A Date for the Regatta (The Dating Series Book 9)

by L. P. Dover

  Hearing her call Max that sounds ridiculous. I look around to make sure no one is within hearing distance. “I’m meeting him for drinks tonight at The Chandler with his mom and stepdad.”

  Kim’s eyes widen. “Wow. Why didn’t you tell me things were that serious?”

  I shrug. “I didn’t even know they were. I thought for sure he’d keep our relationship a secret.”

  “Obviously, he thinks there’s more to it. The question is, what do you think about it?”

  “I don’t know,” I say, wishing I knew the answer. Max isn’t at all who I thought he’d be, but our worlds are completely different. I don’t fit in with his.

  Kim hugs me tight. “Don’t worry about it, London. I’m a firm believer in what’s meant to be is meant to be. If you and Max are destined to be together, it’ll work out.”

  I roll my eyes and hug her back. “Yeah, yeah, yeah. Don’t you need to get to work?”

  She lets me go and winks. “Have fun tonight.”

  Taking a deep breath, I grab my purse off the desk. “Wish me luck.” I head toward the door that leads out to the parking lot. The walk back to our house isn’t far and I really enjoy it at times, except for when it rains. Luckily, today it’s a perfect September day with clear blue skies. I breathe in the crisp, cool air and start on my way home.

  “London.”

  The sound of my name makes me stop in my tracks. I jerk around and Max is there by his sports car. He rushes over to me and grabs my wrists, pulling me in for a kiss. Stepping away from him, I gasp and look around. “What are you doing?”

  He shrugs and smiles. “Kissing you.”

  “What if people see? I could lose my job.”

  His grin widens. “You don’t have to worry about that. No one’s going to fire you.” He reaches for my hands again and I let him. “There’s something I want to talk about with you later. Right now, I know we have plans, but once we’re alone I’ll see what you think.” Something has changed in him from last night and I like it.

  “I’m intrigued,” I tell him.

  He nods toward his car. “I can drive you home if you want. I’ll wait for you to get ready.”

  I look down at his clothes; he’s wearing a pair of khaki shorts and a simple light blue polo shirt. “Are you wearing that?”

  Chuckling, he glances at his attire. “Yep. Just because we’re going to The Chandler doesn’t mean we have to dress up. My mother doesn’t care what we wear. You can go dressed in what you’re wearing if you want to.”

  I snort. “No, thanks.”

  “Then come on, I’ll drive you. Not unless you’re embarrassed to be seen with me.”

  “Terrified,” I tease. “I’m sure your uppity friends will have something to say about you hanging out with someone like me.” Not that I care what his best friends think; they’re asshats.

  Max’s smile fades. “I don’t give a shit what they think, London. I have a mind of my own.”

  Guess we’ll see when the time comes.

  We walk over to his car and he opens the door for me so I can get in. Very gentlemanlike. That’s one of the things I’ve noticed about him since we started sleeping together. He’s different than what I thought he’d be.

  It only takes a few minutes to get to my house and the driveway is empty. Holly is spending the weekend with her boyfriend, and Kim is still at work. Max peers up at the house and smiles. It’s a navy blue, old Victorian style house with white shutters. “It’s cute. And you live here with Kim and her sister?”

  I open the car door. “Yep. At least until I save enough money to get my own place.”

  Max follows me inside the house and to my room. My furniture isn’t fancy, but I have a queen-sized bed with a white lace quilt covering that has small light blue flowers embroidered on it. My grandmother had made it when she was still alive. My ex-husband might’ve taken my money, but he would’ve regretted taking any of my belongings. That quilt means more to me than any amount of money.

  There’s a picture of me and my parents on my dresser and Max stares at it. “Where are your parents? Are they in Rhode Island?”

  “No,” I say, shaking my head. I go into my closet and pick out a khaki skirt and a silky floral top. “They moved to Maine a few years ago. I work all the time, so I don’t see them much.”

  “I’m sorry. I know that must be hard.”

  I take off my work clothes and slide on the skirt and top. Max watches me with heat in his eyes and I love it. I sit beside him on the bed and turn my focus to the picture. I’m standing in between my parents, all of us grinning wide at the camera. It was taken right after my divorce. I remember feeling determined to get my life back on track.

  “It is,” I admit honestly. “They wanted me to move in with them after my divorce, but I knew I needed to do all of this by myself. I’m too old to depend on them.”

  Max places a hand over mine. “I think you’re doing pretty damn good. You’ve been through a lot.”

  “Thanks,” I say, turning to him. “I’m trying.”

  He squeezes my hand. “You ready to go? My mom’s dying to talk to you. I had to calm her down at lunch today. She’s really excited to spend time with you.”

  “Speaking of your mother, thanks for not warning me.”

  With a heavy sigh, he nods. “I know and I’m sorry. I just felt like I could tell her about you.”

  “What exactly does this make us?” I ask. My heart is thumping so hard I’m surprised he can’t hear it. What do I want it to mean? I wish I knew the answer.

  Max looks right into my eyes. “I don’t know. What I do know is that I want to be with you, London. No more sneaking around. No hiding. But I’ll leave it up to you though.”

  “Okay,” I murmur. “This is all new to me, so I have no clue what to do.”

  He chuckles and helps me up. “Same. We’ll get through it together. Now let’s go before my mom calls asking where we’re at. The sooner we get there, the quicker we can leave.”

  I’m definitely down for that. “All right, I’m ready.” Actually, I’m not but I know how to pretend to be.

  Hand in hand, we walk through the hotel lobby and everyone acknowledges us with smiles. I keep waiting for them to look down at me but none of them do. Maybe that’s just me being self-conscious. For three years, I’ve been talked down to by club members. The only reason I’ve put up with it is because of the money.

  Max and I take the elevator to the top floor and my palms grow sweaty the closer we get to their room. We stop outside the door and he turns me to face him. “My mom and her husband aren’t like the people you’re used to. Just relax and have fun. We won’t stay long, I promise.”

  I breathe a sigh of relief. “Okay. I can do this.”

  He knocks on the door and it bursts open. His mother squeals and jerks me away from him, folding her arms around my body. “You’re here. I’ve been looking forward to this all afternoon.”

  “Don’t scare her, Mom,” Max chuckles.

  Kitty lets me go and waves him off. “Oh, hush. I’m just excited.” She takes my hand and leads me into the penthouse suite. It’s bigger than my entire house.

  Mark comes over and holds out his hand. “It’s good to see you again, London. Would you like a cocktail?”

  I shake his hand. “Sure. That’d be great, thank you.”

  He walks off to the bar where two glasses await the fruity concoction. Mark fills each glass up and hands them to us, both with a single raspberry on the rim. Max kisses the side of my head. “You gonna be okay if I leave you alone with my mother for a few minutes?”

  Kitty grins at me and it makes me smile. Usually, I get a fake vibe from people who are putting on an act, but she doesn’t come across like that. “I’ll be fine.”

  Max squeezes my hips and winks at me before walking out the door with Mark. Kitty sits down on the couch and pats the seat beside her. “I have to say,” she begins, “I’m so happy to see a smile on my son’s face. I don’t think I�
��ve ever heard him talk about a woman the way he does you.”

  “Not even Alyssa?” I counter.

  Kitty snorts. “Definitely not. I was so happy when he broke things off with her. She was not good for him at all.”

  “And you think I am?”

  She stares at me as if I’ve lost my mind. “Of course, I do. You’re smart and beautiful with a good head on your shoulders. You’re working hard to build yourself up after everything that happened to you.”

  I cringe. “Max told you about my past?”

  “There’s nothing to be ashamed of, sweetheart.” She pats my hand. “I’m divorced too. And because of that, I found an amazing man who loves me. And speaking of Max’s father, I’m going to warn you, he and his wife aren’t very friendly. When you meet them, keep your head up high. They like to talk trash about anyone and everyone who aren’t like them.”

  “Great,” I grumble. “Maybe Max doesn’t want me to meet them.”

  She takes a sip of her cocktail and shakes her head. “I don’t think you’ll have a choice. They’re in town for the regatta. Max will want you to be there.”

  “He hasn’t asked,” I inform her.

  Her lips pull back into a smile. “Oh, he will, honey. But don’t worry, you can sit with me and Mark.”

  The door opens and Max and Mark walk in. I don’t want to think of the regatta. If he asks me to go, I can’t say no. Max lifts his brows in question as if he’s asking if I’m okay. I nod and his shoulders relax. We all sit in the main area of the penthouse and I listen to Kitty tell stories about Max when he was a little boy. The stories sound so normal. When you think of the rich and famous, you don’t think of them being like everyday people. We all talk for about an hour about life in general, politics, and just all the things going on in the world. Mark continuously filled up my glass with raspberry cocktails and I can feel the effects of it. I’ve enjoyed every minute of it. Being around Max tonight has shown me a side of him I’ve never seen before.

  Max drapes his arm over my shoulders. “You about ready to go?” he asks.

  I nod. “If you are.”

  He grabs my hand and helps me up. Kitty holds out her arms and hugs me again. “Thank you for coming tonight. I can’t wait to see you again.”

  “Same. I had a good night.”

  She turns to Max and hugs him, kissing him on the cheek before he lets go of her. “I love you.”

  “I love you too, Mom,” he says back. He shakes Mark’s hand and we wave at them before exiting the penthouse.

  Once out in the hall, I smile. “I had fun. I love your mom.”

  Max chuckles. “She’s the best. I can tell she loves you too.” That warms my heart. We walk to the elevator and he pulls me into his arms. “Question.”

  I narrow my gaze at him. “What?”

  His eyes twinkle. “Would you like to stay with me tonight?”

  “I don’t know,” I say in a sing song voice. “What will we be doing?”

  “I was thinking a repeat of last night.”

  My body trembles in anticipation. How can I say no to that? “I think we can pull that off. We going back to your boat?”

  Shaking his head, he pulls out a key from his back pocket. “I thought maybe we could stay here? We’ve both had a little too much to drink.”

  I can’t argue with him there. Plus, it’d be nice to stay in the finest hotel in the state. “Sounds good to me.”

  The elevator doors open, and we ride it down to the floor below. When we get to our room, Max opens the door and I gaze around in awe. It’s three times the size of any normal hotel room. The king-sized bed isn’t just a regular bed, it’s an antique four poster bed with a canopy. Very elegant and classy.

  “Wow,” I breathe. “It’s gorgeous.”

  Max comes in behind me and wraps his arms around my waist. “I have to ask you something.”

  I turn my head to the side, and he kisses my nose. “Anything,” I whisper.

  “Will you come to the regatta with me? I know it’s not your thing, but I want you there.”

  The breath hitches in my lungs. The regatta is the social event of the year. Everyone who is anyone will be there. People will also see us together.

  “What about your dad and stepmom? I’ve been warned about them. They won’t approve of me.”

  Max turns me around to face him. “I don’t give a shit what they think. And you shouldn’t either. I don’t need my dad or his bitch of a wife in my life.” He lifts my hand to his lips. “Please, London. One way or another, we can’t keep our relationship a secret forever.”

  I want to be strong, to show him that I can handle it. “Okay,” I give in. “I’ll be there.”

  He lifts me up in his arms and twirls me around. “You won’t regret it. I’ll win for sure now knowing you’re there, rooting for me.”

  “Is that what you had on your mind earlier?” I ask.

  He shakes his head and beams. “No. That’s something different. What would you say if I opened a restaurant and made you the manager? You would practically own the place.”

  Excitement bubbles in my veins. “Seriously?” It’s like a dream come true, but then reality steps in. “How exactly would that work?”

  “Dawson’s Marina,” he replies. “I know it’s a shithole right now, but I can fix it up. The beach there is immaculate. Just think of all the tourism we could bring to the area. And the restaurant there, I could renovate it and you would get the promotion you’ve always wanted. You wouldn’t have to deal with the scumbags at the yacht club.”

  I can see the genuine elation on his face. “Max that sounds amazing. I don’t know what to say.”

  “Do you think it’s a good idea? I know it’ll be a lot of work, but I want to do it.”

  I cup his face in my hands. “Then do it. You can do anything you want.” His plan is something I would love to see happen. Dawson’s Marina used to be a prime spot. In order to see it all come into fruition I have to still be a part of Max’s life when that time comes. Will I be? I have no clue. We’re two different people from two different worlds.

  Max lowers his lips to mine and kisses me. “If I do this, will you help me?” he asks, whispering across my lips.

  I want to believe there’s something between us that will last. I want to believe in something that lasts forever. Sometimes it’s hard. Instead of saying that, I nod and kiss him back. “Of course, I will.”

  His grin widens as he looks over at the clock. “It’s still early. What do you want to do?”

  Taking his hand, I slide it up my shirt. “I’m sure we can figure something out.”

  He lifts my shirt over my head and rakes his heated gaze over my body. “You drive me so crazy and I love it.”

  “And I would love it if you took off your clothes,” I tease back. Max steps back and lifts his shirt over his head. I stare down at his shorts and he lowers them to the floor, along with his boxers. “Much better,” I murmur, lowering my voice seductively.

  Now it’s his turn to look down at my skirt. “That needs to go.”

  Slowly, I slide my skirt and lacy black underwear down my legs, leaving only my bra. I’m leaving that for him to take off. Taking his hands, I slide them up my thighs to my breasts. Unhooking my bra, he tosses it across the room and pulls me down on top of him on the bed. His lips close over a taut nipple and sucks greedily while his other hand kneads my breast.

  Growling deep in his chest, he grabs the back of my neck and kisses me fiercely as he reaches between my legs, fondling my clit and slipping a finger inside of me. His cock is hard beneath me and I’m dying to ride him, but I love the delicious ache the anticipation gives me.

  Circling his cock at my opening, I lift up before he can enter me. “Not yet,” I murmur. Kissing my way down his chest, I look up at him and he groans. The tip of him glistens so I flick my tongue across it, moaning. He tastes salty yet sweet; the perfect combination. Closing my lips around him, I suck him off and massage his balls. H
is hips lift and I take him in farther, knowing I’m driving him insane.

  “Fuck, this feels good.”

  Giggling, I lick his length and straddle him, feeling his wet cock between my legs. My whole body trembles as I take him fully inside me. His hands are everywhere on my body, his breathing deep and heavy as I ride him. I don’t want to stop, but I’m so close to losing control. My orgasm builds and I can feel my body tighten.

  “Max,” I cry out, picking up my pace. His mouth latches on to my breast and he bites down, digging his fingers into my hips. I move faster, milking him, and explode all around him as my own release makes me tremble. He pulsates inside me and his warmth fills me. Putting his arms around my waist, he lifts his hips and turns me over on my back, still deep inside me.

  “I hope you’re still ready to go because I’m not done.”

  6

  Max

  It’s a full day since I’ve seen London, and I can’t get her off my mind. After I dropped her off at her house the morning after we spent time together with my mom and stepdad, I had to tell her I wouldn’t see her or be able to speak with her much until after the race was over because Yates, Vance, and I needed to practice before the big event. London said she understood. I made sure to give her my mom’s phone number so they could meet up for the race. Still, when I dropped her off, I had a bit of doubt nagging at me. What if London didn’t show up? I couldn’t really blame her. I’d never seen her at one before, not that I was looking, but London comes across as the type who deems herself unworthy for these social events. Something I really want her to get over. Thing is, I want to be with her, grow this relationship beyond the bedroom, although being buried between her legs every night since I arrived in town has been a blessing. I just wish I asked her out sooner. Still, I want her on my arm when I attend the “event of the month” as my father’s wife calls them.

  Yesterday, Yates, Vance, and I spent our entire day on the water, and some of the time in it. We had a couple malfunctions, but nothing we couldn’t manage if they happened again during the race. In between practice sessions, we watched our competitors, studied them, and tried to pick up on how they moved as a team. For the most part, the three of us are always a cohesive unit, and by comparison, the Kingston Regatta is small. Where some races have hundreds of boats, this one keeps it simple at fifty. In order to enter, you have to have won or placed in the top three in a qualifying race or won previously. Now the time has come, and we’re ready to win. The route is long, starting off in Kingston and taking us around Jamestown and Prudence Island.