Meet Me at the Beach (Seashell Bay)

by V. K. Sykes

  The southern tip of Seashell Bay lay just ahead. On their present course, they would pass right over the center of town and the ferry dock. “Thank you, Aiden. This is really special. I still can’t believe it.”

  Aiden reached out and squeezed her hand. “Like I said, babe, you deserve something special on your birthday. You work so damn hard—harder than anyone I know.”

  Her heart did a little flip, especially at his use of the casual endearment. “You must be forgetting that I get to goof off all winter,” she managed in a wry tone.

  Most people she knew worked very hard, especially her fellow fishermen, but she didn’t doubt the sincerity of Aiden’s compliment for a moment. His respect for her had become more apparent with every day they fished together on Miss Annie.

  The sound of the rotor seemed to deepen as Cole slowed and lowered the craft to skim over the lobster boats in the bay. When they crossed over Foley Point, Lily gave an excited cry. “Look, Aiden—there’s my boat!”

  At her mooring, Miss Annie rocked gently in the swell of a passing ferry on its way to Cliff Island. Her lobster boat looked tiny from the air, insignificant to anyone who didn’t know what it meant to her.

  But Aiden knew.

  “Yep, there’s the old gal,” he said, craning to look. “She sure looks different from up here, doesn’t she?”

  “So small. Almost like a toy.” A toy that had given Lily independence and the means to do exactly what she wanted with her life.

  “Yeah, but she’s the sweetest little boat in these islands as far as I’m concerned.”

  Astonished, Lily gazed into Aiden’s dark, serious gaze. “I never thought I’d hear you call a lobster boat sweet.”

  Aiden gave her a shrug and a wry smile as the helicopter climbed away from the island.

  Lily went back to staring out the window as she tried to sort out her jumbled emotions about the incredible, generous man sitting beside her. He’d done all this for her, trying to come up with something that would be truly memorable. And he’d nailed it. As much as she loved fishing, she spent six days a week on a smelly boat, working what most considered a man’s job, until she was so tired she could barely get herself home. A luxury vacation to a high-class resort—complete with a swanky helicopter ride—was the stuff of dreams or fairy tales. For once in her life, Lily felt like an honest-to-God princess, pampered and cherished and without a care in the world.

  And it was all because of Aiden Flynn, a man who seemed to know her better than she knew herself.

  Lily craned her head to look up at Coastal Harmony Resort, perched a hundred feet above the dock where two tour boats were moored. Initially, she’d thought the name was kind of weird and off-putting, since luxury resorts rarely existed in harmony with the natural setting. Most times, they chewed it up. Still, she had to admit that Coastal Harmony did a pretty good job of minimizing damage to the local coastline.

  After their spectacular flight up the Maine coast today, she’d spent almost an hour drinking chai tea and talking with one of the co-owners while Aiden worked out in the fitness center. The resort had been built to the highest ecofriendly standards, and the owners were committed to offering only programs that respected and supported the local community. It was a formula that seemed to be paying off by making a name for the resort as a go-to destination for the environmentally conscious crowd—a crowd that seemed to have a fair amount of bucks.

  Aiden had been right. Lily liked the place a lot, and it had been a very relaxing way to spend the afternoon.

  Until they’d sat down for dinner in the sheltered patio overlooking the bluffs. Big candles in hurricane lanterns on the tables, huge pots of roses scattered over the flagstones, and the sound of the water lapping on the rocks below had made for an ultraromantic setting in the deepening dusk. Aiden was smoking hot too, in a beige linen jacket over a black silk shirt and black pants. He looked casual and sophisticated and like he totally belonged at an expensive resort like Coastal Harmony. One look at him and Lily’s nerves had started dancing the freaking tango.

  She’d dressed up as well, wearing a fifties-style white poplin dress she’d gotten on sale last year, cut narrow through the bodice and waist but with a flared, pleated skirt. She wore her only pair of dressy sandals along with the diamond-stud earrings her parents had given her for her thirtieth birthday. The dress was her favorite, since she thought it made the most of her assets and showcased her trim waist.

  But next to the gorgeous hunk of expensively dressed masculinity walking beside her, she felt awfully… plain. She’d noticed several people glancing at them during dinner and figured they might be wondering what a guy like Aiden was doing there with her.

  Oh, get over yourself, girl.

  That was just the nerves talking, nerves she’d tried to calm with perhaps one too many glasses of wine. Aiden had ordered a second bottle as the fish entrée was being plated, making her think he was determined to loosen her up—and maybe himself too. Still, despite the lubrication the alcohol provided, there had been some long and rather awkward silences. Maybe Aiden was as wired as she was over what might happen later tonight.

  She knew one thing for sure though—if there was going to be a move in that direction, it would be up to Aiden to make it.

  “Thank you again for this incredible birthday present,” Lily said to Aiden, as they meandered along the waterside path below the bluff. She’d already thanked him three times, including at dinner, but she felt compelled to keep blurting out her gratitude. “It’s the biggest surprise and best present I’ve had since Gramps bought me a nine-millimeter when I moved out of my father’s house,” she said.

  Aiden let out a choked laugh. “He gave you a gun? For what, fending off pirates?”

  Lily grinned. “Gramps maintains that women should always be ready to defend themselves. He hounded me until I took some shooting lessons too.”

  “I’d better keep that in mind the next time I think about crossing you.”

  Lily stopped to face him. “Seriously, though, what I really need to thank you for is helping me bring in the best catch I’ve ever had in a single week. It’s meant a lot to me.”

  Aiden grimaced a bit, as if embarrassed by the depth of her gratitude. “It hasn’t been much more than a start, right? I hate to think of you having to go back to fishing without a sternman. And not just because you’ll make less money either.”

  She forced a smile. “I’ll be careful. Don’t worry about me.”

  “But I do worry about you.” He reached for her hand. “Look, Lily, I have to give Dad an answer about the land sale next week. If I don’t, I might have to borrow that gun of yours to defend myself.”

  “I know. It’s all right. Really, it is.”

  Of course, it was far from all right. She still desperately needed help to have a few more good weeks of fishing. But most of all, it wasn’t all right because she could hardly bear the thought of watching Aiden ship off on the ferry again, leaving her just like he did fourteen years ago. She’d let down her defenses and opened herself up to a hurt she knew was going to be so much worse this time around.

  “No, it’s not,” he said. “There’s no reason why I need to leave right away. Not anymore, since my agent’s come up empty. I’m still thinking I should be able to land something short-term when teams expand their rosters in September, but I figure I can handle some more time on Miss Annie until then.”

  “Seriously?” Lily had to blink back a sudden rush of hot tears, shocked by the depth of her relief.

  Aiden reached out to gently stroke her cheek. “I wanted to make that the real surprise of this trip.”

  Struggling to rein in the surge of emotion, Lily went up on tiptoe and brushed her lips quickly across the angled slash of his jaw. “Okay, this definitely tops Gramps’s gun as my best gift ever.”

  Aiden laughed, then took her hand again and led her down the last twenty yards of the paved path until they reached the dock. “It’s so peaceful here,” he said,
after they sat on one of the wooden benches facing the water. “It reminds me of Seashell Bay at night. That’s one thing I’d forgotten about the island after being away for so long. It’s so quiet it’s almost eerie.”

  Lily absorbed the peace of the evening and the presence of the man beside her. Though the hotel was just a short distance away, they seemed cocooned in a bubble with only the birds and the gentle lapping of water against concrete pilings to keep them company. “And here I thought you’d become a confirmed city boy after all these years.”

  Aiden gazed thoughtfully out at the water. “I thought so too. But since I’ve been back here, Philly seems kind of intense to me now. The traffic, the crowds, the noise—it’s been nice to get away from all that for a little while.”

  For a little while. The phrase had her mentally cringing. “But I guess you must miss your social life, right? For a celebrity athlete, it must be pretty cool.”

  When his eyebrows arched in surprise, she gave him a weak smile. It was nervy of her to probe for personal details, but she needed to know how he felt about his old life. Why she needed to know was another question—one she intended to ignore for the moment.

  He lifted his broad shoulders again in a casual shrug. “I like hitting the bars and restaurants around Rittenhouse Square as much as the next guy, I guess. And it’s not hard to get used to being treated like you’re special.” Then he laughed. “But hey, I have to admit that the Pot has its charms too.”

  Lily gave him a cautious smile. “And exactly what charms would those be?”

  When Aiden slid an arm around her shoulders, she knew the spike in her body heat had nothing to do with the warm evening breeze.

  “Oh, charms like Darts Night, where sexy but devious locals can sucker newcomers into reckless bets they’re sure to lose,” he said with a grin.

  “Ouch. That shot didn’t exactly tickle, big guy. Anything else?”

  “Well, it’s got a couple of real nice bartenders,” he said after a moment.

  Since he was clearly playing with her, she pretended to pout. “And? I’m sure you must be forgetting something.”

  “Let me think.” He thoughtfully rubbed his chin with the hand not stroking her bare shoulder. “Okay, I could say that the Pot was where I got reintroduced to the nicest, most decent, and hardest-working woman I’ve ever known.” He paused for a couple of beats. “Not to mention the hottest babe in the entire state of Maine.”

  Lily had expected him to say something flirtatious, but she hadn’t expected him to use words like nice and decent. That certainly wasn’t the average guy’s approach to getting into a girl’s pants. But Aiden’s response sounded completely genuine. And that meant the world, because it confirmed for her what she’d always hoped to be true—that at his core, he believed in the same things she did.

  She closed her eyes against the sting of tears.

  “Hey, Lily-girl, what’s wrong?” Aiden whispered as he tightened his embrace.

  “Nothing. I’m… I’m just feeling a little overwhelmed all of a sudden,” she managed to choke out.

  “By what I just said?”

  Lily nodded, finally opening her eyes and shifting to meet his now-serious gaze. “That and everything else that’s happened this week. I still can’t believe any of it, or that we’re here together.” She let out a tiny laugh. “It’s kind of like a dream. A really good dream.”

  Aiden moved to brush his lips across her cheek. “You should believe it, because this is exactly where I want to be at this moment. Right here with you, Lily.”

  Without any conscious thought, she turned into his embrace. Their lips slid together in a soft, almost chaste kiss that ended too soon. But then Aiden moved his hand from her shoulder to the back of her head, urging her into a hot, fierce kiss. He surged into her mouth, his fingers tunneling into her hair as he held her, silently urging her closer. The feel of his tongue, boldly sweeping in and demanding a response, soon had every bit of blood pulsing madly through her veins.

  Lily clutched at his broad shoulders, digging her fingers into the smooth fabric of his blazer as she returned his kiss with a rising desire that felt almost desperate. When his other hand moved to her knee, she registered a slight shock at the feel of his callused palm on her skin as he pushed up under her skirt.

  Between his hand tracing lazy circles on her thigh and his mouth devouring hers, it didn’t take long for Aiden to reduce Lily to a state that resembled the chocolate lava cake they’d had for dessert, all hot and liquid inside. In her boneless condition, she had to wonder if she’d be able to make it back up the hill without Aiden having to hoist her over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry.

  “Oh, my God,” she gasped, pulling back a bit. “If you don’t stop, I’m going to be in big trouble.”

  “I like your kind of trouble,” Aiden murmured. In the soft glow of the lamppost at the end of the dock, he looked utterly wicked and utterly hot.

  Then he rose to his feet, pulling her up with him. “Besides, we’re just getting started.”

  Lily couldn’t fail to miss the burn in Aiden’s dark gaze or his need to get her back to his hotel room. In fact, he’d towed her along behind him so fast that she’d laughingly implored him to slow down. And when another guest had stopped them in the lobby and asked Aiden for his autograph, Lily had expected the top of his head to blow off. But he’d mustered up a smile and signed the guy’s ball cap before hauling her off to the staircase.

  Aiden unlocked the door to his room and shoved it open, ushering her in. “Jesus, I thought we’d never get back.”

  “Well, big-deal celebrities get attention,” Lily teased.

  Aiden threw the safety latch on the door. “The only attention I want right now is yours.”

  Then he began stalking her across the room, whipping off his jacket and dropping it on the floor. When the backs of her knees hit the mattress, Lily collapsed, leaning back on her elbows. That brought her to perfect eye level with the very impressive bulge in Aiden’s pants.

  “Ah, so I see,” she said.

  Out on the dock, she’d been wild for him. But now that it was actually going to happen, her emotions were wound so tight she hardly knew what to say, much less how to act.

  Aiden had his shirt half off. He paused after glancing at her, then leaned down and braced his hands on either side of her shoulders. “Nervous?”

  She scrunched her face at him. “A little. Dumb, isn’t it?”

  He kissed the tip of her nose. “You seemed pretty eager out there on the dock, remember?”

  She jabbed him in the chest. “That’s not what I meant, you big jerk.”

  He let out a soft laugh. “Believe me, I know.” His expression grew serious. “It’s been a long time coming, hasn’t it?”

  Her throat muscles went tight so she simply nodded.

  “If this isn’t what you want, you need to tell me now. I promise I won’t push you.” He gave her a lopsided smile. “As much as it will kill me not to.”

  She stared up into his face, taking in the honesty in his expression. That Aiden wanted her as much as she wanted him wasn’t in doubt. If he also had the strength to step back out of consideration for her unsettled emotions, then she could find the strength to step up and be with him—no matter what happened later.

  Lily flattened a hand and pushed against his chest. “What I want is for you to get out of those clothes. Now.”

  He shook his head. “You’re a bossy little thing, you know that?”

  She rose to unzip her dress. “Well, I am the captain, after all.”

  “And I’m ready for your orders, Captain.” Aiden spun her around and finished unzipping her. As she shimmied out of the dress, his hands went to her butt, tracing a finger up the back of her panties.

  “You have a seriously great ass, babe,” he murmured as he cupped her. Then he reached up and unhooked her bra.

  He started to pull her against him, but Lily wriggled loose and climbed onto the bed. On her hands a
nd knees, she glanced back over her shoulder and gave him a taunting smile before she slowly crawled up to the pile of fluffy pillows.

  “You’re asking for it,” Aiden growled as he practically ripped his shirt off.

  “You bet I am,” she replied, lazily stretching her arms over her head.

  She enjoyed teasing him, and from the look in his eyes and the way he was yanking off his clothes, it seemed to be working. But Aiden was used to dating supermodels and actresses, for God’s sake. Lily knew she was slim and strong, but she didn’t have all that much going on in the curves department.

  The little voice of doubt in her head disappeared when Aiden finally shed his pants, leaving him in nothing but a pair of black-knit boxers. The guy was magnificent—well over six feet of brawny, sculpted male, with a nice dusting of dark hair on his chest that narrowed down over his six-pack to the huge bulge in his briefs.

  She got an eyeful of just how huge when he shucked off the boxers.

  “Wow,” she said, sounding like an idiot. “You’re freaking gorgeous.”

  That surprised a laugh out of him. “I think that’s my line.” Then he turned serious, and his eyes narrowed in a smoldering inspection. “In fact, gorgeous doesn’t even begin to cover it. You’re incredibly sexy, Lily.”

  She blushed, feeling shy again. When she started to pull the plush duvet down to wriggle under it, he clamped a hand on her ankle.

  “No way, babe,” he said. “I want to get a good look at you. I’ve been waiting a long time for this.”

  “And whose fault is that?”

  “Mine.” Aiden ran his big hand up her leg to settle on her thigh as he climbed onto the bed. Gently, he nudged her wide and tugged on the little pink bow at the top of her lacy panties. “If I’d known you were wearing underwear like that while on the boat, I would have had to do something about it.”

  “I’ll remember that for future reference.” Her voice came out on a squeaky note because his hand had slipped under her waistband. When he slipped two fingers inside her and gently scissored her open, Lily fell back on the pillows with a moan.