by Jamie Beck
“Pathetic.” Grey shook his head and tossed a doggy treat at Shaman. “Since you ignored my request about staying away from Kelsey, can you at least promise me there won’t be any surprises involving Emma?”
Trip cracked his first grin of the day. “That’s a promise I can keep.”
The lilies in his hand were beginning to wilt. Trip peered through the windows of Kelsey’s office. No lights, no signs of life—just like her condo. He pulled his phone out of his pocket. She still hadn’t returned his texts, voice mails, or emails. After checking to make sure the sound wasn’t muted, he returned it to his pocket and wiped his sweaty forehead.
The massive hangover and lack of sleep slowed his reflexes and stiffened his muscles. This hide-and-seek game wasn’t helping his headache, either.
Grey had sworn Kelsey wasn’t camped out at Avery’s. Emma had practically chased him from her inn with a broom. The only place he hadn’t yet tried was Maura’s house. He sighed, closing his eyes.
Maura would probably be at least as angry as Emma, if not worse. But he had to face the music, and he had to see Kelsey before her hot anger cooled to hatred.
Trip lugged himself toward Maura’s, slowing down as he rounded the corner and the familiar porch and picket fence came into view. Doubt niggled. Was he making a mistake? Maybe waiting until she returned from Mexico would be smarter.
As he drew nearer, he saw little Fee playing with Cowboy in the grass. Kelsey was here. The fact neither she nor Maura were on the porch watching over Fee surprised him.
He must’ve been frowning, because when Fee looked up, she asked, “Are you mad, too? Everyone’s in a bad mood today.”
Trip remained on the sidewalk side of the fence. “I’m not mad. But I am looking for your Aunt Kelsey. Is she here?”
Fee nodded. “She’s eating all our ice cream. My mom keeps saying ‘told you so’ and then Aunt Kelsey just eats more scoops. So I sneaked out here to play.”
The image Fee had painted made Trip smile despite knowing nothing about the situation was funny. “Ah, I was wondering why you were out here alone.”
Fee approached the gate with Cowboy in hand, her baby-blues twinkling above a cheery grin. She pointed at the lilies. “Are those for me?”
“No, sweetheart. These are for your Aunt Kelsey.”
“Are you going to marry her today?” Fee bounced on her toes. “That will make her happy.”
“No, no.” He had to smile at how strong the marriage-crazed gene ran through the Callihan family. And contrary to Fee’s opinion, he doubted very much that Kelsey would accept any proposal from him today, let alone a marriage proposal. Not that he’d ever take that vow. “These are to say I’m sorry.”
Fee scowled. “What’d you do?”
“Well, it’s complicated. But I’d like to apologize.” He knelt down and ruffled Fee’s hair. “Would you run inside and ask her to come out here?”
Fee wrinkled her nose, appearing to consider the pros and cons of helping him. “Okay, but I’m taking Cowboy with me.”
“Good idea.” Trip stood up and watched Fee scamper up the porch stairs and into the house, carrying the kitten in both hands.
His stomach burned a little, so he started pacing in front of the gate while he waited for Kelsey. He noticed movement on the porch and turned to face her with a smile, only to be confronted by her angry sister instead.
Maura was a pretty woman, although not a bombshell like Kelsey. She looked a little wiped out, which made sense given the fact she was pregnant and caring for two small kids, and now an angry sister, too. Why was Kelsey in such a rush to be like her sister when her own life—free and financially independent—seemed like so much more fun?
Maura marched down the walkway with her arms crossed. “If you think a few flowers are going to make a difference, you’re sadly mistaken.”
“I take it Kelsey sent you to shoo me away.” Trip aimed for a contrite yet jovial tone, hoping to loosen up Maura’s scowl.
No dice.
“Yep.” Maura stopped a few feet before the gate, which she did not open.
Trip straightened his hat and rubbed the back of his neck. “I get that everyone’s upset, but I’d really like to speak with her. What are my chances of getting you to convince her to come out here?”
“Oh, um, about zero.” Maura’s face wore the same fierce expression he’d seen on Kelsey from time to time. “After last night, I’m not sure she’s safe around you.”
Trip briefly closed his eyes. “I’ve never started a fight in my life before last night. I was drunk and my brother has just pushed me one too many times, I guess. That aside, I promise I’m no threat to you or your sister, or anyone else, for that matter.”
“Maybe not physically.” She shook her head. “I warned her not to get tangled up in your stupid sex plan. I told her she’d end up hurt or worse. But no, she had it all figured out. Had you all figured out. Now she’s humiliated and hurt thanks to you, your partner, and your idiot brother.”
“And I feel awful about that.” Really awful. Couldn’t she see it? “It’s why I’m here. I need to explain everything, so please get her to come talk to me.”
“No. You might be able to smooth-talk all the other women in town, but I don’t want you and your silver tongue within ten miles of my sister.” Then Maura pointed her finger at him, like some old schoolmarm. “She’s too good for you. You don’t deserve her forgiveness, especially after creating a public spectacle that people will talk about for weeks.”
Trip could take his lumps, but he was reaching his limit as to how much dressing-down he could endure in one day.
“This is silly, Maura. She can’t avoid me forever. Please. I just want to apologize.” When Maura hesitated, Trip started to open the gate. Maura grasped it, eyes flashing hot with disbelief.
“I said no. You’re not welcome here.”
Trip saw a curtain move in one of the upstairs windows. Kelsey was barely fifty feet away, watching him tap-dance with her sister on the sidewalk. Well, if either of these two women thought they were going to stop him from making sure Kelsey knew he didn’t think of her as some kind of joke, they were the ones sadly mistaken.
“Do you want another public ‘spectacle’? Because I’m about five seconds away from calling her name over and over until she talks to me. So will you help me or not?”
“Even you wouldn’t be that big of an ass.” Maura scoffed.
“Oh, Maura. You underestimate me.” Trip winked and then put one hand at the side of his mouth and bellowed, “Kelsey Callihan! I’m not leaving until you talk to me.”
“Ohmigod, you’ve got no shame. Shush!” Maura whipped her head left and right to see if any of the neighbors had taken an interest in the scene at her house. She opened the gate and waved Trip into the yard. “Wait here on the porch. I’ll see if she’ll speak with you, but you have to promise you’ll leave as soon as you finish whatever you have to say.”
Trip noticed Fee’s face pressed against the storm door, smiling. Apparently she appreciated his dramatic flair. He knew he liked that kid.
Finally Kelsey appeared behind Fee, kissed the top of her little blond head, and then came through the door, staying within arm’s reach of the knob. “Once again, you win. So make it fast, because I have nothing to say.”
Trip extended the bouquet toward her. He watched her brow furrow with concern when she noticed his bruised knuckles, but she quickly wiped her expression clean and tossed the flowers on the porch swing.
“Princess—”
“Oh, so you’re back to princess, now? Guess Boomerang got boring.” She looked away, nose tipped upward.
He deserved that, but he didn’t like it. “Kelsey, please stop. Just look at me for two minutes.”
To his surprise, she snapped her gaze to meet his, her tawny eyes looking as gray as the thickest ice on any cornice he’d ever skied.
It seemed the most natural thing in the world to reach out to touch her, yet unlike ev
ery other time, today she recoiled. He sighed. “I can’t tell you how sorry I am that you got caught in the middle between my brother and me. I should’ve done a better job of protecting you. Should’ve warned you as soon as I knew he was in town. I thought I had it under control.”
“Yes, by making sure your entire family thought of me as some kind of joke, or bimbo, or both. Thanks for that awesome protection.”
She’d almost managed the entire sentence without her voice cracking, but he heard it waver, which made him want to gather her up in his arms and whisper something soothing in her ear. Only her serious back-off vibes kept him from trying.
“Deb caught me off guard with her questions. I wasn’t thinking straight with everything happening at the hospital. I’m really sorry, except at least now you know to stay away from Mason so he can’t hurt you again.”
Kelsey laughed in his face. “Mason can’t hurt me? That’s rich!”
“What’s with the sarcasm?”
“He didn’t hurt me, Trip. You did. All Mason did was ask me out after learning you didn’t care about me. You, on the other hand, have been using me for weeks while joking about me behind my back.”
“Is that what he’s trying to make you believe?” Chaotic thoughts and a touch of panic danced through his mind wearing sharp heels. “Kelsey, please stay away from Mason. He’s not a good person. He’s not trustworthy.”
“Unlike you?”
“Damn right, unlike me.” Trip edged closer to her, determined to bust through the invisible wall she’d constructed, and tipped her chin up with his forefingers. He stared directly into her eyes while unfamiliar feelings and awkward words forced their way out of his mouth. “Look at me. I’m sick about the fact that you got hurt last night. I hate that what happened made you think for one second that I don’t care about you. Nothing is further from the truth.” He stroked her jaw with his thumb, like he was calming a skittish horse. “I care very much about you and how you feel. If you’d just take a deep breath and remember everything we’ve done and said to each other these past several weeks, you’ll believe me.”
And then, because he was only inches from her mouth and couldn’t help himself, he kissed her. Instead of kissing him back like always, she pushed away from him and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, which wrung out a little corner of his heart. “Don’t kiss me again. I told you already—whatever this was, it’s over. So is this conversation.”
“Hang on.” He rubbed his temple as he glanced around, groping for the right words. “Can’t we just rewind a week or two and start over? Especially now that you know Mason’s not going to be your future husband.”
“Oh, really? How do I know that? Because you say so? Because you’ve got some conspiracy theory drummed up instead of considering that maybe he actually likes me for who I am? That maybe, unlike you, he sees me as more than a friend with benefits?”
Whether it was her screwed-up thoughts, the bright sun, or the remnants of alcohol still swimming in his veins that had his body flashing hot and cold, he couldn’t quite say. He wiped his forehead with his shirtsleeve and tried to slow his heart rate.
“I sure hope you’re saying all this just to get my goat, because if you’re actually considering going out with my brother after the things I’ve told you about him—past and present—well, I’m just . . . I’m . . .” When he couldn’t think of something better to say, he finished with, “That’s just not going to happen, I can promise you that much.”
Instead of getting mad like he expected, Kelsey waved dismissively. “Pffft. Then I’m not too worried, because your promises don’t mean much, do they, cowboy?”
“What the hell does that mean? I keep all my promises.”
“No, you don’t.” She held up her fingers and started ticking them off, one by one. “You promised to keep our fling a secret, but you sure screwed that up last night with the public boxing match. You promised to help me make a relationship work, but you’re doing everything you can to mess that up, too. You promised to be a good friend, but you’ve been intent on messing with my business and now you’re threatening me.”
“I haven’t threatened you, despite the fact you seem determined to push me against a wall.” He stepped closer, leaned in, and spoke slowly and firmly. “I know right now you think I’m full of shit, but weeks ago I told you about how Mason treats me. You believed me that night, so believe me now. He’s not the man for you. You need to steer clear of him.”
“Or what?” She stuck out her little chin.
“Or else!” He thrust his arms wide open.
“I see we’ve reached the really grown-up part of the conversation. Are you going to start beating me up now?”
“Dammit, Kelsey, why won’t you accept my apology and agree to stay away from Mason?” Then a horrible thought burned a hole in his gut. He withdrew from her and narrowed his gaze, wooziness and nausea mixing together. “Do you actually like him?”
Kelsey averted her gaze for a moment, refusing to answer. Holy shit, could she actually prefer Mason to him? His chest burned as if he were running stairs at thirteen thousand feet.
When she finally spoke, she cocked her head and stared at him like a hunter with a deer in her sights. “Why do you care who I’m with anyway?”
“What?” Another wave of heat radiated through his body.
“You heard me, why do you care who I date?”
“Because . . .”
She waited, tapping her toe. He frowned, unable to offer an answer. Did he care who she dated, or did it only matter because it was Mason? Well, hell, he couldn’t answer if he didn’t know. What he did know was that he’d never accept her and Mason as a couple.
How could she even consider being with his brother, anyway? It was gross. And how had he lost control of this entire situation? Trip wasn’t used to losing control, especially not to a woman.
“Promise me, princess, no Mason.”
“You know what? When you’re ready to be honest with me, then maybe we can talk. Until then, stay out of my way.” She spun on her heel and slammed the storm door closed in his face.
Trip stood on the porch, staring at the closed door. That went well.
A breeze rustled some nearby leaves, while others fell and drifted to the ground. He turned and picked up the discarded flowers, then set them by the front door and walked down the steps.
When he glanced back over his shoulder, he noticed Fee standing on the porch with his flowers. She waved before running back inside.
Trip sighed and started walking toward Backtrax. His head throbbed with thoughts about Mason, the clients he’d let down, the damage control he needed to do with his image, and Kelsey.
Today had been the first time she hadn’t succumbed to him at all, which he didn’t like one bit. What he liked less was realizing how deeply she’d been hurt by his carelessness.
Maybe Maura had a point about his stupid proposition. Now both he and Kelsey felt like hell, and he had no idea how to fix it for either of them.
About a block before he got home, his phone rang, sparking a little hope. Maybe she’d reconsidered her harsh position.
He snatched the phone from his pocket and glanced at the screen, at which point hope turned to dread. “Hey, Dad. How are you?”
Chapter Twelve
An ocean breeze rustled the lush greenery surrounding the terrace, wafting the tropical flowers’ perfume into the warm, salty air.
“Waking up to this view is amazing, Kelsey. Thanks a million for this trip. Yesterday was so much fun.” Emma spun around on the terrace of the three-bedroom villa, with the Sea of Cortez crashing against the rocky promontories behind her in the distance. “I wish you felt better, though.”
Kelsey gulped some bottled water, having just thrown up ten minutes earlier. “I must’ve eaten the wrong food last night. Or maybe had one too many margaritas.”
“We did knock back a lot of margaritas last night, but you were queasy yesterday morning, too,” Avery r
eminded her. “And we didn’t have anything but chips and guac—and margaritas—the night we arrived.”
Emma sat on the edge of Kelsey’s cushioned outdoor chaise. “That’s true. I ate everything you did yesterday and I feel great.”
“I’ll be fine with a little more water and some sun.” Kelsey chugged the rest of the water and stood up. “Let’s hit the pool before our spa appointments.”
“Sounds good to me.” Avery led them through the sliders and back inside the grand villa, with its stucco walls, oversize furnishings, and Mexican pottery. She grabbed the stack of plush beach towels provided by the hotel. “All set.”
Although eager to return to the tiered, infinity-edge pool overlooking the sea, another wave of nausea roiled in Kelsey’s stomach. “Hang on a second. I need to find my sunglasses.”
As Emma and Avery began gathering their beach bags and books, Kelsey trotted to her bathroom and fell to her knees in front of the toilet. She didn’t know which was worse, throwing up or suffering nausea without the relief of throwing up.
After a minute, she gave up and went to the vanity to grab sunscreen and sunglasses. As she fished through the drawer where she’d stashed all her toiletries, she came across her unopened box of tampons. Technically, she should’ve finished her period before this trip, but it still hadn’t started.
Her stomach gurgled again and, wide-eyed, she glanced at the toilet as if in slow motion.
Oh. No. Way.
No way!
The unopened blue box taunted her from inside the drawer. She wiped the thin line of perspiration from her forehead and retrieved the box. Grabbing her stomach in awe and wonder, her mind fought against the most reasonable explanation for her nausea and those unused tampons.
She and Trip had been careful—except when they hadn’t been. There had been that one spontaneous night when he’d come unprepared and then stayed until dawn. Twice they’d had sex without protection. But he’d been careful to pull out at the crucial moments. So how did this happen, if, in fact, this had happened?
Dazedly, she wandered into the bedroom and collapsed on the edge of her unmade bed, all the while staring at the tampon box.