“No. We’d been looking for a while…”
“Oh.” Colin started laughing.
“Do you find that funny?” Gabriel didn’t hide the annoyance in his voice.
Relief colored his face. “No. It’s that this is so much better than what I was thinking.”
“What were you thinking?” I asked.
“That you were getting ready to dump me.”
“Weren’t you the one accusing me of trying to get a ring on my finger earlier?”
“Ohhh.” Suzanne giggled.
“Considering your reaction to my theory, it dawned on me it might be the complete opposite.”
“I’m not dumping you.”
“I know. That’s why this is great.” He kissed me.
I leaned back in surprise and relief. He wasn’t upset? Colin really was more laid back than I gave him credit for.
“I’ve spent this whole night worrying for nothing.”
“I’d ask if you two wanted dessert, but maybe you’d rather do that on your own.” Suzanne smiled.
“If you don’t mind, I think we’ll do just that.” Colin pulled me against his side. “Thanks for having us.”
“So I guess we’re leaving. Thanks for dinner.”
Gabriel nodded. “Nice seeing you, Maddy. Don’t be a stranger.”
“Uh, I’ll try not to be.” I accepted Colin’s hand and stood up.
I didn’t object when Colin hurried us to the door.
“Where’s the fire?” I slipped into my seat before he could push me in. I’d never seen Colin in such a rush.
“I want to get home. I just spent the last two hours trying to come up with ways to convince you to stay with me, and now I don’t have to use them.”
“You do realize that’s the second ‘don’t leave’ speech you almost used on me.”
“Yes. But the keyword is ‘almost.’ I didn’t have to use it either time.” He put his hand behind the headrest of my seat as he pulled out of the drive.
“Is this a bad time to tell you I’m not staying with you tonight?”
“What?” He slowed the car.
“It’s a joke.”
“I swear that humor of yours is going to kill me one of these days.”
“You just need to find a way to know when I’m joking.”
“I usually know, but not after a night like this one.”
I double checked my bag to make sure I had my glasses with me. “If you say so.”
“That was a crazy night.”
“You can say that again. I had to come face-to-face with the couple that propositioned me.”
Colin laughed. “I still can’t believe it. They seem like such conservative people.”
“I guess you don’t really know what someone’s private life is like. Besides, it’s not like they do this a lot. Maybe they’re trying to spice up their sex life.”
“We’re never going to need that.”
“Need what? An extra partner?” I ran my fingers through Colin’s dark hair.
“No. I mean I’m not worried about our sex life.”
“I’d hope not. It would be a bad sign if it was getting stale already.”
“It’s not that I wouldn’t try other things though, but I want it to be just us.”
“Other things?” I raised an eyebrow.
“How did Gabriel put it? You’re adventurous.”
“He assumed that because I was giving some guys a hard time at the bar.”
“Well, you know I’d have tractor sex if you’re missing that.”
“Mention the word ‘tractor’ one more time and you’ll be sleeping alone tonight.”
“Will I? I already passed your place.”
“I know.” I stretched out my legs. “But you have a nice guest room.”
“I’ll follow you in there.”
“Yeah? You’d follow me?”
“I’d follow you anywhere, baby.”
“Save the lines. You know you’re getting some.”
He grinned. “I know.”
“You rebounded from thinking I was dumping you fast.”
“I did, didn’t I?” He parked and came around to open my door.
“Did you really think I was going to break up with you?”
He took my hand, hurrying me up the stairs. He paused before unlocking the front door. “I didn’t know. Sometimes you’re a hard girl to read.”
“I can say the same thing about you—except you’re a guy.”
“How am I hard to read? I want you. Whether it’s talking over coffee, curled up watching a movie, or having amazing sex, I just want you. Don’t worry about reading anything else.”
“Nothing is ever that simple. Usually the things that seem the simplest on the surface are the most complicated.”
“Maddy?” He took my face in his hands.
“Yeah?”
“This really is simple.” He kissed me, pushing open the door at the same time.
Once inside, he closed the door and pushed me up against it. “Where do you want to have sex?”
If I could have stepped back, I would have. I was so startled by the question.
“Colin…”
“No. Tonight got me thinking. Maybe I’m not making things adventurous enough.”
“Didn’t we already establish I wasn’t dumping you?” I wrapped my arms around his neck, wanting him to start kissing me again.
“Still, we need to mix things up.”
“We had sex in your office last week, doesn’t that count?”
“That was desperation sex.”
“Desperation sex? Should I be insulted?”
“No. I mean, we were desperate for each other.”
“We haven’t taken a shower together…”
His eyes lit up “No, I guess we haven’t.”
I expected him to back up so I could move. Instead, he lifted me. He stopped by the kitchen counter to drop off his phone before hurrying us up the stairs.
Under the warm spray of the shower, the craziness of the night faded away. Colin’s lips and mouth never stopped roaming, and I didn’t want them to. I wanted him to touch every single part of me, and I wanted to touch him. His taste was still exciting, but it had also become a favorite comfort I craved. He pushed me up against the wall and I held him close, wanting no space between us.
Chapter Nineteen
Carly didn’t give any warning when she showed up on Colin’s doorstep. It was eight a.m. on a Saturday, and by some miracle, Colin wasn’t running in to work until later. Warm, and enjoying the feeling of waking up to an actual person in the bed next to me (I could count on one hand how often that happened with Colin), I wasn’t thrilled to hear the doorbell ring.
“Ugh. That better not be one of your roommates,” Colin groaned. Evidently, he wasn’t thrilled with the interruption either.
“Why would it be for me?”
“They’ve come by to get you to dive and stuff.” He stretched, settling his arm behind me.
“Diving in December? No thanks. This has to be for you.”
The doorbell rang again, followed by incessant knocking.
“Is that your way of telling me to get it?”
“It is your house.”
“Fine.” He kissed me lightly. “But you better be looking as adorable and naked when I get back.”
“Are you sure you want to go there? What if you disappear for ten hours? Still expect me to be naked?”
“You’re never going to let me off the hook for that, are you?”
“Maybe someday.” I ran my hand down his chest, hoping whoever was at the door would go away.
They didn’t. The knocking grew worse.
“I’ll be right back.”
“I hope so.” I bit my lip, aiming for a mix of sexy and coy—and hoping that no matter who it was, he’d send them away and get back to bed.
He groaned. “Please don’t move.”
He dressed quickly and walked out of the room, leaving th
e door open.
“What are you doing here?” Colin’s whine carried upstairs.
“Aren’t you happy to see your favorite little sister?” Carly’s heels echoed on the tile floor.
I jumped out of bed, quickly finding a t-shirt and jeans to throw on in case she walked upstairs. I hoped Colin would stop her before that, but from what I knew of Carly, she did what she wanted.
“I have company.”
“Oh. Maddy’s here?”
“Who else would it be?” he snapped. I wondered if she’d put two and two together and realized exactly why he was annoyed.
Carly snapped right back at him. “If it was anyone else, I’d kick your ass. You know I like her.”
I ventured out into the hall, pulling my hair up into a ponytail as I walked.
Colin sighed. “It’s Maddy, and you’re interrupting.”
“I couldn’t care less about your sex life. You can go back upstairs. I’ll go get unpacked in the guest room.”
“Unpacked?” Colin’s voice went up a little.
I started to walk downstairs.
“Hey, Maddy!” Carly ran over and gave me a hug. “I probably should have expected you’d be here.”
“It’s great to see you.” I caught Colin’s eye over her head and tried to send the message that he needed to cool it.
“I’m sorry to have woken you up so early, but I didn’t feel like waiting in the car.”
“Did you leave in the middle of the night?” I led her over to the couch. She may have been acting all bubbly, but I knew there was a not-so-great reason for her unannounced arrival.
“I thought I’d spend the first week of winter break with my favorite brother.”
Colin sat down across from us with his elbows leaning on his knees. “I’m your only brother, and I’ll be working all week.”
“So? I’m capable of entertaining myself.”
“You could also entertain yourself at home.”
“I’d rather do it here. At the beach.” She kicked the light pink duffel bag she’d dropped on the floor.
“What’s going on, Carly?” Colin asked nervously.
“Nothing.” She looked at me and then back at him.
I caught the drift that she wasn’t going to talk in front of me. “I’m going to take a shower.” With my excuse made, I smiled faintly at both of them, and took my leave. My curiosity was piqued, but I respected Carly’s need for privacy.
My hair didn’t need to be shampooed twice, but I needed to give them time. The acoustics in the house were awful, and the only way they’d really have privacy was if I left the water running. When the water started turning cold, I got out. Politeness or not, I wasn’t spending time in a cold shower.
I towel dried my hair and pulled on a slightly faded sweater and the same jeans. I had a drawer of clothes at Colin’s place, but I hadn’t refilled it in quite a while.
By the time I got downstairs, Colin and Carly were busy making pancakes.
“Save any water for me?” Colin handed me my mug of chai tea. It had taken him about a month to realize that I didn’t drink coffee in the morning. I only drank it at night. I know how weird that is, but I liked it better that way.
I accepted the mug and took a seat at the island. “I thought you could use a cold shower.”
Carly laughed. “I promise to give you guys some space.”
I inhaled the warm steam from my tea. “Don’t worry about it. I plan on spending today with my roommates anyway.”
Colin refilled his cup with black coffee. “You do? Funny. I thought we were going shopping for a tree today.”
Carly grinned. “A tree? Oh my God. You guys are getting a Christmas tree together? That’s really cute.”
“Colin wants to throw a holiday party. How do you throw one if you don’t have a tree?” I asked.
“You can’t. Everyone knows that.” She smiled even bigger. “So if this isn’t a quasi-romantic outing, I’m in.”
“Why don’t you two go together? I don’t mind some downtime at home.” I got the sense that they needed time alone.
Carly shook her head. “No way. If you don’t go, I don’t go.”
Either I was wrong, or she was worried about offending me.
Colin sipped his coffee. “You’re coming, Maddy. This was your idea.”
“When’s the party?” Carly poured the last of the batter in the pan. “Will I still be here?”
“Friday night.” I picked up the now empty bowl and placed it in the sink. “That is if Colin gets home in time.” He’d even been late for the Thanksgiving I’d hosted with Macon. Brody was the only one who went home for the holiday.
“I will.”
“Good. These are your friends. I’m not hosting them without you.”
“If it helps, I’ll be here.” Carly flipped a pancake. “I’m pretty good at hosting these things.”
“Awesome! That does help.”
Colin gulped down coffee. I’d never seen anyone who could drink hot coffee so fast. “Maybe Carly and I will come and keep you company at work tonight.”
“I shouldn’t need it. Max said there’s a couple of big parties coming in. That usually keeps me busy.”
“Well, we’ll still come in to see you.”
“If you insist.”
***
“Don’t look now, but your boy toy just walked in.” Mary kept me company at the bar.
I turned, ready to greet Colin with a smile. We’d never made it tree shopping. Colin got called into work. Carly suggested we go without him, but that felt wrong. He’d have to have free time eventually, right?
It wasn’t Colin.
“What’s he doing here?” I watched as Lyle set up his guitar the way he always did on Thursday nights. It was a Saturday.
“That family reunion group requested music. Max called him in, I guess.”
“I have a feeling he’s not what they had in mind.”
“Yeah, but it’s what you have in mind.” She winked. Even though I was dating Colin, she knew I hadn’t gotten over Lyle. Feelings aren’t like that. You can’t just shut them off with a switch. Besides, it wasn’t a purely physical thing. Could you blame me for connecting with his lyrics? It made him that much more intriguing.
“I don’t have a drink.”
“What do you mean?” She eyed the rows of bottles behind me.
“I mean, I didn’t pick out a drink for him yet. I usually do that on Wednesday nights.”
“It’s not a drink that’s going to get his attention.” She leaned back, accentuating her ample cleavage. I wondered if that was her suggested way to get Lyle to look. If so, it wasn’t going to work for me.
“I know, but I need to figure it out. I feel like if I can get that right, I’ll figure him out. I don’t want to date him anyway. I’m with Colin.”
“Sure.” She smiled. “Good luck coming up with something.”
I thought fast. I still thought whiskey was the key, but I wanted to get more creative. I racked my brain for a new whiskey drink but came up with nothing.
“At this rate, I might as well try a Manhattan again,” I said mostly to myself. The drink seemed perfect for him, and I was out of other ideas.
I grabbed the sweet vermouth and the Angostura bitters and poured them into a mixing glass with the whiskey. After stirring well (stirring can really make a difference), I strained it into a chilled glass just as he sat down.
Afraid I’d miss my chance, I headed right over to the spot he always played during the colder months. As much as I loved listening to him outside, the closed space somehow made it even better. “Hey.” I moved into my usual greeting.
“Hi, Maddy.” He used my name. I tried to hide my surprise.
He accepted the drink and sipped it. “Thanks.” His eyes stayed focused on my face.
I tried to read his expression. He seemed to like it enough, but he didn’t take another sip. He opened his mouth like he was going to say something, but then he closed it.
“Do you need anything else?” I bit my tongue. What else would I be offering? It’s not like I served the food.
He smiled. “No. I think I’m good. But I’ll let you know if that changes.”
“Good.” I smiled and walked away.
I met up with Mary at the bar. “Still no luck?”
“On the drink? I don’t think so, but I did get a few words of conversation”
“You are such a goofball.”
“Yeah, I know.”
I filled Mary’s tray and set back to listen to Lyle’s music. He started with a song he hadn’t played in months, and I closed my eyes for a minute to take it in.
I’m hungry for affection…hungry for the way you make me feel.
Just listening to him gave me chills.
You just don’t get it. Don’t get how much more you are. How much more you’ll be.
Keep on dreaming my love, and keep on starving me.
When I opened my eyes, I realized I wasn’t alone.
“Colin’s going to meet me here in a little bit. This place is happening.” Carly smiled, clearly not concerned to find me with my eyes shut.
“Yeah, there are a few parties going on. I guess the holidays are giving this town a new life.” It took a second for her words and presence to set in. I had totally forgotten. Colin may not have noticed the way I looked at Lyle, but a girl would. I had to force myself to ignore Lyle’s presence. I built up a mental wall to prevent myself from glancing over at him. The hard part was I couldn’t ignore his singing.
“That’s cool.” She turned her head so she could check out the open room. She looked in the direction of Lyle, but my mental wall prevented me from seeing whether that’s who she was watching.
“Want a cosmo?”
“Yes! I still love those.”
I smiled. “Good.” At least I’d gotten that one right. I opened a new container of cranberry juice, you wouldn’t believe how much of it we went through, and I made her cosmo.
She sipped her drink as soon as I set it in front of her. “I think Colin got you something really nice for your anniversary.”
“Our anniversary?”
“Yeah, your three-month one.”
Shaken Not Stirred (Mixology) Page 18