Singleton

The contents of my backpack rattle when I heft it over my shoulder. It’s a clear night with just enough wind for what I have planned. I’ve waited for another good opportunity since I ruined our plans last time by getting jealous over Liam playing guitar for Kinley.

She’s waiting for me as promised, and she looks amazing. It doesn’t matter what she wears, she seems to get more beautiful every time I see her. Tonight, her snug jeans and clingy top make me want to drag her into the woods and dirty her up. The thought must flash across my forehead.

“Don’t look at me like that when you have clothes on,” she teases.

“Don’t be so damn sexy in everything.”

“What’s in the backpack?” she asks.

“A few things for our date tonight.” I take her hand and we start down the steps.

“Ooh, a date. How romantic.”

“You know I’m all about the romance, bug.”

She follows me without any further questions until we get to the clearing behind Foxhaven. The last of the light has faded when I stop in the middle of the field and set the bag down. She glances around and looks back at me with her eyebrow cocked.

Chuckling, I open the backpack. “Has anyone ever told you that you aren’t the most patient person?”

“I’ve come to accept it.” She watches as I pull out an electric lantern and turn it on. When I produce the next few items, she asks. “Are we flying a kite?”

“We’re flying two kites,” I correct, laying them out.

“It’s dark as a pocket out here. We’ll never see them,” she giggles.

“That’s what these are for.” I bring the lantern closer where she can see I’ve attached a number of bendable, plastic glow sticks to the edges of the kites. The kind that light up when you snap them. “A neighbor kid’s dad took me to do this once when I was about nine. I never forgot how cool it looked and I’ve always wanted to try it again.”

She watches as I crack the glow sticks, and they illuminate in an array of colors. The light from the lantern reflects in her eyes as she grins at me and asks, “Think you can get it up?”

“Never had a problem before, have I?”

We put some space between us and start letting out the string, then running to get them airborne. They catch the wind with no problem and get tossed around in the sky until they get high enough to stabilize a little.

We work our way back toward each other, careful not to get them tangled up. “This is awesome!” Kinley exclaims. All that’s visible is a sliver of her face in the lantern light but it’s enough to reveal the joy in her expression. So many women I’ve met are all about money, jewelry, or expensive trips. Kinley is different. Little things make her happy and giving her those moments are a joy.

High above us in the dark sky, two glowing diamond shapes of red, blue, green, and purple seem to dance with one another, to the music of Kinley’s melodic laughter. The urge to write, to put everything I’m feeling into words, so I have some hope of sorting it out, beats inside my chest, but it’ll have to wait. I won’t ruin this moment for anything.

“Kinley, I want you to go away with me.” The words tumble out of my mouth.

Her gaze is still locked on the sky above us. “Another weekend trip?”

“No, at the end of the summer, I’m going to take a break. A real one. Maybe three months or so. I want to travel, and I want you to come with me. We could start by seeing the Grand Canyon, then stay in the mountains.”

Now I have her full attention. “Are you serious?”

“Yes, there’s so much out there I want to experience with you. Not just nature, but beautiful cities, art, music, and food. We’ve both had a bad year. We deserve some fun.”

A sad smile grows slowly across her face. “That sounds amazing, Holt, but I can’t do that. I have a resort to run, responsibilities.”

“You have a lot of free time now that you’ve hired help and learned to delegate. Is there anything that you couldn’t handle by phone or email? If there was some major problem, we could fly back within a day or two.”

The longing on her face is hard to watch, especially with the wistfulness in her voice. “Holt, I don’t have that kind of money.” She lays her fingers over my lips, muting my reply, and adds, “And I’m not letting you pay for everything.”

“Bug, I have more money sitting in the bank than I could spend in three lifetimes. It doesn’t mean anything to me. Why let it keep adding up, just sitting there, when we could be using it to live like we’ve never had the chance? I’m not talking about private planes and five star hotels. We can get an RV and road trip, go camping, rent a cabin in the mountains. Whatever we want.”

I’m winning her over. I can tell.

A gust of wind chooses that moment to slam her kite into mine and she steps away, reeling in the string and trying to dislodge them, but it’s too late. I do the same and we must look funny, running around while laughing at the sky.

We collide, and the soft oof that I emit makes her giggle as I hit the ground and she falls on top of me. The two kites do a spectacular spinning dive in a blur of color before crashing a few feet away from us.

She rolls over on her stomach, lying on my chest, and we laugh together. “That was fun. I always have fun with you.”

I run my hand down the back of her hair. “Me too, bug.”

After a moment of silence, she says, “It would have to be after Labor Day. I have to be here for the celebration.”

Happiness rushes over me. “Is that a yes?”

She rests her chin on my chest and gazes into my eyes. “Yes, but you have to let me pay for some stuff.”

“Having you with me is all the payment I need. And a daily blow job,” I tease.

Giggling, she shakes her head and stretches to kiss me. “The Grand Canyon, then the mountains,” she murmurs. “Perfect.”

A burst of red sparkles fills the sky, and she rolls off of me, sitting up.

I sit up and give my shirt a shake to free the grass sticking to my back. “They’re starting. Do you want to go up the hill?”

“Nah, we can see fine from right here.” She scoots back between my legs and I drape my arms around her neck.

The next twenty minutes pass in a blissful silence while we watch the night sky fill with color and dream of the months to come.

I know I’ll look back on this summer as the best in my life, no matter what happens down the road. The last few weeks since Kinley agreed to go away with me have been the best. No fighting, drama, or misunderstandings. Just long evenings and nights spent together, watching TV, listening to music, and enjoying all the nature around us. I’m beginning to understand why she wants to live in the cabin she’s having built, but I’m glad she’s willing to forgo that plan until after our trip.

My brother is behaving himself and is on track to be released from rehab in a little over a month, and I’m looking forward to all the changes that I plan to make once my contract ends.

I haven’t seen my father since I came to Foxhaven, so when he calls, I agree to go for a quick visit. The uproar over the Alicia thing has faded and I’m not being stalked as hard, so an hour and a half drive to Nashville shouldn’t be a big deal. I’m tempted to ask Kinley to go, but I can’t. It’s half the reason I’m going, to get advice from dad on how to come clean with her.

“It’s one night, Holt, I’m sure I’ll survive,” Kinley teases, rolling out of bed. It gives me a great view of her plump ass, and I can’t resist, even though I had her not twenty minutes ago. I jump out of bed, grab her by the waist, spin her around and bend her over the bed.

“Holt!” she squeals, as I bury my cock inside her without warning. We crossed a milestone this week of not using condoms anymore since she has a birth control implant, and I’m taking advantage of the opportunity to be spontaneous.

I kiss up her spine until I get to her neck and suck the spot that drives her crazy. She groans and pushes her ass back against me. “Are you going to think about me when I’m gone?” I murmur.

“Depends on how good you fuck me,” she breathes.

This woman.

She’s perfect.

Her hands fist the sheets when I pull out and slam back into her. “Yes, fuck,” she exclaims. “Go hard.”

She asked for it, and I’m going to deliver. Her feet hover an inch off the floor as I grip her hips and pound into her, fast and hard, reveling in the cries, grunts, and curses that fill the room. I want her in every way possible. Slow, fast, sweet, dirty. Every trace of her is mine. Every bit of me is hers. Whether she realizes it yet or not.

It doesn’t take long before I feel her tighten and she cries out her release, driving me over the edge to mine. Sweat coats both our bodies when I slide out of her. I smack her ass, watching it bounce in the beam of sunlight from the window, and she gasps at the surprise sting.

“Savage,” she mumbles, rolling over and sitting on the edge of the bed.

“You loved it.”

“Three orgasms in one morning? You won’t hear me complain.” Her phone beeps with a text, and she picks it up. “It’s my mom. I’m supposed to meet her today.”

She stands and wraps her arms around me, her tits pressing against my chest. “Be careful and get your ass back here,” she says, before pressing her lips to mine.

“I’ll be back by tomorrow afternoon,” I promise. “Shower?”

She giggles and starts dressing. “I’m showering at my place where my vagina is safe. It’s looking forward to twenty-four hours of rest.”

“Enjoy it, because I’m taking you the second I get back.”

We finally manage to pry ourselves apart, and an hour later, I’m in a car, being driven to my dad’s place in Nashville.

He sits on the step when I pull up and waves to me. This isn’t the house I grew up in, even from sixteen on. When the big break with the label came, he wanted to be close enough to visit, and since he’s retired, he had no qualms about moving to Nashville.

He gets to his feet and hugs me, slapping me on the back. “It’s good to see you. You look good. Haircut sucks.”

Laughing, I run my hands through the long strands on top. Anavrin just trimmed it for me again a few days ago. “It’s better than the bald look. How are you, Dad?”

“Sweating my nuts off in this heat, but otherwise, not too bad. Let’s go in where it’s cool.”

The house smells like barbecue, and I grin at him. “Ribs?”

“With corn and coleslaw.”

“Hell, yeah.”

A few hours of hanging out with him, eating barbecue and drinking a few beers has me relaxed and happy. We sit out on the porch, enjoying the breeze after a late afternoon thunderstorm quells the humidity.

“Your brother is going to be staying with me when he’s released,” he says, tilting his beer bottle to his lips.

“I heard. Are you ready to deal with that?”

He sighs. “I love him, but I don’t know. There’s nothing I want more than for him to find his way, and stop all the bullshit, but between us, I don’t have a lot of hope. He’s only in rehab now because he was forced into it. If he doesn’t want to change…” He waves his hand.

“Yeah, you’ve done your best. It’s hard to know where to draw the line, but you should know, I’ve reached my limit.”

Dad grins at me. “Maybe if he’d have grown up with you from the beginning, you’d have had more influence on him, and he’d be a better person.”

His words shock me, and I just stare at him for a long moment. He sees me as the good brother? That can’t be true. I’ve never been the favorite, and I understood. He raised him from the beginning. I came to him as a pissed off, broken hearted teenager with a chip on my shoulder and something to prove.

“I-thanks,” I mumble, still turning the comment over in my head.

“Now.” He cracks open another beer and hands it to me. “Do you want to tell me what has you all tied up in knots? I assume it’s a woman, although I’ve never seen you so worked up over one before.”

“That obvious, huh?” I grumble, propping my feet on the wall of the porch.

“Is it the hotel owner? I’ve seen the pictures of you two coming out all summer.”

“Yeah, her name is Kinley.”

He grins at me. “So, what’s the problem?”

No matter how old a person gets, there’s always that dread of telling your parents something you know they’re going to disapprove of, and I feel it in my gut now. He may not think I’m such a great person after this.

“The problem is I’m under contract which includes a non-disclosure agreement.”

His head tilts, and he looks at me with disbelief. “She doesn’t know?”

“No.”

“And you’ve been sleeping with her?”

“I’ve been doing everything with her.”

“Holt, Jesus, how did you think this was going to go?”

I scrub my palm across my face. “I didn’t plan it. It just happened. She just happened.”

“Do you want my advice?” His gaze is intense.

“I didn’t come here for the beer,” I joke, trying to break the tension. It doesn’t work. I feel a lecture of epic proportions approaching.

“Tell her. Now.”

“It’s not that easy! It could destroy Jilted. We could get sued for everything. I tried to talk to Sully about it, but he won’t budge.”

Dad shakes his head. “I’d like a few minutes alone with that guy. Fucking bottom feeder. You need to get a lawyer because that contract is bullshit.”

“I know, but I can’t break it. I have to tell her, but I could lose everything when I do.”

Dad scrutinizes me for the longest minute in human history before asking, “Do you love her?”

“I-fuck,” I breathe, running my hand through my hair. “Yeah, I do.”

“Then you only lose everything if you lose her. I know you had the best intentions, but this is going to come to a head. Publicly. Everyone involved needs to tell the truth and deal with the fallout. She needs to hear it from you, not the tabloids. And get rid of that fucking weasel, Sully. When everything goes up in flames, he’ll be the one holding the match.”

He’s right. I know he is, and my stomach churns with the realization. I’m screwed. I’m so screwed.

“Maybe I will talk to a lawyer.”

“Okay, I’ll stop lecturing.” He grins at me. “Tell me about her.”

A smile leaps to my face. “You’d like Kinley. She’s beautiful and funny. Strong as hell. She just turned twenty-four and she owns a successful resort, but she isn’t smug or stuck up about it. She’s really…kind.”

That’s the best word to describe her.

Dad smiles and takes a drink. “There’s a real surfeit of kindness and compassion right now. Such a push back of hate and indifference in the world. People like you and her are rarities. I’d keep that in mind when you’re trying to decide what’s most important.”

“I’m not like her.”

The corner of his mouth tucks in. “You’re wrong, son. It’s clear you love her. And real love is only born of kindness and compassion. Everything else is just chemistry.”

His words sink in and drive my anxiety higher. “Since when did you become all philosophical?” I scoff, trying to change the subject.

“Age has a way of showing you the shit you overlooked when you were young and distracted by all the noise.”

“So, it all becomes crystal clear when it’s too late to do anything about it? Great,” I chuckle.

Dad grins at me. “But it’s not too late for you.”

Dad’s words weigh heavily on my mind throughout the next week, and I’m glad Kinley has been too preoccupied with dealing with her mother to notice. I’ve kept my opinion to myself when it comes to Heather, because after all the shit I’ve done for my family, I’m hardly one to judge, but I don’t like her. I can’t put my finger on what makes me distrust her, other than her past, but she feels shady, and I hope Kinley doesn’t end up hurt by her.

A call from Sully boosts my mood.

“He’ll be released on the twenty-fifth. I’m sending a car for him and he’ll go straight to your father’s. You need to be in Nashville that week for a meeting to decide where we’re going from there.”

“I’ll be in Nashville to see him and my dad, then I’m going away with Kinley. Whatever plans you’re making, don’t include me.”

He huffs into the phone. “We can talk about that in Nashville.”

“Fine.” He hangs up on me, and I chuckle. He can be as pissy as he wants. My contract is nearly up, and things are going to change. I’ve been trying not to let myself think about the truly horrible task I have to do, telling Kinley. I’m afraid she’ll run which is why I want to do it far from here, in some tropical paradise where I can take my time explaining and hope to fuck she understands.

She said she’d go away with me, now I know the timing will work out. She’s been so busy getting ready for this Labor Day Celebration that I’ve barely seen her except at night. I can’t wait to get her all to myself, in those beautiful mountains where we can spend days at a time with no distractions or interruptions.

After the air is cleared, assuming she forgives me for everything I’ve kept from her, I want to tell her how I feel. That I don’t want to be without her ever again.

That I’m in love with her.