by Bella Emy
One good look at this place and you wouldn’t even think you’re on a boat. This bathroom looks better than the one in my apartment. I shake my head and lean my back against the door, inhaling deeply. Once I take another breath, I place my bag on the toilet seat and go through it. Shit, I hope I packed enough pajamas. Frowning, I decide on a plain white T-shirt and a pair of baby blue shorts. Not too short to look like a whore, but not too long to look like my grandmother, either. I pull my hair up into a ponytail and then brush my teeth.
Once I’m done, I grab my bag and step out of the bathroom to find Kalen already tucked into his little bed off to the side. The top portion of his body is sticking out from underneath a light green comforter. I catch a nice glimpse of his sculpted chest and arms. He smiles as our eyes meet, and I melt.
Damn, he looks good. Why does he have to be so good looking?
His eyes roam the length of my body, landing on my legs for a good minute and I automatically feel self-conscious. I pick up my bag higher, holding it up at my belly button.
I stand there like an idiot until his eyes once again find mine. “Figured I’d change while you were in there. Are you all good?” he asks.
I nod like a moron. “Uh, uh-huh.” I walk briskly to the bed where I’ll be sleeping. I drop my bag on the ground next to it and slide in. Then I pull the blanket up, covering myself.
God, this mattress feels like a cloud. This should be illegal.
Kalen flips over onto his stomach so that he’s looking at me from where he’s lying.
Could a man be any more perfect? Seriously. Kalen Starling is pure perfection.
I feel like saying something to take the edge off the weight of his stare on me, but I can’t think of a damn thing that won’t make me sound like a fucking moron.
Saving me, he speaks. “Hey, if you need anything in the middle of the night, please don’t hesitate to wake my ass and ask,” he says through a smile that makes me turn into a puddle of mush.
“I will,” I manage to mumble. Somehow, I don’t think I’ll be able to disturb him if I do happen to need something overnight.
“Good night, Lexi. Sweet dreams.” He smiles widely once more.
I feel my lips pull into a small smile in return. “Good night, Kalen.”
He flips back around, and with a remote in his hand, he switches the light off, leaving only a tiny dim night light coming toward the right.
I look up at the ceiling and wonder. Maybe Kalen isn’t so bad. Maybe it’s time to let go of the past and move forward once and for all.
Maybe.
Chapter Twenty-Five
I bat my eyes slowly at first, and as I come to, I bat them faster.
For a second, I don’t remember where I am, and then, it dawns on me: on the sea with Kalen, in his queen-sized bed, on his ship.
I place my palms onto the bed and push myself up. Quickly remembering that Kalen was lying just a few feet from me last night, I snap my head around to look over at him.
But he’s not there and I’m alone. Where is he? Bathroom, maybe? I wonder what time it even is.
I peer over at the clock on the wall and holy shit. It’s already after ten in the morning. Damn, I didn’t want to sleep this late.
I spin myself around and rub my eyes. I slept so incredibly well, and I don’t for one second doubt that it’s this incredible mattress’s responsibility.
I look toward the foot of the bed and notice a pink envelope with my name written on it. I grab and open it, then pull out a note.
Happy Birthday, Lexi!
It’s your special day so I want to make sure I do all that I can to show you just how special you are… to me.
When you get up (and please, take all the time in the world, we have nowhere to go… we’re just going to celebrate you today), head into the bathroom where you’ll find a box. Open it and change. Once you’re ready, meet me upstairs on the deck.
I’ll be patiently waiting for you, gorgeous.
Love,
Kalen
My heart races. His words. His thoughts. The time he took to put it together. I can’t. I just can’t believe it. Rising up, I dart to the bathroom, and sure enough, there is a box there waiting for me. I open it up and inside are two outfits in bags labeled “Morning Wear” and “Evening Wear.” Then, in the middle of a box, there’s a note that says, “No outfit needed for the afternoon ;)” A million inappropriate thoughts start running wild in my head but decide that’s probably not what that means.
Shaking my head, I notice that on the floor are matching shoes to go with both outfits.
How? Just how is he capable of doing all of this? I guess it helps when you’re a billionaire, but still. How did he have this planned out in such a short amount of time? He had no idea I was going to accept his invite until just two days ago. This is crazy.
Regardless of it all, I stash everything back in its box and prepare the water in the shower. I shouldn’t keep him waiting any longer, should I?
“Wow…” Kalen’s voice takes me by surprise as I walk onto the deck from the ship’s downstairs portion. I should have known he’d be there like he had mentioned he was going to be in the note he left for me, but for some reason, the only thing on my mind was to make sure I didn’t trip and make a fool out of myself going up the stairs.
I’m not in heels, but being the klutz that I am, it’s not as if it would be a difficult thing for me to do. My morning attire, which he carefully picked out for me, is a comfortable pair of denim shorts and a fitted blue shirt, and some open-toe sandals. I have to say Kalen does have some nice taste because these items together look really cute.
Lifting my eyes to meet his, I smile nervously and begin to walk over to where he’s standing, but he meets me halfway. I push a strand of hair behind my ear as we finally reach one another.
He comes even closer, and taking me by surprise, places a kiss on my cheek. “Happy Birthday, Beautiful.” He pulls away.
Beautiful? Beautiful who? Beautiful me? Oh, dear God… he’s going to make my panties dripping wet. I feel my cheeks turning every shade of red imaginable.
He smiles. “Don’t be so surprised. Did you sleep well?”
Yeah, surprised is one way of putting it. “Thank you. Better than I have in a long time.”
He motions for us to take a seat. I follow him, taking my place across from him and looking out onto the sea. It appears like it’s going to be another beautiful sunny day. It seems as though that storm really did take another route and is going to miss us. This is just amazing.
God, can I just stay out here forever and forget all my freaking problems back home?
Shit, that’s one thing I am not looking forward to. Picking up the pieces of something that took me so long to build is really going to suck, and I know for a fact that I’m going to be devastated when I witness what’s left of my lounge.
“So, Lexi. Are you hungry? I’ve got a whole day planned for us, but you know, food first.”
I would love to know what exactly it is that he’s got planned for us to do today, but as I’m about to respond, my cell phone goes off. How the hell am I getting reception in the middle of nowhere? I furrow my brows and dart my eyes in his direction.
He flashes me a wide opened grin. “Yeah, I know. Interruptions aren’t cool while we’re supposed to be sailing in paradise, but when you’ve got the option, you take advantage.” Chuckling, he says, “I knew you’d want to hear from your friends today.”
I look down at my phone, and sure enough, it’s Erin.
“Go on, answer it.”
“Hey, Erin.”
“Happy Birthday! Happy Birthday! Happy Birthday to you!” she announces in song.
I giggle. “Thanks, girl.”
“So, I wanna know, how was your first day with Kalen? Details! I want details! Did you kiss? Ooh, tell me he kissed you as the sun was setting!”
I cover my mouth for a second, gasping at her comments. “Girl, you are crazy.” I eye Kalen
, who’s looking at me, still with that beautiful smile of his fixated on his face. If he only knew what she just said…
But would it have been so bad if we would have kissed?
God, what am I talking about? We’re just now starting to get along after not liking him for so long, borderline hating him… kind of… sort of… maybe?
“C’mon, for real, Lexi. Are you having a good time?”
I smile genuinely. “Yes, it’s been great.”
Kalen catches my eye and winks. Is it normal for him to make me feel all warm and mushy inside?
“Well, girl. Don’t keep that man waiting. Go on, enjoy your birthday. I know it’s going to be a busy day ahead…”
Now I’m confused. “What? How do you know?”
She lets out a laugh. “You know, we talked.”
“Who?” I question.
“Kalen and me. We’re best buddies when it comes to you.”
My eyes widen. “What?!”
She laughs again. “Bye, girl.” Then she hangs up before I have a chance to say anything more.
“Everything good?” He’s donning a devilish smirk that tells me he knows more than he’s letting on.
Well, fuck. Of course he does. Apparently, he and my best friend are best friends.
I raise an eyebrow and then give him one of my own smirks. “Peachy.”
He flashes me his smile again, and if he doesn’t stop doing that soon enough today, I don’t know how I will get through the rest of the day. “Great, then are you ready to get your birthday celebration under way?”
I nod. “Sure am. What’s up first?”
“Glad you asked. We’ll be there in about twenty minutes.”
“Wow, this is delicious,” I say after swallowing a mouthful of pancakes and eggs. We’re at this pancake house at a neighboring island resort. Sure, it’s already just past two in the afternoon, but is there ever really a wrong time to eat pancakes?
He smiles at me from across the table. “I’m glad you like it.” He chuckles.
“What?” I ask with a grin.
He shakes his head. “Nah, it’s nothing.”
I reach across the table and grab his hand… surprising myself in doing so, and by the look on his face, surprising him, too.
“Well, you didn’t think I’d forget, did you?”
“Forget?” I search his eyes, but he’s not letting anything on.
Shrugging, he replies. “You’ve always loved pancakes. They’ve been your favorite food since I can remember, and you’re sort of, kind of, obsessed with them for lunch and dinner, for whatever the reason.” He winks.
I gasp. “Obsessed?”
He chuckles, stabbing a piece of pancake on his plate with his fork and then placing it in front of me. “Uh-huh. Go on, try mine.”
I smirk.
“Go on. They’re delicious. Homemade recipe.”
It does smell amazingly good. I eye the food on his fork, contemplating about doing what he’s telling me to do. I raise an eyebrow. “Homemade recipe? How do you know that?”
“The owner of this place is one of my best friends.”
“Oh, really?”
He nods. “Really. Now, take a bite.”
I scrutinize the piece of pancake on his fork, and without thinking any further, I lean forward and take the bite he’s offering me. I chew, and it melts in my mouth. My eyes widen.
He chuckles. “I told you.”
After swallowing, I ask, “What flavor is that?”
He shrugs. “Heck if I know. All I do know is that I’ve been ordering the house special since I’ve started coming here to Jake’s.”
“Jake’s?”
He nods. “Yes, that’s my friend… and owner of this restaurant.” He points to the sign over to our left. “Jake’s Place. Hey, there he is,” he says, pointing to a man to our left making his way toward us. Kalen rises from his seat. “Hey, Jake!”
I automatically rise, too, following Kalen’s lead as a man about his height with sandy blond hair and a clean-shaven face walks up to our table.
“Mr. Hot-Stuff, himself! It’s so good to see you again.” He and Kalen embrace in a manly hug as they chuckle.
Once they pull apart, Kalen comes closer to me, placing his hand on the small of my back, sending a thousand bolts of electricity to float through me. “Lexi, this is the man responsible for all that goodness on your plate. Meet my good friend, Jacob Garcia.”
Jacob comes forward reaching for my hand. “Please, call me Jake, miss.”
I smile, shaking his hand. “Lexi,” I respond.
He nods. “Lexi, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“Likewise.”
We pull away and then Jake says to Kalen, “So, you guys going to stay around long? They’ve got the big annual fiesta planned for this evening over at Starfish by the Sea.” Jake looks at me, realizing I have no idea what that is. “Starfish is the big casino on the pier. They have a party every year around this time. There’s food, games, live music… you name it, they’ve got it.”
Kalen, with his hand still on my back, responds. “Maybe we’ll come back for it tonight, but there’s something else I’ve got planned for Lexi this afternoon.”
I turn my head to face him and he winks at me. “Today’s her birthday,” he tells Jake.
“Well then, Happy Birthday, Lexi! I hope you have a fantastic day. Please, order some dessert… everything is on the house.”
“Aww, you don’t have to do that, Jake,” Kalen says.
Jake’s not hearing it. “Nonsense! It’s my pleasure. You guys—” His cell phone rings, interrupting him. He pulls it out from his pocket and takes a look at the screen. “I’m sorry, guys. I’ve got to take this. But you two, please, order anything you want on the house, and make sure you come back tonight for the party. It’s going to be epic! Kalen, I’ll see you later. Lexi, it’s been a pleasure meeting you!” He runs off just as Kalen and I say our good-byes to him.
We take our seats and resume eating our meal.
“Jake seems like a very nice guy,” I say.
Kalen nods. “He is. He’s one of the best friends I’ve ever had.”
I nod back. “So did you guys become friends before or after you discovered your love of his house special pancakes that taste like heaven on a plate?”
He chuckles, but only for a moment before turning serious. “Years ago, I was out on my ship one day, sailing, just like we’ve been doing, and I saw the sign to this place once I got close enough to land. I was planning on stopping for lunch and figured what the hell. When I saw that it was a pancake house, I immediately thought of you.”
I swallow hard. His confession hits me hard when I didn’t even expect it. How do I tell him that every time I’d thought about him before this past week, I used to be so mad, thinking of our past and what he put me through? How do I tell him that I had the hardest time moving on, that saying good-bye to him when he wasn’t even decent enough to tell me to my face that he no longer wanted to be with me was one of the worst things I’d ever had to go through in my life. Or would it even matter for me to tell him any of this? Would he even care? I mean, the past is the past, right, and up until a few days ago, I didn’t even want to be around him.
But now?
“Lexi, you okay?” he asks, interrupting my thoughts.
“Yeah, yeah. I’m fine.”
He smiles. “Good because our day hasn’t even really gotten started yet. Finish up and then we can go onto our next adventure.”
“Next adventure?”
He winks and then nods again. He wipes his mouth with a napkin and takes a sip from his cup. Then he says, “That’s right. I think you’re really going to love this one.
I’ve already loved everything he’s done for me so far. I can’t wait to see what he’s got planned next for me.
Half an hour later, we find ourselves back on Kalen’s ship out on the sea. Although he did say we are going to be sticking around here for the rest of the
day, this is where he’s brought me to prepare for the next surprise.
Yeah, prepare. That was the word he used. My mind can’t help but wonder what in the world he’s up to right about now.
“Okay, Lexi. Are you ready?” he asks me after a few more moments.
“It depends,” I respond.
“Depends?”
I shrug. “You wanted me to prepare myself for something. I’m not sure I’m ready for whatever that may be.”
He laughs lightly and the sound of it sends my heart flying. “Oh, silly, beautiful girl.”
The words momentarily bring me back to the past when he used to call me by that exact phrase. Thankfully, he continues talking, and I don’t get to dwell on it much.
“Don’t worry. It’s going to be fine. But we needed to come back here to change.”
“Change?” I have to change out of these comfortable clothes? But it’s not even nighttime yet to wear the evening outfit he had picked out for me.
He places one of his hands at his side. “Let me explain. Remember how when you found the box with the clothing in the bathroom, there was only a morning and evening ensemble?”
I nod. Yeah, and that note…
“Remember how there was a message in between those outfits saying an afternoon outfit wouldn’t be necessary?
Again, I nod. Because I’m too stupid to say anything right now. I just picture myself slowly peeling off my clothing in front of Kalen downstairs in the lower level of his ship.
“Well, that’s because I need you to change into your swimsuit. I didn’t pick one out for you because it would have given away my next plan… you would have known it had to do with water. You did pack one, right? If not, we can pick something up at one of the stores offshore.”
His words pull me out of my thoughts faster than the speed of light. “Uh-huh, I’ve got one.”
He smiles. “Good, so go on and change, beautiful, and then we can get to the next thing on our list.”
I turn on my heels and head downstairs to change. Guess this is going to be an interesting afternoon.