by Ashley, Ava
“You look amazing,” he says. “You’re lucky you made it in here. I wanted to pull that sexy dress off you right in the doorway.” The way he’s eating me up like eye candy tells me just how true that is. I let myself ogle him too. He’s wearing a dark green shirt and black shorts. With his ripped body, he looks good in almost everything.
“Okay, stop drooling over me and try the lasagna.”
I shake my head at him before taking a bite. “Wow, it’s perfect. You nailed it.”
When I finish my first glass of wine, he jumps up to pour me another. I could actually forget about all the stress from the show and what we went through to get here. Actually, I could just pause time and be happy staying here for a month, with Rafe looking at me the way he is. His eyes are so warm, like he wants to hold me sweetly and also rip my clothes off.
“And this isn’t the big surprise,” he tells me with a gleam in his eyes. I can tell he’s just about popping out of his seat because he’s so excited to tell me. And for once I can control myself, so I casually lift an eyebrow.
He can tell I’m playing with him.
“Don’t you want to know?”
“If you want to tell me,” I say, fighting my smile. My mouth quivers, though. I can’t keep a poker face to save my life.
“Because it’s Friday... I got cleared to extend your day and spend the weekend on a road trip.”
I jump up and rush over to throw my arms around him. “Oh my gosh, that is so what we need.”
“I know! Damn, believe me, I know.” He hugs me back before letting his hands roam up and down my waistline. “We do have to let them tape part of it, but Liam said he’ll send a cameraman separately to tape from a distance. They’ll record dates and activities but we’ll get some privacy. Hopefully we won’t even notice them.”
I lean back to look at him. “Thank you for doing that.”
Suddenly he gets a wicked grin. “Now before I get too excited and hard, go pack so we can take off.”
“Where are we going?”
“You’ll see. I’m still not telling. Just pack your normal clothes, okay?”
I grab his face and plant a long, sensual kiss on his lips.
“That will give you something to think about while I’m away.”
“Oh, I will all right.” He takes my hand and drops something into it—his car keys.
“The keys to the BMW?” I ask, incredulous.
“Yeah, I thought you might want to drive it back over to pack.”
I grin and saunter out the front door, flying on cloud nine. I unlock his car, amazed that he’s trusting me with it, and grin all the way over to the beach house. It’s a very short drive, but still fun. Kara’s in our room when I burst in.
“We’re going on a road trip for the weekend,” I blurt out. Then I notice the half-filled suitcase open on her bed. “Are you taking off too?”
“Yeah, I’m going to see some friends. You’re not the only one who needs to get out of here and have some fun.” She doesn’t look at me, and I hope she’s not doing it on purpose because she’s upset.
“Are you okay?” I ask, stepping closer.
She flashes me a big smile. “I’m great. I just have some other things on my mind, but we can talk when you get back. Don’t worry about it while you’re out having fun. Okay? Promise.”
I’m not sure I want to wait that long. She goes back to packing.
“You’ll be back on Monday?” I ask.
“Yeah, I’ll be here. I promise. It’s going to get interesting, too.” She laughs about it. Could she know something I don’t? I step close and grab her in a hug. She pulls away first. “Okay, I gotta get going. You have fun!”
“You too!” I call out as I throw open my suitcase and start stuffing clothes in. When I zip it shut, I have to pause for a second and catch my breath because I’m so excited. My heart is pounding, and not from the exertion of packing. Thinking about Rafe and spending the weekend with him has my head spinning and heart singing.
***
Rafe has me drive when we start off, but only tells me to head south on 101. He sits back in the passenger seat, wearing dark shades. Whenever I glance over, he feels it and smiles at me. I am so overwhelmed with love for this man, but I’m not going to push it and rush him. I’ll give him all the time he needs so he’s sure. I want and need that from him.
The wind is teasing his hair. It’s blowing mine around too. I wanted the top down. How could I not have it down when I have on this pretty dress?
It seems like he gets lost in his own thoughts for a while until he asks me, “When do you go back to school?”
“September. The end of the month, actually, so I still have a while.” It’s been so nice catching up with him and telling him about my goals and dreams. Going back to school was a huge deal, and something I didn’t think I could make happen for a long time. Nathan helped me, both to believe in myself and with all the practical stuff I had to do to get scholarships and student loans. I glance over and realize this is the perfect time to tell Rafe about him.
“I was thinking,” Rafe says before I get up the nerve to speak. “Don’t you get a lot of time off from college? I mean, it seems like you get longer breaks.”
It hits me Rafe hasn’t gone to college, and I wonder if he regrets that. But how could he when he’s doing exactly what he always wanted to do?
“Summer break is longer than high school, if you take it off. I took classes the last two years to stay on top of things.” I also got scholarship money to live on, and I chose to keep going to school rather than work all summer. “Why?”
“There’s so much we can do now. Remember all the stuff we used to talk about? We thought those were wild dreams, but we can travel now and see the US. Hell, we can see the world. And you can travel with me for my fights when it doesn’t interfere with your classes.”
I smile but I have to keep my eyes on the curvy road. There’s medium traffic, too, and a slow car in front of us. I pass when it’s clear, my mind busy picturing a future with Rafe. If he’s talking about our future, he has to love me. I keep coming back to that. But I scold myself and decide not to grind my mental gears all day overthinking it.
An hour later, we stop in a small coastal town and find a food truck selling fish tacos. Rafe grabs us a spot at a worn picnic table and we sit on the same side, facing the ocean while we eat.
I laugh suddenly. “How many times did we sneak off to the beach together? Man, we were crazy. Remember that time we hitchhiked down the coast?”
Rafe smiles and ducks his head.
“What?” I playfully slap his arm, then try to pull his face my way. “What’s the smile about?”
“Oh, you’ll see soon enough. It involves someplace you used to want to go.” He gathers our trash. “But I’m not saying any more until we get there, little Miss Investigator.”
We head back to the car, and I glance at the ocean one last time.
Rafe sees my glance and asks, “Do you want to see where... or do you want to go on the beach here?” Oh, he knows how to torture me.
“Of course I want to go see!” I toss him the keys. I want to watch him drive.
While he’s driving through the next small town, he tells me, “So this is someplace you saw on that hitchhiking trip in eleventh grade. You couldn’t get over how romantic it was.”
As he speaks, a memory surfaces. At the same time, I see a pretty country sign up ahead announcing the Rose Hotel. I gasp and cover my mouth.
“How on earth did you remember that?”
He just smiles and raises an eyebrow above his shades, like he’s telling me, don’t you know I remember everything?
For a second, I’m left stunned. How could I have meant so much to him? He pulls into the parking lot, and it looks pretty much the same way I remember it: a courtyard with a rose garden, surrounded by the drive and parking for twelve units arranged in a square. It’s a small, quaint hotel. Rose vines cover the entire place and each unit h
as a flowerbed in front. It’s completely girly and beautiful—something I don’t normally go for, but this place is magical. I’ve always dreamed about staying here. I just know it has a breathtaking view of the beach and ocean out the backside.
“Rafe, thank you. I can’t believe—”
He leans over and kisses me, then pulls back smiling and hops out. “Want to go check in and see our room?”
“Heck yeah!”
When he opens the door twenty minutes later, it’s everything I could want. A large colorful quilt covers the bed and pink, frilly curtains hang over the giant sliding glass door, framing the view. There’s a tiny gas fireplace across from the bed, although it’s probably too warm to use it.
He follows the direction of my gaze and says, “The desk clerk told me that doesn’t give off much heat, if we want it for the ambiance.” He walks to me and takes my face in his hands. We search each other’s eyes for a long minute before he leans over to kiss me softly, just a tender kiss on the lips. It’s me who suddenly needs more, and I open my mouth and run my tongue across his lips. That’s all it takes. Rafe pulls my hips against him and grinds into me, kissing me like he hasn’t seen me in a year.
His hands travel over my body until he drops to his knees and runs them up my legs and under my dress. Heat springs to life everywhere he touches. He kisses the vee of my legs through the dress, then gazes up at me.
“No panties?” His eyes darken and his lips part in flat-out sexual need while his fingers rub me and slip inside. I press into his hand, throwing my head back and closing my eyes, one hand gripping his hair. Oh God, I’m going to lose it right here and now. Then his other hand pushes my dress up and his wet mouth touches my clit while his fingers keep working their magic. I come so hard my knees shake.
Rafe lifts me and puts me on the bed to peel the dress off over my head. Once I’m naked, he steps back to slowly undress, never taking his eyes off me the entire time.
I slide to the edge of the bed and reach for him so he’s standing in front of me, and then I kiss the small scars on his stomach and turn him so I can kiss the large one on his back. I turn him around until I’ve kissed every last one.
“Lily,” he says my name like he can hardly speak. His eyes are shiny with emotion. I take in his face, his expression, and then his hot, naked body.
It’s just not possible to think straight when I’m looking at him. He knows it too. With a sly smile, he slowly advances and climbs up on the bed and over me as I lean back.
“Do you want it soft and romantic or should I fuck you hard and fast?”
I try to answer but I’m aching for him. So instead of words, I wrap my legs around his hips and pull him down.
“Well, you’re getting both,” he promises as he slides inside me. “Because we have all day.”
***
Our day and night at the Rose Hotel are perfect. The next morning, we eat breakfast at the hotel and walk along the beach before checking out. I have a feeling I’ll relive that night for years to come. One memory in particular keeps popping into my head. It was very early in the morning, we were half asleep and making love and I thought he whispered something. Something that sounded an awful lot like I love you. I want to ask him, but I can’t. What if I’m wrong? And if he did say it, he’ll say it again.
I glance over at him as we drive down the freeway. It’s so sad and crazy that his parents never told him that. I can’t imagine growing up and then living life without feeling like anyone loved me. I reach over and take his hand. I want to make him happy and make up for all the pain he’s been through.
We’re quiet as we drive through an empty section of highway. It’s just the ocean on one side and countryside on the other. Another small town comes up soon enough though.
“Have you ever been to a place like that?” he asks, nodding to a drive-in. I don’t think I have. We decide to get lunch there since it’s almost one. We both go for hamburgers, fries, and chocolate shakes even though they’re completely unhealthy.
“Gotta live once in a while, right?” he asks while popping another fry in his mouth.
“We’ll work it off later.” I can’t help biting my lip after saying that.
Rafe licks his lips and looks at my mouth, then smiles. “You have ketchup... right here.” He gently wipes my lip. “So there’s a rental place around the corner with skim boards.”
“Really? I haven’t been in years. Not since we used to go.” Now I’m super excited and jump up, ready to leave. It’s a perfect day for it too. We get boards and head out on the beach, jogging down to the water. I had a ton of fun surfing with the girls the other day, but it’s really special to share it with Rafe again. We’ve always loved swimming and playing in the ocean. It’s a part of our DNA by now. We’re both super into it and having fun, and the day flies by. It’s just us, the water, and the boards. The sun is setting before we know it, which means we need to get the boards back to the shop.
“Ah, man, I could do this all night.” Rafe sighs. We stand there a minute staring at the waves before turning back to walk up to the road. Halfway there, I notice Rafe kicking at the shells in the sand to see their undersides, and he bends to pick one up and look it over. We used to pick up pretty shells like that. He hands it to me. “You can add this to your collection... if you still keep souvenirs.”
He remembers everything. “Yes, I still have all the shells I collected back then.” I used to find shells when we snuck to the beach together and I kept them all in a shoe box. I upgraded a few years ago to a pretty floral box I bought in a craft store. I turn this one over in my hand. It’s a small curved shell with orange and pink mixed together on the inside. “Very pretty.”
We reach the rental shop and return our boards, then sit on the beach to watch the fire-red sunset turn to pink and then purple. I lean into Rafe and wrap my arms around one of his.
“You can choose if we do the next thing,” he says. “I’m not sure if you’ll want to, but I brought sleeping bags so we can sleep on the beach if you want.”
“Are you kidding? I would totally love to. And you know that!”
He stands and pulls me to my feet.
“Well, people change.” He meets my eyes in the fading light. We’ve both changed, it’s true. We’ve been through some hard times, but I know some things don’t change.
He breaks into a smile and we start back to the car to get the sleeping bags. We end up lying side by side, talking and watching the sky turn dark and the stars come out.
“I meant to tell you about the train ride with Heather... She told me she’s in love with me.”
I rise up to look at him but I can’t see much. It’s almost pitch-black out here. So I just wait for him to say something.
“It was strained. Fuck, I hate doing this to people. But she needs to leave instead of Kara.”
“Makes sense,” I agree. “Kara will probably agree. We can explain it to her when we get back.”
We’re quiet again for a while. I try not to picture how Heather felt that evening.
“So it looks like we won’t have to worry about the show airing your past,” he says. “I’m glad Mic thought about things like that ahead of time.”
“But what about Mel?” I ask. “Is she under any contract now? She could blab about anything she wants.”
“Do you think she’ll care now? Maybe she’s back living her normal life again and moving on.”
“Maybe,” I say, unsure. “But when the show airs and people see how she loses and leaves the show, she might start talking.”
He pulls my hand over onto his chest and covers it with his other one. “She can, I guess. But she’ll look like a sore loser. It’ll blow over. And if it comes out, I’ll help you deal with it, okay? It won’t change anything between us, or the fact that I want to be with you. If anyone wants to say anything, they can deal with me.”
He’s right. It could come out but I don’t want to spend my life worrying about it. “Yeah, people can ta
lk. I don’t think it can actually stop me from finishing school and becoming a veterinarian though.”
“I have things in my past too, and everyone knows about them,” Rafe says. “Some people like my story about overcoming the odds.”
“True... and I am proud of everything I’ve fought my way through.”
“I’m proud of you too, Lily.” He kisses my hand and partway up my arm. It sends tingles clear to my heart. I finally close my eyes. It could be three in the morning for all I know because we’ve been talking so long. Rafe starts to drift off too. I’m almost asleep when he jerks and grabs my hand hard.
“Rafe!”
“Uh?” He sits up. I start to get up too but he lies back down.
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah... I’m okay now. Just a dream.”
“A nightmare?”
“Not a nightmare this time. Just weird. It was about prison, but I somehow knew it wasn’t real, that I wasn’t there anymore. It’s okay now, Lily.”
His words echo in my head as we drift off again. It might really be okay now.
Chapter Twelve
Rafe
I didn’t know I could be this happy. Shit, I never thought I’d have a chance with Lily again. It was this pain I carried around, and I thought somehow I’d get over her and move on. But it never happened. Then she found a way to get us back together. You have to admire that.
We got another small room in the next town down the coast highway so we could shower. Lily’s in the bathroom. I’m sitting in a chair on the patio, enjoying the fact that I don’t have to think about anything else today. No meetings, no competitions, no taping for the show, or training for that matter. It feels good to take it slow for a change.
My phone buzzes with a call—Liam. Goddamn it. I could ignore him but there’s a small chance it could be something important. He’s calling instead of texting after all. I look up at the sky and sigh before answering.
“Rafe, how’s the trip going?”
“It’s going great, especially since I haven’t had to think about the show the whole time.” I had to add that jab in there.