Rebound (Tryst Island Series) (8 page)

“Were you? Were you really?”

“Quit snarling.” Holt glanced up at the deck and paled. “They’re watching us.”

“Who?” Cam spun around and froze. Kristi stood on the deck gazing down at them with Bella and Cassie by her side.

“Don’t want them to see us fight, now do you?”

Cam snorted. “They might find it entertaining to watch me beat your ass.”

“Like you could beat my ass.”

“I could.”

“In your dreams.”

They both laughed. They knew they were evenly matched.

“I don’t know why you’re even interested in Kristi. She’s not your type.” Cam grabbed his axe and headed for the tool shed.
 

Holt fell in beside him. “She’s gorgeous.”

“But not your
type
.”

“Why do you say it like that?”

Cam raised a brow. “We all know about that club you go to in SoDo. You like submissive women who do what they’re told.” Definitely not Kristi. She never did what he told her.

“Ah, but sometimes it’s more fun when they’re disobedient.”

“Regardless, it takes a certain kind of woman to go for that.”

Holt shrugged. “I got a vibe from her. I thought…maybe…”

Cam gaped at him. “You got a
vibe
from her?
That
vibe?”

“A little bit. Yeah.”

Holy shit.
“Really?”

“You should try spanking her sometime. See what happens.”
 

Cam boggled.
 

“Just sayin’, dude. Just sayin’. Sometimes a little playful paddling can really heat up the bedroom.”

Cam shook his head. “If I tried that, she’d have me drawn and quartered.”
 

“Well, you’ll never know unless you give it a shot.”

Cam fit the axe into its holder, tossed his gloves onto the shelf and closed the shed, but his mind was in a whirl. He really wasn’t into hardcore kink, but the thought of Kristi with her hands tied, or her lush body draped over his lap was…intriguing.

He glanced up at the deck. She sent him a smile and a wave.

Hmm. Maybe they should chat about it.

The idea had merit.

Chapter Six

Everyone converged on the great room for lunch. It was hard getting Kristi alone with so many people milling around, but when the others were bumping into each other in the kitchen, whipping up some tacos, he caught her in the pantry.

He didn’t bother with small talk. He just pulled her into his arms and kissed her.

“God, I missed you,” he whispered, when they were both breathless and trembling. “Where’d you go last night?”

“I had to get back before, well, before they woke up.”

All of a sudden, her obsession with keeping their relationship from the others stuck in his craw. He wasn’t sure why. Maybe because Holt had kissed her. Maybe because he knew Andrew liked her too. Maybe because he just wanted them all to know she was taken.

The certainty of that resolution curled in his gut.

“We should just tell them. Then you can stay as long as you want tonight. All night.” He dipped his head to kiss her again but he missed. She’d ducked away. Shock rippled through his system.
 

And then he got a glimpse of her face. His blood went cold at her expression.

“What? What is it?”

She stepped back and twined her fingers, not meeting his eyes.

He wasn’t gonna like this. Not in the least.

“I-I just think maybe we should…cool it?”

Something within him howled. His gut clenched into a tight ball and acid tickled at the back of his throat. Heat—maybe anger—prickled his nape. He thought about stepping closer, boxing her in, kissing her again, but instead he took a step back. “You, ah, didn’t enjoy it?” How he got those words out, he couldn’t fathom. His tongue was like a stone.

Her gaze snapped to him, wide and surprised. “Didn’t like it? Hell, Cam. I loved it.” Relief gushed. But then she frowned. “Did-didn’t you like it?”

“Best fucking night of my life. I’d like to top it tonight. Right now. Why don’t we, I dunno, go for a walk?” He didn’t fancy fucking in the woods, but hell, he needed her again. And the squirrels probably wouldn’t mind.

She shook her head. His mood would have plunged again, but she stepped closer and put her palm on his chest. Her scent curled around him. His pulse kicked up a notch. His body remembered how she’d felt coming to bliss around him. Mr. Happy awoke. With a vengeance. He shot up to full length in a heartbeat.
 

Softly, she said, “We can’t. We shouldn’t.”

“What?”
Why the fuck not?
“Kristi, you better tell me what’s going on.”

“It’s Bella.”

Bella?
What the hell did her sister have to do with this? He shook his head, unable to form the question.

“Did you know she has a thing for you? I didn’t either. I was stunned. She knows what’s going on between the two of us and she’s really upset. I-I just couldn’t do that to her. Not after…” She sighed.

“After what?”

Kristi nibbled her lip. “There was this guy in high school she was dating. He dumped her. For me.”

“And you dated him?”

She shrugged. “I know it was wrong. But I was a stupid kid. I was flattered by the attention. He eventually dumped me for someone else, but by then it didn’t matter. The damage was done. I don’t ever think she forgave me. It was years before she would even talk to me again. Cam—I can’t do that to her. Not again. I can’t.”

“This is different.”

“Not really.”

“I’m not dating Bella. I’m not interested in dating Bella. Even if there was no you and me, I wouldn’t be dating Bella.” He did it then. Cornered her. Maybe Holt had it right. Maybe the way to manage a woman was to dominate her. So he backed her up against the shelves of canned goods and took her mouth in a punishing kiss.

She resisted, but not for long. Then she wrapped her arms around his neck and gave as good as she got. Her response enflamed him. He reached down and lifted her leg, wrapping it around his waist, giving him access to her crotch. He rubbed her there, in that tender spot, through her jeans as he fucked her mouth. With his other hand, he held her chin still so he could take what he wanted.
 

A can of soup fell to the floor. And another. Cam ignored them. He fiddled with the buttons of her jeans.

She broke away, gasping. “Cam. Not here. They’ll hear.”

“Let them fucking hear.”

“Oh, they can hear.” A deep, amused voice floated into the room. Cam whipped around to see Holt leaning on the doorjamb. Smirking. “It sounds like you’re wrestling with a walrus in here.”

“God.” Kristi buried her face in his chest.

“Don’t worry, Kris,” Holt chirped. “They don’t know what you two are up to. They sent me to find out what the ruckus was.” He glanced at Cam. “But really? In the pantry?”

“It
was
private.”

“Apparently not private enough. Come along you two. Let’s join the others. And do try to behave.” He leaned closer and hissed, “Try not to fuck on the table while we’re eating.”

Kristi smacked his shoulder as she passed, quickly ducking from the room, her cheeks ablaze.
 

And thank God. Because if she hadn’t hit Holt, Cam was going to for sure.

It bugged him that Kristi deliberately took the seat across and down the table from him at lunch. He’d had it in mind to toy with her the way he had the night before. Hell, she wouldn’t even meet his eye. So he focused on Bella instead.

He’d never had the sense that Bella had a thing for him. In all the years he’d known her, she’d never flirted with him. And she didn’t clam up around him, the way some women did when they had a crush. If there was anyone around the table Bella
wasn’t
paying any attention to—like at all—it was Holt. She didn’t so much as crack a smile at his jokes.

The whole thing baffled him, but he was determined to figure it out. He couldn’t let this thing with Kristi just…end. Not before it even really started. The very thought gave him cold chills. He’d wanted her, dreamed about her, fantasized about her for so long, but that had been nothing compared to the reality. And now, now that he’d had her, he wasn’t letting her go. He couldn’t.

Drew reached across in front of him grabbing another taco from the platter, interrupting his gloomy reverie. “So Kristi,” he said, shoveling some chips into his mouth, “how’s everything in the shop?”

Kristi glanced up. Her gaze, on its way to Andrew, clashed with Cam’s. He took the opportunity to send her a speaking look. It said:
I want you
. She got the message. A blush crept up her cheeks. “It’s, um, fine.”

“And Lucy? How’s she doing? I hardly ever see the two of you anymore.”

Holt grinned. “Why isn’t she here this weekend too?” Holt was an evil bastard. He knew damned well why. This was Lane’s weekend. After that last blow up, he and Lucy had agreed to share the house the way other couples shared their kids. One weekend at a time. Always separate. It was better for everyone.

Kristi took a sip of her water. “One of us has to stay at the store. Besides, she has a date tonight.”

It was comical the way Lane’s head snapped up at that. The clack of his teeth was audible. He swore beneath his breath. A muscle in his cheek bunched. “A date? What kind of date?”

“Oh, you know.” Kristi shrugged. “The kind of date where a nice, successful guy with an awesome job picks you up at seven and takes you out for a romantic dinner. Maybe a little dancing. A walk on the beach. And then afterwards…” She fluttered her lashes. “Well, you know what happens afterwards.”

Yeah, Kristi could be a little evil too.
 

Lane hopped up, stormed to the fridge and pulled out a beer. He popped it open, took a long draw and wiped his mouth on his sleeve. “So who is this nice successful guy with an awesome job?” Holy shit. Was that really a snarl? From laidback, easygoing Lane?
 

“A customer. Pretty cute too.”

“Cute?” Cassie leaned forward. “Do tell.”

“You know. Tall. Dark. Supremely good-looking.” Kristi sighed hugely, focusing all her attention on Lane.

Cam bit back his snicker. Definitely evil.
 

Lane grimaced. “Is it serious?”

Kristi sighed. “Lane. It’s a date. It’s dinner. I didn’t mean to infer anything more was—”

“Maybe I should stop by. Check this dude out. Who knows what his real motives are.”

“Dating a scorching hot chick with bags of cash?” This from Drew. His smirk wilted in the face of Lane’s fierce glower.

“Are you saying my ex is a hot chick?” A growl.
 

“She is beautiful.” Cassie said in a soothing voice. She set her hand on Lane’s arm. “Calm down. You and Lucy are divorced. It’s been over a year. It’s only natural for the two of you to start dating again.”

Holt grinned. “And aren’t you seeing that… What’s her name?” He snapped his fingers several times. “Chesty McChesterson?”

“Delilah.” Lane crossed his arms over his chest.

“Right. Delilah. No man tapping that well has a right to complain he’s thirsty.”

A laugh bubbled in Cam’s throat. “Tapping that well?”

Holt shrugged. “What can I say? When I think of Delilah’s boobs, I just wax poetic-like.”

Drew’s gray eyes took on a mischievous light. “She is blessed.”

“Oh, right,” Bella wrinkled her nose. “As if
those
were a gift from God.”

“I know!” Cassie dropped her voice to a whisper, the way women did when they were about to dish the dirt. “Did you see the way they poked up in her bikini? All that weight and they just hovered there like she had some kind of anti-gravity device in her bra?”

Kristi shook her head. “Totally not natural.”

“Totally,” Bella grunted.

Lane frowned at them and upended his beer. “Well, I don’t care if they’re natural or not. I like them. I like her. She’s fun to be around and she doesn’t nag me and she doesn’t go all prickly when I talk to another woman.”

“Really, Lane?” Bella quirked a brow. “Using
that
word to describe Lucy? Because when I hear prickly in the context of you and other women, Lucy’s not the one who comes to mind.”

“Whoa! Score.” Drew stood to high-five Bella as hoots and hollers rounded the table. The reason their favorite couple had split was hardly a secret. Everyone knew.

Lane sat back, chastened. He scrubbed his brow with his palm. “I probably should stop by and see how she’s doing.”

“She’s fine, Lane,” Kristi said. “She’s just moving on, that’s all.”

A stricken look crossed his face. “Moving on?”

“It has to happen.”

“I know. But it’s weird. We’ve been together since…forever. It’s just…weird.”

“Well, come by the shop next week. Say hi. I know things got kind of choppy during the divorce, what with the lawyers and all—”