Rebound (Tryst Island Series) (9 page)

“What did she tell you?”

Kristi threw up her hands. “We’re housemates, Lane. We own a shop together. She told me everything.”

“Everything?”

Kristi pinned him with a sharp gaze and mouthed the word, “
Everything.
”

“Shit.”

“My point is, there’s no reason you two can’t still be cordial. None of us want to have to choose between you. So you should at least man up and try to get along. You know, for the sake of us kids.”

He scowled. “Did you tell
her
that?”

“She doesn’t have anything against you. You’re the one who’s bitter about it.”

Lane shot to his feet. “She
divorced
me.”

Kristi mimicked his action, facing him, taking him on, toe to toe. “You fucked her cousin!”

Silence crackled through the room, turning on spits of tension.

“See, I’ve been wondering about that.” Drew, as usual, forged into the cavernous breach with an attempt at humor. “Was it the crazy cousin, or the one with the lisp? What?” He glanced around the table as everyone tossed balled up napkins at him. “I was just wondering. Because nobody ever said.”

“Aw, fuck off,” Lane muttered, though the words held no heat. He stormed down the hall to his room and closed the door. But he closed it very, very gently.

“Well,” Cam said. “That was interesting.” He could tell the encounter had upset Kristi. He longed to pull her into his arms and hold her. He loved that she was courageous enough to stand up to Lane, but it had taken every ounce of self-control not to leap to her defense.
 

“Do you think he still has feelings for her?” Cassie asked.

Bella nodded. “He must. That wasn’t your typical gay divorcee reaction.”

“He’s gay?” Yup. Drew again. Everyone was out of napkins, so they threw empty pop cans. As one, they all rose and left the table. “Hey! Where are you going?” Drew called as they tromped out onto the deck. “I’m not going to clean this up!”

But he was. He knew he was.

Last one to leave the table cleaned up the mess.

That was the rule.

Especially when he was the one who got “showered.”

That was why Cam made it a point to never be the last to leave the table.
 

He shot Drew an evil grin as he made his escape.

Chapter Seven

After lunch they went down to the beach and the girls hunted for driftwood while Holt and Cam pulled the kayaks out of the boathouse. It was a beautiful spring day, but still far too cold to go swimming. Drew joined them, grumbling about being left with the mess.
 

Holt turned to Cam as he handed out the life vests. “You coming?”

Cam’s gaze swung to the dock where Bella sat, soaking in the rare shafts of sun, reading a book. “Nah. I think I’ll just hang out.” Kristi shot him a frown and he quirked a brow in response. She looked adorable with the orange vest nudging her chin, but he was bound and determined to talk to her sister, no matter how nervous she was about it. “You all have fun. I think the whales are out.”

Cassie nodded, “We saw one this morning. I wish I brought my camera.”

They all piled in the kayaks—Holt and Kristi in one and Cassie and Drew in the other—and even though Holt and Kristi were in the same boat, Cam didn’t care. He had business to take care of and this would probably be his only opportunity to get Bella alone. He watched as they paddled past the gentle surf into the open water. Drawing in a deep breath, he turned and headed for the dock.

It was a floater, anchored to the shore by pylons sunk into the sand. It swayed a little as he walked to where Bella sat at the end. She glanced up as he took the lounge chair next to her. But he didn’t lounge. He perched on the side, and studied her until her face puckered up.

“What?”

“Can we talk?”
 

She dropped her book onto her chest. “Sure.”

Crap. He should have planned this better. He didn’t know what to say. He decided to just dive in. “I was just wondering how long?”

She shook her head. “How long? How long what?”

“How long have you had a thing for me?”

Her mouth fell open. She gaped at him. “Wh-what?”

“You know. How long have you had this crush on me?”

She sat up then, facing him, knee to knee. “What makes you think I have a crush on you?”

“You don’t?”

Her snort was a dead giveaway. That and her laugh.

Really? Was the prospect so hilarious?

“Cam Jackson, you are so full of yourself.”

He put out a lip. “I am not. It’s just, Kristi said—”

“Kristi said what? What? What did Kristi say?”

“You know.” He raked his fingers through his hair all the way to his nape.

“Uh, no. I don’t know.”

“She said we couldn’t…”

“Couldn’t what?”

“Continue.” There. Surely that was clear enough.

“Continue?” Hell. Apparently not. “Continue what?”

“Our…” He made a motion that should have been more than illustrative. She blinked. Like an owl. “You know. Our thing. Because you had these feelings and she didn’t want to hurt you.”

Why this annoyed Bella, Cam had no clue. “Are you serious?” She leaped to her feet and stormed to the edge of the dock and stared out at the kayaks in the distance. “She
told
you?” And then she spun around. “Wait. She said she couldn’t continue her thing with you…or her thing with Holt?”

Now he bounced up. “She doesn’t have a thing with Holt.” At least she’d better not. “Did she say she had a thing with Holt?” Unease trickled through him. Kristi told him there was nothing. She’d
convinced
him there was nothing. Had she been telling the truth, or just playing him? No. He couldn’t bear that thought—

“I saw them kissing last night.”
 

Oh.
That
. His tension released.
 

“I saw them, Cam.” Bitterness bubbled in her voice. “Why does it always work out like that? Why do they always fall for her? Am I not pretty?”

Aw, shit. Tears. He hated tears.

“You’re very pretty. Really Bella, any guy would be lucky to have you.” Based on her expression, she wasn’t buying it. He decided to get to the point. “What you saw last night? It’s not what you think it was.”

“My sister? In a passionate embrace with the man I—with a man?” She crossed her arms over her chest and scowled at him. “What else could it be?” Bella froze. “Wait… You said she didn’t want to continue this affair with you because
I
had a thing for you? Is she fucking you both?” she asked gloomily.

“No.” In fact, hell to the no. “It’s Kristi and me. Not Holt. At all. Like even a little bit. Not ever. Never.” He emphasized this point with a slash of his hand and then added a couple more “evers” just for good measure.

“She’s having an affair with you?” She narrowed her eyes. “Are you—are you sure?”

“Yup. Pretty sure.” Pretty damn fucking sure.

“So you’re the one she was with all last night?”

“All night long.” Holt probably spent the night in his room nursing a bruised jaw. “He did kiss her, but only to test the waters. She told him to get lost.” Or at least, something like that.

“So…it’s you and Kristi?”

“Yep.”
 

“Oh.” Her expression cleared. “Well. That’s okay then.” She shot him a perky grin and plopped back down in her lounger and picked up her book.

But they weren’t done. Not by a long shot. He shifted her legs over and sat at her side. She frowned.
 

“So I have your blessing?”

“My what?”

“Your blessing. To date your sister. Because it’s important to her. And Bella, I really care—I mean, I really, really care.”

“Mercy.” She sighed and patted his cheek. “You are kind of adorable, I suppose. Yes. You have my blessing.” But then her smile morphed into another fierce glower. The tiny diamond in her nose winked. “But I swear unto God in heaven above, if you so much as breathe a hint about my feelings for Holt to anyone—
anyone
—I’ll have your guts for garters. Do you hear me?”

“Yes ma’am.”

“Well, okay then. Get off my chair.”

He did. He sat on the end of his lounger with his elbows on his knees and his fingers linked, and stared out at the tiny kayaks bobbing in the water in the distance trying to tame the elation rioting in his gut.

The road was clear. Kristi was his. Tonight, he’d have her again. And the night after that. And, hopefully, all the nights after that.

Little did she know it, but Bella was going to be his sister-in-law some day. Hopefully someday soon.

“So,” he said as a gentle breeze lifted his hair. He closed his eyes and turned his face up to the sun. “What’s the deal with you and Holt?”

He chuckled when her book hit his back.

The kayak scraped the shore and Kristi sighed. “That was great.”

“It was.” Holt’s voice rumbled behind her. Something in the timbre of his voice snagged her attention and she glanced back. He was glaring at the dock. She swung around to follow his gaze and saw Cam and Bella hugging. It was a quick hug, nothing that should cause those shards of jealousy to stab her belly. But then he kissed her. Only her cheek. But still…
 

Fury snarled in her breast.

“What the hell is that all about?” Holt grumbled. He hopped out of the boat into the water with no care for his expensive boots. Kristi stood, but plopped down again when he yanked the boat further onto the shore, his attention trained on the dock.

“She has a thing for him, I guess.”
 

His head whipped around. “She does?”

“I guess.”

Belatedly, he thrust out his hand and helped her from the boat. “I thought you and he…”

“So did I.” She collected their life vests and paddles. “I’m going to put these away and then have a chat with him. Can you and Drew get the boats?”

But Holt wasn’t paying attention. He was staring at the dock, scrubbing his chin with his palm.

Cam found her in the boathouse hanging up the life vests. “Hey you. How was your trip?”
 

She didn’t look at him. “Fine.”

“See any whales?”

“Not today.”

“Bummer.” Silence crackled. He broke it. “I, uh, had a chat with Bella.”

“I noticed.”

“Did you?” Why was there amusement threading through his tone? She turned to glare at him. Yup. A big old smile plastered on his handsome face.

“I saw you hugging her.”

“Why wouldn’t I hug her? She’s my friend. Your sister and…we worked everything out.” Clearly he was pleased with himself.
 

“You worked it all out?”

“Yep. Apparently it was just a misunderstanding. I’m not the dude she has a thing for.”

Her brow rumpled. “You’re not? Who is?”

“I can’t say.”

“Can’t, or won’t?”

“Both. Your sister is a little scary when she’s adamant.”

“Hmm.” She crossed her arms over her chest.

“Point is, no more problem with Bella. We’re home free.”

“Home free?”

“To continue…this.”

“This rebound thing?” She didn’t mean to snarl, it just came out that way.
 

“Kristi, honey, why are you angry?”

“I don’t know.” She didn’t. Was it because he’d hugged Bella? Honestly, it hadn’t been much of a hug. And the kiss had been a peck. Maybe she was upset because of the feelings the scene had engendered—a roaring tide of jealousy and hunger and pain. That, and the fact they’d agreed to only rebound sex.

And maybe she wanted more.

And maybe she wasn’t really sure what he wanted.

A weekend of torrid sex? Or more?
 

Or not?

She was too afraid of what the answer might be to simply ask.

She shivered. “Let’s go up to the house. I’m cold.”

He put his arm around her and she let him. Only because she was cold and he was warm. And it was comforting.

Chapter Eight

It was a long walk up to the house, but only because Kristi’s mind was in a whirl.

On the one hand, she was over the moon to know Cam wasn’t Bella’s secret crush. She had a strong suspicion who was. Obviously her sister had witnessed Holt’s doomed attempt at seduction and assumed they were having an affair. Bella and Holt would be great together and Kristi would give anything to see her sister happy.
 

The other thought clogging her consciousness was this blooming relationship with Cam. He’d obviously cared enough to confront Bella to clear things up. Could it be that he, like she, wanted more?

Without coming right out and asking him—which she didn’t have the nerve to do—she couldn’t know.