Affair on the Beach

Chapter 9

Hands on hips, I stared perplexed at the green shawl and loop earrings I’d set on my bed for what seemed like hours. What I thought would be an afternoon of leisurely shopping turned out to be Xavier rushing me home. When I asked him why he felt the need to bring me home right away, he gave me a noncommittal answer about having to take care of something. The fool underestimated my intelligence and that was what annoyed me for the most part. It was obvious his agitation had something to do with Zander’s unexpected arrival in Maverick Bay. From his typical surfer attire, it didn’t take a degree to understand that he was participating in the Invitational this coming weekend. But what worried me most was Xavier’s confession of Zander wanting him dead. Forget the fact that Zander was a merman too.

I sighed and massaged the knot the coming together of my eyebrows created on my forehead. If Xavier thought I would come running to him for answers to whatever it was happening between him and Zander, he was so wrong. I wasn’t the heroine type. I wasn’t always in the need-to-know mind set. I asked questions, yes, but I didn’t insist on answers.

The sun had set the entire time I stood by my bed staring at Xavier’s purchases. I realized there was no point, so I scooped them up and deposited them inside the closet. Not knowing what else to do to pass the time before dinner, I picked up the next book on my stack by the bed and settled myself on the lounge chair on my private deck. I opened to the first page and began reading. But soon, after reading the first sentence five times, I knew I wasn’t slipping into my bookworm mode.

I stared out at the beach remembering the fantastic morning I had on top of a surfboard with Xavier holding on to me. I shivered. The feel of his hands on my waist was divine. I quickly shook away the thought and for the sixth time tried to enter the world the book in my hands offered me to escape into. Five minutes later, a tick surfaced at the corner of my eye and my hands were shaking like I’d gulped down way too many cups of coffee. My heart was beating so hard in my chest I thought I was having an episode. So, I put the book down, stood up, and paced the entire length of the deck. Where did all my excess energy come from? I shook my hands to dispense some of the pent up energy zipping through me.

Still feeling worked up after about ten minutes of pacing, I left my room in search of Rony. I heard her come home an hour after I’d arrived. I found her lounging on the deck attached to the living room. She had an ice tea in one hand and was flipping through a magazine with the other.

I sat down on the chair beside hers and thanked Carmela—who appeared out of nowhere—after handing me my own glass of iced tea. She smiled at me before disappearing back into the house to do housekeeper things.

“You’re home early,” Rony said, scanning a page with the title Best Swimsuits for Every Body Type. “Do you think I could get away with this?” She pointed at a suit that was more string and less fabric.

I took a sip of my tea and sighed my appreciation. Lemon with a hint of mint. Not too sweet and went down smoothly. I officially loved Carmela. “You can get away with anything, Rony,” I said. “You have the body for anything.”

“Yeah,” she admitted without arrogance. “But don’t you think this is too revealing?”

“Well, if you feel that way, just imagine Hudson’s reaction when he sees you in it.”

Rony considered my statement and a naughty smile pulled her lips up. “He would be completely shocked. I’ll buy it online tonight!”

I shook my head. “Why do I get the feeling that you live to make your brother miserable?”

She harrumphed. “You don’t understand, TW, since you’re an only child. Having a brother is a pain in the ass, especially when he’s as bossy as Hudson. He’s really milking the two minutes he has on me. Two. Minutes.”

I giggled at Rony’s horrified expression. “I read somewhere that for twins, a gap of two minutes could mean an eternity,” I teased and was rewarded with a scowl, which sent my giggles into full on laugher. God, it was so good to laugh. Trust Rony to make me feel better without even knowing it.

She flipped the page to The Best Make Up for the Summer and said, “Why are you back? I expected you to be out and about with Xavier for hours yet. And knowing him, he would have taken you to dinner at least.”

And just like that, my mood plummeted to where I started. An anxious knot twisted in my stomach. “I guess you don’t know him the way you think you do.” I stopped myself for saying anything more, shocked at how bitter my voice sounded.

Rony closed her magazine and twisted so she sat facing me on the lounge chair. “What happened?”

“Something came up.” I shrugged, using Xavier’s clichéd excuse. I couldn’t even count how many times I’d encountered that excuse in romance novels. It always meant the hero was up to something he didn’t want the heroine to know about. It frustrated me reading it and it frustrated me now in real life. I set my glass aside and crossed my arms.

“You sound annoyed about it.”

“Smart assumption,” I snapped.

Rony’s brows lifted. “Wow! You’re taking this harder than I thought you would. What happened to not having feelings attached to what you and Xavier have or don’t have?”

“Too early to tell,” she added at my questioning glare.

My shoulders slumped forward when I sighed my mounting annoyance away. I reminded myself to focus on the facts. “We were shopping at the market. He’d just bought me these really cute loop earrings—”

“He bought you earrings?” Rony looked shocked and surprised at the same time. “And you let him?”

I shrugged again. “I’m not uncomfortable having him buy me earrings, Rony. They were fifteen dollar earrings, no biggie. And it seemed rude not to accept them.” I waved my hand in front of her smug expression. “Anyway, that isn’t the point. Our afternoon went downhill after this guy arrived.”

Rony’s features turned serious. “What guy?”

“You should know him, Zander Bartholomew.”

And just like Xavier, Rony paled. “Zander’s here?” she whispered so low, I had to strain to hear her.

“Why do I get the feeling this guy is bad news?”

She shook her head as if to snap out of something then said, “In your romance novels, there are always villains right?”

I rubbed my chin. “Not always, but yeah, sometimes.”

“Well, Zander is the villain in this story.”

“This is not a romance novel, Rony.”

“Might as well be,” she said under her breath.

I tilted my head at her sceptically. “What are you saying?”

Rony used all ten of her fingers to scratch her head. I suspect she wasn’t really itchy, more like annoyed as hell. “Zander is bad news. That’s all you need to know.”

“Fine.” I was about to let it go anyway. “That’s why I came home early. After we ran into Zander, Xavier said he had something he had to do.” I rolled my eyes. “Total cliché, if you ask me.”

“Maybe he did have something he had to take care of?”

“Of course you would defend him.”

“I’m not. I’m just giving him the benefit of the doubt, TW. You know what ‘benefit of the doubt’ means right?”

My scowl returned. “Don’t talk down to me, Veronika Flynn. I slapped you once this week already and I don’t want a repeat.”

She sat back against her lounge chair and exhaled dramatically. “Hudson wouldn’t like it if he found us rolling around on this deck for Cat Fight part duex.”

“You got that right.” I leaned back on my chair too and covered my eyes with my arm. “So, I tried reading—”

“No, you didn’t!”

I almost laughed at Rony’s gasp, but I wasn’t in the laughing mood anymore. “I said I tried. Anyway, I failed.”

“Tamara Winters failing to get into a book? This from the girl who read through graduation?”

I could hear the genuine surprise in Rony’s voice. It made me smile a little. “Call the government, the world is ending.”

“I wouldn’t go that far.”

I lowered my arm and turned my head to frown at her.

“What?” She shrugged. “So you couldn’t read, why are you here?”

My frown shifted to a sheepish smile. I wasn’t even sure why I was asking her this, but I went with my gut. “Can we go out tonight? You know, like to a bar or something? Assuming there’s one in Maverick Bay.”

My words had Rony off her seat and jumping around the deck like she’d just won a massive shopping spree. It was amusing to watch. She grabbed my hand and squeezed it with both of hers.

“Are you serious?” she asked.

She had such a happy expression, I didn’t have the heart to back out the moment I realized I wasn’t serious. But since I couldn’t read and I was feeling all this excess energy, going out and doing something was the next best thing. Ah, why did reading have to abandon me now of all times? Bookworm Tamara had left the building.

I nodded when she waited for a response to her question.

She squealed, clapping her hands and jumping at the same time. “Get dressed. I know just where to go,” she said, already running into the house, at which I assumed was to get ready.

Taking my iced tea with me, I pulled myself out of the comfortable lounge chair and headed for my room. I went straight for the closet to pick out what to wear. I stared at the clothes. Since I didn’t know where we were going, I opted for jeans from the clothes I brought with me and a sequined top hanging with the multitude of blouses Rony bought for me. Then I picked out metallic pumps with six inch heels. I tried them on, and of course, they fit like she had measured my feet in my sleep. Every time I scanned through the clothes, I had to shake my head. She went above and beyond for me and I wasn’t about to feel ungrateful for it.

Outfit picked out, I got into the shower.

Once dried and smelling of jasmine, I shrugged on a fluffy robe and wrapped my hair in a towel to dry. I sat in front of the vanity. I kept my makeup simple by applying some concealer on my problem areas then set it with powder. A little eye shadow, mascara, and gloss followed. I smacked my lips together and admired my handy work. Nodding, I stood and got dressed. Maybe going out wasn’t such a bad idea after all. The bonfire wasn’t half bad before Xavier came along. Since he “had something to do” I didn’t expect to encounter him that night. I smiled at the possibility of a Xavier-free night.

I was piling my hair on top of my head and securing the strands with bobby pins when Rony sashayed into my room in the shortest black dress I’d ever seen. The spark in her eyes galvanized my feelings of letting go of the drama and just enjoying myself.

Rony twirled in a tight circle and said, “You like?”

I pushed in the last of the bobby pins and smacked my lips again to fully set my gloss. “Aren’t you afraid you’re baring your soul for all to see in that thing?”

“Lighten up, TW. The dress is awesome, admit it.”

I rolled my eyes. “If I went for girls, I’d do you. Is that what you wanted to hear?”

She smiled brightly. “Good enough for me.”

I shook my head. Gotta hand it to Rony to roll with the punches.

“Come on.” She headed for my door.

“Bossy.” I picked up the clutch that I found in the closet. I definitely had to go exploring in that thing. Every time I needed something, it was like it magically appeared for me.

“You look sexy, by the way.” Rony wiggled her eyebrows at me. “Planning to catch the attention of some of the locals to make Xavier jealous?”

I pushed her gently out of my room toward the front door. “There will be no making anyone jealous tonight, Rony. I just want to go out to let off some excess energy, that’s all.”

“If you say so.” She shimmied her hips. “We’re going dancing.”

My eyebrow arched of its own accord. “Where are we going dancing in Maverick Bay?”

“Pete’s Bar, where else?”

Apparently, according to the neon sign I stared at a couple of blocks away from Hudson’s house, Pete’s Bar promised all night entertainment. On the walk over, Rony got progressively giddier. If I only knew asking her to go out was one way to make her super happy, I would have done it more often. Would have saved me lots of money on birthday presents. Seeing that I wasn’t about to make a move from where I stood, Rony took my hand and pulled me into Pete’s.

Almost immediately, the smell of beer and peanuts assaulted my nose. Rock music pumped from somewhere within the large room that had standing room tables. The crowd was varied, most of them the same partygoers I’d seen attending the bonfire. A group of women were downing tequila shots, already half sauced. Guys lined the bar nursing beers. Several couples were on the dance floor, which faced a stage with a band. That was where the rock music was coming from. They were pretty good. I bobbed my head to their beats.

Rony led me to a vacant table and waved over a waitress in a white T-shirt and leather pants that hugged her hips. She smiled at the both of us and asked for our drink order.

“We’ll both have pina coladas and a basket of fries,” Rony said over the loud music. She looked at me for confirmation and I raised two thumbs at her. The waitress smiled and turned to place our orders at the crowded bar.

Rony was already dancing to the music, and by the next song, I found myself dancing along with her. By our third round of drinks, we were near the stages hooting at the band. The lead singer had eyes for Rony, and when they started an up tempo song, she treated him to her patented I-will-bring-you-home-with-me gyrating.

Ignoring her putting on the moves, I finished my drink and lost myself in my own dancing world. I swayed my hips and moved my body in time with the music the band produced. The alcohol loosened my limbs, taking me to a trance like state on the dance floor. I closed my eyes and let the music take me where it wanted. I felt so light, so free. Not worrying about anything. It was just me and the music.

Soon, a pair of hands held on to my hips and pulled me toward a solid chest. Too far gone into my trance, I raised my hands to hook them behind the neck of whoever was holding me and swaying me in time to a super sexy rhythm. I rested the back of my head on a solid shoulder as the hands on my hips moved to spay themselves on my stomach, taking me on a grind that sent a blush rushing up my face.

“Yes, move for me, baby,” a deep voice I recognized but couldn’t quite recall where I’d heard whispered into my ear.

I moaned, overwhelmed by the pleasure the stranger’s words tickled in me.

Suddenly, another pair of hands grabbed my arms, pulling me away from whoever I was dancing with. I opened my eyes to protest the ending of the sexy dance, but when I recognized who held me now, my mouth opened without words coming out.

Xavier.

He had a wild look in his eyes before he ushered me behind him as if he were protecting me from something. My head was too fuzzy to keep up with what was happening. I lifted my hand to my forehead in an effort to stop the spinning room.

“I told you not to touch her,” Xavier growled.

“She didn’t seem adverse to my attentions,” the stranger said.

I opened eyes I hadn’t thought I’d closed until that moment to watch what was happening. Before us stood Zander, smirking like he’d just shoplifted and wasn’t caught. He wore black jeans and a plain T-shirt that clung to his chest. I moved my gaze to Xavier, who still wore the clothes he had on when we went to the summer market. My eyes widened. Despite the murder in his eyes aimed at Zander, he looked just as delicious as when he’d left me at Hudson’s front door that afternoon. I felt an irrational urge to kiss him.

Before I could act on the impulse, Rony was between the guys with her hands on each of their muscular chests. “Okay boys,” she said. “We wouldn’t want Pete to kick us out for fighting now, would we?”

Xavier backed out of her touch, causing me to move back a step as well, while Zander covered Rony’s hand with his own.

“I would welcome your company, Rony.” He grinned at her. “It’s been a long time.”

Rony pulled her hand away from his touch and slapped him hard. The sound of which caused the rest of the bar to grow silent. All eyes were on the potential fight about to break out. Rony’s slap was so hard, it half sobered me. I blinked at her, wide-eyed.

“Xavier, take Tamara home,” Rony said without taking her eyes off Zander.

“Are you sure?” Xavier asked.

“I’ll be fine.”

Not waiting any longer than he had to, Xavier took my hand and pulled me out of Pete’s.

The cool night air sobered me even more. I tugged at his hand until he let me go and we stopped in the middle of the sidewalk.

“We can’t just leave Rony with that guy,” I said.

Xavier ran his hand through his hair until he was scratching the back of his head, uncertainty in his eyes. “Rony will be fine.”

I crossed my hands over my chest and stood my ground. “How are you so sure?”

“Because Zander would never lay a hand on her,” he said slowly.

“And why’s that?”

Xavier looked away from my stare as if he was embarrassed by what he was about to say. “Because they used to date. There, happy now?”

The information flew over my head like a bird. “Excuse me?”

Xavier exhaled, seeming more agitated now than when he was in a standoff with Zander inside Pete’s. “Rony’s going to kill me for telling you this, but you might as well know. A couple of years back, she and Zander dated. The short of it is that it ended badly. Casualties on both sides. Now, can we go?” He reached his hand out for me.

I studied the lines of his palm while I tried to make sense of what he’d just said. I never knew Rony dated anyone. Heck, I knew her more as the queen of the one night stand than anything else.

“She never told me,” I whispered.

“Maybe she had her reasons.”

I suddenly felt lonely for some reason. My friend since college might as well be a stranger to me, and no one was more at fault than me. I was too caught up in reading my books that I didn’t pay enough attention to what was going on with Rony. What could she have been through when she’d broken up with Zander? Was she heartbroken? Surely she was to slap him without provocation.

I took Xavier’s hand, and without resistance, allowed him to take me home.

“This was a couple years back?” I asked, staring at the center of Xavier’s back.

“Just about.”

I immediately thought back to a couple of years. I was in my historical romance phase then. Did Rony ever come to me to talk about a boyfriend? I frowned. I could remember every book, every story I had read during that time, but I didn’t remember Rony ever telling me she was dating someone, much less that she broke up with him.

“I’m a horrible friend,” I said, tears pricking my eyes.

Xavier stopped again and faced me. “Tamara?”

The second he said my name, the tears I was holding in fell. I was in his arms before the first tear reached my chin. He had one arm around my waist while his free hand cradled my head on his shoulder.

“Don’t cry, Tamara,” he said in such a soothing voice that if I wasn’t in distress, I would have shivered from it. “Please don’t cry.”

I shook my head, wiping my tears on his shirt. “I should have been more attentive as a friend. I was too wrapped up in my reading that I didn’t even know that she dated a guy like Zander, much less that they broke up.”

Xavier moved his hand from my head to my back, rubbing circles over my tight muscles. “Don’t take it personally, Tamara. Rony is still your friend today despite you not knowing about her past relationship with Zander. That has to count for something.”

I sniffed. “But I should have been there for her.”

“I understand, baby. I understand. I’m sure you can apologize to Rony tomorrow.”

Xavier rocked me in his arms until I was reduced to a hiccupping mess. I pushed back a little so I could raise my fists to my eyes and rub away the tears. Xavier covered my fists with his hands and tugged them down.

He looked into my eyes and said, “Not that way. You’ll end up with wrinkles before you’re forty.” He dried the last of my tears with the pads of his thumbs.

I gasped at his tender touch. My heart sputtered in my chest, and a blush spread across my cheeks. “How do you know I would be giving myself wrinkles that way?” I asked out of the blue, my voice sounding smaller than I intended it to.

Xavier smiled kindly at me. “It’s what my mother always says when my sister rubs away her tears with her fists.”

“You have a sister.”

He nodded once, his smile never wavering.

I stared up at him, taking in the lines of his handsome face. “Why are you being so nice to me?”

His blue gaze gentled even more. “Why shouldn’t I be?”

“Don’t answer my question with a question.” I frowned, returning his words to him.

He chuckled then he sobered, caressing my tearstained cheek with the backs of his knuckles. “It breaks my heart seeing you in tears, Tamara,” he said.

I gasped at the sweetness of his words. No one had ever been so sweet to me before. Xavier tipped my chin up with his thumb while his hand cupped my cheek and kissed my forehead. I inhaled sharply at how soft his lips felt on my skin. I grasped his wrist, closing my eyes as warmth and a deep sense of comfort spread through me. It was a wonderful feeling, one that I liked better than the heart thumping lust being with Xavier on any other occasion caused. He moved his lips to my temple and planted a kiss there then he moved to the tip of my nose. When he reached my lips, he first kissed the right corner then the left then the top of my lips and then below like each corner was a compass point.

“Will you come home with me, Tamara?” he whispered on my lips.