Honor on the Cape

by M. K. Meredith

  The front door opened, and Judge Carter strolled in with a look on his face that reminded Jay of a kid looking for candy.

  “Hey, Judge, Mrs. Van Buren’s in the cellar.” He turned to the photo, loving the smile on Blayne’s face as his words finally registered. Shit!

  He jumped up, jogging over to intercept the man before he reached the top of the stairs. “I mean she was in the cellar…dropping off…”

  He racked his brain for anything the woman could have dropped off.

  “Albums. That’s it.” He grabbed the older man’s arm and dragged him toward the boxes he’d discovered. “Remember this?” He showed the judge the photo of him and Blayne.

  Judge Carter craned his head to look toward the cellar door. “Was?”

  He waved dismissively. “Oh yeah. She left about an hour ago.” If the judge went near those steps, Jay was a dead man.

  He swore he could feel the perspiration beading at his hairline. Never partaking in any of Maxine’s moonshine again would be the worst punishment ever.

  He shoved the picture in front of the judge again. “Remember how much money we brought in that year?”

  Judge Carter was hesitant to relinquish his search for Maxine, but he focused on the picture. “I do. I do. I don’t think we’ve had an event quite as successful since.” He scratched the whiskers at his chin. “Why would Maxine drop the albums in the cellar? I don’t think they’d keep very well down there with the dampness and all.”

  Clearly, the judge hadn’t set foot in the basement of the Cape house since Ryker taken over. Maxine had talked her grandson into letting her use the space and had the whole thing finished out with climate control and good lighting. What better way to make her brew?

  Hell, they could convert it into a comfortable apartment if they wanted to someday. But he secretly hoped they didn’t. It would be a huge loss if Maxine quit making his favorite drink.

  Directing the man through the front door a little firmer than he was comfortable with, Jay snorted. “Sounds just like her, doesn’t it? I had to go down and haul them upstairs. You know Maxine.”

  Holy hell, the woman would have his balls in her distiller for that comment. He glanced toward the door, praying she hadn’t heard him. The bead of sweat broke free and dripped down his temple.

  “You okay, boy?” the judge asked. “You don’t look too good.”

  A loud bang made both men jump.

  “What was that?” Now the judge looked completely suspicious and stepped back over the threshold.

  Puzzle raced through the foyer toward the kitchen and both men chuckled. “Damn cat,” Jay joked. “He’s always causing mischief. Larkin moved him over here when they started working on renovations.”

  The judge nodded. “Good idea, keep the poor guy from getting lonely.”

  Jay looked the man over. He’d never pegged the guy as a cat lover, but it was obvious he was averse to being lonely. Probably why he let Maxine run him around so much.

  “Where’d you say Maxine went?”

  Jay swallowed the guilt tightening his throat. “I think she said something about going downtown to meet up with Larkin.”

  The judge nodded as he made his way down the steps toward the circle drive. “If she stops by, let her know I’m looking for her.”

  “I will.” Jay waved then closed the door with a solid thud. Turning, he leaned against it with a sag of relief.

  “Nice save, dummy.” Maxine stepped through the door to the cellar stairs. “I said don’t let him in.”

  Jay shook his head and gestured toward the photo. “I got distracted. And FYI…you delivered the albums to the Cape if he asks.”

  She glanced at the photo, then harrumphed. “You lied to a judge, hope it was worth it.”

  Jay took in the smiling face of Blayne one more time then slid the photo into his back pocket. The idea of seeing that smile every day for the rest of his life fueled a determination in him so strong he wondered if he’d ever really wanted anything before. His struggle to work past his selfish tendencies lost ground every day he spent with her. He wanted, needed Blayne in his life.

  And he wasn’t going to stop until made it happen.

  “Oh, it is.”

  Chapter 10

  Blayne stood outside of the Cape lighthouse and searched the horizon of the Atlantic as the salty sea spray floated up from the crashing waves. Her sister Emma’s voice was clear through the phone. “He hasn’t said anything. I’m sorry.”

  “But you told him about the launch?” She hated the insecurity in her voice, the weakness, but damned if she could stop it.

  Emma remained silent for a beat. “I did.”

  “And what did he say?” Blayne ran her finger over the old stone framing of the red front door. It was cold and uninviting, but she still couldn’t wait to go inside. Inside was a whole different story.

  Her da was like that. He was a big, gruff bear of a man on the outside, but when you really got to know him, really looked into his heart all you saw was love and affection and gratitude. Even though they’d lost ma, he’d always taught them to be grateful they had each other. Life would have been horribly different if not for the way their da handled the heart-wrenching tragedy. She dropped her chin to her chest and closed her eyes.

  She yearned to be back in a place where he’d shine that light on her once more. Before she’d taken him for granted.

  Emma delivered the words she had been afraid to hear. “He said you were a different Blayne than the one he knew.”

  “What’s that mean?”

  “I don’t know, B,” Emma said, the sympathy in her voice making the words a little easier to hear.

  “He hates me.” Tears welled in her eyes, and she had to swallow hard in order to speak again. “Will he ever forgive me?”

  “Aw, come on. He doesn’t hate you. He’s just—” Emma paused “—hurt. And you know how he is when he’s hurt. He builds up walls…retreats.”

  Blayne blinked away her pain and gave a quick nod for her own benefit. “I do.”

  “You’re just like him you know.”

  “I’m not,” Blayne said.

  “Yeah, okay. You’re not. Look, I’ve got to go. Do you have your tickets yet?”

  “The launch gala is two weeks from yesterday. I’m on a plane the next morning.”

  “I’ll pick you up at the airport.”

  “Okay… Thanks, Em.”

  “Love you.” Her sister said softly.

  “Me, too, you.”

  She disconnected the call and rapped her knuckles on the door. Jamie would be a good distraction from the heavy weight of shame in her chest.

  The red door swung open, revealing a broad, very naked chest and biceps bulging with every stroke of the towel over his wet head. “Come on in. You were earlier than I thought.”

  She followed behind Jamie, watching the sinewy muscles of his back flex as he walked, especially the ones that disappeared beneath the band of his loose-fitting sweats.

  She wanted to jump on in.

  And if there wasn’t enough room, she’d make some.

  She was done holding back, done waiting, done punishing herself for her stupidity. It was time to embrace it.

  They made their way to the main living space, which was light and airy with all the windows open, encircling them with the most incredible views she’d ever seen. The Atlantic sprawled in one direction as far as forever, and the Fountain of Youth in Cape Van Buren square was visible in the other. She’d never tire of this town.

  Jamie threw the towel on a stool by the tall counter and swung around. The fresh, just-showered scent of him mixed with the ocean air coming in the open windows and clouded her brain like an aphrodisiac.

  “Want some coffee?” he asked.

  Blayne nodded, afraid her voice would squeak if she tried to speak. His abs were like the ocean waves, rippling down his body toward the shore of those damn low-hanging sweats.

  “Hey, remember this?” He tossed a
photo on the counter, his large body taking up space and overwhelming her senses.

  Playing it cool, she picked it up and slid onto the stool. She remembered that night. “Oh, I loved that hat.”

  “What do you mean loved?” He looked disappointed, and she held back a grin. Where the hell had she put it? She needed to dig that sucker out. “We hit that one out of the ballpark, didn’t we?”

  The picture tossed her back ten years and a broken heart ago. They’d worked together, raising money for the kiddos of the community.

  “How’s your thigh?”

  “Sore but getting better.” Jamie handed her a coffee in an Archer Conservation Park of Cape Van Buren mug as he unconsciously rubbed his thigh.

  “I still say you’re crazy, your leg could’ve been broken.” She hoped it was healing fast. She still couldn’t believe he risked himself like that.

  “What’s this?” She looked at the logo—a lighthouse rising out of the ocean with waves splashing around the base.

  “It’s just a prototype. I was playing around with some designs to show Ryker and Larkin. We need to shorten the full name a bit for merchandise and such.”

  She looked at the logo, turning the cup from side to side. He stepped close to her as if to see what she was seeing. His clean, masculine scent wafted through the air, tickling her nostrils. More than anything, she wanted to freeze this moment in time and allow herself the simple pleasure of just breathing him in.

  “Add birds.”

  He cocked his head to look at her. His lips were so close it would hardly take any effort to close the distance and take what she wanted so badly.

  With a swallow, she blinked and pointed to the logo. “Add the silhouette of birds around the top of the lighthouse in the sky. It’ll add some visual interest and use the space a bit better.”

  He studied the design. “Good idea.” Nudging her with his hip, he asked. “You like it?”

  She grinned. It was time to give the poor guy a break already. She’d been sharp and short, pretty much a bitch since he’d arrived in town when all she’d seen from him was hard work and a lot of care.

  “It’s really good. Seriously. I love you.”

  His grin was quick and wicked.

  A wash of horror closed her throat and she choked on her coffee. She grabbed his arm. “It! I love it.” She coughed through her words, her eyes watering and her throat convulsing to move the fluid to its rightful place.

  The skin under her fingers was taut and hot to the touch, and the vibrations of his laugh rippled up her arms, leaving goosebumps in their wake. She shook her head. “Shut up.”

  He looked down at her hand, which squeezed his arm as if on its own accord. His eyes darkened in a way that promised a storm—one she would love to ride out. “What’s happening, Blayne?”

  An intense look shone from his gaze, and his jaw flexed rhythmically as he studied her.

  She swallowed hard. The desire to feel pleasure, to feel alive, slammed into her as she held his gray gaze with hers. Memories of their love, the happiness they’d found with each other flooded her with wanting and hope and fear. “I don’t know,” she whispered. “But I know I’m tired of fighting with you. I think we’ve both had enough.”

  “I don’t know what you want here…”

  He knew. She could see it in his face, but he was going to make her say it.

  If she could take what she wanted on the rink and in life, then she most certainly could do it here, now, with Jamie.

  “I want you.”

  The flash in his eyes sent a warning shot of adrenaline through her body. He grabbed her waist, lifting her to the countertop as if she weighed little more than the box of files she’d schlepped over from the community center.

  “Are you sure?” he growled, his lips a whisper from her own. She could already taste him, feel him, and he hadn’t even touched her mouth yet.

  “Yes. Bleedin’ hell, kiss me already, Jamie.” It was as close to begging as she’d ever get.

  His hesitation was brief, then he overwhelmed her with his taste, his heat, and his own wanting. What she was doing went beyond crazy and well into insanity, but she wanted this man to her core.

  His mouth slid across hers in a hungry exploration. Completely new and at the same time familiar. There was a strength in his touch, a challenge and demand that hadn’t been there once upon a time. Whether maturity or urgency was the cause, she didn’t know and couldn’t care less because the result was pure sensory overload.

  He slid the ribbon from her head, tossing it to the side, leaving her dark locks to tumble around her face. Gathering her hair in his hands on either side of her face, he brushed it against their cheeks, setting off waves of sensation along her neck and collarbones, until he finally grabbed it all behind her head in a tight hold.

  With a gentle tug, he eased her head back until she looked him in the eye, both gasping for air and grasping for footing that never existed between them. Their chemistry had always been explosive and thick, needing to be managed in order to keep from shutting out the rest of the world. God, she’d missed this. Missed them.

  She tugged him closer, wrapping her bare legs around his waist until that part of him she craved the most pressed against her, hard and hot and throbbing.

  “Jesus Christ, Blayne.” He gasped as she ground into him as much as her tenuous balance would allow.

  Her navy and white polka dot halter dress suddenly seemed way too constricting.

  “Get it off,” she begged.

  He chuckled, running his hands up her sides until they found the aching fullness of her breasts.

  The need to feel his skin against hers, to drown in every sensation created by his touch drove her mad. Jamie grabbed the billowing bottom of her large skirt while she unbuttoned it from around her neck, then together, they pushed it down over her hips. She stepped out of it, and he froze.

  The cool breeze rushed across her bare, heated skin in a delicious caress, and her body gave a shiver of anticipation.

  “Holy hell, you didn’t have anything on under that thing.” He pointed an accusing finger at the dress, and she giggled at the look of shock on his handsome face.

  His eyes devoured her from her white-painted toenails to the top of her head, lingering on her tattoo, making her thankful there was a breeze to keep her from combusting. She bit her lip and looked him over, stepping close. Placing one finger on his collarbone, she dragged it over the warm, slick silk of his skin toward his chest. Over one pec to the top of his rippling abs.

  “You’ve filled out in the time we’ve been apart.”

  His response was something between a laugh and a strangled choke as he yanked her to him. The heat of his erection set off tiny pulses of excitement between her legs.

  She glided her finger lower, down the center trench of his abs to his navel, then lower still until she hit the elastic band of his sweats. His muscles rippled beneath her touch, and as she tugged the waistband out from his body, he gave a warning growl.

  A teasing glimpse of what he had to offer rushed her initial intention of teasing him bit by bit. She couldn’t take it when her body screamed to feel him now, so she dragged his sweats past his hips, pushing the fabric to the floor.

  And there he was.

  Straining to make contact, golden skin and an iron promise.

  She dropped to her knees.

  “Blayne.” He could barely get out her name.

  Without a word, she closed her mouth around him and sucked him in hard.

  His grabbed the counter behind him as if trying to find steady ground. She cupped the base of him and stroked along with her mouth, working his slick skin, reveling in the sweet, heady taste of him.

  He fisted her silky hair, assisting a rhythm known long before the two of them had ever met. The sounds of the ocean crashing its waves against the rocky base of the lighthouse surrounded them, demanding they keep up. Setting a pace she was all too happy to match.

  “Shit, Blay
ne.” He tugged gently on her to rise.

  “I’m not done.”

  “You have to be, or I will be.” He lifted her to face him. Before she got her footing, he stepped into her, yanking her body against his, and up into his arms.

  She wrapped her legs around his waist, using his shoulders as leverage to rub against the length of him.

  “God damn it, I’ve wanted to bury myself inside you every God damn second since seeing you in those damn skates with your tattoo peeking out from your skirt.”

  “I can put them back on.” Desperate to feel him, she ground against him harder.

  “Fuck me. You need to slow down, woman, I have a plan,” he demanded as he tightened his hold, helping her increase the pressure between their bodies.

  “I can’t. I want you too much. You need to keep up.”

  His bark of laughter filled the room. “I’d never make the mistake of thinking I could.”

  With her wrapped around him, he moved to the stairs. “I have something I want you to remember for a lifetime.” He stopped briefly by his wallet and grabbed a condom, then took the circular stairs toward the lamp.

  “Jamie,” she pleaded.

  “Almost there.” He set her down at the base of the lamp room ladder and spun her around. She grabbed the rungs, shocked by the cold metal against her skin. He stood close behind, that part of him she craved so strongly rubbing along the base of her back.

  He slid his mouth along her clavicle to her neck and bit into her skin gently. “Go. One rung at a time.” His whispered demand sent a shiver up her spine.

  “Jamie.”

  He gave her ass a sharp tap. “One rung.”

  She stepped up, never realizing before how amazing the metal could feel against the sensitive arch of her foot. His fingers drifted down her arms in a light caress as he placed a kiss in the middle of her back.

  “Another.”

  She stepped higher, this step lifting her backside to his eye level.

  “Now, take your right foot and hook it around the outside rung.”