Victim of Love (12 page)

Hearing Pippa’s distinct laughter outside, I sprinted down the hall, snatched a towel out of the linen closet, and darted into the bathroom, closing the door behind me.

As I turned on the shower and stepped under the stream, I realized Beck and I hadn’t had time to get our stories straight as to what we’d been doing all afternoon. Should make for an interesting evening. Hiding the fact that my entire being was humming happily in the afterglow of amazing sex.

And that’s when something occurred to me. Since Beck was hiding this side of himself, it meant that I had to hide it as well. That thought brought my post-coital euphoria down a notch.

Beck had stuffed me back in the closet after all. I’d just had the most intense sex of my life, with the most intriguing man I’d ever met.

And I couldn’t tell a soul.

Chapter Five

The Great Pretender

Despite my concern that one of my friends would figure out I’d gotten laid, see it radiating from me like a neon sign, no one even asked how Beck and I had spent our afternoon. They didn’t seem the slightest bit suspicious as we ate and drank our way through a feast of Cuban food on a festive deck overlooking the water.

Everyone seemed in high spirits this evening. The atmospheric restaurant, colored lights strung overhead, and upbeat, sultry music coming from the live band—along with plenty of cocktails—promoted laughter and loud, enthusiastic discourse at our table. Townsend had even gone back to talking and joking with Beck, their brief conflict over Pippa’s biscuit seemingly forgotten.

The tables on the dockside bar were long, rectangular wooden things, and I was seated on one side with Beck and Laurie, wedged right between them, which was making me slightly nervous. Nervous, because
Beck
didn’t seem to be nervous at all, occasionally sneaking his hand behind my lower back and giving me a quick stroke with his finger above the hemline of my pants. I’d give him a wide-eyed, warning glance, but he’d just grin at my discomfort, like he was enjoying it.

No one else seemed to notice. And maybe that was his strategy. If we behaved awkwardly, ignoring each other and avoiding contact, that would likely seem more suspicious. And damn it, here I was, over-thinking everything again. But it was a challenge for me, sitting next to him, smelling his cologne, trying not to let my glance linger, though he looked positively, insanely gorgeous tonight. In a beige, silk, button-down shirt with nice brown pants, his golden tan stood out, the stark whiteness of his teeth when he smiled, the liquid glimmer of his eyes when he risked shooting me a sexy, pointed gaze.

Aside from the absence of a tie and the fact that he wasn’t soaking wet, he was adorned much like he’d been the night I’d found him on the beach, before I knew who he was or that he was going to have his dick inside me within days of our meeting.

“Olsen. Olsen!”

I looked up and blinked at Townsend, who I hadn’t realized was addressing me. “Yeah?”

Townsend chuckled. “Kamal asked you a question.”

“Oh, sorry, Kamal.” I laughed. “Didn’t hear you.”

“Do you want to meet some friends of mine for the fourth?” he asked.

I frowned, then shrugged. “Sure.” I looked around at the others, trying to figure out why the question was directed at me alone.

Kamal pulled his phone out, messing with it as he spoke. “It looks like that party in Provincetown isn’t happening after all, but I talked to some friends of James and mine who’d actually like to join us at the resort for the fireworks.”

“Oh, cool,” I said. “The more the merrier, right?”

“Show him the picture, Kamal,” Pippa urged, grinning deviously at me while she sucked from a straw buried in a pile of fruit topping a blue cocktail.

My eyes narrowed as my suspicion grew, bordering on discomfort now, as I kind of knew what was coming.

“Here.” Kamal showed me his phone, a photo of an attractive, smiling blond man about my age, sitting on a seawall with a dog. “This is Max, who’ll be coming down with another few of my friends. And he’s looking forward to meeting you.”

I merely glanced at the photo, then forced a laugh as I focused on Kamal. “What do you mean he’s looking forward to meeting me? What did you do? You know I don’t like setups, Kamal.”

Beck cleared his throat. “I’ve gotta find a bathroom. Be right back.”

I watched Beck leave the table then disappear inside the restaurant. He was clearly removing himself from a situation he knew would be awkward enough for me without
him
sitting beside me while it happened. I would have found the entire scenario unbearably amusing if I weren’t so nervous. Here my friends were, trying desperately to find me some man on man action, not knowing I’d already been enjoying secret, sweaty romps with Beck.

“It’s not a formal setup, Olsen, relax,” Kamal said. “It’s going to be a big group of people, us and them, nothing awkward.”

I leaned forward, elbows on the table. “Really. Then what did you mean by he’s dying to meet me?”

Kamal smiled and raised a finger. “Ah, I didn’t say he was dying to meet you. I said he was
looking forward
to it. Max inquired, albeit jokingly, about whether or not there would be young, single men at the event. I mentioned you, and he asked to see your photo.”

My jaw dropped. “You showed some random guy my picture? Kamal!”

Beside me, Laurie laughed, then rubbed my back. “I’m with Olsen on this one, Kamal,” she said. “You know how private he is.”

“Oh, relax, buddy,” Townsend said. “It’ll be a fun night either way. If you don’t like the guy, just be polite and don’t engage.”

“Hang on,” I said. “What picture did you show him? And why do you even
have
a picture of me?”

Kamal smirked and fussed with his phone, then slid it over to me, revealing a photo taken one afternoon at work when a few of us were screwing around at the cafeteria with Townsend and his workers. My jaw dropped once again. “Kamal! You showed him
that
picture?”

I stared at myself on the screen, in my lab coat, huge, goofy grin on my face. I was standing next to a paper sign taped to a closed door, the arrow pointing directly at me. The sign read ‘REAR ENTRANCE ONLY’. We’d thought it hilarious at the time, but it wasn’t the type of photo I wanted shared with strangers. Especially strangers inquiring about my single status.

“Come on, it’s funny,” Kamal said. “It’s so you.”

Laurie leaned in. “Oh, you look so cute in that picture, Olsen!”

“Laurie,” Pippa said.

Patting my back, Laurie leaned in to me. “Don’t worry about it. It’ll be fine.”

“Laurie!” Pippa said again.

Laurie looked over at Pippa. “What?”

Pippa stirred her drink with a straw. “Did you know that your brother is out there dancing? By
himself?
”

We all looked over at the dance floor. Couples twirled and danced, fancy moves that flared the women’s short, colorful skirts. And there was Beck, in the center of it all, arms over his head, shifting his hips and swinging his head. His moves were silly and exaggerated, and got the attention of the band leader, who handed Beck a set of maracas.

“Oh, God, he always does shit like that,” Laurie said, waving a hand and picking up her drink.

Townsend let out a hearty laugh, watching as Beck shook the maracas and bounced around, alone in the midst of a dozen dancing couples.

I glanced at Laurie, who caught my eye. “Your brother’s hilarious,” I said.

She grinned, then looked over at the dance floor. “He can be embarrassing, but I don’t mind. It’s better this way.”

I shook my head. “What do you mean, better this way?”

She lowered her voice and leaned in close to me. “Beck was really sad for a while, and it scared me. He seems to be past it now, but he’s...not the same. Now he’s like a completely different person. Kind of crazy, and definitely weird, but better that than sad. I guess what I’m trying to say is, my brother can do whatever the hell he wants as far as I’m concerned. Because at least he’s
here
.”

“I understand,” I said, though I didn’t exactly understand.

Did Laurie mean she was glad Beck was here, on this trip? Or
here
as in still on the planet? No, that I couldn’t fathom, that Beck had ever been suicidal. He was too bold, too full of life. But she did say his sadness had
scared
her.

I thought about the night I met him, lying in the water, drunk as a skunk on Peppermint Schnapps. And who the hell got drunk on that shit anyway? He was more likely to go into a sugar coma than catch a buzz. But the bottle at his side that night had been half empty, so he’d certainly put in the effort.

It occurred to me now that aside from that first night when I’d chased him up the sand dune, I hadn’t seen Beck drink a lot on this trip. He’d indulge in one cocktail, maybe two, and rarely finished the second one. But the night we’d met, he’d sure been trashed. Curious. Laurie’s heartfelt sharing about Beck had me damn curious. But as always, I was probably over-thinking it.

“So you’re glad he’s here because you don’t see him much?” I asked Laurie, slightly ashamed of my blatant digging for clarification.

“Not these days.” I saw a rawness in her eyes. “Not since he started that ridiculous
job
of his. Frankly, I’m surprised he’s stayed this long. He usually ends up taking off early when we get together.” Then she laughed, and in a flash the rawness in her eyes was gone. “Oh, my God. Would you look at him?”

Beck was still dancing, but now a cluster of women surrounded him. Two of the women had Beck sandwiched between them as they danced, him shaking maracas over his head as his hips rocked in time with theirs.

I smiled. “He’s something alright.”

“I told you,” Laurie said. “Everyone who meets Beck ends up loving him.” She glanced at me. “You like him, don’t you?”

I fought the heat that tried to climb up my face, and remained casual. “Yeah. Yeah, I like him, he’s great.”

“Good.” She smiled. “I really hoped he’d get along with my friends.”

Moments later Beck returned to the table, a slight gleam to his complexion from sweating on the dance floor.

“Bravo.” Townsend clapped, and the others joined in. “Nice moves.”

Beck took his seat beside me, chuckling. “You saw me? I didn’t think you guys even noticed I was gone.”

“Oh, we saw you,” Pippa said. “You were in a hot-girl sandwich.”

Beck shrugged, grinning as he leaned back in his chair. “What can I say?” He looked at me and winked. “Chicks dig me.”

Beck’s arm stretched back and his elbow rested on the edge of my chair. To a clueless bystander, it was innocuous, but my gut rolled with nerves. And the beginnings of arousal, as I could feel his body heat and smell his skin—a scent I now knew intimately.

Kamal caught my eye across the table. His brown-eyed gaze shifted briefly to Beck’s arm where it rested on the back of my chair, then he turned away.

A waiter came over and took more drink orders. When Laurie excused herself to go to the ladies room, Beck leaned in to me. “Having fun?” His finger grazed the back of my neck, making me shiver.

I glanced at him. “What are you doing?” I said under my breath.

His nose wrinkled as he grinned. “What do you mean?”

I took a sip of my drink and lowered my voice. “You keep touching me.”

“Thought you liked my hands on you.”

I let out a long breath, my eyes darting around the table to assure no one was paying attention. I turned to Beck. “Thought
you
were in the closet.”

“I am,” he said, his finger stroking the back of my neck discreetly. “But it’s getting stuffy in there.”

As Laurie approached the table again, Beck jumped up and grabbed her arm, dragging her out on the floor to dance. Leaving me sweating, completely undone, and altogether confused.

****

Everyone was pretty wiped out when we got back to the bungalow, so after a nightcap on the patio, they began to trail off to bed. First Townsend and Pippa went, though she was still pretty rowdy and a bit drunk. By the eye contact they’d been giving each other I suspected their night wasn’t over, but moving on to more private activities in the bedroom.

Laurie had met a young man who’d approached her and cut in while she was dancing with Beck. She’d danced with him, talked quietly with him at the bar, and ultimately they’d exchanged numbers, so she also went off to bed with dreamy smiles on her face. Romance seemed to be in the air after our night at the Cuban restaurant, and even Kamal had taken time to call his partner, James, for some late night pillow talk.

But Kamal was still puttering around inside the bungalow. Which left Beck and I alone on the patio, but not quite alone
enough
. I knew Beck wanted me, could tell by the heated glances he was shooting my way from where he sat on a patio chair. And I sure as hell wanted him. After the way he’d been toying with me all night, my libido was on high alert and there was no way I was turning in without at least getting a kiss from the alluring bastard.

He glanced toward the bungalow’s kitchen windows, and his brow lowered over his eyes. “Kamal’s still up.”

I nodded. “Yep.”

Beck smiled at me. “I suppose he’d notice if we both suddenly disappeared together.”

I nodded. “Uh huh.”

“Then we need a reason. You want to go down to the beach for a swim?”

I glanced over my shoulder and spotted Kamal inside, pacing the dining area on his phone. “Won’t it look just as suspicious if we go out of our way to tell Kamal we’re going for a ‘swim’?”

Beck shrugged, and dragged his chair a little closer to mine. Lowering his voice, he leaned over and rested his arms on his knees. “I’m no expert at human behavior, but I’m pretty sure your friend Kamal already knows there’s something going on.”

I winced. “I did tell him about meeting you on the beach that first night. But he doesn’t know anything else.”

“Oh yes, he does.”

“Why do you think that?”

“I have eyes. He keeps watching us. And for some reason he doesn’t like what he sees.”