“I like how you keep the ladies off.”
“I keep them off you, but who keeps you off me?”
His grin tipped then. “That's the challenge.”
She slowed, looked at him then. At the big man strapped with a front carrypack, holding her dog. Quigley had fallen asleep. His head lolled to the side. His tongue hung out. One back paw twitched, as if he was chasing rabbits.
Halo held her gaze. He was a hard man to resist. But she had to think about her business. She had ten months to prove herself. To pay back every cent he gave her.
She shared her upcoming weeks with him. “I already have a floor plan. I've arranged the pieces in my mind. I'll hire a moving company, and open The Shy Lily in April.”
“You're going to be busy.”
“So are you. I saw the schedule for upcoming games. You play more away games than at home. You won't have time to miss me.”
“Maybe not you, but Quiggie Sparks.”
She stopped, rose up on tiptoe, and kissed him. A nice, sound kiss. Not an easy feat with Quigs between them. The pug cracked his eyes, yawned, and zonked back out.
Alyn stroked her dog's head. “Quigley's had a long day.”
“It's not even noon,” he commented, as they walked on. “Let's hit the beach this afternoon. Danny wants to build a sand castle. The ice cream pontoon cruises offshore on Sundays. Near the sandbar. We'll wrap Danny's cast so it doesn't get wet. It's fun to swim out for cones. I've yet to see you in a swimsuit.”
His mention of her swimsuit made her blush. No string or thong bikini, but it was break-out for her. It showed a lot of skin. She'd wanted to return to Richmond with a tan.
Halo drove them back to Barefoot Inn. Unloaded Quigley and his cart. Then left them for an hour so they could get ready for the beach. Her mother begged off, offering to pet sit Quigs. Alyn settled him on the dog bed. His soft snores made her sleepy. The room had a Mr. Coffee, and she brewed a pot. Drank two cups, and was wide-eyed when Halo returned.
The afternoon stretched sunny and warm, but not too hot. Tourists crowded the beach. Multicolored loungers and low sand chairs pressed together. Some sun worshippers preferred to lie on towels. They'd borrowed loungers from the inn, then purchased a sand castle building kit at Crabby Abby's General Store on the boardwalk. They located space near the turquoise lifeguard tower. The station would provide shade later in the day as the sun shifted. They would avoid sunburns.
Halo had wrapped Danny's cast in a small garbage bag covered with cellophane. A full roll. Leaving his fingers free. Her brother had freedom to play in the sand and salt water. He hated putting on sunscreen. So Alyn made him wear his white T-shirt. His swim trunks were baggy, hanging below his knees. Her brother was pretty well covered.
Danny bee-lined for the shore, seeking moist, compact sand. He opened his kit and, using a small shovel, began digging and piling sand. He was out to construct a baseball stadium. One that seated eighty thousand fans. He had a lot of building before nightfall.
“So . . .” Halo said, side-eyeing her, as he arranged the vinyl loungers. They hadn't had lunch, and he'd thoughtfully brought a cooler, filled with sandwiches, fruit, and soft drinks. Danny had peeked. Dessert would be an ice cream cone from the pontoon.
“So . . . what?” Alyn returned, knowing full well what he meant, but not admitting to it.
“You going to wear the cover-up all afternoon?”
Possibly. “We just got here.”
“I'm waiting.”
The man was insufferable. “You first.”
He wore a gray T-shirt captioned with
I'm Not an Example, I Come with a Warning Label,
over black board shorts. “Fine,” he said. He grabbed the hem, and drew the shirt over his shoulders and head. His hair got mussed, all sexy in his eyes.
She admired his chest, massive and muscled. His arms were strong. Black board shorts rode low on his hips. His abdomen was defined. His legs long, sinewed. She heard a woman sigh, close by, and realized Halo was drawing attention. Who wouldn't want to look at him? He was athletic perfection.
“Your turn.” His green eyes flashed as wickedly as his dimples.
Alyn fiddled with her scrunchie, tightening her ponytail. She next fingered the top button on her purple-and-white maxi. The top was ruched and it had high slits on the sides. One button down, and she went for the second, until all were undone to her waist. She shouldered off the cover-up, let it fall, exposing her lavender crop halter top and high-cut bikini bottoms. A modest suit by Halo's standards. She braved his stare.
He gave her the once-over. The twice-over. His gaze heated, appreciative. His breathing deepened. His hands fisted at his sides, as he fought touching her. Her whole body blushed.
“You're hot,” he finally said, his voice husky.
She'd never considered herself hot. Not even on her best days, which were few and far between. Despite his exaggeration, she appreciated the flattery. A fiancé should be kind.
She scooped up her beach bag, and located the suntan oil. Lowering herself on a lounger, she uncapped Hawaiian Hibiscus. Halo made his move. Unclenching his hands, he said, “Let me.”
“I'm doing my front.”
“I'm good with fronts.”
She'd bet he was. “You can do my shoulders. I'll do the rest.”
He hunkered beside her, and she passed him the bottle. He slickened his hands. She closed her eyes. He oiled her. Shoulders, arms, across her breastbone. His fingertips played along the edges of her halter top. Over, under, at the sides, applying to skin not exposed to the sun. Her nipples puckered. Her stomach softened. Sighing, she went lax. Lost to their surroundings, and the fact she lay in full view of the lifeguards and other beachgoers.
“All covered,” Halo soon determined, squeezing her hip.
Covered?
She blinked, lifted her head, and stared down her body. Shoulders to toes, he'd finished the task. Even her inner thighs glistened. His smile came, slow and sexy. Satisfied.
Danny took that moment to flag Halo down. “Come help me!” he shouted from water's edge.
“Be right there,” Halo called back. He put on his Bulgari wrap-around sunglasses. “We need to move the stadium to higher ground. Otherwise, high tide's going to take the outfield.”
Alyn watched as they moved up the beach. Closer to her. It didn't surprise her that Halo drew a crowd. A rather large gathering. He was fine to look at, and his sand castle skills were superb. Men dropped down, offered to help. Women stood back, eyed his tight ass and flexing muscles.
Her fiancé
, Alyn thought. It was fun to pretend he belonged to her, for the moment. He looked up often, raised an eyebrow, grinned, and waved. He tightened their bond. Publicly.
Danny sent Halo to get him a sandwich while he stood guard over the stadium. No one packed a grain of sand without Danny's permission. Halo had made that clear from the start. The boy was in charge. And loving it.
Halo opened the iced cooler. “Peanut butter and jelly, ham and cheese, or chicken salad?” he asked Alyn, giving her first choice.
“Chicken salad,” sounded good.
“Pear, orange, or apple?”
“Pear.”
“Iced tea, root beer, or grape?”
“Iced tea.”
He gathered the remaining food and drinks and turned back to the sand stadium. “How's it coming?” she asked him, unable to fully view their project through all the people.
“We're at twenty thousand seats,” he replied tongue-in-cheek.
They had a ways to go. She ate her lunch, read a book, and closed her eyes. Slept. For how long, she wasn't sure. A kiss wakened her. A man's mouth, firm warm lips and coaxing tongue.
Halo
. She'd recognize his kiss anywhere. Delicious.
“Ice cream, sis,” she heard her brother call. “The pontoon's floating off-shore. Let's swim out.”
Halo eased back. “You want to join us? Danny picked two people to guard the stadium while we take a break. We're good to get a cone or sundae. Fudgsicles.”
Alyn sat up, squinted against the sun. The bright pink pontoon had anchored, and was easily accessible by a ladder, on the far side of the sandbar. The water didn't appear too deep. Halo could walk right to it. She and Danny would have to swim a short distance.
“Money?” she asked him. “Won't it get wet?”
He patted the pocket on his board shorts. “Waterproof.”
He took her hand, and tugged her off the lounger. She brushed his side as they walked across the sand. He traced a finger over her shoulder and down her side. “I like my woman warm and slick.”
Her skin was hot. The suntan oil slippery. The Gulf was pale blue and welcomingly cool. Danny went ahead of them. Bobbing in the water, until he couldn't touch the floor anymore. He paddled in a circle, splashing wildly, until Halo hauled him in.
“Hop on,” Halo told her brother, bending slightly, and offering a piggyback ride. Danny climbed on.
Alyn lost her footing as the water deepened. She swam the breaststroke the remainder of the way.
Halo placed Danny on the sandbar. Her brother climbed the ladder onto the pontoon. Halo then took Alyn's hand and nudged her ahead of him. She was three rungs up the ladder when her foot slipped. She tipped sideways. Halo had her back, but could barely catch her. She was oily. His palm skimmed down her spine and slid inside her bikini bottom. His long, callused fingers cupped her bare ass. Fortunately, there was no one behind them.
“Sweet cheeks,” he said, tightening his grip. Right before he squeezed. She nearly came out of her skin. He chuckled. Removing his hand, he patted her butt. Then gave her a solid push onboard.
Danny had gotten in line. The cabin served as a snack bar. There were outside tables on the main platform. “Banana split,” he ordered at the window.
Alyn went with a Creamsicle. Halo had a Chipwich. They sat out on the covered deck and ate. Her brother's eyes were bigger than his stomach. Halo helped him finish the three scoops, banana, and toppings.
Danny burped, and Alyn raised an eyebrow. He remembered his manners. “Sorry.” Pausing, “Burping's better thanâ”
She cut him off, knowing what he was about to say. “Neither one in public.”
Halo sided with Danny. “Sometimes a man has to do what a man has to do.”
Her brother found that inordinately funny. He started to laugh and couldn't stop. He clutched his stomach. “I like you, Halo. You're like aâ” He gasped, unable to fully catch his breath.
A what? Alyn thought. Like a father? A brother? To him.
“My best friend,” he finally managed.
Halo gave him a fist bump. “I'm there with you, buddy.”
“Do you like me as much as Landon?”
“Landon is my adult best friend. You're my under ten.”
Danny nodded, accepting Halo's answer. “What's Alyn to you, then?”
“My fiancée.”
“Not for real.”
Halo looked Alyn in the eye. “Reality is relative at any given moment. Your sister and I are together now. No telling what the future will bring.”
Danny puzzled over his words. “So the future could bring something good? Like gifts at Christmas?”
Christmas was guaranteed, Alyn thought. Halo and she had a ten-month deal. She didn't want to disappoint her brother, so she said, “We'll see how it all shakes out, sweetie.”
“I hope it shakes good.”
She had started to cross her fingers, too, in hopes she and Halo might move beyond their business arrangement and have an actual relationship. Sex would figure into their equation. She wasn't quite ready for him, but soon. Making love to the man would be a life-altering experience. She would not deny herself. No matter the consequences.
Her previous boyfriend had hurt her. Halo's eventual departure would break her heart. But sometimes pain was worth it. When she had his memory to last her a lifetime.
The dolphin-shaped clock on the cabin wall claimed late afternoon. The air had cooled. A breeze rippled the water. The day had caught up with Danny. He leaned against her, his head drooping.
“I'll piggyback him to the beach,” said Halo, rising. He cleared the plastic dessert dish; tossed it in recyclable trash. Then he prodded Danny. “Let's go, dude.”
“I'm too tired to climb down the ladder.”
Halo offered an alternative. “I could always toss you over the side.”
Her brother made it down the ladder in record time.
Halo went ahead of Alyn, in case she slipped again. “Careful,” he told her, as he cupped her left butt cheek until they reached the sandbar. She wiggled away the second her feet touched sandy reef. Then tugged down her swimsuit bottom, which had gotten pushed high on her tush. She showed a lot of cheek. Both sides.
She eyed him. “Really?”
“I had your back.”
And her butt. His grin was pure sin. Her breath caught just looking at him. She needed to cool off. She dove into the water, headed for shore. She was a fairly strong swimmer, but not as strong as Halo, even with Danny on his back. A powerful free-stylist, Halo sliced through the water. They passed her halfway to shore. Danny's laughter echoed in their wake.
Shallow water landed them both on their feet. That's when Halo initiated a foot race. Knees high, she stomped more than ran, quickly lagging behind.
Halo got Danny to land, then returned for her. There was more in his expression than lending a helpful hand. She swatted water at him, discouragingly. It didn't faze him in the least. He was twice her size, and shadowed her from the shoreline.