Denial (12 page)

“Did you ever try it with one of those bike things?”
Amy
asked. “You know the ones the kite pulls along.”

“Nope,”
Celeste
replied, maneuvering the kite.

Amy
’s eyebrows rose delicately, when she noticed that certain movements forced
Celeste
’s black bikini top to push her breasts up and forward.

“But, now he’s bought these, I reckon it won’t be long before Dad will have one.”
Celeste
yanked her left hand down forcing the kite to come back to her.

Standing,
Amy
moved close to
Celeste
. “You’re probably right,” she said, enjoying the easy banter between them. “Now that he’s retired, your mum’s going to have one helluva time trying to stop him filling the house with unnecessary objects.”

“You’re not kidding,”
Celeste
replied. Clenching her teeth, she tried to stop a gust of wind from pulling her several feet.

An unexpected pleasure filled
Amy
. Her stomach tightened as she watched
Celeste
gain control.

“You want to try?”

“Had enough?”
Amy
asked challengingly.

“Maybe,”
Celeste
said. She tilted her head then grinned.

Disarmed by
Celeste
’s killer smile,
Amy
blushed furiously.

“The wind’s getting up,”
Celeste
said, looking around her. “If you don’t want to be dragged across state, you’d better hurry.”

“I’m ready to take the reins, Captain.”

“How confident are you?”

“So, so,”
Amy
answered. “It probably would help if you showed me.”

“Okay,”
Celeste
replied, opening her arms. “Come here.”

Not hesitating,
Amy
moved into
Celeste
’s arms. Encased, she looked at the brunette expectantly.

“
Amy
you need to turn around,”
Celeste
said playfully.

“Uh…okay,”
Amy
replied, cringing.

Celeste
positioned herself behind
Amy
. Close enough for
Amy
to feel the warmth emanate from her body, but not enough to touch.

“If you can manage, place your hands under mine,”
Celeste
encouraged.

Amy
squeezed her hands into the space
Celeste
made on the handlebars.

Celeste
rested her hands lightly on
Amy
’s fingers.

Breathing in deeply,
Amy
caught the musky scent of
Celeste
’s perfume. Color heightening, she waited for her next instruction.

“Ready?”
Celeste
whispered into
Amy
’s ear.

Neck tingling,
Amy
replied in an odd sort of breathless voice. “Yes.”

“It’s all yours,”
Celeste
said, pulling away.

Enchanted,
Celeste
sat cross-legged on the sand and watched
Amy
fly the kite. After a few nosedives,
Amy
’s hesitation quickly faded.
Celeste
smiled, pleased that
Amy
was enjoying herself.

Celeste
looked
Amy’s
bikini-clad body over. She noted her blond hair was richer with color than she remembered. She could see the changes in
Amy
’s body from having the twins; her breasts were fuller and her hips carried a roundness that hadn’t been there before. She realized
Amy
was skinny before, but now the new curves really brought out her beauty. She was stunning.

A sudden gust of wind grabbed the kite. Soaring up, it pulled for release.
Celeste
watched
Amy
hang on as it dragged her on its path to freedom. Quick to her feet, she chased after
Amy
and grabbing her, successfully brought her and the kite down.

Laughing they collapsed alongside each other.

Turning on her side,
Celeste
watched
Amy
. She smiled, adoring the husky sound of the blonde’s laughter.

Eventually,
Amy
controlled her mirth. “Thanks,” she said then smiled. “If only we had done this after we’d eaten your dad’s barbecue.”

Arching an eyebrow,
Celeste
looked at her. “Why?”

“Given his cooking, a hurricane wouldn’t have lifted me off my feet.”

Propping her head on her palm,
Celeste
said with some amusement, “Believe it or not, Mom has repeatedly tried to teach him the basics, but I think he kind of likes the reputation.”

“What reputation?”
Amy
asked, untangling her hands from the cords of the kite.

“He’s the bad boy of cooking.”

“What?” Amy replied. “You mean instead of a life of notoriety through bar brawling, booze, and broads,” she teased, “he’s built his reputation on being lethal around…kitchen utensils?”

Celeste laughed. “Give him a frying pan,” she said as she watched Amy, “he’ll cause havoc wherever he goes.”

Blowing a strand of hair from her face,
Amy
looked up at
Celeste
and with big blue eyes and pleaded, “Help me,
Celeste
!”

Celeste
grinned. “I thought you’d never ask.” She reached down and quickly helped untangle the cords.
 

Once loose,
Amy
sighed and rubbed her hands together in relief.

Celeste
brushed strands of hair from
Amy
’s face. Her fingers lingered on
Amy
’s cheek.

Their eyes locked.
 
Stomach knotting,
Celeste
whispered, “
Amy
.”

Gripped by a powerful need to touch her,
Celeste
slowly rested her forehead on
Amy
’s. It would be so easy, she thought wanting to devour her. So easy, just one kiss.

Eyes wide and barely breathing,
Amy
lay perfectly still as
Celeste
’s forehead touched hers. A barrage of emotions and excitement swept through her. This feels good,
Amy
thought through a haze, so good.

Lifting her head,
Celeste
whispered, “I want to kiss you.” She swallowed. “I need to kiss you.”

The raw want in
Celeste
’s voice brought
Amy
thudding back to reality. She tensed. Oh God, she thought, remembering the only other time in her life she felt this terrified, or this aroused was with this woman, she whispered, “We can’t.” Her stomach churned with desire. “We can’t do this. Not again.”

“I know.”
Celeste
groaned. “God, don’t I know it!” She pushed away from
Amy
. Sitting, she hugged her knees.

“
Celeste
, I—”

“Go,
Amy
.”

Sitting,
Amy
looked bleakly at her. “
Celeste
, I want—”

“Please,
Amy
.”

“I—”

“Go!”
 

Lost,
Amy
moved closer, and touched
Celeste
’s arm.

Celeste
stood. “I’ll go before we do something we’ll regret a second time.”

Stricken,
Amy
watched
her
walk away.

Chapter 15

An hour after
Amy
’s return, Fraser Cameron watched his daughter come off the beach, smile at him briefly, then go directly to her room.

After ten minutes and no appearance, Fraser knocked on her bedroom door. He was unsure why she hadn’t come back with
Amy
, and felt slightly uneasy that something had happened between them.
Amy
had been exceptionally quiet since her return.

When
Celeste
opened the door, he noticed she had changed into a pair of denim shorts and a black V-neck tank top. Even though she looked tense, his heart swelled with pride that he had created such a beauty. He reached out to embrace her and whispered in her ear as he rubbed her head. “All right, pumpkin?”

“Enough, Dad,”
Celeste
said affectionately. “I’m not a kid, you know?”

“I know,” he replied, smiling. Even though
Celeste
was thirty-three, he often forgot himself and treated her as if she were still nine years old. He chuckled and picking her up, swung her around.

She smiled when he put her down. Pleased the tension had left her face, Fraser took his daughter’s hand and led her out to the patio toward the still smoking grill where he showed her a plate piled high with burnt food. “I’ve saved some for you.”

Celeste
looked at the plate and lifting her eyebrows looked at her father. “Dad,” she said teasingly. “It’s a grill. You know the simplest method of cooking since humans harnessed fire. How do you still manage to do this?” she asked, pointing at the plate.

“Okay,” he answered. “I know it’s bad. But you’re the one with the passion for cooking, not me.”

Wrapping her arms around him, Celeste whispered affectionately, “I love you, Dad, but I think it’s better if I eat out. In fact, I think you should fight the urge to cook in future.”
 

Fraser smiled. Unable to read her expression, he watched her look over at
Amy
, whose full attention was on the boys. Ruffling his dark gray hair, she said restlessly, “I’m going to go out.” She gave him a brief smile before turning to go.

“Okay, pumpkin,” he replied, watching her leave. He picked up a burnt burger and chewed on it. Out of all his children,
Celeste
was the one he worried about most. She was the most complex.

There was no doubt Fraser was proud of his daughter. When she told them she wanted to be a doctor, he was delighted. When she volunteered to work in such extreme conditions, he was devastated.

Fraser blamed a lot of her need to get away on her ex Nick. He shook his head ruing the day she ever met that boy. He hadn’t been a good match for her.

Clearing the grill, Fraser knew what she needed. She needed to find what Josh had. She needed someone who could see the inner not just the outer beauty. She needed to fall head over heels in love, he decided.

Fraser closed off the grill. He admired what
Celeste
did. Over the years with Camille he had traveled many times to where she was based and had seen firsthand how vital her services were. Although he had nothing but the utmost respect for her, he couldn’t deny he wanted her here. He wanted his little girl home, close to her family. He wanted her back where she belonged. He wanted her to love someone and be loved.

Fraser smiled and thought comfortingly that at least he and Camille did as much as they could to support her. Over the last six years, they worked hard at fundraising for wherever
Celeste
was. He raised his eyebrows and stopped chewing. Six years. Is that how long it’s been? He shook his head and frowned when he looked over at his wife, acknowledging that although Camille said little, she worried terribly that something might happen to
Celeste
.

Bud, the family dog, padded over, breaking his concentration.

Fraser lowered the plate in his hand. The dog sniffed it then promptly turned up his nose.