She grabbed my hand and dragged me through the crowd of partiers, only pausing to grab Jake, the guy whose arm she’d arrived on. True to Hanna’s word, we found Ginny with Alix, dead center of the masses. Looking better than a dream.
I couldn’t help smiling. Just seeing her, I knew I’d been an idiot to think she’d be cracked enough to do any of the things I’d contemplated accusing her of. So I took just a moment to look my fill. To admire her long, tan legs and the dress that hugged all the right places. The way the curls she’d put in her hair framed eyes that could send my pulse into overtime with just a look.
And she was wearing the biggest scowl I’d ever seen on her. Probably because she was flanked by the damn Ingrams.
“Well, well, if it isn’t the cabana boy. Evan, wasn’t it?” Blanche Ingram shifted from Ginny’s side to let her hand drift down my chest. Her eyes looked me up and down.
“Miss Ingram.”
It was a little hard to spit out her name through clenched teeth. I hadn’t gotten a good look at her in the car before they’d left—just the basic: bleach-blonde hair, skinny bordering on anorexic. Being up close didn’t change my first impression. Blanche was a beach Barbie skank of the first order.
She reminded me of my ex-girlfriend.
“Lord, even your voice is sexy as hell. I would really like to peel that shirt off of you and see the rest of that tattoo, so be a good boy.” Her hand started to snake beneath my shirt collar, but I grabbed her wrist before her manicured nails did more than glance over my collarbone.
“Back off, Miss Ingram. And keep your hands to yourself.”
She pulled away with a predatory smile. “Feisty. I like it. But you’ve got your priorities a touch mixed up. Ginny belongs to my brother, with her father’s blessing. So there’s absolutely no reason why we can’t—”
I snagged her hand again as it made another play for my shirt. “Let me try and put this so that even you can understand. Fuck the hell off.”
Blanche’s smile vanished into one of the best death-glares I’d ever seen, and I changed my mind. My ex-girlfriend could take lessons from this bitch. “You’ll regret that, cabana boy.”
“I doubt it.”
I threw her hand back at her and walked away. Unfortunately, it looked like Ginny had run off, too. My only comfort was that Brandon Ingram seemed just as confused about where she’d gone as I was. I clenched my jaw and pushed through the crowd, looking for any sign of her or even Alix and Hanna.
I’d made three circles of the yard before I felt a tug on my arm.
“Thank God, Alix. Where did she go?”
Alix laughed. “She had to get away from the Ingrams.”
“What are they even doing here? I thought she hated them!”
Alix wrinkled her nose. “Her father practically shoved them out of the car. She didn’t have a whole lotta choice about it.”
“And clearly they were happy to come.”
“I know—they’re such leeches. At any rate, she sent me to see if you’d managed to escape Blanche’s claws yet, and provide a little assistance if you hadn’t.”
I gave a rough laugh. “I know girls like Blanche. You just have to speak a language they understand.”
“Blonde?”
“Nah, you shouldn’t insult blondes by comparing them. Girls like Blanche speak stupid. “
She laughed, and then inclined her head to the side with a smile. I followed her to the house. Alix led me through the staff halls and past the kitchen, her hands tapping on the hall wall in time to the music we could still hear from outside. And then she stopped, and spun on her heels.
“Wait here!” She flashed a grin and went back the way she came.
Hands grabbed me from behind, pulling me off-balance, and I fell backwards. Not into the wall, but through the wall.
And into Ginny, who was grinning like a maniac. “Thank God.”
I smiled. “You’re missing your party, you know.”
“I really don’t give a damn. All I want for my birthday is right here.” Her eyes gave me a quick up and down that made my pulse double-time.
I glanced around with a grin. “A weird secret passage in the wall?”
She laughed. “Good Lord, I missed you.” She leaned forward, pushing me into the wall. “You know, there are a shitload of these passages in this house. We used—” She bit her lip and winced at her own words. “I used to run through them as a kid.”
My hands tightened on her a fraction. I took another look around the passage, which was surprisingly clean. There was even a light not far off, reflecting across pale wood walls. My brain started spinning through things I’d heard or seen, rethinking them. The note, the fire. My things being rearranged. All the noises in the walls.
“So how many people know about these?”
Ginny leaned in closer, her fingertips playing with the skin in the V of my shirt. “Mama knows, Alix and Hanna. A few of the staff. Me.”
My pulse pounded with every brush of her fingers. I was drowning in the sunshine scent of her that I’d missed all week. I shut my brain down. Thinking wasn’t what I wanted right now. I could worry about secret passages and noises later. “So nobody, really.”
She smiled, and I felt her breath on my lips when she spoke. “Exactly.”
“Good.”
My hands grabbed her shoulders, pushing her back against the opposite wall. Her mouth opened in a gasp, and I took full advantage of it. I was tired of the teasing, and I knew exactly what she wanted because I wanted it too. Her nails dug into my arms as our lips met, both of us hungry for the other. Her mouth worked against mine, tongue sliding in and out and driving me mad.
And then her hands pushed me away.
I pulled back, the heat of embarrassment rising through me. Pushing me off wasn’t supposed to be part of the plan. I felt like an idiot.
“Shirt off, Mr. Richardson. Now.”
I grinned, kicking myself. I should’ve known. “Yes ma’am, Miss Ginny.”
I pulled the shirt over my head, not even bothering with the buttons. Ginny grinned, hands already on my bare chest, tracing the lines of my tattoo. I cupped my hands on her jaw and closed the distance between us again to find her mouth hot, eager, and waiting for me.
One of my hands slid behind her head, holding her to me, tangling in her long hair. The other slid down to her hips slowly, savoring the curves of her body as I explored her mouth. She moaned into the kiss when my hand wrapped around her hip and pulled her in tight. Her tongue stroked mine, and she dug her fingers into my back, sending shivers down my spine. A growl built deep in my throat, low and feral. This was what I’d wanted from the first day I’d seen her. And judging by her reaction, exactly what she wanted too.
My knee pushed between her legs, grinding our hips together, and she moaned louder. I smiled and dragged my lips away from hers, tasting my way across her jaw and down her neck, happy to have finally turned the tables on Ginny Eyre.
“Oh good God above,” she moaned.
God above was right. Ginny was just as soft and hot as I expected. She tasted like summer nights and salty-sweet heat. The noises she made and the way she clawed at my back made my groin tighten with a delicious pain. The heat between our two bodies was unbearable.
My lips and tongue dipped into the hollow of her neck, making her gasp. She groaned when I pulled back.
“No—”
“Shh.” My hand still spread across her hip, and our bodies still had no air between them. I could feel her heart pounding against my own chest. But I needed to see her face, needed to drown in the devouring look in her eyes.
I ran my finger across her wet bottom lip, and let her eyes swallow my soul.
And then I kissed her again, slowly. Savoring. Her hands clutched at me, but I refused to let myself be rushed. I sucked at her bottom lip, my tongue flickering along it. Then I released it and took in her upper. She whimpered. I let my tongue slide into her mouth, let it slip down hers and back up, pushin
g it deep and pulling it back.
Ginny pushed her thigh into my groin, and I gasped.
“Two can play that game,” she whispered against me.
“So I see.”
Her lips brushed my neck. “What changed your mind?”
I couldn’t think over the heat of her mouth on my skin. She’d flipped the tables right back over on me again. “Hmm?”
“About kissing me.”
“I didn’t. Your mother gave her blessing. Said she’d take me over Ingram a hundred times.” Her lips drifted to my chest, and I felt her smile into me.
“I told you she’d love you.”
“Mmm. Not so sure about this part though.”
She laughed, her hot breath spilling over my skin like water. “You’d be surprised. She knows I’m no virgin.”
The breath caught in my throat. Not that I thought she would be, but hearing her say it…
“That doesn’t mean she’s okay with it.” Especially after her comment about keeping to my own bed.
Her hands dipped into my waistband, and my brain short-circuited.
“Ginny…”
She laughed again. “Relax, sugar. I’m not going to strip you here. As much as I’d love to.”
“I can’t decide if I’m relieved or disappointed.” Her leg pushed against me again, and I groaned. “Disappointed. Definitely disappointed.” I took a deep breath and stepped away from her, clenching my fists to keep from grabbing her again.
Ginny bent and picked up my shirt. She held it up to her face and inhaled. “Lord, I love the way you smell.”
I was suddenly grateful that I wasn’t wearing cologne after all.
I reached out for my shirt, and she slowly handed it back, her eyes locked on mine.
“Happy birthday, Ginny.”
She bit her bottom lip, still red and swollen from where I’d kissed it. I almost couldn’t help myself. I wanted to be the one biting her lip. She stepped in close again. I wrapped my hands in my shirt, and I knew without looking my knuckles were white.
“You can give me my birthday present later, darlin’,” she said and pushed past me, out the passage door.
I pulled on my shirt and followed, wondering how I was ever going to make it through the party.
Chapter Eight
“Oh, Ginny, sweetie! There you are.”
Ginny’s face lit as she turned. “Mama!”
“Honey, do you remember your cousin Ben’s friend, Rafe Mason?”
Ginny’s face froze, putting me on my guard. The Ingram twins were bad enough. I didn’t want anyone else ruining her birthday.
“Yes, I remember him. How are you, Rafe?”
The guy who held onto Ms. Catherine’s arm was about on level with my height. He had a lanky look to him, but the way he moved screamed dangerous. I didn’t trust him, or his easy smile. His cargo pants and boots, as well as his close-cut hair all said military. I wondered if he’d served with Ben.
“Heya, Gin. Could we talk a minute?”
Ginny glanced back at me with an apologetic smile and nodded. “Sure thing, Rafe.” She came up close to me, leaning in to brush my lips with hers. “Hold my place for me.”
I grinned, despite Rafe’s glare. “Hurry back.”
She bit her lip, making my knees weak, and walked away with a wink. My smile fell when Rafe glanced back at me. I couldn’t really place his look, but there was something almost proprietary in it.
I didn’t like it. Or him.
“Mm, hello mystery man!”
I laughed. “Hey Hanna. What happened to Jake?”
She shrugged, still looking at Rafe. “He went home. Who’s that tall bit of chocolate walking off with our girl?”
“Some friend of her cousin. Rafe Mason. And I don’t like the way he’s looking at Ginny.”
“That’s Rafe? Holy hell, he turned out nice. Running off with Ben to the Marines really agreed with him.”
I shook my head. “He’s all yours, Hanna. As long as you can get him off Ginny.”
“Oh, Evan. Honey. That will be all my pleasure.”
I shook my head and smiled as Hanna made her way through the crowd, following the path Ginny and Rafe had taken. “Go get him, Hanna.”
“You. Cabana boy. I want a word.”
My fists clenched as Brandon’s high voice came from behind me. I resolved not to hit him, if only because I didn’t want to make trouble for Ginny and Ms. Catherine. But I wasn’t going to be polite. The guy was a dick.
“What do you want, Ingram?”
It was nice to see that, this close, I had about four or five inches on him. I leaned in a little. He crossed his arms. I tried not to smile.
“I want you to understand something, cabana boy. I practically own this island. And I do own Miss Virginia. So you can take any intentions you have towards her and clear out. After you apologize for your rudeness towards my sister.”
I really had no idea how to respond. Hitting him would have been really nice. So would laughing in his face. I settled for smiling and walking away, mostly because I’d learned it really pissed people off.
“Don’t walk away from me, cabana boy!”
I rolled my eyes and turned back halfway. “First, I’m not a cabana boy. I don’t even think you know what one is. If you need something to call me, you can try my name. Evan. I’m not pleased to meet you. Second off, I work for Ms. Catherine and Eyre House, not you. If she wants me to leave, she’ll tell me herself. But since I know for a fact that she doesn’t like you, I’m pretty sure she’d keep me on indefinitely just to piss you off. Third—and pay real close attention here—Ginny belongs to no one but herself. Get that through your head, before I tattoo it on there myself.”
I smiled again, angrily, and continued walking away. There was no way I was going to give that prick the satisfaction of pushing me into a fight. Even if I really did want to beat the living shit out of him.
But a moment later, when a scream cut through the noise of the party, I stopped giving a damn about him.
Shit.
“Ginny!” I ran forward and spotted Hanna pushing through the crowd. “Hanna!”
“Oh God! Evan, help!”
“What in hell happened? Is Ginny all right?”
“It’s Rafe. Someone stabbed him!”
“Hanna, is Ginny all right?”
She took a deep breath and forced herself to talk. “She’s fine. But Rafe…there’s so much blood...”
“Where are they?”
“Behind the garage.”
I stopped her. “Okay. Okay. I’ll go help Ginny. You go find Ms. Catherine and call 911.”
Hanna took another shuddering breath and nodded before running past me, back the way I’d come.
I wanted to run straight to Ginny and make sure she really was okay. But Hanna said she was fine, and I believed her. So I ran inside the garage first and grabbed the first aid kit that was on the wall.
There wasn’t a lot of light behind the garage. A single spotlight on the back corner of the building spilled both light and shadows. Ginny sat on the ground holding Rafe while blood pooled out of his arm. Her head shot up when she heard my steps.
“Oh God, Evan!” Her voice cracked on my name, and tears streaked her face, pale in the harsh light.
“Shh. It’s okay. Hanna’s getting your mother, and calling an ambulance.” I wrenched open the first aid kit and grabbed for the big gauze pads, piling them on the dark skin of Rafe’s arm. “What happened?”
“I… I don’t know, I didn’t see. He just stumbled into me, bleeding.”
“What were you two doin’ behind the garage?” I didn’t mean for it to come out as a growl, but it did.
“We weren’t.” She hesitated a fraction. “I… I pulled him back here so the others wouldn’t see.”
I pressed my lips together. There was something she wasn’t saying, but couldn’t push her about it now.
“Well, it’s bleeding a lot, but I don’t think it looks too bad.�
�� In fact, it looked like someone had known exactly what they were doing. The edges of the wound were clean and smooth, like a knife had gone straight between the two bones in his lower arm.
I glanced at Rafe’s face. He’d lost a good amount of blood, but I didn’t think it had been enough to knock him out. And he didn’t seem the fainting type. But his eyes were closed and his breathing was shallow.
I shook my head and went back to putting pressure on his stab wound.
The flashing lights of the ambulance pulled away, throwing red splashes down the oak-lined drive. Ginny shuddered in my arms. The party had long since died out into police questions and exhaustion. The ambulance was the last to leave.
Ms. Catherine heaved a sigh next to me. “Well, that was an adventure. Ginny, honey, I’m so sorry your birthday ended that way.”
Ginny turned and rested her head on my chest. “It’s not your fault, Mama.”
“Yes, well. There’s crème still, if either of you want it. Eat—it’ll make you feel better. Or maybe it’ll just make me feel better. But if you two are all right, I think I need a walk, and then I’m goin’ to bed.” She gave us a soft smile and walked up the stairs into a much darker and more subdued Eyre House. It seemed shuttered and distant. We stood together in silence, swaying to the ghost of music that was no longer there.
I kissed the top of her head, and squeezed her tight. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” she answered a little too quickly. “It was just a bit of a shock. I’m afraid your shirt is ruined.”
I looked down at where the blood stained the dark linen. “Probably. Not as badly as your dress, though.”
Ginny looked down, and we both half-laughed because it was either laugh or completely freak out, at least for me. Ginny, I wasn’t sure. My mind was going a mile a minute. Something really wasn’t right here. But Ginny… She’d put her mask firmly in place. Guess it’d hit too close to home.
“What a screwed-up night,” she sighed.
Seriously screwed-up. Her birthday shouldn’t have to end this way, and if nothing else, I could remind her part of it had been good.
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