Shayla's Story (The Mathews/Clemmins Family Series) (6 page)

“Do you really think
I would let my sister jump if there was any chance of getting hurt?” John held
out his hand. “I’ll take care of you,” he offered in a throaty voice sounding
more like a heated promise than fact.
 

Cocky!
Before she had time to give it another thought she kicked off her shoes,
shimmied out of her shorts and grabbed her sweatshirt by the hem, pulling it
over her head and giving it to Tracy.
You
can do this!

Anxiety kicked in
and Shayla’s chest heaved laboriously. Holding her hands in front of her tummy,
she squeezed one hand then the other, balling them into tight fists.

“Great bikini.” John
took two steps toward her. His center finger grazed along the thin brown strap
of her swimsuit, lazily exploring her collarbone.

The rough texture of
his skin made her shiver. She found herself listing forward, close enough to
smell the sweet scent of his minty breath. Alarmed by her own reaction to his
touch, Shayla blinked repeatedly, staring upward into his gaze.

“You look
beautiful.” An impish grin twitched at the corner of his mouth. “Your freckles
really stand out in the sunshine.”

The amused gleam in
his eye astounded her, spreading heat all the way to her toes.
Self-consciously, she touched the faint freckles dusting her cheeks and nose.

His smile turned
full.

“You really expect that
to work?”

“God, I hope so,”
John teased, gathering her hands in his. “Flattery is supposed to go a long way.
It should work for a twenty-foot jump.”

“Hey!” JC’s lively
voice echoed up the face of the rock. “Are you guys gonna make out or jump?”

“That would be your
call.” His eyes blazed both in invitation and challenge. “Wonder Woman.”

The breeze shifted,
filling her nostrils with the scent of his sweet breath. Tunnel vision set in,
but she wasn’t slipping into a fading black hole. Shayla’s vision fell into the
depths of his and held. Her lip caught between her teeth.

The tip of his
finger turned circles on the band of her ring, blanching his humor. “I’ll count
to three.”

Shayla shut her eyes
tight, drawing in a deep breath of determination.
Be brave.
She clutched John’s hand. She opened her eyes and nodded.
As they approached the edge, he released her hand and she hissed in a
frightened breath.

“It’s okay.” He
wiped the sweat from her hand on his shorts, only to tighten his grip around
her fingers. “One, two, three.”

They jumped from the
edge.

Screams of
exhilaration rang in her ears, sounding nothing like her own voice. Their hands
parted before they hit the water. Plunging into the blue, she felt the bite of
cold water rush over her flesh. Her descent slowed upon impact as adrenaline
surged through her, stealing her breath. Shayla swam to the surface.

They emerged from
the cold water with shrieks of ecstasy.

“Nice job!” He
beamed with approval, giving her a high-five.

His praise made her
bubbly inside. “That was awesome! What a rush!”

Tracy waited for
them as they trudged onto the beach, and JC headed up the trail ready for round
two. Shayla jumped twice, but John and JC jumped four times before the sun
lowered over the horizon.

JC’s new friends offered
to share their towels, water, snacks and, in a show of male bravado, jokingly
argued over who got to ask her to dinner. Wearing the face of a dejected puppy,
she begrudgingly declined their invitation. Her spirits seemed to lift as she
plodded through the sand following the tall dreamy one of the bunch toward his
car. She held up a finger, signaling her siblings she’d be right back.

“Is she giving him
her number?” Shayla asked Tracy.

Tracy nodded,
divulging the information quietly so John couldn’t hear. “JC still talks to
three boys in Italy she met over the summer. She’s already planning our trip
back. I had to bribe her with coffee every day for a month to get her to go to
Europe with me. Now, she wants to stay longer and take part in the travel arrangements.”

John stood at the
water’s edge, his feet buried in the black sand while talking to two of the
other jumpers. There were enough hard bodies and sex appeal between the three
men to make any woman within eyesight stop and ogle, but Shayla couldn’t take
her eyes off John. It wasn’t only his striking looks capturing her attention;
his confidence and genuine ease of his smile filled her with warmth.

Hiding behind her
sunglasses, she stared on as he shook the water from his hair and ran his
fingers through the short thick strands of silk. Each well-defined muscle took
its turn center stage. Shayla crossed one leg over the other, hoping to ease
the jolts of thunder striking her inner thighs. Chill bumps rose high on his
skin, constricting his dark nipples when the breeze hit his wet body. Her
breath fractured when he shifted slightly and exposed a full frontal of his wet
trucks clinging to his body.

“Can’t say I blame
my little sister. There is something special about European men,” Tracy
interjected, enjoying the beachside view.

JC jogged back with
a smile plastered to her face. “He’s HOT!” she boasted, flapping a piece of
paper with his number written on it. She leaned in closer to Shayla, peering
toward the men standing along the border of the incoming surf.
 
“Which one do you think is cute?”

Shayla’s mouth
opened and closed. The scorch of embarrassment climbed up her neck.
Shit!
Her hungry gaze and smirk fell to
the sand. Both girls snickered and shook their heads as if they’d seen it a
million times. Shayla had no doubt the Mathews house was the high school spot
for sleepovers. The entire family hit the gene pool jackpot.

They spent the late
afternoon meandering down cobbled streets of the quaint village. The close
connection between John and his sisters was unlike anything Shayla had ever
encountered between siblings. They genuinely enjoyed each other and their
humorous camaraderie kept her laughing.

Their father died of
a heart attack a year before their mother met Tommy, and John filled every inch
of the head of household position. As they perused the streets, men who took
notice of his sisters or Shayla were tolerated, but John’s mere presence kept
any strangers at bay. There wasn’t one catcall or indecent gesture, not even so
much as an unwanted prolonged stare. He didn’t act like a bulldog bodyguard,
but his rugged exterior carried a presence of sureness and conviction, strong
enough to dominate any male. His sisters seemed used to his powerful persona,
but it sparked a new sense of safety for Shayla.
 

John led them
through the streets with ease, constantly placing his hand on the small of her
back. He did this to his sisters as well, but as the afternoon wore on, his
hand lingered longer and longer on Shayla’s back. She found herself comforted
by his touch, almost leaning into him when they spoke. The rough calluses on
his palms snagged at the material of her shirt. Shayla reached for his hand,
rubbing her thumb over the scratchy surface of his palm. “Tommy mentioned you
were in construction. What do you do?”

“I’m part owner in
my dad’s construction company.” He remained still, allowing her to hold his
hand. The crescents of his lashes shadowed his cheeks. “These are from mountain
biking.”

Her thumbs continued
to turn circles over the coarse skin. The setting sun deepened the fresh bronze
coloring on his face, accentuating the vibrant green of his eyes. She found
herself mesmerized by the color and texture of the skin on his neck. “You took
over the company after your father died?”
 

“Yes, but it wasn’t
quite that simple. I’ve worked for my dad as far back as I can remember.” He
smiled with a sense of pride. “I had to earn my spot at the top. The other
partners bought my mom out after he died, and I worked hard to prove myself.
They made me a partner three months ago.”

“Congratulations.”
She raised her brows and smiled sweetly. “I’m sure your dad would be proud of
you.”

Tracy clasped her
bother by the shoulder. “Yes, Dad would be very proud.”

Tracy was the
quietest of the three. She helped Shayla pick out the perfect wedding gift for
Tom and Tess, while JC picked out all the hot-blooded Greeks in the near
vicinity.

Tommy and Tess met
them for dinner at a café along the water’s edge. The owner greeted her uncle
and his family with gracious, warm smiles, swiftly ushering them to a private
table along the terrace. The stark white stucco ignited with colors of cobalt
blue and magenta pink mixed with a splash of sunny yellow. A plush throw draped
over each chair and gas heaters warmed the chill of the evening air.

Greece reeked of
love and desire, and the seduction of the atmosphere was arresting. Even the
local dishes on the menu were crammed with adjectives like lust, kisses,
breasts, smoldering and volcanic. Sitting across the table from John, Shayla threatened
to erupt with fiery passion at any unsuspecting moment as conversation carried
on around her. Each time he smiled through dinner, her spirits soared with
shameless delight.

Lights from
catamarans and luxury yachts dotted the serene setting as the darkness overtook
the sinking sun. Shayla closed her eyes, her head slant to the side, listening
to the echoes of music and voices carrying over the cool moist evening air. She
pulled in a deep breath of salty air. Every inch of her mind melted into the moment
as it absorbed all that Greece had to offer.

John rested his hand
on her forearm. “Are you going to fall asleep again?”

Her eyes remained
shut, and she basked in the bliss of his hand sparking energy in her skin. “No.
I’m not tired at all. I’m just so relaxed.”

Searching her
memory, she wondered if she’d ever felt this content. She opened her eyes,
peering out at the horizonless expanse of water. “I don’t remember the last
time I felt this calm.”

“Me either.” Their
gazes briefly fixed on each other. John’s hand drifted down her arm, jiggling
her finger that adorned a diamond accessory before releasing her hand.

“I suggest you enjoy
it while you can, Shay.”

She startled at the
sound of her uncle’s voice.

“You’ll be busy when
you get home.”

Sheer insanity.
Placing her hands in her lap, Shayla
grimaced at his firm warning of the hell coming over the next few months. The
paparazzi would call an all out war on Tommy and Tess’s wedding. The Wild West
antics would be frightening and precarious. On top of that, Mat would be
waiting for her and an answer.

Leaving the café,
they strolled along the dimly lit cobbled streets. White buildings gave stark
contrast to the volcanic cliffside. November brought the off-season, giving her
uncle the ability to roam the streets freely without too much of a hassle. This
would never happen state side and Shayla enjoyed being in public without fans
or press breathing down their neck.

Most of the
merchants closed up shop early, leaving only a few shops and a coffee shop to
peruse. Shayla veered off alone, finding her way to the end of a narrow
corridor. Small balconies hovered above tables set for two. Potted plants and
menus written in chalk showing off the day’s fresh catch and specials lined the
sidewalks.

Reaching the end of
the passage, she leaned against the lava rock wall, gazing out at the moonbeam
igniting the entire cove with its attendance. Caught in a trance, Shayla’s
heart measured in painful beats. Mat represented everything she dreamed of as a
little girl, but her list of requirements for prince charming had changed over
the last few months. Even though Mat had all of the qualities to make a good
man, that didn’t make him the right man.

Tears pooled in her
eyes. She buried her face in the palm of her hands, blotting the corner of her
damp eyes. With each minute that ticked by, her reflection of their
relationship became clearer. Dread of the next few weeks quickly crawled into
her mind, wiping out the serene view in front of her.

Quiet footsteps
resonated through the corridor from behind. There was no need to turn, she knew
it’d be John.

“Wow,” he whispered.

Resting his forearms
on the black pumice stone, he stared in awe. Intense energy passed between
them. His gaze turned to her ring, yet he remained wordless.

The tiniest pebble
of a stone adorning her finger suddenly became as big as moon hovering above
the caldron in the distance.

She felt the need to
explain, but the details caught in her throat, leaving her unable to speak. She
cleared her throat and turned to him. “I…I never thought I’d find this place so
magical. You know what I mean? You see pictures, but they don’t do it justice.”

“The view
is…mysterious.” His keen stare bore into the depths of her soul.
“Breathtaking.”

A sexy smile
threatened to expose itself at the corner of his mouth until her tongue slipped
across her bottom lip, nervously tugging it between her teeth. His breath
caught and his stare turned hungry. “Why, umm, has it taken you so long to
visit Greece?” he stammered, breaking the hum of sensual energy between them.