Into the Heat

by Tamara Lush

She broke away. “Remember how awkward it was our first time?” she whispered.

  He nodded and chuckled, trailing his nose against her cheek. “I didn’t know what to do with my legs.” That made her laugh, hard. He whispered in her ear, “And remember how much we did it that second week of the vacation? How good we ended up being together?”

  She pressed her lips against his. “I’ve never forgotten.”

  He didn’t want to bring up how they had eventually run out of condoms and were so crazed with hormones and lust that they did it a few times without. That’s what led to all the problems. No, he wanted to forget all that. All he wanted now was to squeeze her hard, bite her, be inside of her.

  Somehow his hands ended up on her ass and he pulled her toward him. Was he being too rough? He guessed not, because she moaned when he gripped her tighter and ground her against the hard length of his dick. The pleasure ripping through his body was almost unbearable after years of pain, though. After years of being apart from her. He felt himself falling, falling, falling into the sensation. Where would he land?

  Coming to his senses, he pulled away and smoothed her hair. He pressed his mouth to her forehead and released her from his grip. What had come over him? Jesus. His heart pounded wildly and his erection was almost painful, he was so hard.

  No. He had to have her. Now.

  He leaned in, desperate for another kiss, but her gaze flitted down to her chest and her nipples. Her eyes widened when they landed on his dick, which was evident and huge under the fabric of his jeans. She stepped away from him abruptly and straightened.

  “Wow. That escalated quickly,” she whispered.

  “Yeah. It did,” he muttered, suddenly feeling self-conscious. A twinge of the old anxiety pinged his mind, the anxiety about everything that he was running from. What the hell was he doing? He looked down at his feet and winced. “Sorry.”

  “No need to be sorry. I kissed you back. I…I don’t know what came over me.”

  Leo nodded and ran his hand over his hair, only half hearing her. He’d taken things too far, too fast. “I understand. I was outta line. I apologize.”

  They stared at each other, and he saw her chest heaving. She licked her lips, which made him want to kiss her again. But, no. He couldn’t allow himself to do that. If he did, he’d never stop. He’d take her upstairs and toss her on the futon and…and if they ended up in bed he’d want her to sleep over so that he could enjoy her all night. And if she slept over, he’d have to explain about the night terrors. Explain about everything else. No way would he open himself up like that or expose her to his hell. What was the fucking point?

  “Jess, baby,” he said softly, using the nickname he used to call her.

  She looked up expectantly and stepped forward. By the way she tilted her head, he suspected she anticipated another kiss. His eyes shifted to the clock.

  “Listen. Uh, I just remembered that I’m supposed to call my dad now to talk about the business. He scheduled me to call ’cuz he’s so busy and everything. So, I need to take care of that.”

  She was clearly shocked. Her eyes widened, and her mouth gaped. Then she recovered. “Oh! Right. Okay. Well, see you around. Tomorrow, maybe.”

  He followed as she hurried toward the door. “Yeah. Maybe at the Slimy Lizard.”

  She shot him a tiny smile. “The Sloppy Iguana.”

  “And I’ll bring some pastries by. Promise.” He would keep his word about that. But his earlier resolve to not pull her upstairs to his bed was dissolving. He had to get her out of there fast. God, he was a coward.

  He unlocked the door and opened it.

  “Night,” she whispered, then leaned up and pressed her lips to his cheek.

  He stood in the doorway, speechless, watching as she walked away. Then he closed the door and shut his eyes. Shit, he was rude. What an asshole. He’d just shared an incredible kiss with the first and only girl he’d ever loved, and here he was, throwing her out on the street.

  But he had a damned good reason.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Jessica stood near a window on the second-floor balcony at The Sloppy Iguana and had just taken a sip of her beer when she peered down to the street and watched a motorcycle roar up to the curb, stop and park. She nearly choked when she watched the rider slide his long legs off the sleek, black machine and pull off his helmet.

  Holy hell, it was Leo. Beautiful. He was simply beautiful.

  Tonight he looked raw and strong. He wore faded jeans, an unbuttoned black-and-white plaid shirt over a white-T-shirt and black boots. His appearance had always fascinated her, what with his Cajun-Creole heritage. Even though he had light eyes, his skin was dazzlingly bronze. She recalled how he’d said that his mother’s ancestors were freed slaves from Haiti and his father’s family was from somewhere French-speaking. Quebec, if she remembered correctly. With heat pooling between her thighs, she watched him stride toward the entrance then disappear from view.

  She sighed and walked over to the other part of the balcony, which overlooked the beach and the sunset. Dread started to settle in as she began to think. Why had he showed up after practically throwing her out of his bakery? She’d barely had time to say goodbye! It was going to be near impossible to stay away from him.

  It was all so strange, him throwing her out, because their kiss had been phenomenal. Epic. What had gone wrong? Did he not like the way she kissed anymore? Was her breath bad? Was he no longer attracted to her because she was bigger? No, that couldn’t be it, not from the size and feel of what was in his pants.

  Of course, he was a guy, and guys were turned on by anything.

  A black mood settled over her as she watched him enter the Iguana’s second-floor bar balcony area. Lord. Just looking at him made her unsteady. His shoulders somehow looked even broader tonight.

  The balcony was packed, mostly with older business owners, people Jessica’s mom’s age that she’d known her entire life. She watched as Leo laughed easily and chatted with a group of people at the entrance. He mingled easily, exchanging business cards with three men in Hawaiian shirts then stopping to chat with a woman in a tiny, tight, forest green dress. The way that woman beamed at him was unsurprising. Probably every woman there had already noticed him.

  Leo continued to work the crowd, and Jessica found herself entranced. Somehow he exhibited more self-assurance than he had while working the oven in his bakery, and yet his words that floated over were humble, a quality she’d found in short supply with most guys. She recalled how his voice cracked while talking about trying to save his dying friend, and she admired him for staying sane and self-assured in the face of such terrible adversity. How had he avoided being damaged from all that he’d seen? What had he seen in the war? Too much, she was sure.

  But it didn’t seem to matter. From beach to bakery to bar, Leo was sexy and confident in any situation. Unlike her. She felt awkward, ill-prepared, and stuck in the past.

  She met his gaze for the first time as he was talking to the owner of the island’s surf shop, and he grinned. She turned away quickly, embarrassed to be caught staring. Why did he have to have that smattering of sexy stubble across his chin and jaw? He was too handsome and too tempting. His stunning slate-colored eyes, his wry smile and his long legs…they all made her second-guess everything.

  She replayed the previous evening’s kiss over in her mind and decided that no good could come of this. She had all but thrown herself at Leo. Men lied, and he had a track record of vanishing when it suited. Her consideration of any attempt at something casual with Leo was a terrible idea. Better to just be friends.

  Without benefits.

  She turned away from the crowd, her eye twitching and pulsing. Setting her glass on a nearby table, she took her phone out of her bag and snapped a photo of the sunset. Better to focus on the natural beauty of the beach than on Leo, who was practically setting every woman in the room on fire with that sexy smile. It reminded her of how easily Jacob had worked rooms like this, too. />
  Scowling into her phone, Jess posted her sunset picture to Instagram. Photos on social media were a great way to promote the hotel, she had discovered. She then checked her other social media accounts, because burrowing into her phone was safer than facing reality. More than a hundred people had liked a photo she had posted of her hotel’s neon sign, and they’d surely love the sunset.

  Catalina appeared and joined her at the window. “You’re going to miss this when you leave the island.”

  Jessica nodded. “I will miss it if I leave. But that’s a big if. I’m not sure I want to sell the hotel.”

  “Have you broken that news to your sister? She seems to have her mind made up. She mentioned you were considering grad school in New York—which would be awesome, because then you could live with me.”

  Jessica snorted. “My sister’s good at making up her mind and ignoring what other people want. I’m not sure if I wanna to go back to school. She’d like me to go, but I love it here. And you know how meh I’ve always been about New York when I visit you.”

  “Yeah, you’re a beach girl. I remember when you came that weekend last summer and you gagged from the smell of garbage on my street.”

  Jessica laughed, but her mood was sour. She wished Nicole would quit trying to parent her. It had gotten worse since Mom’s death. She tried to remind herself that it was Nicole’s nature to fix things and direct others’ lives, but sometimes her sister was annoying. Especially lately.

  “I do need to have a talk with my sister,” she muttered, more to herself than Catalina.

  “Well, duh. I don’t know why you two would want to sell. I mean, it’s been in your family for what, three generations?” Catalina sipped her wine.

  “Four.” Her family had been among the first settlers of Palmira, back before Florida was even a state.

  “You look hot tonight, Jess,” Catalina said, changing the subject and nodding toward her cleavage, which was on display thanks to her blue-and-white silk maxi dress with the V-neck and a fluttering handkerchief hem. “Way to accentuate the positive. Hey, who’s that guy in the plaid with the hot body, anyway? God, there’s a lot of new people on the island.”

  Jessica tapped at her phone, trying to focus on anything but the conversation of Leo, who was still chatting with a group of women.

  Catalina seemed to notice. “Wait, is that your Leo? He kind of looks like the guy in those photos you showed me in high school, and damn, those muscles. His shirt is practically ripping at the seams. Hot.”

  Jessica glanced over but tried not to make eye contact with him again as she did. She nodded curtly. “Yep. That’s him. I made the mistake of inviting him last night when I saw him.”

  Catalina moved closer and lowered her voice. “Maybe it wasn’t a mistake at all. He’s single, right?”

  “Of course he’s single,” Jessica shot back. But a pang of anxiety ran through her. She’d only assumed he was free. Would he kiss her if he had a girlfriend? It hadn’t stopped Jacob. She had appalled herself when she looked for a ring on Leo’s finger the previous evening and the resulting surge of glee when she hadn’t seen one, but it was possible he had a wife or girlfriend in New Orleans. Maybe bakers didn’t wear rings because they would get them caked with flour.

  Surely he wasn’t married. He was only twenty-three. But sometimes people got married young when they were in the military. She’d read that on some website somewhere. And they’d talked about getting married, back when she thought she was pregnant with his baby. Back when they were practically babies themselves.

  Jessica sipped her beer and shrugged. “I don’t know. No idea. Don’t care. I’m sure he has lots of girlfriends. He was in the Marines. Probably has a few women all over the world, right? I don’t know a decent man from a douche. Not after Jacob. So I don’t care.”

  “Whatever.” Catalina made a little flashing gesture with her fingers and thumb. “I can see right through you. You care so much that there’s practically a neon sign on your forehead that blinks ‘I CARE.’”

  Jessica sighed. She turned her back on Leo and the rest of the room and decided to come clean. “I kissed him last night,” she whispered, leaning close to her friend, knowing the revelation would provoke a dramatic reaction.

  As expected, Catalina gasped and opened her mouth and eyes wide. “I knew it! He is here for you. God, that’s romantic.”

  Jessica couldn’t help but giggle at her friend’s expression—and from pleasure at the memory of how demanding his mouth had been and the way he possessively tilted her head while kissing her. Swoon. There was also his mermaid tattoo. It was almost certainly her, with that blonde hair. Hell, he’d all but said it was her. But then he’d practically thrown her out of the bakery.

  God, this was all so confusing.

  “So…?” Catalina prompted.

  “It was an amazing kiss.”

  “And? Then what? Did you guys hook up?” Catalina waggled her eyebrows. “How did it go with your…condition?”

  Jessica grimaced, embarrassed. “No, we didn’t hook up. That would be pretty fast, don’t you think? He didn’t get anywhere near my condition. In fact, he almost threw me out of his bakery after the kiss.”

  “What?”

  “He said he had a business call with his dad. It was really awkward.”

  Catalina took a long sip of beer. “Wow. I can’t even interpret that.”

  “I can’t, either. Maybe I disappointed him. Maybe I’m not his type. Maybe I’m no one’s type.”

  Her words were met with an eye roll and a snort. “Jess, that’s ridiculous. I’m straight, and I want to kiss you. Jesus. There’s probably something really wrong with him if he doesn’t want you. There’d have to be.”

  “Jacob didn’t want me. At least, not enough to not cheat.”

  “Well, Jacob was an ass. And he wanted you and every other woman on the planet. Big difference. Besides, you said that your body rejected him. Do you think that you’d have the same problem with—? Oh, hush. Turn around. Leo’s coming this way.”

  Jessica whirled to find him approaching with a beer in his hand. His mouth was cocked in a sexy grin, and he powered toward her, gracefully excusing himself as he slipped by several people.

  Did she think she’d have the same problem with Leo? God, no. She hoped not. Around him her body felt like a Fourth of July sparkler. With Jacob, she’d felt like a Zippo lighter without butane.

  Stopping in front of her and standing deliciously close, Leo reached out and squeezed her upper arm with his hand. He pressed his lips into her cheek, his mouth burning into her face while her stomach fluttered fast. His touch, his nearness, nearly made her fall over.

  “Hey, baby,” he murmured, his accent drawing the word into several syllables, making it sound sensual and not skeevy or slick. “Where y’at?”

  She grinned despite herself. His New Orleans phrases had always made her laugh, and right now she was so overwhelmed by the sensation of his warm lips that she was rendered temporarily mute. She was also thoroughly confused, because it seemed like he’d never thrown her out of his shop last night. Instead, he treated her to an intimate, wicked smile as if they’d spent the night together.

  His eyes shifted downward to the neckline of her dress. They lingered there for a beat.

  “You look gorgeous,” he said.

  A rush of warmth flooded her body, and her dizziness increased before embarrassment set in. She shouldn’t be enjoying this so much. But she was. It seemed liked forever since anyone had looked at her with such obvious desire. Even Jacob had never treated her with such intensity, except for that first night they met and he swept her off her feet with flattery.

  Catalina broke in. “So, I understand you two already know each other.” She stuck her hand out and beamed. “I’m Catalina. I didn’t meet you all those years ago because I was away for winter break.”

  Leo tore his eyes away from Jessica and shook.

  “Cat’s my oldest friend. We’ve known each o
ther since kindergarten.”

  Ugh. That was a brilliant addition to the conversation.

  “I remember you talking non-stop about Catalina,” Leo said. “She went with you to your first Comic Con in Tampa your freshman year in high school.”

  He’d remembered that? Wow. Jessica’s cheeks felt hot, and she took a long gulp of beer to help ease her parched mouth. She’d need to slow down on the booze before she became a complete, nonsensical idiot.

  Catalina and Leo began to make small talk, but Jessica barely listened, distracted by her own thoughts. Leo couldn’t just waltz back into her life and expect…well, Jessica didn’t know what he expected. Maybe he didn’t expect anything. But his eyes sure seemed to. His kisses seemed to.

  But then he’d thrown her out.

  Conflicting feelings swirled inside of her, worsened by her memories of their past and Leo’s recent moments of hot and cold. From her father, to Leo, to Jacob, the men in her life had always been a disappointment. Still, she needed to find out more. The last thing she wanted was another man who played games, but maybe a second chance was in order. Their long ago connection wasn’t something she could give up so easily. She’d never wanted to give it up in the first place.

  The surf shop owner drifted over and joined the conversation. Jessica glanced up at Leo, who was standing shoulder-to-shoulder with her. Leaving Catalina and the surf shop owner talking, the two turned then stepped a few feet away, distancing themselves from the others, while Jessica was reminded of Catalina’s previous question.

  “I meant to ask you,” she said to Leo. “Will anyone else be joining you on Palmira? Your dad or any friends or…?” She trailed off. God, that had sounded stupid.

  “Nope. Just me. And if you’re asking if I’m single, the answer is yes.”

  Leo’s slate blue eyes seemed to twinkle at her. Jessica’s body felt floaty, and she giggled. She was acting seventeen again. Unreal. Especially after all that had happened. Of course, Leo seemed to be acting the same way.

  Quickly trying to compose herself, she found that all she could muster was a “hmmm” noise, so she stepped back to Catalina and the surf guy for protection. A few more moments and she’d be capable of acting like an adult again.