by R. Linda
“Not bad?”
“I’d give it a solid C.”
“A C? You’re grading my kiss?” I sat up and punched him in the shoulder. “A kiss, mind you, that I didn’t even want or expect. Are you forgetting one thing?”
“What?” he hissed, rubbing his palm over the spot I hit him. Good. Served him right.
“That I have only ever kissed two people. You…and him.” I pointed at the door separating my room and Linc’s.
“Well, do you want to practice? I’d be more than willing to sacrifice myself, to make sure you sweep the sexy lifeguard off his feet. Take one for the team and all.”
“No! I don’t want to practice!”
“Are you sure?” Jack wiggled his eyebrows.
“Yes,” I breathed. At least I didn’t think I wanted to practice. Did I? Urgh, I was confused. I’d never given any thought to the fact that I hadn’t kissed anyone since Linc on my eighteenth birthday and that I was terrible at it. I was so inexperienced. I should practice so when Linc finally realised…
No, that was stupid. It wasn’t going to happen, so what did it matter that I wasn’t an expert kisser?
“Well, the offer is there if you need.”
“I need to go to sleep. That’s what I need.”
“Okay, I’ll see you tomorrow. Night, baby cakes.” Jack rolled over, grabbed my face in his hands, and kissed me. On the mouth. Again. “Sorry, couldn’t resist.” He chuckled then pulled away and walked to the door.
“Idiot.” I threw a pillow at his head but missed because he darted out of the room and closed the door behind him.
Reluctantly, I got up from the bed to get the pillow and lie back down when the door handle between the two rooms jiggled.
I went over and opened it a crack.
“Hey.” Linc peered around the door. “Why was the door locked?”
“Hi. Must’ve been the staff,” I lied and returned to my bed. I pulled back the covers and climbed in. What was he doing here? It had to be close to five a.m.
“Just wanted to check you were okay. I heard you shout and the door close. Where’s Jack?” He stepped into the room and looked around.
“He left. I’m fine. Just tired.” I snuggled into my pillow, which wasn’t nearly as comfortable as sleeping on Linc’s chest, but I made use of what I had. It smelled like him, so I wasn’t complaining too much.
“Okay. Well, goodnight,” he said softly, smoothing his hands over his hair.
“Night.” I yawned, closing my eyes.
The bed dipped beside me, jolting me from the brink of sleep only moments later.
“Sorry, just wanted to make sure you had water and painkillers for when you woke up.” I thought I smiled, or at least I tried to, but I was so tired, my eyes drooped closed again. “I’ll go now. Everything is on your side table.”
“Stay,” I mumbled into the pillow and reached for his hand, or arm, or leg. Anything I could grab to stop him from leaving.
“Okay.”
Chapter Twelve
Linc
Nate rang me in the morning, waking me from a restless sleep, to tell me we were playing golf with his dad later. I’d tossed and turned all night. Having Indie sleep beside me made things so much worse. I couldn’t shut my brain off. I needed to figure things out. I either had to make a move, bite the bullet, and tell Indie how I felt, or I had to learn to leave well enough alone. I was of two minds, constantly warring with myself, and it was driving me crazy.
On one hand, I didn’t want to ruin my friendship with Nate. Something I knew without a doubt would happen if I told him I was in love with his sister. There would be no way he’d let me live to see another day. He tied Timmy Fullson, the scrawny kid who lived on the other side of him, to the light pole down the street because he called Indie pretty. And we were friends with that kid at the time.
And besides, he knew exactly what I was like. I’d not had a long-term girlfriend except for the mistake that was Jasmine. What could I say? The body glitter and nipple tassels were intriguing for three seconds when my brain short circuited and I tried to push Indie out of my mind, but I couldn’t marry a stripper. So there was no chance he’d let me date his sister.
And then…what if after all that, Indie didn’t feel the same way? What if she laughed in my face and called me a loser? I’d have lost both her and Nate, and I didn’t want to do that. They were too important to me.
But on the other hand, if Indie felt the same way and loved me as much as I did her, the risk of losing Nate as a friend, and my manhood in the process, would be totally worth it, right? If I had her by my side, nothing else mattered.
I was doomed if I did and doomed if I didn’t.
***
The sun was scorching. I could feel my skin burning. My throat was dry, parched. A cold glass of water or eight wouldn’t go astray. The golf game was taking forever, mostly because none of us was up for it, except Jack and Ryder. Ryder didn’t look like he’d spent the entire night drinking in a club like the rest of us. He had a little black around the eyes, but that was it. Nate’s face was pasty white, and he was sweating profusely and groaned every time he breathed. I was pretty sure Brody had thrown up after every hole, and Jack was his chipper old self. He wasn’t tired at all, or sick. And he was hitting better than everyone else, including Steve, who was mildly impressed. What I wouldn’t give to know exactly what he thought of his daughter’s boyfriend.
“So what happened last night?” Brody asked, coming to stand beside me. He rested one arm on my shoulder for support because I was pretty sure he’d collapse otherwise.
“You were there. A lot of alcohol.” I watched Nate take a swing at the golf ball on the eighteenth hole and miss, silently grateful the game was almost over.
“After you left with Indie.” He groaned and crouched down, holding his stomach.
“Nothing. I walked her back to the hotel, and she went to bed.” I dug the club into the ground, acting like last night was no big deal. I couldn’t tell him I spent the night with her because she asked me to, because that would be stupid. I might as well shoot myself in the foot. But it was a big deal.
I hadn’t planned on staying in her room. I just wanted to give her the water and painkillers to make sure she woke up okay. I intended to leave the door open between our rooms, just in case. I didn’t like it when she drank so much, but she asked me to stay, and who was I to say no? I didn’t the first time she got drunk and asked me to stay, back when she was in high school.
She’d gone to a party at that douche Chace’s house—the one who knocked up Ryder’s sister and cheated on Bailey—and drank too much. I blamed Jayden, Ryder’s friend, for it, whether it was his fault or not. I didn’t know. But she was with him and had too many cocktails, but then he left her there. Alone. When she called me at one a.m. to come get her, I was ready to beat someone up. Unfortunately, there was no one around who deserved it. Ryder had already taken care of Chace. So I found Indie locked in a room by herself—at least she’d had the sense to get away from everyone else—and took her home. I knew Steve and Leanne would have hit the roof had I brought her home drunk, so I took her back to my place, put her in my bed, and was planning to let her sleep it off alone, until she asked me to stay. I was weak. I couldn’t say no to anything that girl asked, so I climbed into my bed beside her and held her all night.
“Fine, keep your secrets, but it’s all going to come out eventually, man. You can’t keep something like that bottled up for too long and not explode.” He pulled himself to his feet and took his shot rather slowly.
“What do you mean?” Brody was way more perceptive than I gave him credit for.
“Tell her how you feel.”
“Who? What?” I acted dumb, trying to pretend I didn’t understand what he was talking about, but I knew it was useless. He knew. Somehow, he knew.
“Indie. Tell her how you feel. What’s the worst that could happen?”
“Uh, Nate would murder me.” I sighed. I
t felt good to finally admit it to someone.
“Nate wouldn’t hurt a fly, and you know it.”
“Maybe, but he’d definitely kick my ass and never speak to me again.”
“No, he wouldn’t,” Brody argued, stopping short when Ryder came over.
“How’re you travelling, man?” Ryder laughed and slapped him on the back.
“Fine, just telling idiot here to ’fess up to Indie.”
Dammit.
“Will you shut up?” I shoved him in the chest.
“What? It’s not like he doesn’t know.” Brody laughed. I looked at Ryder, and he nodded.
“Really?”
“Kind of hard not to figure it out,” Ryder said and walked off again.
It wasn’t that obvious, was it?
Brody chuckled.
It was that obvious.
“Linc, your shot,” Nate called out.
I teed up the ball and took a swing. It soared through the air perfectly, landing on the green at the other end. I wasn’t half bad at golf when I was in the mood to play.
“Nice,” Nate cheered, getting a little life back in him.
The rest of the game went quickly, for which I was grateful. And then Steve announced he was buying us all drinks at the bar. Nate and Brody groaned. Ryder looked at his watch like he had somewhere better to be, and I was willing to bet that was wherever Bailey was. It didn’t worry me what we did. I could do with a drink. Or a sleep. If things kept going the way they were this week, I was going to end up an insomniac with a drinking problem.
“So, last night?” Nate fell into step beside me as we followed his old man back to the bar. My stomach dropped. He didn’t know, did he? He couldn’t.
“Mmmm,” I muttered.
“Harper,” he said.
I closed my eyes and smiled. He didn’t know. “What about her?”
“She’s fun, right? Seems like a pretty cool chick.”
“Yeah, I guess so. Why?”
“I don’t know,” he said then went silent.
“What happened after I left?”
“A lot of alcohol, man. Too much. I don’t really remember, but when I woke up this morning, I wasn’t alone.” He ran his hands over his face and groaned. “And I don’t remember it.”
“So, Harper?”
“Harper.” He nodded as we walked in the door to the restaurant.
“Nice.” I laughed at his confused expression.
“You boys want to eat?” Steve asked.
“Yes!” everyone shouted in his face.
“Okay then, table for six. Thanks.” He smiled at the waitress and followed her to a booth in the back.
Steve ordered us a round of beer, and even though we’d all had a pretty big night—some more than others, judging by Nate’s and Brody’s appearances today—the beers went down well, quenching our thirst from playing eighteen holes in the blistering heat.
And food had never tasted so good. I hadn’t realised how hungry I was until my meal arrived. Everyone devoured everything on their plate.
“Big night?” Steve chuckled.
“Could say that,” Nate mumbled through a mouthful of food.
“Well, you boys remember, tomorrow night is the rehearsal dinner, so you need to be sober. I don’t want any hangovers for my wedding the following day.”
“Whatever. It’s not like it’s your first wedding. And besides, you’re remarrying Mum, so it doesn’t have to be perfect.”
“It does. This is what your mother wants, so it will be perfect. We never got a real wedding the first time, so this is it.” Steve wiped his mouth with his napkin and set it on his plate.
“What do you mean, you didn’t get a real wedding the first time?” Nate asked.
“Just that we got married at city hall in front of two random witnesses we met on the street. That’s why this wedding is such a big deal. So, please, stay sober tomorrow night.”
“Sure.” I nodded. I didn’t want to drink anymore, anyway.
“Okay,” Nate agreed, followed by the rest.
“Good. Now, I’m off for my suit fitting. You boys stay here and enjoy ringing everything up on my bill.” Steve stood and clapped Nate on the shoulder. “Oh, and before I forget, Nate. You and Lincoln need to be in the ballroom upstairs in the hotel at four p.m. for a dance lesson.” He smiled and walked out.
“Why?” Nate groaned and banged his head on the table. So much like Indie. “Why? Why? Why? I hate dancing.”
“It’s one dance. Get over it,” Ryder said.
“I can give you some pointers if you like,” Jack offered. He’d been so quiet, I’d almost forgotten he was there.
“No. Thanks.” Nate scowled and signalled the bartender for another round of beers.
It was going to be a long afternoon.
Chapter Thirteen
Indie
The bed was empty when I woke up again. This time I wasn’t surprised, partly because I slept until after noon and only woke up when Bailey banged on the door.
“Why are you still asleep?” she asked, barging past me.
“Because I’m tired.” I slumped against the door, hoping she’d get the hint and leave. She didn’t.
“Well, get in the shower, wake yourself up, and get dressed. We’re going out for lunch.” She smiled and grabbed my shoulders, pushing me toward the bathroom. She was far too chipper considering how late we were out last night.
After my shower, I returned to my room to find Bailey had laid out my clothes on the bed like I was child. “I can pick my own clothes, you know?”
“Just saving time,” she said as I picked up my clothes and returned to the bathroom to get dressed.
“Are we meeting Kenzie and Harper?” I called through the open door.
“No, they’re still asleep.”
“Okay.” I cringed at myself in the mirror. I really hated wearing dresses. Didn’t Jack buy me anything else? “Ready?”
“Yep.”
“Where’s Ryder?”
“Golf with your dad and all the boys.”
So that was where Linc disappeared to. “That’s the only reason you want to have lunch, isn’t it? Ryder’s busy, and you’re bored,” I teased as we stepped into the elevator.
“No, of course not,” she gasped. “I just wanted to talk to you about Linc.” Her giggle was infectious. Bailey was one of those people who was brimming with happiness all the time—at least since Ryder came along like her own knight in skinny jeans and stole her heart—and if she was smiling, so were you.
“Urgh. I don’t want to talk about him.”
“The plan to sweep him off his feet isn’t working?”
“No, I’m just making a fool of myself.” I sighed and followed Bailey out of the elevator as soon as the doors slid open. “Where are we eating?”
“Thought we’d go to the restaurant. It’s after the lunch rush, so it should be fairly quiet.”
Quiet was good. I wasn’t really in the mood for a lot of people. I wasn’t even sure I was hungry.
Bailey grabbed us a table at the front, thanking the waitress for the menus.
“Tell me about Linc.” She flipped open her menu and scanned it, no doubt for the chicken salad she ordered everywhere we ate. I would have sworn she didn’t eat anything else. Her eyes lit up, and I knew she’d found her meal.
“There’s nothing to tell. He’s Linc, and I’m a hopeless idiot.” I groaned and skimmed the menu. I’d get a salad. Ha, who was I kidding? Pizza. I wanted a pizza.
The waitress chose that moment to see if we were ready. We gave her our orders, and she returned a moment later with a pitcher of water for the table.
I poured us both a glass and guzzled mine down in two gulps. The heat was killing me. I couldn’t wait to get off this island.
“So…” Bailey pressed.
“Nothing.”
“Indie?”
“You’re not going to let this go, are you?” I folded my arms over my chest and leaned back i
n the chair.
Bailey shook her head.
“Fine.”
I told her everything while we ate, from falling asleep together while we watched Saw, and how he held me in his arms all night, him skinny-dipping at the waterfall, dancing at the club, the body shots—she happily pointed out that she was a witness to that sexy moment—and him giving me water and painkillers and staying with me last night to make sure I was okay after drinking so much.
“I don’t see the problem.” Bailey set her fork down and wiped her mouth with her napkin.
“The problem is, after every one of these moments, he’s dropped a comment that has made me feel like crap. Like last night, telling you there was nothing intimate about doing body shots with me. Well, sorry, but it was. It meant something to me, and it hurt that he brushed it aside so easily. It’s just like my eighteenth birthday all over again.”
“I don’t understand.” Bailey frowned in sympathy.
“When he laughed off my first kiss as if it never happened. He does it every time things get a little too close for comfort. I swear, it’s like he enjoys messing with my head.”
“I don’t think that’s it.”
“What else could it be?”
“Lots of things. I’ve been watching him this week—”
“Of course, you have.” I winked, referring to her walking into his room when he was changing. “Does Ryder know about that?”
“Of course he does. He wasn’t too impressed, but I made it up to him,” she said.
“Gross.” I stuck my finger in my mouth and gagged.
“Not like that.” She shook her head in defeat. “Anyway, I’ve been paying attention to Linc this week, and I think he does these stupid things because he’s confused.”
“Confused?”
“About you. His feelings. Your feelings. Nate’s feelings.”
“Umm—”
“Hi, girls. What are you doing here?” I looked up to see my dad standing over the table with a smile, ending our conversation quickly. Maybe Bailey was right and Linc was confused about everything. I could only hope that was the reason and he wasn’t brushing me off just because he was a jerk.