouse.”
&nb
sp; “Little mouse? Oh, I see. The kid’s game. We’re playing cat and mouse.”
He grinned like he’d already become the cat who got the cream…or the mouse. “I haven’t told you the catch yet.”
“OK, lay it on me.”
“If I catch you, you kiss me.”
“Not cat and mouse, catch and kiss.” I took a deep breath as I considered his idea. Kissing wasn’t sex. And if I could figure out the maze first, he wouldn’t even get the chance to put his lips near mine. I could do this. “You’re on.”
A slow grin spread across his face as he lifted his arm and pressed a button on his watch. “Run, little mouse. Run.”
Fighting a grin, I took off into the maze, trying to remember the map I’d studied while inside. I’d already plotted a course through, knowing that it would take a zigzag pattern that doubled backwards before an almost circle took me to the exit.
I was going to defeat this thing.
At the five-minute mark, I heard him call out, “Coo-ee.”
Grinning, I returned the call then quickened my pace. There was no way he could catch up. One more right and three lefts before I was…shit. I’d taken a wrong turn somewhere.
Shit. Fuck. Shit.
Looking up, I tried to find some sort of landmark to gauge my position. But the walls were ten feet of white painted wood, and there wasn’t even a tree to help guide me.
“Excellent,” I muttered, before catching sight of what looked like a cubby house on stilts with an orange flag on top.
The centre of the maze.
If I can get to there, I might be able to figure my way out.
With renewed determination, I headed for the flag, twisting this way and that, honestly feeling a little dizzy but also glad that I hadn’t heard any footfalls closing in. He still hadn’t caught me. I was in with a chance.
As I got closer to the centre, I realised that I hadn’t bargained for anything if I made it to the exit first. I could have asked for a ceasefire on all flirting for twenty-four hours or I could’ve asked for the keys to his Jag so I could go for a joyride. There were possibilities I hadn’t even thought to explore. And now either he won or I didn’t.
Fool’s Errand: Cartwright Brothers, Book 4 Page 8