Sweet Talkin' Scoundrel (8 page)

Chapter 12

Kinley

I was feeling
more than just a little bit silly. I held my breath as another gust of wind shook the flimsy carport straddling the jeep on crooked legs. Warm coat or not, I was starting to get the uncontrollable chin tremble that came with a drop in body temperature.

Lightning tore a blinding white gash in the slate gray sky over the ocean. There was something even more frightening about a storm over an angry black ocean. It was as if all the rambunctious elements of nature had decided to congregate in one place.

My eyes darted over to the tiny beach hut. It didn’t look like much on the outside, but the inside seemed especially inviting at the moment.

I had no good explanation for why I’d told Dax I couldn’t trust myself around him other than it was the honest truth. I was in King’s Beach to do a job and the last thing I needed was to get attached to the town
scoundrel
. He was absolutely, positively the last thing I needed. And just as I finished my highly resolute thought, I heard his deep voice coming through single paned window of the house.

“Ouch, damn it, shit. Ouch, Fucking ouch.”

“Dax?” I called toward the house.

“Fuck, fuck. Damn it.”

He was hurt. I jumped into harried helper mode. I tried to open the jeep, only to remember that it couldn’t be opened from the inside. I climbed over the stick shift onto the driver’s seat and, with some effort, got the door open. I hopped out and leaned down to avoid being pelted by the stinging rain.

As I trotted along the side of the house, I could no longer hear Dax’s voice. I couldn’t decide if that was a good or bad thing. I’d watched the man finish a violent fist fight with barely a grimace, so I couldn’t imagine what had caused him to yell out in pain. In my short dash to the front of the house, I steeled myself for a number of grisly scenes, ranging from a terrible knife gash to a big lump on his head.

I climbed over a line of railroad ties that had been arranged to create a rustic border around the postage stamp sized yard on the beachside of the house. Two surfboards, one long and one short and both heavily studded with wax and sand, stood up against the back of the house. I reached the sliding glass door beneath a portico that was even less stable looking than the carport.

I could see Dax’s wide shoulders hunched over as he stood near the tiny kitchen. I slid open the door just as his groan of pain floated through the room.

“Oh my gosh, Dax, what’s happened?” My heart raced as I crossed the small front room to him.

As I reached him, he straightened and turned around with a smile. I rolled my fist, badly wanting to smack him on the nose.

“See, you do like me.”

Since I knew throwing my little fist at something was about as effective as hitting someone with a Q-tip, I opted for shoving him hard. My hands smacked his chest, and I pushed with all my might. It was a lot like pushing against a brick wall.

“You are such an ass.”

He held out his arms, apparently thinking holding his massive tattooed covered arms out in surrender would make him look innocent. “C’mon, give me some credit for ingenuity. I looked out the window and you looked like a wet, frozen little rabbit. I figured you were the type of girl who would rush to help someone in trouble. Even an ass like me.”

I dripped rain on his floor as I worked hard to come up with a response. His smug grin prompted me to find one. “Just to be clear, I would have rushed in to help any person who was yelling ouch.
Ouch
.” I couldn’t stop an eye roll. “Should have known you weren’t the
ouch
type.” I shook off my tangent and went back to my original thought. “This has nothing to do with liking you.”

“Right. Why don’t you take off that helium filled coat? Do you want some coffee?”

I shook my head but was glad to take off the big coat. “No coffee. I’m just going to stand right here and watch through the window. I’ll let you know the second the storm stops.”

“Sounds good.” Dax walked around to the kitchen side of the counter and poured himself a cup of coffee. The aroma and curl of steam coming off the cup was tempting, but so was the man holding the cup.

As promised, I stood in the same spot watching out the window. Sheets of water blurred the view and assured me the storm was still going strong. I felt a warm, lingering gaze on the side of my face. I took a breath before allowing myself to look Dax’s direction. Why the heck did he have to be so damn appealing? He could have been one of those salty ole guys with a beer gut who flew in World War something or other but he wasn’t. He was far from salty. In fact, I was standing firmly by my piece of candy analogy. 

“It’s still pretty bad out there,” I noted unnecessarily.

He looked casually toward the window. “Yep.”

I returned to my sentry position and watched as the clouds rolled over the beach like massive gray pillows. Just as I’d returned to watching the sky, it seemed that Dax had returned to his point of interest too. Me.

I presented the otherwise silent room with a well-tuned, irritated sigh and looked at him. “Isn’t there something you could do to pass the time? There must be something else you could look at.”

Dax took the time to sip his coffee before responding. He set the cup down and leaned casually against the counter. “Nope. I’d prefer to watch you. By the way, that blue sweater has my approval. Hugs those curves just right.”

“You’re the most annoying—” I didn’t finish my sentence and spun around sharply to grab my coat from the faded couch. He grabbed hold of my wrist.

“Kinley, don’t go.”

“Let go of me.” I turned around to look at him. There was no smug grin or cocky glint in his eyes. It was just Dax looking at me in a way that made my heart skip ahead as if trying to run for its life. “Please, Dax,” I said weakly.

His long black lashes dropped, only adding to his appeal, and I wondered if there was any part of the man that didn’t cause wild flutters in my stomach. He stared down at the hand he held and reluctantly pulled his fingers away from my wrist.

I turned back around and grabbed my coat on the way out the door. This was the right thing to do. I didn’t need this. I didn’t need heartbreak. And a man like Dax had heartbreak written all over him.

The door seemed to move farther away with each step like I was caught in a weird dream where I could never reach my destination. And then, behind me, the floor creaked and everything I’d just told myself evaporated.

I dropped my coat and raced toward him. He took two long steps to meet me, and I flew into his arms.

Our mouths slammed together. Somewhere in the midst of the kiss, I felt my feet leave the ground as Dax carried me into his room. He kicked open the door and lowered me to the ground. He grabbed greedily for my sweater and yanked it over my head. I pinched the ends of his shirt and shoved it up above his pecs. I pushed it higher, urging him to take it off.

Dax’s mouth pressed hard over mine as his hands fumbled with the button on my jeans. Even wet as they were, he had my shoes and jeans off in seconds. He swept me up and dropped me into the middle of his bed. He stood over me, gazing down at me with a look that sent a rush of heat through my body.

“Fuck, Kinley, I can’t stop thinking about you. I’m going fucking nuts with wanting you.” He pushed his jeans down, just to add credence to his claim. His cock was hard and glistening with moisture. He reached into his nightstand and pulled out a condom. There was just enough pause and question in his otherwise ravenous expression that I reached up to him to assure him I wasn’t going to run.

“I haven’t stopped thinking about you either, Dax. As much as I tried to talk myself out of this, I want it. I want you.”

It was the only nudge he needed. Dax climbed onto the bed and settled between my legs. He leaned up over me, shrouding me in his masculine warmth, kissing me as he rolled off my panties. “I knew you were fucking hot, baby, but—” He didn’t finish—even though I wouldn’t have minded—before he lowered his mouth to the swell of my breast. He pushed down my bra straps, exposing my breasts to the cool air in the room and his hot gaze. His tongue traced tender circles around my nipples, bringing them both to tight, pink buds. I wrapped my arms around his neck, marveling at the width and size of his shoulders, as he suckled each nipple.

The tip of his erection trailed up my naked thigh as he moved his body over me, covering my body with his hot kisses. As the moist heat between my legs surged, I arched my pussy closer to his body, wanting badly for him to touch me. “Dax,” I whispered. “Please.”

A low primal groan rumbled deep in his chest as he moved his hand down between my legs. “Fuck,” he growled against my skin as he slid his fingers through the slick moisture.

I clutched his arms, not wanting him to let go as he explored my pussy. I moved against the heel of his hand to warm my clit as his fingers impaled me. He leaned up on an elbow and stared down at the action between my legs. His fingers moved deftly, as if he already knew every intimate thing about me. I reached up behind me and grabbed the edge of the mattress to bring my hips up higher. His fingers went deeper, penetrating me enough to coax even more cream.

“Damn, baby, just finger fucking you is making me so hard, I want to come.”

I reached for him. “Then take me now, Dax. Please.”

In seconds, he’d rolled on the condom and lowered his body over mine. We were both crazed with need, both at the precipice of an orgasm, but he paused to take hold of my face and press a gentle kiss to my lips. A kiss with so much emotion behind it, my throat tightened as he drew his mouth away.

“Can’t believe I’m holding you in my arms, Rabbit. Can’t fucking believe it.”

His hand swept under me and down my back, stopping at my ass. He lifted my pussy higher and watched my face as he pushed inside of me. I bent my knees and pressed my feet against the mattress, bracing myself against his thrusts. I wanted to feel all of him, every inch of him sheathed tightly inside of me.

Dax pushed to his hands and moved inside of me in long, deep strokes. I reached down and gripped his ass, holding him against me as we moved in perfect rhythm together.

“Yes, please, yes,” I pleaded as he found an incredible sweet spot deep inside of me, a spot that he teased mercilessly with his cock until my entire body splintered into an orgasm.

Still aching with pleasure, I wrapped my legs around him and clung to him as he rocked hard and fast inside of me, renewing some of the same incredible sensations with each thrust. His grip on me tightened and he held me as if he would never let go.

“Fuck yeah.” His body tightened, and he groaned as he came.

He collapsed down next to me on the bed and pulled me into his arms. With our heartbeats and ragged breathing slowing, the room quieted. Outside, the rain and wind had stopped. The sky would clear enough for flight.

Dax squeezed his arms around me and kissed my forehead. “Ignore the silence outside, Rabbit. I’m not ready to let you go yet.”

Soon, I’d be back on Wildthorne Island. But
after this
nothing else would be the same.

Chapter 13

Dax

Kinley was quiet
, too quiet, as she tucked herself into her big coat like a cute turtle withdrawing into a puffy shell. I waited until Tero had quieted into a low buzz and we were well into the flight before talking to her.

“This wasn’t just some conquest or notch on my belt if that’s what you’re thinking.” It was all I could come up with, even though I regretted it the second I said it.

She stared out the side window. “I didn’t think it was until just now when you brought it up. Now I’m thinking it was exactly that.” She faced me. “Was it?”

“No, it wasn’t. At all. Damnit, Kinley, I wake up thinking about you. I go to bed thinking about you. Fuck. Just say the word and I’ll spin Tero around and take you back to King’s Beach. You can stay with me. You don’t need to go back to Wildthorne. Just say the damn word.” In the short silence that followed, I waited for her to answer. I waited anxiously for her to say take me home, Dax. Even knowing damn well she wouldn’t say it, my hands gripped the control wheel hard enough to crush it as I waited to hear the words.

“I was in a bad relationship before this,” she said quietly, but I heard every word. “The whole thing started as a rash decision. I dove into it without giving it any thought. A man—” she dropped her face, and half of it disappeared under the collar of her coat. “Brian,” she added a name to the imaginary face I already wanted to pound. “After college in the states, I felt homesick for my parents. They were living in a village in Kenya at the time. I met Brian, a real estate developer, while he was traveling through on an adventure vacation tour.”

“An adventure vacation?” I laughed. “Is that one of those tours for rich people where they set up linen, crystal glasses and silverware for a lunch in the tall savannah grasslands?”

I glanced over and found I’d earned a well-deserved scowl. “Sorry but I already hate the guy. Go ahead. I’ll try to keep my comments in my head.”

Kinley stopped her story and turned her attention to the window. A light sniffling sound followed. I wanted to kick myself.

“Hey, Rabbit, I’m sorry. Tell me, did the guy hurt you?” I couldn’t fucking believe how badly I already wanted to hit the asshole.

She shook her head. “Only mentally. Although, at the time, I was so heartbroken, it felt physical.”

Kinley was heartbroken over the guy. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d felt a solid thump in the gut from being jealous. But this time it was a Hulk-sized fist that had nailed me.

“Do you still miss him?” I braced for her answer.

Her blue eyes were glassy with tears as she looked at me. “Who?”

“Brian, the guy who broke your heart.”

“He broke my heart, but not in the way you think.”

Turbulence gave Tero a sharp shake. Kinley gasped and grabbed my arm. She released me the second the movement stopped, but I was still stoked that her first instinct had been to reach for me. I wanted more than anything to be that person she reached for or called to when she was afraid or worried or happy.

“I know you took a job on Wildthorne to avoid something or someone.”

Kinley stared down at her hands as she fidgeted with the zipper on her coat. “I did something terrible, and I needed to go into hiding.”

“Shit, did not see that coming. Come on, how bad could it be? I mean look at you. You’re fucking adorable with that twitchy little nose and everything. You even have sympathy for Marcus Underwood. I mean you’re like the closest thing to an angel on earth.”

“Stop. I’m not adorable. It was terrible, and I’m not proud of what I did.” She turned to look out the window again. I could see a tiny smile in her reflection in the window. “Well, maybe a little proud.”  

“Now you have to tell me, otherwise I’m going to be imagining all kinds of weird things.”

The storm clouds had moved on, leaving behind only a few stragglers, and most of those hovered over Wildthorne Island. Only the tall brick chimney on the west side of the house was visible from our vantage point.

Kinley caught a glimpse of the chimney. Her mouth turned down. “That was such a short flight.”

“See, you’re going to miss me when you’re down there on Creepy Mc Freakshow Island.”

“Stop.”

“Right. Sorry. I want to hear what my badass little Rabbit did that caused her to go into hiding on Creepy Mc—” I clamped my mouth shut.

“You’ll probably never want to see me again after I tell you. You’ll definitely think twice before kissing me or—well, you know.”

“Fucking?”

Her cheeks darkened. “Yes, that. Thanks for providing the exact word.” The coat rustled as she shifted in her seat. “I had a cat named Yowlie. He liked to yowl, so it seemed appropriate.”

“Makes sense to me.”

“Anyhow, I’d found him behind a dumpster as a little kitten. I had to beg Brian to let me keep him. That should have been my first clue. I can’t tell you how often I wanted to jump back in time to the night I brought Yowlie home. He was this sweet little pile of gray fur who couldn’t stop purring when I held him.”

“Yep, purring makes sense to me too.”

She arched her brow at me and continued. “I had to plead with Brian to let me keep the cat. But instead of begging, I should have just packed up my kitten and my clothes and left. But I didn’t. I’ll live with that regret forever. Anyhow, Yowlie was no problem at all. He grew up big and fat and still purring every time I held him. I loved that cat.”

“Uh oh. This sounds like it’s going to get ugly.”

“Very. Brian never warmed up to the idea of having a pet. Another friggin’ clue if there ever was one.” She looked over at me with a question on her lips. I read her mind.

“I love pets. If you come stay with me, you can have all the dogs and cats we can fit in the house.”

“So . . . two?”

“Yeah, that’s probably the max. I’m serious though, Kinley. I can get a bigger place.”

“Maybe you should hear the end of my story first.”

“All right, but I’m telling you unless this story ends in some bloody way with you wielding a chainsaw, I’m not withdrawing my offer.”

“No chainsaws. Only credit cards. I came home from work one day, and Yowlie was gone. Brian pretended as if he had no idea what happened to the cat, but I knew he’d taken him somewhere. I called all the local shelters, but it was no use. I was done with Brian. When he was at work, I snuck into his office and pulled out the ridiculous stash of credit cards he kept in his desk. I went online and donated fifteen thousand dollars of his money to animal charities. Then I packed my bags and ran.” She sat back with a satisfied smile.

I sat for a second, absorbing the story and thinking about how much it fit her. A laugh shot from my mouth. “That is fucking classic. All this time I’m thinking there’s some shady part of your past you’re hiding from and—” I laughed again. This time she joined me.

“I fucking adore you, Rabbit.”

I brought Tero down to the runway with a smile plastered on my face. I pulled the plane around for takeoff. I badly wanted to just keep going and head straight back to King’s Beach with Kinley. Our afternoon together had sealed one thing in my mind, I wasn’t giving her up without a fight.

Kinley clutched the carton of orange juice in one hand while taking hold of my hand with the other. She climbed down from the plane and did a little jump to nail the landing. I took full advantage and caught her in my arms. The carton of juice wedged between our bodies as I kissed her.

It took all my willpower to stop the kiss. I rested my forehead against hers. “I don’t want to let you go. Come back with me. Leave this place behind and fly back with me.”

She reached up and touched the side of my face. I took hold of her wrist and held her palm against my cheek.

“You don’t belong here. You ran from your
scurrilous
past.” I couldn’t stop the smile. “And as far as I’m concerned, you ran right here to these arms.”

“I need this job, Dax. And I like it. I like Becky and even Marcus isn’t so bad once you look past the—”

I shook my head. “Don’t say quirks.”

“Anyhow, I came back to the states and stuck myself directly into a relationship, a bad one at that. I’m loving my independence for a change. Don’t ask me to give that up.”

“Fine. You’re right. It’s just that—I just hate leaving you.”

“I’m only a plane flight away.” She kissed me and headed back to the house.