Twenty
Sloan
Caleb ran his hand over the countertop, and my eyes traveled from his muscular biceps to his sexy hands. This was why I’d been avoiding him.
I even thought his hands were sexy.
When he’d shown up at my house this morning, the naughty part of me had wanted him to push me against the wall and kiss me.
Instead, he’d brought me coffee and home information sheets. And he’d made it perfectly clear that he didn’t want to sleep with me again. But I supposed I wouldn’t care about having sex with someone either if it had only been good.
That part had stung a little because it had been more than good for me. Every time I lay down for bed, I’d close my eyes and swear I could still feel him inside me, hitting me high and deep as his pelvis rubbed my clit in just the right way. Except he wasn’t actually there, and I’d been left jonesing for his body.
After almost a week, one would think I’d get over it, but the last two nights, I’d busted out my vibrator instead.
So, now, here I stood with the man I wanted to have sex with again but yet didn’t want to have sex with. This was why I liked being single and abstained from sex. Things were simply easier that way.
“So, what do you think of this one?” I asked him. I needed to talk and get out of my own head.
“I like it.” Caleb pulled out his phone. “I’m adding it to my Maybe list.”
His thumb scrolled through and hit some buttons, and I remembered the way it had flicked across my nipples. I didn’t remember them being so sensitive before. I moved my gaze away from his hands, but that was a mistake because they landed on his face. He licked his lips as he concentrated, and I remembered the way he’d kissed me. Caleb was one hell of a kisser.
That’s it.
“I’m going outside,” I announced. “I need to make a phone call. Come out when you’re ready. We have a bit before our next appointment.” I bolted for the door before he had a chance to answer because, truth be told, I wasn’t completely sure that I could keep my hands to myself.
Later that evening, I said good-bye to Caleb and headed over to my parents’ for dinner. I was in a foul mood though and had considered canceling. My family didn’t deserve my wrath.
Caleb had been a perfect gentleman—as gentlemanly as he could manage—all day. He really didn’t want to have sex with me again. I should have been ecstatic. I should have been grateful. Instead, I was cranky.
I drove into my parents’ driveway and parked my car next to my brother’s. I walked into the house and smelled home-cooking and instantly decided I was glad I’d made the decision to come.
“Hey, Mom,” I said as I entered the kitchen.
“Hey, Sloan,” she said from the sink.
“What are you making?”
“Mashed potatoes. Your father put a roast in the Crock-Pot this morning.”
“That explains what smells so delicious. Do you need help with anything?”
“You can cut up the potatoes that I am peeling.”
I grabbed a cutting board from the cupboard and a knife from the drawer, and then I started chopping.
“Where are Dad and Jer?” I asked.
“Downstairs. I’m not sure what they’re doing.” My mom finished her peeling and brought the rest of the potatoes over to me.
She pushed my hair over my ear, and I looked up at her. My mom had the same red hair as me, but her eyes were hazel. Kind of like Caleb’s.
Gah!
“What’s wrong?” my mom asked. “I feel like I haven’t talked to you in a while.”
My mom and I were close. I considered her one of my best friends, but sometimes, I felt odd, talking to her about some stuff. Like I would never tell her about vandalizing Neil’s car. I knew she wouldn’t approve.
“Melanie finally broke up with Neil.”
“Good for her.” Mom had met him once and didn’t like him any more than I did.
“Yeah.”
“What made her decide to finally cut him loose?” My mom picked up the potatoes I’d cut and put them in the pot.
“He cheated on her.”
My mom looked up and gasped. “He didn’t?”
“He did. And he also gave her gonorrhea.”
“You’re joking.”
I shook my head. “I wish I were. She went to the doctor on Monday.”
“I never liked that boy.”
“You and me both.”
All the potatoes were in the pot. My mom filled it up with water and set it on the stove. After she turned the burner on, she faced me. “Is that all that’s bothering you?”
I shrugged. I didn’t know how much to tell her all about my involvement with Caleb. She probably wouldn’t approve of the fake-girlfriend thing.
“I don’t know. It’s complicated.”
“I love complicated.”
I laughed. “No, you don’t. You are happily married to a man who gives you a nice, normal, boring life.”
“Honey, don’t worry. You can have that someday soon, too,” she joked.
“Promise?”
“I promise. Now, tell me.”
“Neil has a brother, and I’ve been helping him out with something. He’s also looking at houses.”
My mother frowned. “Are you sure that’s a good idea? What if he’s like his brother?”
“Oh no, Caleb is nothing like Neil.”
My mother raised her brow. Yeah, I noticed how quickly I’d defended him, too.
“Then, what’s wrong?”
“I met his boss and his boss’s wife. Caleb is like a son to them; they don’t have any children of their own, and Caleb has worked for his boss since high school. They got the impression that we were dating, and it made them so happy that neither of us corrected them.”
It wasn’t exactly true, but if I told my mom Caleb had blackmailed me to play the part, she wouldn’t like him.
And I guessed that meant I wanted my mom to like him.
“So, you’re feeling guilty about lying?” she asked.
“No.” I rethought my answer. “I mean, yes, a little, but that’s not the problem.”
“Ahh …” she said.
“What? What’s ‘ahh’?”
“You like him.”
“No, I don’t.”
My mother laughed. “The lady doth protest too much, methinks.”
I groaned. “Mom, not Shakespeare.”
“Okay. How about, I think you denied that rather quickly?”
I wrinkled my nose at her.
“Does Mel have a problem with you spending time with Caleb?”
“No. None.”
“Then, what is it?”
I didn’t say anything.
“Honey, not everyone is going to be like the men you’ve dated in the past. Not every man is going to steal from you or cheat on you or ghost you when he moves out of town.”
“I’ve picked some real winners, huh?”
“That doesn’t mean that Caleb will be like them. You just told me that he’s not like his brother.”
“I know. It’s just that I don’t want to like him. I don’t even know if he likes me.”
“Has he kissed you or anything?”
I felt my cheeks heat. He’d done way more than kiss me.
“I’ll take that as a yes.”
Sometimes, it was a pain in the butt to ask for advice from someone who’d known you since birth.
“It still doesn’t mean he likes me. Men kiss women for more reasons than liking them, Mom.”
“I know. I wasn’t born yesterday. But he must like you on some level.”
“I don’t know about that. And, even if he did, I don’t even know if I want to like him.”
“That’s just your head talking. What does your heart say?”
“I don’t know. What if he’s the kind of guy who doesn’t do serious?” I said, avoiding her answer because I didn’t want to think about it too closely.
“Sloan, you ha
ven’t had a serious relationship—heck, any relationship—in a long time. You don’t have to get married to the first guy you date. You’re overthinking. Have fun. Enjoy yourself.” She leaned closer to me and grinned. “Enjoy Caleb. You deserve it.”
I chewed on my lip. I didn’t know if I could let myself enjoy anything when it came to him.
My mom put her hand on my arm. “Think about it, honey. You don’t have to make a decision today.”
She always knew just what to say.
Twenty-One
Caleb
I picked up Sloan for dinner on Sunday night, and I could tell right away that something was on her mind.
“You okay?” I asked.
“Yeah.”
I knew I’d told her that she had to go through with the five dates, but I really didn’t want to force it if she was feeling bad. It was one thing to tease her and irritate her, but it was another to make her do something if she was uncomfortable.
I should have never slept with her.
“Listen, if you’re not okay with doing this, I will call Ted right now and tell him you’re sick. Or that something came up.”
A slow smile crossed her lips, and she visibly relaxed. “No, I’m fine.” She looked at me. I thought it was the first time she’d looked me in the eyes since we screwed. “Really, I’m fine. Let’s go to dinner.”
I studied her for a minute to make sure she was telling the truth. “Okay, but you say the word, and we’ll leave. I’ll slip you a can of soup to put in the toilet, so you can say you threw up.”
Sloan laughed, and the sound made me feel good.
Her avoidance all week and then her reserved demeanor on Friday had made me realize how much I liked having her around and making her smile.
When we got to Ted and Mary’s, I made sure not to touch her at all. She obviously didn’t want to sleep with me, and I didn’t want her to think I was trying to force her or trick her into going to bed with me again. I liked my women willing, thank you very much.
So, when she wrapped her arm around my waist and kissed my neck just as the door opened, I was floored. And turned on. I sported instant wood, remembering those same lips sucking on my cock.
I pushed Sloan in front of me. “Ladies first,” I said with a shaky voice.
She gave me a weird look but went in ahead of me while I quickly readjusted my dick in my pants. I stepped up behind her and put a hand on her shoulder, so she would stay in front of me.
“How are you two?” Mary asked.
“Good,” Sloan and I both said at the same time.
Everyone chuckled, and tension eased out of my body.
“Come into the family room. Ted’s in there, watching the game. Dinner won’t be done for ten minutes or so.”
Sloan followed Mary, and I followed Sloan, hoping all evidence of my arousal would dissipate by the time we made it to the family room.
“Ted, Caleb and Sloan are here.”
Ted spun around in his recliner and smiled when he saw us. “Hey, guys. Thanks for coming over.” He pushed the bottom of his chair down and stood.
“Thanks for having us,” Sloan said.
“You know I’m never going to turn down Mary’s cooking,” I said.
“Doesn’t your mother ever feed you, Caleb?” she asked.
I grinned. “Yes, but her cooking isn’t as good as yours.”
She playfully pushed my arm. “Oh, you.”
I looked at Sloan. “She thinks I’m joking, but I’m serious.”
Sloan slipped her arm around mine. “I agree, Mary. You are an excellent cook.” She leaned forward and whispered, “Don’t tell my mom, but you’re better than her, too.”
Mary blushed at the compliment, and I made a mental note to tell Sloan how good of an actress she was tonight. It seemed like I didn’t have to worry about her being uncomfortable.
Ted put his arm around Mary. “I don’t think we should wait until after dinner. I think we should do it now.”
Mary’s eyes lit up. “You think so?”
“What are you two talking about?” I asked.
“I told you that we had something for you,” Ted said.
“Go get them, Ted,” Mary said, nudging her husband with her hip.
Ted grinned and left the room.
I could tell they were both excited, but I was beginning to feel uncomfortable.
Ted came back with an envelope and handed it to me.
“What is it?” I asked.
“Open it and find out,” Mary said.
I slowly opened the envelope and pulled out four tickets to—
“Hawaii,” Sloan said breathlessly next to me.
I looked at her and then at Ted and Mary.
He put his arm around his wife again. “We think of you like a son, Caleb, and Mary and I are so happy for you and Sloan. You know that Mary and I have been planning to go to Hawaii, and we want the two of you to come with us.”
“Oh my God,” Sloan said beside me.
I looked at her, and she looked like she was in shock.
Fuck, fuck, fuck.
I had no idea what to do. This gift was beyond generous, but I couldn’t accept it. And I was sure Sloan didn’t want to get stuck with me—I looked down at the tickets—for five days. I need to speak with her.
“It’s a little less than a month away. We wanted to make sure you could both secure time off,” Ted said. “But, Caleb, I have it on good authority that your boss is going to let you take vacation.” He winked.
“What about you, Sloan?” Mary asked.
“That’s the nice thing about being my own boss. I might have a closing, but I’ll have one of my coworkers fill in. I know a few who owe me one.” She took a deep breath. “But, listen, this is too much.”
Mary waved Sloan’s comment away. “Pish posh. We want to do this and are so happy you two are coming with us.”
I shook my head. Sloan was right. “You guys, this is too generous,” I said. “I—”
A timer buzzed in the kitchen.
“Oh, that’s the oven,” Mary said.
Another timer dinged.
“And that’s the microwave. Ted, come and help me, please. We can give these two some time to talk.” She winked, and the two of them left the room.
I walked over to the couch and sank down onto it. I put my head in my hands and moaned.
I felt the cushion next to me sink.
I looked up. “All I wanted to do was show Ted that I had ties to Minnesota and that I wasn’t going to bail on the store. I never wanted him to buy us a trip.”
“They really love you, Caleb.”
“Yeah, well, they shouldn’t.”
“You’re being too hard on yourself. You’re a good person. And, while your methods might not always be great, you have good intentions.”
I leaned back in my seat and snorted.
Sloan grabbed the tickets out of my hand. “I have to say, this is a great fourth date.”
I stared at her.
“What?” she said. “No guy has ever taken me to Hawaii, much less on the fourth date.”
“You’re not seriously considering going?”
“Why wouldn’t I?”
I lowered my voice. “You realize that we’re going to have to share a room. Maybe even a bed.” I brought my voice up to a normal level. “Besides, I can’t take them. I feel like shit, even thinking of saying yes. It’s too nice for someone who is lying to them.”
Sloan turned to face me and grabbed my shoulders. “Caleb, remember how I told you that telling them would only make you feel better? You can’t do it.”
“So, you’re saying we should go?”
She dropped her arms. “Yes. If we say no, their feelings are going to be hurt. Did you see how happy they were to give us these tickets?”
“It was kind of hard not to.”
“Exactly. If we tell them we can’t go, they’re going to be crushed.”
She was right.
“Thi
nk of it this way. Ted sells you the store, we break up, and then you pay Ted and Mary back, plus interest.”
“That’s not a bad idea.”
Sloan smiled. “I know it’s not.”
I picked up her hand before I could think too hard about it. “You know, a couple of weeks ago, I would have had to blackmail or bribe you to come with me.”
She took her free hand and grabbed my face like I was a kid and shook it back and forth. “Just to be clear, I’m doing this as a favor to you.”
“Does this mean, I’m paying for everything?”
“You’re damn right you are.”
Despite the hit my checkbook was going to take, I grinned at her. There was no one else I would rather take to Hawaii than Sloan.
Twenty-Two
Sloan
Caleb had been quiet throughout dinner. I could tell he’d been trying to sound like he was looking forward to the trip, but something had been missing. The good thing was, I didn’t think Ted or Mary had noticed.
On the drive home, Caleb didn’t say a word. He was so wrapped up in his own thoughts that he almost missed a Stop sign until a car honked at us. By the time he pulled into my driveway, I knew I had to do something, or he was going to make himself crazy.
I reached over and turned off the engine.
He turned his head toward me. “What did you do that for?”
“Come inside,” I said. “You need a beer and some Bear snuggles.”
He tried to smile. “Thank you, but—”
“I wasn’t asking.” I pulled the key out of the ignition. “Let’s go.”
Caleb sighed and followed me into the house where we were both greeted by Bear. I let him into the backyard to do his business and grabbed two beers from my fridge. I brought them back to the living room where Caleb was already camped out on my couch and handed him one.
“I thought you liked wine?”
I took a long drink. “I do like wine. But I like beer, too. Is that not allowed?”
He laughed. “No. I just didn’t realize you drank beer. Some people don’t like it.”
A bark came from the back door, so I went to let my dog in. “Come on, Bear. Caleb needs some love.”
Five Dates Only Page 10