by Kyra Lennon
“Then perhaps you'd like to sit on my shoulders,” Cody offered. “The bartender will never see you otherwise!”
The guys laughed and I said, “Two vodka and cokes, and one straight coke, please.”
Bryce winked at me then turned back to the bar to place my order.
“Your brother's here?” Radleigh asked.
“Yeah,” I answered, “and my sister in law and my niece and nephew. Christina and Grace are in bed. Jamie’s too hyper to go to sleep yet.”
“So that's who you were with tonight.”
I nodded. “Who did you think they were? My secret husband and son?”
“Very funny. How long are they here?”
“Two weeks. I'm not going to get much time with them, but we’ve got the whole day tomorrow.”
“That sounds cool,” Cody said. “It must have been a while since you've seen them.”
“Yeah, it has. Too long. Tomorrow’s going to be brilliant though. Well,” I added, “if we can get my nephew to calm down. He hasn't stopped bouncing since the moment he got here. He nearly died from the joy of seeing Radleigh earlier.”
Radleigh smiled. “He likes me? Must run in the family.”
“Deflate your head, McCoy.”
“Too late,” Cody said. “There is no denting an ego that size.”
“Well, I do my best!”
As Cody laughed, Radleigh said, “You're in a good mood tonight.”
“Yes, I am. Please don't ruin it.”
“I don't intend to. I like it.”
“Well, try and remember that next time you get the urge to make me angry,” I said with a sarcastic flutter of my eyelashes.
“But,” he began, leaning in closer to me, “you are so hot when you're angry.”
“Get lost,” I laughed, placing my hands on his chest and pushing him away. I let my fingertips lurk there for a second longer than I needed to. His eyes locked onto mine.
“Here you go, Leah,” Bryce said, handing me my tray of drinks.
I jumped in surprise. Radleigh had me mesmerised. Again.
“Thanks,” I said, as I took the drinks. ”I guess I'd better get back. Have a good evening, guys.”
“Wait,” Radleigh said. “Don’t you wanna introduce your nephew to his hero?”
I glanced around the room. “Is Spiderman here?”
Bryce and Cody cracked up, and McCoy glared at me.
“Just kidding,” I told him, giggling. “I'm sure he'd love to meet you but-”
I trailed off, not sure whether to finish the sentence. The truth was, I didn't want to give people anything more to talk about. If I took Radleigh to meet my nephew, however innocent the motive, people were bound to start gossiping again.
“Screw them,” he said, reading my mind.
“If anyone says anything we'll set them straight,” Bryce added, and that was enough for me.
“Okay McCoy,” I said. “Let's go.”
As we approached, Jamie watched, his eyes glued on McCoy. Jamie surveyed him, open mouthed and when we reached the table, I said, “Radleigh wanted to come and meet you, Jamie.”
Suddenly shy, my nephew snuggled into his father.
“Hi. I'm Josh, Leah's brother.”
Radleigh shook his hand and we sat down.
“My son is having difficulty taking in everything that happened today,” Josh laughed. “It's been quite an experience.”
“I bet,” Radleigh said with a smile. “Did you enjoy the match?”
“It was incredible.”
“Even I enjoyed myself,” I said.
“Yeah, I heard you,” Radleigh teased.
Josh watched as we went off into our usual passive aggressive banter, and I knew his mind was ticking over. My behaviour towards McCoy wasn’t backing up the way I'd said I felt about him, but this was precisely how things were. For a while, Radleigh and I got on fine, then everything would flip and we'd be fighting again.
While we'd been talking, Jamie slowly peeled himself away from Josh and towards me. He looked exhausted as he sat down on my lap. I wrapped my arms around him, and with one hand, gently stroked his hair.
“Bedtime for you soon,” I told him.
“I'm not tired,” he answered as a yawn escaped him.
“I guess you'll have to stay down here by yourself then,” I said. “I want to go to sleep so I’m ready for tomorrow.”
“Where are you going tomorrow?” Radleigh asked.
“Aquarium,” Jamie answered, addressing him directly for the first time all evening.
“The Florida Aquarium is awesome. I went a couple of years ago when my parents were in town. My mom dragged me and my dad there.”
“Yeah, we're only going because of Leah and Christina,” Josh laughed. “Although my wife says it will be educational for the children.”
“It is educational. It's surprising what you learn when you're … looking at fish.”
“Daddy told me there are sharks at the Aquarium.”
Radleigh nodded. “There are. I heard that some people can even go swimming with them now.”
Jamie's eyes lit up at the prospect. “Maybe a shark will eat Grace!”
“Jamie!” Josh said. “That's a terrible thing to say about your sister!”
“I didn't mean it,” he said, grinning mischievously.
I tapped him on the leg for being so mean but I had to laugh. Josh used to say the same kind of things about me when we were younger.
“Daddy, can Radleigh come with us tomorrow?”
Josh, Radleigh and I fell silent. It was an innocent request from Jamie's point of view. To the rest of us, it held huge implications.
“Oh, Jamie, I don't know,” Josh said. “I'm sure Radleigh has other things to do tomorrow.”
Jamie looked at Radleigh, his eyes wide with hope. I glanced at Josh, and he shrugged.
Did I want Radleigh with me when I was trying to enjoy being with my family? No. Did I want to disappoint Jamie by saying Radleigh couldn't come? Not at all.
If Radleigh had been a decent human being, he would have made up an excuse to save me from this awkward position I’d been put in. He said nothing.
Oh, I see. You’re gonna make me make this decision.
“Are you busy?” I asked, stiffly.
Radleigh smiled. “I'm not busy. But I’ll only come if you're sure it's okay.”
You shit. You know we're never going to say no. Firstly out of politeness, and secondly so as not to disappoint Jamie who will sulk all day if we say you can't come.
“It's fine,” I said, though my eyes were telling him how much I hated him.
“Yay!” Jamie exclaimed as enthusiastically as his tired body would let him.
“And on that note,” Josh said, standing up, “we’d better go to bed.”
Jamie let out another whine but Josh gave him the ‘look’ so he reluctantly climbed off my lap. He gave me a hug and a kiss before taking Josh's hand.
“Goodnight, Jamie,” I said. “Night Josh.”
“Night Leah. Radleigh.” Josh answered, eyeing me a little warily. I smiled reassuringly at him and he nodded in understanding.
“We'll see you tomorrow,” he said
Once they were gone, I turned to Radleigh, fixing him with a poisonous stare.
“You could have said no,” he said, before I had a chance to open my mouth.
“No I couldn't and you know it. If you must come with us tomorrow, can you at least do me a favour?”
He smirked, and catching his train of thought, I said, “Don't be a pervert.”
“What can I do for you then?”
“Just behave yourself, okay? Don't annoy me, don't make me angry, just … don't be yourself. Can you do that?”
“I can, but don't blame me if your family fall in love with me.”
“And don't blame me if I feed you to the sharks.”
.
Chapter 16: Sex Would Be A Bonus
The morning of the trip to the aquarium
, I woke up with a feeling of dread in my stomach. I knew it was going to be a completely awful day, being forced to be polite to Radleigh for another twenty-four hours.
I wasn't even getting paid for it.
I decided that if I focused on Jamie and Grace everything would be fine. I couldn't lose my temper in front of them for one thing, and this trip was all about being with them.
The day got off to a surprising start when I went to meet my family in the lobby, and Radleigh was already with them.
Wow. Can't make it to work on time, but offer him a day out, and he's right there.
Jamie, in spite of his late night, was once again jumping up and down with glee – his shyness around Radleigh long forgotten.
“Good morning,” I said as I approached.
“Hello,” Jamie answered, grinning but not leaving Radleigh's side.
Grace was already settled in her stroller, but she waved to me and I leaned down to give her a kiss.
“Did you sleep well?” I asked Josh and Christina.
“I did,” Christina answered. “I didn't even hear the boys come in.”
“I, on the other hand,” Josh said, “had to handle a hyped up eight-year-old for another hour after we got up to our room.”
“How can that be?” I laughed. “He was almost asleep when you left the bar!”
Josh shook his head. “I have no idea. He wouldn't keep still long enough to actually fall asleep. I had to, very quietly, read Harry Potter for an hour.”
I winked at Jamie. “Good choice.”
“So,” I said, turning to Radleigh, “found your alarm clock, did you?”
He nodded. “I did. I didn't want to get into trouble for being late.”
I rolled my eyes, and he said, “Can you guys excuse me for a minute? I need to go and find out if I can stay here for another night or I’ll be sleeping in the parking lot.”
“Oh, we wouldn't make you do that. Josh hired a car. I'm sure he'd let you sleep in there.”
Christina looked at me, surprised by my sarcasm, but I smiled to let her know I was only kidding.
Well, kind of.
“Will you come with me?” McCoy asked.
“You need me to hold your hand while you talk to the hot woman at the reception desk?”
He turned to check out the petite redhead who was speaking on the phone. “On second thoughts…”
“Maybe she'll let you share her room?”
Before Radleigh could respond, Josh grabbed Jamie, and laughing, covered his son's ears.
“There are children present.”
“Sorry,” I said with a grimace. I grabbed Radleigh's arm. “Come on, let's go.”
As I hauled him towards the desk, I said, “I probably should have mentioned that there should be no innuendo in front of the kids.”
“You started it!”
“I know,” I admitted, blushing.
The receptionist really was very attractive, even more so close up. I tried not to glare as her eyes drifted up and down Radleigh's body.
“Good morning, sir,” she said politely, in spite of her blatant leering. “How may I help you?”
Radleigh leaned down on the desk, fixed her with a charming smile and said, “I was wondering if I would be able to extend my stay for another night.”
He gave the receptionist his room number and she tore her eyes away from him to check her computer.
“I'm sorry,” she said. “That room has been reserved.”
“Is anything else available?”
The redhead looked back to her computer and after tapping away for a moment or two, she said, “I'm afraid we're fully booked, but I'd be happy to recommend some other hotels in the area.”
Radleigh turned to me and raised an eyebrow.
“No,” I said before he could even ask, “You're not staying in my room.”
“Oh come on, Leah. You’ve been sharing with Freya so I know your room has two beds. Let me share.”
I shook my head. “It's bad enough that I have to spend the day with you.”
“Please?”
The receptionist stared at me as if I were insane for even contemplating rejecting him. On a purely physical level I totally understood, but she hadn’t been subjected to months of his crap. On the flip side, the way she was ogling him was bugging the hell out of me, so I smiled up at him and said, “Okay. You’ve won me over.”
Once she’d stomped away, I hissed, “If I catch you even thinking about trying something-”
He grinned. “I wouldn't dare.”
****
Radleigh was right. The Florida Aquarium was awesome. Jamie was, of course, hyper as we walked around. He was completely fascinated by the sharks, while I loved the coral reefs. There was a huge panoramic window where we stood watching the colourful fish swim by. It was so relaxing, I could have stayed there all day.
I was so chilled out that Radleigh's presence didn't even bother me. I was enjoying myself too much. Besides, he didn't have a chance to irritate me. Jamie was keeping him occupied, talking a mile a minute.
When lunchtime arrived, we went to the restaurant and ordered two huge pizzas for us to share. While we waited for our food, Christina let Grace out of her stroller so she could have some freedom. She toddled over to me, and with a grin, I hoisted her up on to my lap.
“Hello Gracie,” I said as she bounced up and down.
“Hi hi,” she said. “Fishies!”
“That's right. We've seen lots of fishies today, haven't we?”
“Fishies. Pretty.”
Grace smiled at me again, then she noticed Radleigh, who was sitting next to me. She stared at him curiously for a second, then wriggled, signalling that she wanted to get down. It took her three steps to reach Radleigh and she placed both of her hands on his leg, making him jump. Her arms lifted out for him to pick her up and he looked at me for a clue to what he was meant to do.
“You can pick her up,” I laughed. “She won't bite.”
“Well, that's not true,” Christina teased. “She may bite!”
“That's okay,” Radleigh said, lifting Grace on to his lap. “I've had worse injuries.”
Grace stood up on his lap, Radleigh holding her gently so she didn’t topple over. She put her arms around his neck and rested her head on his shoulder, her dark curls tumbling into her eyes.
The sight of someone with as much physical strength as McCoy being so gentle with my niece made me dizzy with lust. Men who are good with children were right at the top of my hot list.
“Leah?”
“Huh?” I said, shaking my head. “What?”
Radleigh grinned. “Are you okay?”
Busted.
“I ... I don't,” I stammered, “I forgot what I was going to say.”
I took a long swig of my coke as my heart rate re-adjusted, then joined in the conversation as if I hadn't had a fangirl attack. What made it most surprising was that for once, he wasn't even aware of what he was doing. Holding Grace hadn’t been some pre-conceived plan to make me lose my mind.
It just happened naturally.
Once we’d eaten and Grace was back where she belonged, away from Radleigh to save me from having another seizure, we took a walk around the rest of the aquarium. Jamie wanted another look at the sharks, so Josh and Radleigh took him, and Christina, Grace and I wandered back to the restaurant to grab a coffee and a chat without the boys.
“Finally!” Christina said as I placed our drinks down on the table. “Time to talk at last!”
We really were truly on our own, as Grace had fallen asleep in her stroller, so even she didn't need attention. Christina stood up and hugged me. “Oh, Leah,” she said. “We've missed you so much!”
“I've missed you too. Do you know, not a single person I've met here can make a decent cup of tea? I had to train my roommate how to do it right!”
Christina burst out laughing. “Damn yanks!”
Giggling, I took a sip of my coffee and Christina said, “
So, what’s going on with Radleigh McCoy? Josh said that today might be awkward because the two of you don't get on very well.”
“Well,” I sighed, “today has been one of our better days but it could have gone either way. He thinks he was put on Earth to sexually satisfy as many women as possible and when I told him I wasn’t going to be one of them, he tried to get me in trouble with my boss.”
“What?” Christina choked. “That man who let Jamie drag him around all day and helped me carry Grace’s buggy up and down the stairs did that?”
I nodded. “He makes me so mad, Chrissie. He's only here today to annoy me.”
“I don't know, Leah,” she said after a while. “I don't know him but I certainly don't think he’s only here to bug you.”
“Why else would he be here? I mean, I suppose it could be because he enjoys the attention from Jamie and Josh. He loves it when people adore him.”
“That's not it,” Christina laughed. “He's here to be with you. Think about it. He could be at home with his own family but instead he’s here with yours. Nobody does that purely to irritate someone.”
“You don't know what he's like.”
“Are you telling me you’ve never once considered that Radleigh might actually like you?”
“No, I haven’t. Sure, he may be attracted to me but that doesn't make me special. He’s attracted to most women with tits and a pulse. He’s purely about one night stands. Lots of them.”
“You don't think -” Christina began, but I held up my hand to stop her.
“He is not misunderstood,” I told her. “He’s not just looking for the right woman. He's an annoying, over-confident, self-obsessed pain in the arse.”
“Okay,” Christina said, sensing my rising animosity. “I'll take your word for it.”
“Sorry,” I said with a sheepish grin. “He has a bizarre knack for triggering my temper. I don't hate him or anything. It's just a personality clash.”
“Weren't you seeing someone a while ago? What happened there, because it seemed as though you liked him a lot.”
“I did. I still do. But … it’s complicated.”
Christina didn’t push me, she just waited silently. Her patience was one of the things I loved the most about her. She knew when to ask questions and when to hold back. It took me a few minutes to prepare myself but I wanted to tell her what happened. I needed to.