Chapter Six

 

* MEGAN *

 

Trent gripped my hand so tightly during the entire service for his father that I was afraid he was going to break my finger bones. He sat in the front row with me, which he hadn’t wanted to do. But once people saw that he was there, they had insisted on it. He was the only flesh and blood family in the room, and so he was given a place of honor.

He stared straight ahead as person after person came up to pay tribute to his father. He furrowed his brow deeper and deeper as stories were told of old Mr. Miller’s kindness. When people needed a hand, Mr. Miller had shown up. I knew what Trent was thinking—well he never showed up for me. For a while, I thought that perhaps it had been a mistake to bring Trent here after all. I thought Trent was going to jump up and angrily say something about his father, or, at the very least, storm out of the room.

But he didn’t. He sat there in his swim trunks and t-shirt while the island said goodbye to the man who had failed him thousands and thousands of times. Later, when we all went down to the beach to scatter old Mr. Miller’s ashes into the waves, Trent actually agreed to be the one to scatter the ashes. I knew then that this had indeed been helpful for him. I wasn’t naïve enough to think that the bad memories of his dad would never come back to haunt him again. But today had been at least the beginning of what would be a long process of letting go.

“I’m proud of you,” I whispered to Trent just before we turned to head back up the beach. He squeezed my hand in response. I saw Julia raise a questioning eyebrow at me from a few feet away, but I ignored her for now. I knew she could tell that there was more than just mere friendliness between Trent’s and my intertwined fingers right now, but I wasn’t ready to talk about it just yet. I needed time to process everything. Heck, I hadn’t even had a chance to actually kiss the man yet. Perhaps that would come later this afternoon.

Joe’s Sandbar was holding a funeral afterparty, like it did for pretty much every funeral on the island. It was a chance for people to come together to eat, drink, and celebrate life after spending the morning dwelling too much on death. And thankfully, I didn’t actually have to work at the bar until tonight, so I could enjoy the party for once.

I was worried that Trent wouldn’t feel that much like partying, but to my relief, he came along. He even managed to smile graciously and shake hands as a steady stream of people came by to offer their condolences and say what a shame it was that he’d lost his father relatively young.

When finally the stream of people slowed, I reached over and took Trent’s hand. “They mean well,” I said. “And it’s good you showed up for all of this, if you’re really intending to stay. It reminds them all that you’re a local. That you’re one of them.”

He gave me a funny look. “Of course I’m intending to stay. Did you think I made all of that up?”

I felt myself blushing as my cheeks heated up. “No, it’s just that…it all seems a little too good to be true.”

“Well it’s true.” He leaned in closer to me, and I once again had the sensation that the world around me was disappearing. The bar was packed and noisy, but all I could see and hear was Trent.

“I promise I’m staying,” he said, his voice low and thick with emotion. “I might have to go back to California to wrap up a few things, but I’ll come right back, and I’ll be back for good.”

I smiled. “I’m pretty sure that’s the best news I’ve heard in the last eight years.”

“Ha! Missed me, didn’t you?” he winked at me, and I laughed.

“I missed you like crazy, but I had kind of accepted it as a fact of life that you weren’t coming back. So this is the best news ever.”

His face sobered up. “I missed you, too. I’m not going to say that I never should have left, because I think the time away was good for me. I’ve had some good experiences, and I’ve made plenty of money. Enough money that you and I will never have to worry about anything for the rest of our lives.”

“Trent, don’t say things like that. This isn’t about the money at all.”

“I know. Trust me: I know you’re not after my money. But it’s nice to know that I’ll always be able to take care of my woman.”

I felt a rush of happiness. “Is that what I am? Your woman?”

He smiled at me so tenderly that I thought I might literally melt right then and there. But when he spoke, his voice was an authoritative growl. “Yes. My woman. And I intend to make sure that everyone here knows it.”

He leaned in closer, until his lips were brushing ever so lightly against mine. That little bit of contact was enough to send my body into complete chaos. My heart pounded harder in my chest, my stomach did ecstatic flip-flops, and I felt like my whole being was filled with an impossible heat.

For a moment, I was vaguely aware that a few of the other local boys were staring at Trent and me with open jealousy. Many of those boys had been after me for years, constantly buying me drinks or sending me flowers or doing a million other little things to try to convince me that they were what was missing from my life. But I had never seriously dated any of them. None of them had ever felt right, and now I knew why. Now I knew what actually had been missing from my life for the past eight years.

Trent Miller.

He definitely wasn’t missing anymore, though, and I was determined to make up for lost time. So, it seemed, was he.

He leaned in further until his lips were pressed firmly against mine, and then slipped his tongue past my lips. He ran it across every available surface in my mouth: my tongue, my teeth, and the roof of my mouth. He tasted vaguely of cinnamon, but I was too caught up with the sheer joy of kissing him to wonder about where the taste had come from. I felt the heat in my body rising, and my thighs trembled. Between my legs, I was already growing wet, and I cursed the fact that we were in the middle of a crowded bar. I wanted to be alone with him, and I wanted to tear his clothes off and see what he was hiding underneath his swim trunks. Perhaps we could even swim in the ocean together, no swimming apparel required. Just the saltwater and his skin against my skin.

I forgot where I was, and moaned. Luckily, the bar was noisy enough that I don’t think anyone except Trent heard me. Trent was pleased by that moan, however.

“You like this, babe?” he asked in a husky whisper. He had never in our lives called me babe, and the sound of it gave me such a thrill that I moaned again. Why had we never realized before how wonderful it felt to be wrapped up in each other?

In my head, I knew that the timing had never been right before. If we had rushed this, it would never have worked out. But now, the timing was right, and I could not get enough of him. I wondered how many people would notice and know what we were off to do if we left right now. Probably quite a few, but suddenly I didn’t care. I had waited twenty-five years for this moment. I had held off for the perfect man, wanting the first time a man made love to me to be special. And now I knew that it had all been worth the wait.

But I couldn’t wait much longer, and judging by the telltale erection between Trent’s legs, neither could he.

“Are you done your beer yet?” I murmured in a mischievous tone as I pulled back to look at him. “I could use some air.”

He glanced at his beer, which was still half full. “Hmmm. I think I’ll finish this quickly and then join you for some air.” He winked at me, which sent another surge of heat through me. I pushed away my own empty beer mug and had just started to shimmy down off my barstool when my phone rang loudly. The sound of it pierced even through the noisy crowd in the bar, and I bit my lip nervously as I began searching in my small purse.

Trent groaned. “That phone has a habit of ringing at the worst possible times.”

I waved at him to shush him, and looked down at the caller I.D. My heart sank when I saw that it was my grandma’s caretaker, Susie, once again. She likely wouldn’t be calling right now unless there was something wrong. I swiped to answer the phone and held it up to my ear.

“Susie? Sorry, I’m at the bar. It’s a little noisy in here.”

“Can you come home?” Susie asked without bothering with any pleasantries. “Your grandma seems to have taken a turn for the worse. I’ve already called for a doctor of course, but I’m not sure how much good it’s going to do.”

My heart plunged into my feet. “Of course,” I said, my throat feeling suddenly dry. “I’ll be there in ten minutes or less.”

When I hung up the phone, Trent was looking at me with concern. I knew he would want to help, but I wasn’t sure I was ready to talk to anyone out loud about the fact that my grandma might be dying today. Not even him. Besides, hadn’t he dealt with enough death today? It had only been about an hour since his dad’s funeral had ended.

“What’s going on?” he asked, reaching for my hand. I gave his hand a quick squeeze but then pulled away.

“Nothing much, but the caretaker needs my help. Can you find yourself a ride out of here if I take my car now?”

“Of course. But shouldn’t I come with you? I might be able to help with something.”

“No, no. It’s better if you wait here. Too many people around might stress my grandma out. I’ll call you if I need anything. You should just relax and recover from your dad’s funeral.”

He still looked doubtful, so I pushed him forcefully back down into the bar stool he was standing next to and waved at Joe the bartender.

“Joe! Another round over here, please. Put it on my tab.”

“Megan, really,” Trent said, starting to stand again.

“I’m fine, really.” I flashed him a bright smile. “You just enjoy your beer and hopefully I’ll be back before you even need to bother looking for a ride.”

Before he could protest again, I slipped through the crowd in the bar and hurriedly made my way to my car. One advantage to being so petite was that I could easily make my way through a crowd like that. I knew it wouldn’t be so easy for Trent, so he would never catch up with me before I got to my car. I didn’t look back as I slipped behind the wheel and sped away. I managed to hold back the tears until I was sure I was far enough from the bar that no one would spot me, but once I let a few tears out the rest came like a flood.

I knew it was only a matter of time until I lost my grandma, and really I should be happy for her to move on to a better place. She’d had a long life, and she deserved to be done with the pain she was dealing with now. But still, the thought of life without her was hard to bear.

“Please, please, Grandma. At least don’t die until I get there and have a chance to say goodbye,” I whispered as I sped through downtown way too fast. I had to get to her before it was too late.