WATERCOLOR WISHES: Love Along Hwy 30A, Book Four

by Chambers, Melissa

  He sat down on the bed, pulling her on top of him so she was straddling his lap. “Look, in case you can’t tell, I’m interested here. I just want one more hour with you before you have to head off to work.”

  She smiled at him. “Okay.”

  He grinned. “All right. I gotta get another taste of you.” He flipped her over on the bed and started heading south.

  She shoved him away. “Are you insane? I’m so totally gross down there right now.”

  “Oh sweetheart, trust me when I say that you’re anything but gross.” He went back in.

  “I’m serious, Dane. We had sex last night with a condom. I’d be mortified to have you down there. Let me take a shower first.”

  “Oh hell, yeah. I’m coming with you.”

  She glanced at the bathroom. “Actually, I saw you had a big garden tub with jets in there.”

  “You want to take a bath?”

  “Do you have any bubble bath?”

  “I’m sure I don’t, but let me go check Ethan’s bathroom. I’d bet my left nut he has some.”

  “Don’t say that. I like your left nut.”

  Dane grabbed his keys off the bar and headed next door, easily finding some bubble bath. He started to head out of the bathroom when he saw Ethan’s toothpaste sitting there on the counter. He swished some around in his mouth and then rinsed.

  When he got back to the apartment, he found her lying in the bathtub, her arms stretched out beside her. She had her toes held up to the faucet in the middle of the tub, water running down over her feet. “You are such a lucky dog,” she said.

  He could not get the bubble bath poured and himself into the tub fast enough. Dropping the towel to the floor, he stepped inside, and then sat down across from her, their legs tangled up in the small space.

  She rubbed her leg against his. “I’m glad I shaved.”

  He ran his fingers along the stubble on his jawline. “I probably need to.”

  “Are you kidding? Stubble on a girl’s thighs is the best part of oral sex.”

  He rubbed his hands up her calves and over the outside of her thighs. “Woman, don’t tempt me.”

  She waggled her eyebrows. “Is it jet time yet?”

  He pressed the button. “Get ready for the bubbles to go nuts.”

  On cue, the bubbles grew, swallowing them up. The smile on Marigold’s face as she gathered them and let them roll down her arms and shoulders made him think things he really didn’t need to be thinking. He couldn’t believe some asshole hadn’t snatched her up by now. She was picky, that was clear. His buddy Jesse could have just about any woman he wanted, and she’d turned him down, plus, no doubt, countless others.

  Why him, he wondered. What had Dane done so right that she opened herself up to him above any others? He had to quit thinking these thoughts before his ego grew so big it had to get its own apartment.

  “I’m going under,” she said, her body scooting down toward him as she submerged herself in the water. She came up, like a goddess, the water dripping off her beautiful, blond hair, suds running down her chest. “I know my makeup’s running all over the place.”

  “It’s not, actually,” he said. “Well, just a little, but it looks kind of hot.”

  “All rock star, huh? Joan Jett circa The Runaways?”

  He grinned. “Wasn’t there a movie of them? Bella was in it, right?”

  She squeezed his calves. “Oh my God, Dane. Do you know much I love the fact that you refer to Kristen Stewart as Bella?”

  He relaxed against the back of the tub and she joined him on that end, straddling him. She kissed him and then smiled. “I used some of your toothpaste.”

  “That’s good because I used some of Ethan’s when I was over there.”

  She grinned and then kissed him some more. She ran her hand over his chest. “Do you know what I love? This patch of hair on your chest.”

  He huffed a laugh. “Ethan has his waxed.”

  “Ethan has this same patch?”

  “Mmm hmm.”

  She sat back on her side of the tub, nuzzling her feet on either side of his ass. “What’s it like looking exactly like someone else?”

  “I don’t think we look that alike.”

  “Well, true. You two can be told apart. But what’s it like looking that similar?”

  “I don’t know. I guess I just don’t think about it that much. You have a sister. Do you two look alike?”

  “I guess we do. She has less pizazz. On purpose, that is. She dresses very business-like, even when she doesn’t have to, and she would never color her hair.”

  “Do you color your hair?”

  She scrunched up her face. “Is that a deal-breaker?”

  He chuckled. “Yeah. I’m mortified.”

  “She wears her hair shoulder-length and just so. I on the other hand…” She held up her long, wet hair in explanation.

  “I love your hair,” he said. “I loved how you wore it the night of our first date.”

  “With the braid?” she asked.

  “Oh yeah. And the time you had it in those big, soft curls when you had on your cat costume.”

  “Dane, you are sleeping with a woman who dresses up in cat costumes not on Halloween. Are you sure you’ve thought this through?”

  His phone went off again in the other room, sending a black cloud over their tub of perfection. She lifted her eyebrows. He shook his head and then scooted them together in the middle of the tub. “I’ve thought about little other than you since the day I met you.”

  She smiled, letting her head fall backward. “Oh, when you say this stuff it’s really scary.”

  “I’m not trying to be scary.”

  She rested her arms on his shoulders. “You’re utterly frightening, my friend.”

  Marigold’s ringtone sounded from the other room—a continuous one that signaled a call rather than a text. Her expression dropped.

  “Are you expecting a call?”

  “No, but I may know who it is.”

  “Do you need to get it?”

  She rubbed her face and then smoothed back her hair. “I suppose I need to speak to him at some point.”

  “Him?”

  She shook her head like she was shaking off a bad thought. “Malcolm. He’s this guy who works for my family’s business. I’ve known him since college. I’m actually the reason he’s in the family business. I brought him in.”

  “Is this an ex of yours?” Dane asked, treading lightly.

  She scrunched up her face. “I guess. It’s a weird situation.”

  She was quiet then, which was unusual for her. He knew he shouldn’t push, but his curiosity got the better of him. He took her hand. “You wanna tell me about it?”

  She squeezed his hand and then let go. She looked away, and then back at him. “I’ve been...I should say instead I’ve felt indebted to him after something he did for me back in college.”

  He narrowed his gaze, focusing in on her. “What did he do?”

  She squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head. “It’s not really something I like talking about.”

  He put his hands on her thighs near her knees. “Okay. You don’t have to.”

  She put her hands on top of his and stared into his eyes. “You’re okay if I don’t tell you?”

  “Of course I am. But I hope over time I’ll earn your trust so you feel like you can.”

  She smiled and then leaned in and kissed him. She pulled away and considered him, then looked down at the suds on her knee. “I was at this frat party, and these two guys were messing with me, blowing up my ego. Like a fool, I followed them to their room where I suppose I thought we were going to bake apple pie and play chess.”

  She looked at him for a reaction to her joke, but he couldn’t do anything but focus on her story.

  She went on. “As you can imagine, things moved very fast, and before I knew it, one was undoing my jeans while the other was grabbing my boob with his tongue down my throat.”

/>   Dane took in a sharp breath, feeling his blood pressure rising.

  She waved him off. “It was all very Kavanaugh/Blasey Ford, except I went into the room willingly.”

  “Were you able to get them off of you?” Dane asked, trying to rein in his anger.

  “That’s where Malcolm comes in. He stumbled into the room and broke up the whole thing.”

  “Just by being there, or did he step in?”

  “No, he stepped in. I yelled for help, and he came over all valiant and was all, ‘What the fuck?’ and like literally pulled me out from between them. Then they told him to fuck off and started punching him.”

  Dane imagined the situation, picturing himself there turning into some kind of Jackie Chan character on these assholes.

  “I started screaming like a banshee then a few other people came in and some guys pulled them off, but by that time, it was bad.” She motioned at her nose as she stared off at the wall behind him. “I just remember his nose sitting on his face in an unnatural position, and his weakened body lying all limp-like against the side of the bed, blood all over his face and neck. Someone called an ambulance and it came and they took him to the hospital. It was all totally surreal. I went with him in the ambulance.”

  “What happened to the guys?”

  “Malcolm wouldn’t press charges. I guess he was embarrassed about getting his ass kicked or something.”

  “What about you?”

  “Did I press charges? No,” she said, without waiting for him to answer the question.

  “How come?”

  “I wanted to…I would have, but I had no proof of anything other than what Malcolm had seen, and I knew if he didn’t want to press charges for himself he certainly wouldn’t have wanted to help me do it, so I dropped it.”

  “And they got away with it?” Dane asked.

  She nodded. “Unfortunately, but I just had to come to terms with it.”

  The whole situation made Dane’s stomach turn…the injustice of it all.

  “Wow,” she said. “You look seriously pissed.”

  He met her gaze. “Sorry. I know this is in your past. It’s just so…enraging.”

  “That’s a really good word for it.”

  He nodded and took her hands. “I’m so sorry that happened to you.”

  She shrugged. “I’m over it,” she said, but she bit her lip, and he could tell she wasn’t being totally truthful.

  “So, you and this guy started dating?”

  “Oh, yeah…well, yeah. We tried. I tried. I guess we hung out for a few months, but being around him gave me a sense of ick. I thought it was probably because I associated him with what happened, and that wasn’t fair, so I kept trying. Finally I just couldn’t try anymore. He was graduating and I knew he was looking for a job in the hotel business, so I introduced him to Dad.”

  Dane’s radar went up. “So, hang on. He wanted to be in your dad’s business?”

  “Yeah, that’s actually how I knew him. We were both in the hotel management program. He was a couple of years ahead, but I’d seen him around.”

  “Was he a member of that frat?”

  “No, actually, he wasn’t.”

  “Did he know somebody there?”

  She looked at him curiously.

  “I mean, typically guys can’t just walk into a frat party. You have to know someone.”

  “I’m sure he did. What’s with all these questions?”

  He shook his head, realizing he was overstepping. “Sorry, I’m just inquisitive sometimes. I didn’t mean to pry.”

  She ran her hands over his knees. “No, you’re fine. I’m like that, too…lots of times.” She gave him a smile that eased his upended nerves.

  “So, that was him calling, you think?”

  She ran her hands over her wet hair. “Yeah, I think it’s him. He and my parents came into town together yesterday. They went back early but he stayed to look into the hotel stuff. I need to get together with him at some point and go over the plans.”

  “Do you need to do that today?”

  She let her head fall back. “Yeah. We can do it at the shop though.”

  “Won’t that be distracting with customers coming in and out?”

  She shrugged. “It’s not like I have much of a choice.”

  “Will you let me watch your shop while you work with him?”

  She stilled. “Are you serious?”

  “Of course I’m serious.”

  “You would work my shop so I could consort with the enemy about the hotel we’re trying to take from you.”

  “Well, when you put it like that…yes, I’d love to.”

  She gave him a curious look. “Seriously?”

  “Seriously. I may need you to train me on the register.”

  “I don’t have one.”

  “Really?”

  “Yeah, I figure it all on the calculator then I do handwritten receipts. It feels more mom and pop that way.”

  “Then I guess I’m already trained. Is everything priced?”

  “Oh, yeah. I can’t stand to go into a store and pick up stuff that’s not priced.”

  “Then we’re all set,” he said, sliding his legs to either side of her. “But can we play a little first?”

  She straddled him, lowering herself down onto his lap. “Absolutely.” She kissed him. “What do you want to play?” She pressed herself against his cock and it came right to attention.

  He ran his hands up her torso and around to her back. “Anything you like.”

  “Anything?”

  He lifted an eyebrow, and then conceded. “Actually, I probably would do anything you wanted.”

  “Ooh, that sounds like a challenge.”

  “Consider the gauntlet dropped.”

  She grinned and kissed him, making every inch of his body melt right into her.

  22

  “You think you’ve got it down?” Marigold asked.

  Dane glanced around the store. “I’m golden. So are you meeting him somewhere?”

  “He’s coming here. I want to show him a few things for reference. But we’re having coffee at Fiona’s place next door to work things through.”

  “Is she open?”

  She pulled a set of keys out of her pocket and jingled them. “Got the place all to myself.”

  “Pays to have friends in high places.”

  “For sure. Thank you for doing this for me,” she said.

  “No problem. But you’ll have to make it up to me later.” He pulled her to him.

  She grinned at him. “I knew there’d be a catch. There’s always a catch.” She kissed him lightly on the nose. “Which is why I better get my money’s worth. Do you mind if I run to Amavida to grab a couple of drinks? I want to mess with as little as possible at Fiona’s place.”

  “Of course not. Go.”

  “Can I get you something?”

  “Nah, I’m good.”

  She smiled. “All right.” She grabbed her purse from behind the counter. “He’s not supposed to be here till eleven, but if he happens to show up early, just tell him to wait on the bench right outside. It’s a pretty day. He’ll be fine.”

  “Got it.”

  He glanced around her shop which was as unique as she was with its sparkling lights, its colorful fish hanging on ropes, stuffed giraffes whose necks stretched toward the ceiling, Rastafarian jellyfish dangling down, and hot pink chairs with sayings painted in the seats like Sit your butt down and The princess’s throne, eff off. He loved how the shop radiated her own personality.

  After fifteen minutes of Dane walking the aisles of Marigold’s store and not greeting any customers, the door opened. A guy about his own height and weight with dark hair walked in, glancing around like he was on a mission.

  “Malcolm?” Dane asked.

  The guy stilled, staring at him. “Yeah. Who are you?”

  Dane walked over to him and held out his hand. “I’m Dane, Marigold’s friend.” Boyfriend seemed presumptuous
, but he wished he’d had the balls to say it. “I’m just watching the shop so the two of you can work.”

  The guy shook his hand. “Work?”

  “Yeah. Aren’t you here to talk to her about her shop?”

  Malcolm narrowed his gaze. “Who are you, again?”

  Dane let go of his hand, standing up a little taller. “Dane. She’s out grabbing drinks for the two of you. She’ll be back soon. You can wait outside on the bench for her if you like.”

  Malcolm eyed him, and then strolled down an aisle. “You’re not her gay friend are you?”

  Dane was starting to think the ick Marigold felt when she was dating this guy had nothing to do with him reminding her of those two assholes. He radiated plenty of his own bad vibes.

  “I believe she has more than one gay friend, but no, I don’t fall into that category.”

  “What category do you fall into?” he asked, picking up a statue and inspecting it.

  Dane stared him down until he met his gaze. “I’m a good friend.”

  The guy smirked. “She keeping you in the friend zone? Don’t sweat it. It’s what she does.”

  Dane rested against the counter, crossing his arms over his chest. “You’re welcome to wait on the bench outside.”

  Malcolm met his gaze. “I’m good right here. You can go out there if you’re uncomfortable though.”

  Dane would not let this asshole rattle him. He walked around to the other side of the counter and picked up his phone, looking for a distraction.

  “What’s your line of work?” Malcolm asked.

  “Property development,” Dane said.

  “Oh yeah? I’m getting ready to build a hotel down the street.”

  “Maybe,” Dane said, unable to resist. Malcolm looked at him like he’d just announced an alien invasion. “You’ve got to win the bid first.”

  Malcolm pointed at Dane. “You’ve got an interest in that land?”

  “Same as you.”

  Malcolm huffed a laugh. “You think you know about building hotels?”

  “I think I do, actually.”

  “Does Marigold know you’re trying to bid this land out from under us?”

  “Last I checked that land wasn’t under you or anyone else at the moment. It’s fair game. And yes, she knows.”

  Malcolm shook his head wearing a sardonic smile. “She always was way too trusting.”