AlwaysYou (3 page)

“You like it spicy?” the girl asked, her eyes not leaving
his.

Shari felt instantly annoyed at the woman.
What if he
were here with me?
Wait, he is here with me.
Who is this bitch to flirt with
him so openly?

“The hotter the better.” He threw the counter girl his
winning smile.

Did she actually just wink at him?
Shari felt her
nostrils flare as she headed to the other end of the counter to wait for their
coffees.

Jon noticed the pissed-off look on Shari’s face the moment
they sat down.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, handing her two sugar packets from the
white box on the table.

She tapped the small bags against her finger then ripped
them open, dumping the contents into her coffee.
“I can’t believe she flirted
with you like that.”

Jon’s eyebrows popped up.
“Why not?
Is it so hard to imagine
a woman being attracted to me?”

Shari’s mouth twisted into a grimace as she poked at her ice
cubes with a straw.
“What?
No.
But how did she know I wasn’t your girlfriend or
your wife for that matter?
I was standing right there.”

Is she jealous?
He couldn’t keep the smile from
creeping across his face.
“Maybe she just couldn’t control herself.” Shari’s
brow furrowed further and he laughed.
“She was probably just hoping I’d toss
some extra coins in the tip jar.
What’s gotten into you?”

“Nothing.” She took a sip of her coffee and reached for a
third sugar packet.

The thought of her being jealous gave him a renewed sense of
hope.
Maybe she was finally starting to look at him differently.
Maybe.
His chest
tightened as he thought about taking her hand.
Her phone buzzed and she pulled
it out of her purse.
A dark shadow passed across her features.
She looked up at
him, eyes round.
“It’s Phil.”

He wanted to tell her not to get it, to ignore him, to
pretend she didn’t get the call, but before he could say anything he saw her
slide open her phone.
“Hi.” Her voice was so quiet he could barely hear her and
he was right across the table.

Jon’s leg bobbed up and down as he stirred his coffee,
attempting to guess how the conversation was going.
Shari had pulled away from
the table and had her head down, shoulders slumped, as if she were trying to
disappear.

The waitress brought their food.

“Is there anything else you’d like?” she asked, an expectant
look in her eyes.

Jon just wanted her to go away so he could hear what Shari
was saying.
“No, thank you.” He leaned closer, pretending to be interested in
his fries but straining to hear her soft voice.

“Fine.
Okay.
Whatever.
I should have known.” She slid the
phone closed without looking up and slipped it back into her bag.

Jon’s heart was pounding.
He reached across the table and
touched her arm.
“You all right?” She raised her eyes and he saw that they were
full of tears.
His stomach turned inside out.
“What’d the asshole have to say?”

She took a deep breath and shuddered as she blew it out.
“He
thanked me.
Said I’d saved him the trouble of a costly divorce a few years down
the road.”

Fucking bastard.
Jon’s jaw ached.
“It’s his loss, you
know.
He’s never going to find anyone better than you.”
That woman doesn’t
exist.

“He already has.
He’s back with Tina.” Tears slid down both
her cheeks.

Jon reached over and swiped them away with his thumb.
He
didn’t know what to say.

Shari sniffled and wiped her nose on her napkin.
“He didn’t
skip a beat.
He’s already moved on.
He doesn’t want me.”

“Do you want him?” Jon’s heart beat unevenly as he awaited
her answer.

“No,” she said.
Her voice was stronger, adamant.
“But he
could have had the decency to at least be upset.”

Jon felt his shoulders relax.
“You can do so much better
than Phil.
Trust me.”

“We’ll see.”

He hoped to show her, the sooner the better.

Shari poked at her salad.
Her appetite had disappeared the
moment she saw Phil’s name on caller ID.
The conversation left her nauseous.
He
didn’t even have the decency to be pissed-off that she’d deserted him.
She
wondered if he’d fucked Tina right there at the church while still wearing his
wedding tux.
It wouldn’t surprise her.
Jon’s words echoed in her head.
“You can
do so much better.” She hoped he was right.

Jon devoured his sandwich.
She watched as he chewed, the
muscles contracting around his chiseled jawline, his long fingers plucking
sweet potato fries off his plate.

“Want one?” he said, holding a fry out for her.

She shook her head.

“They’re really good.” He wagged it temptingly close to her
face.

She opened her mouth.
His eyes darkened as he slipped it
between her lips.
The combination of sweet and salty against her tongue tasted
delicious.
He withdrew his hand, looking flustered.
“Help yourself if you want
more.”

She snuck a second off his plate as he took an enormous bite
of his sandwich.
Two red spots appeared high on his cheekbones.
Is he
blushing?
“What do you want to do tonight?” she asked.

The red patches spread across his cheeks.
“You wanna have
dinner at that place down by the beach?”

“Sure.
It looked great.”

“Cool.
I think I’ll go for a swim when we get back to the
hotel.
This heat’s a bit much for me.”

That explains the flushing.
She couldn’t help feeling
disappointed.
She’d hoped maybe he was reacting to being with her.
Because
I’m so attractive right now.
Sniveling into my napkin and crying over another
guy.
I’m sure he can barely keep his hands off me.
He looked distracted.
She knew it was every guy’s least favorite question but she asked it anyway.
“What are you thinking?”

“That I’d like to kick the crap out of Phil for hurting
you.”

Jon had never made a secret of the fact that he hated Phil,
but she’d never heard him talk like that before.
The conviction in his voice
made her stomach flutter.
It was passionate and more than a little sexy.
“Thanks.”

His eyes met hers.
“I’d do it, you know.
It kills me that
he’s hurt you.”

She reached out and curled her fingers around his hand.
“I
don’t know what I’d do without you.”

He rubbed his thumb against her wrist.
“Well, that’s one
thing you don’t need to worry about.”

Chapter Three

Jon dove into the deep end and swam along the bottom of the
pool.
The cool water was a welcome relief, quieting the heat in his body and
the noise in his head.
He exhaled slowly as he made his way back to the
surface.
Between his seething anger toward Phil and his ever-expanding
attraction to Shari, he felt as if he was about to boil over in every possible
way.

He swam laps until he felt calmer, then floated on his back,
slicking his hair off his face.
The sun was starting to set but still glared
brightly enough that he couldn’t make out which balcony was theirs.
He shielded
his eyes as he counted windows.
There she was.
Stretched out on the lounge
chair.
He wondered if she was still in her bathing suit or if she’d already
changed for dinner.

The pool attendant handed him a towel as he climbed out of
the water.
Shari had certainly picked a fantastic resort.
Jon was glad Phil
wasn’t going to get to enjoy a minute of it.
He quickly toweled off and made
his way to the concierge desk.

“Can I help you, sir?” the gentleman asked as soon as he saw
Jon standing there.

“Yes, could you arrange for a delivery to room 614 while
we’re at dinner tonight?”

“Certainly, sir.
What would you like?” He handed Jon a menu.

Jon ran his finger down the list, wondering what Shari would
enjoy most but trying to keep it from being too over-the-top romantic.

“Can we get an order of chocolate-covered strawberries, a
pint of Häagen-Dazs vanilla ice cream…?” He paused.
Champagne seemed
inappropriate, particularly if things were still just friendly.
“Is it possible
to get a bottle of rum and some Coca-Colas?”

“Absolutely.
Would you like ice and fresh limes?”

“That would be great.
Can it be delivered around eight?
No
one will be in the room.”

“Certainly.
I’ll note the order.
They’ll place everything in
the mini-fridge for you.
Is there anything else I can assist you with?”

“No, thanks.” Jon headed back up to the room feeling
hopeful.
Now all he had to do was get the nerve to make his move.

He keyed into the room and saw that Shari was still out on
the lounge chair.
She stood up as soon as she heard him come in.
She’d changed
into the new dress she’d bought.
It was long and flowing, the delicate white
fabric framed her curvy figure.
A trail of buttons ran enticingly from her
impressive cleavage all the way to mid-thigh.
His stomach tensed as he imagined
undoing each of them and kissing a path down her body.

“How was your swim?” she asked.

He kept the towel draped over his arm, grateful to have it
in front of him.
“Great.
What’d you do?”

“Just relaxed.
It’s so beautiful.
I watched you doing laps.
I had no idea you liked to swim so much.”

He shrugged.
Swimming wasn’t his favorite activity, he’d
just needed to blow off steam and release some tension.

“What time is our reservation?” she asked.

“Six thirty.
What time is it now?”

“It’s a little past six.”

“Shit.
I didn’t realize it was so late.
Give me five minutes
to shower and we can go.”

Shari had indeed watched him swimming laps, marveling at how
long and lean his body was as he skimmed through the water with perfect form.
Now she couldn’t help imagining that same body lathering up beneath the shower
spray.
Her pulse quickened.
She grabbed the room service menu off the desk and
fanned herself.

She sat on her bed and rummaged through her makeup bag,
looking for perfume.
She spritzed some on her pulse points, rubbing her wrists
together.
Just as she dabbed a little extra between her breasts she heard the
bathroom door open.
Steam swirled out as Jon emerged from the room, wrapped in
a towel.

“Two more minutes,” he said, grabbing clothes from his
suitcase.
“Hey, where’s that shirt I bought today?”

“Right here.” She reached for the bag and handed it to him.

He leaned forward to take it.
“You smell fantastic.”

A smile crossed her face.
She couldn’t remember the last
time a man had said anything like that to her.
Phil was not big on compliments.
She was glad she’d remembered the perfume.

Jon disappeared into the bathroom and returned minutes later
looking devastatingly handsome in his new blue shirt and a pair of khakis.
His
hair was still damp and fell in jagged spikes down to his eyes.
Shari stood to
meet him at the door, catching a whiff of his aftershave, a musky, masculine
scent that sent shivers straight through her.
“Hey, you shaved.” She reached
out and ran the backs of her fingers over his smooth, angled jaw.

Jon’s eyes looked black as night and for a moment she
thought he might kiss her.
She held her breath but he pulled away.
“We’d better
go, we’ll be late.” He held the door open.

Disappointment washed over her.
She bit her lip as she
walked out of the room.
He wasn’t going in for a kiss, he’s just anxious to
get to dinner.
He’s hungry for food, not me.

She could hear the beat of the reggae music as soon as they
walked out of the hotel.
They made their way along the wooden boardwalk toward
the restaurant.
Jon’s hand knocked into hers every few steps and she wished
he’d slip his fingers between hers.
Instead he placed his hand on her lower
back, guiding her up the steps to the hostess desk.

“Six thirty reservation for Jon,” he said to the hostess.

“Right this way, sir.”

Jon left his hand on her back as they made their way across
the floor to a small, secluded table overlooking the ocean.
“It’s beautiful,”
Shari said as soon as the hostess had left.

“So are you.” Jon’s eyes twinkled, the sunset reflecting off
his face.

She felt the flush creep across her cheeks and wondered how
noticeable it was in the dusky light.

The waitress came over to take their drink order and light
the candle on their table.
She recited the specials then disappeared to fill
their order.

Jon peered at her from over his menu.
“What are you having?”

“Everything sounds great.
I have no idea.
What about you?”

“Not a clue.
I’m starving.”

“What are you in the mood for?
You like it spicy?” She
imitated the accent of the counter girl from lunch.

Jon laughed.
“You know I do.”

The waitress placed a tequila sunrise in front of Shari and
set a tall beer by Jon.
“Are you ready to order or you need a few minutes?”

Jon raised an eyebrow at Shari.
“You want to split an order
of fried calamari while we decide?”

“Sounds great.” Calamari was one of her favorites.
Phil
hated it and didn’t even like if she ordered it in front of him.

“Can we get some extra hot sauce with that?” Jon grinned and
Shari shook her head.

“You’re such a flirt.”

He took a sip of his beer, licking the foam off his upper
lip.
Shari felt her heart skip a beat.

They perused the menu and by the time the waitress brought
their calamari they were ready to order.
Chilean sea bass for Shari with the
mixed green salad and pineapple coulis.
Double Jamaican jerk pork chop for John
with fried plantains.

The calamari was wonderful, crispy and chewy with just the
right hint of spiciness.
“Take the last piece,” Jon said.
“You know you want
it.”

She smiled and popped the final ring into her mouth.
I
want you.

The waitress told them the kitchen was running a little slow
and asked if they wanted refills on their drinks.
Shari asked for a glass of
water and Jon was glad.
He didn’t want her to get sloshed tonight.
If anything
happened between them he wanted to know that it wasn’t because her inhibitions
were down.
He wanted it to be real.

He noticed her swaying to the music.
“Do you want to dance?”

She looked surprised.
“Sure.”

He took her hand and helped her up.
Her skin was silky
smooth and she still smelled amazing.
They wove through the crowd on the dance
floor until they found a clearing near the band.
He placed his arm around her
waist as their hips rocked in rhythm with the reggae beat.

Her skin had a warm apricot glow from the day in the sun,
her hair blew back off her shoulders in the gentle ocean breeze, her tan legs
peeked out from the open slit of her dress with every step she took.
He’d never
seen her look more lovely.
The song ended and everyone clapped.
Shari turned
toward the band and leaned back against him.
He wanted to spin her around and
kiss her but she tipped her head back to look at him and pointed to their
table.
“Our food’s ready.”

He followed her, unable to keep his eyes off her ass as she
sashayed toward her chair.
He sat, trying to find a comfortable position, glad
he’d opted to leave his shirttails untucked.

The meal was delicious.
The sun had made its final dip below
the horizon, the sky just barely glowing with the last of its light.
Shari
sipped at the remains of her drink, staring out at the ocean.
“Do you want to
take a walk on the beach?” he asked.

She nodded.
“I’d love to.”

Jon wrote their room number on the dinner check and slipped
some cash into the leather binder for the waitress.
They walked down the plank
onto the sand.

Shari grabbed on to Jon’s arm.
“I have to take these off.”
She slipped out of her shoes, hooking their straps over her fingers.
“You
should take yours off too.”

He stepped out of them and bent to pick them up, pausing to
look at her legs as the wind blew the dress tight against them.
She walked
ahead, straight into the gentle surf that lapped at the edge of the sand.
“Mmmm, that feels wonderful.
It’s like bath water.”

Jon cuffed his pants legs up and walked beside her.
The beat
of the music faded off into the distance as they strolled the deserted beach.
Moonlight glittered on the sand, making it sparkle like diamonds.
“Do you
remember the first time we were on the beach together?”

“Jody Reynolds’ nineteenth birthday party, at Fire Island.”

Jon smiled.
“Yep.”

“That was a crazy weekend.
Do you remember the fireworks?
And the pig roast?”

“I sure do.”

She giggled, the sound reverberating through him.
“I
remember talking to you all night by the fire.
As I recall, my date passed out
before midnight.”

Jon chuckled.
“Half the guests passed out before midnight.”

“I’d forgotten all about that party.
What on earth made you
think of it?”

“Because ever since that first night on the beach I’ve
wanted to do this.” He wrapped his arm around her waist, pulled her toward him
and lowered his lips to hers.

She tensed in his arms and for a moment he thought he’d made
a huge mistake, then he felt her fingers slither into his hair.
He heard her
shoes drop to the sand.
Her body leaned in to his and he realized she was
kissing him back.

For all the times he’d envisioned kissing her, nothing had
prepared him for the intensity of having her in his arms.
Her lips were buttery
soft and sweet as caramel.
Years of desire concentrated in his fingertips as
they grazed her supple skin.
Unbearable tension spiraled through his groin and
he yearned to pull her closer, to have every inch of them touching.
She crushed
her breasts against his chest, the swollen buds of her nipples pressing against
him, sending shock waves of pleasure straight to his cock.
He forced himself to
go slow, savoring every delicious moment.