CHAPTER FIVE
Charley
An hour later I was snuggled deep beneath the covers of my temporary bed, trying in vain to fall asleep. The last few hours had dredged up a lot of feelings I hadn’t allowed to the surface in a long time– fear about what happened that day ten years ago, grief over losing Tim, and guilt for being the one that survived. But what kept me awake long after I had pushed those other feelings away had nothing to do with my past and had everything to do with Nick Moore.
My last serious relationship ended two years ago, and had lasted just short of five months. Both of us had known it wasn’t going to last forever and we had been more than okay with that. I had dated a few men off and on since then, none of them seriously and none of them for longer than a few dates. One thing they all had in common was that I had never opened up to any of them about my past. I had known Nick for less than a week and had let him see the darkest, most hidden parts of me. Even more concerning, I didn’t regret it. I liked talking to Nick, liked being around him, and I really liked kissing him.
Needless to say, I was a little disconcerted when I woke the next morning and found myself alone in the house. I did a quick check of every room, but Nick was nowhere to be found. His car was still parked in front of the house, so he probably hadn’t gone very far. After a long, hot shower, I made myself at home and got the coffee pot brewing. I was just pouring my first cup when the back door flew open and Nick appeared, sweaty and smiling.
“You’re up!”
“As are you.” I tried not to stare as he lifted the bottom of his shirt to wipe sweat from his face. An undeniably fit torso taunted my wandering eyes. “Morning run?”
“No better way to start the day.” He dropped his shirt back into place.
“I beg to differ.” I lifted my coffee and took a long sip.
“Can’t argue with that. Let me just take a quick shower and then I’ll join you.”
The naughty Charley inside me almost said, “How about I join you instead?” But the good Charley kept her in check and Nick left the room alone.
I grew restless waiting for Nick, so I took my coffee outside and strolled down to the beach. The water lapped gently against the rugged shoreline. The steady motion and gentle sound was soothing, a piece of calm in my otherwise chaotic life. I was so taken away by the moment that I didn’t realize Nick had joined me until I felt his arm brush against mine.
“I thought I might find you out here.” His hand found mine and he gave it a soft squeeze. In khakis and a baby blue sweater that clung to the contours of his body, damp hair blowing in the breeze, Nick looked like he had stepped out of a romance novel.
“Is this how you spend all your weekends? Relaxing in secluded beach houses?”
“Not as many as I would like.” Nick took the mug I was still holding and finished the last of the coffee. “Let’s go into town and get some breakfast. We have a long day ahead of us.”
We didn’t have to discuss where we would eat breakfast because the town only had one small diner, located on Main Street, naturally. Nick was clearly a regular there and we were seated at his usual table in the corner. None of the other patrons seemed very impressed by the presence of the most popular senator in America eating breakfast in their local diner.
After a gluttonous amount of food and several cups of coffee, we took a lazy stroll through town. Nick told me about his family’s trips to the area when he was a boy. His dad would drive their old station wagon down the coast and they would stop at all the small towns along the way.
“One time, he actually left me at a gas station about a mile from here.” Nick laughed at the memory.
“On purpose?” It didn’t sound very funny to me.
“No, not on purpose. He had four young kids to wrangle and he didn’t realize I hadn’t gotten back in the car after we stopped for a bathroom break. My youngest brother, Chase, knew I was still inside but he thought it would be funny to leave me there.” Nick laughed again. “He always was a bit of a sociopath.”
“What did you do when you realized they were gone?”
“I was ten years old– too old to start crying and too young to start panicking. I just sat on the curb and waited for them to come back. I waited for over an hour.”
“Your dad must have been so worried when he found out you were missing.”
“I’ve only ever seen him that upset one other time in my life.” Nick’s smile was gone and for the first time it occurred to me that he might be carrying a past as dark as my own.
“When?” The word came out as barely a whisper, but in that moment, it might as well have been a gun shot.
“The day he told us that our mom had left.” Nick glanced at me and he could see the question in my eyes. He answered it without me saying a word. “She just took off one day, without any warning signs. I was almost twelve at the time and I couldn’t for the life of me understand how she could do that. I kept thinking she would come back.”
When I looked at him, I could see that confused boy, struggling to understand what had happened to his mother. I wanted to wrap my arms around him, wanted to take away that pain. But life doesn’t come with an eraser.
Instead of hugging Nick, I said, “Life really sucks sometimes.”
“Sometimes it does.” He paused and looked at me with an intense and indecipherable expression. “But other times it’s pretty amazing.”
“Is it?” Nick sounded so certain, so optimistic, I wanted nothing more than to believe him.
“Yes.” He hooked a finger through one of my belt loops and pulled me toward him. “And I’m going to spend the rest of the weekend proving it to you.”
“That sounds promising.” I smiled as I leaned into his warm body. “You should know I’m going to need a lot of convincing.”
Nick’s arms went around me and he leaned in close enough that our noses were almost touching. “Challenge accepted, Charlotte Tanner.”
Aware that we were still in public, both of us exercised a modicum of restraint as our lips met and our bodies pressed together. After our PG-13 moment, Nick led us across town to the beach. It was too cold for anyone to be in the water, but the shore was speckled with the occasion couple having a picnic or group of friends tossing a football. We found a relatively quiet place and sat in the sand, watching the water and the people around us.
Nick did most of the talking, turning into a little boy before my eyes as he talked about his interests– travel, baseball, and nerdy science fiction books. I spent a lot of time teasing him about the last one.
“We couldn’t all be the popular kids in school,” Nick replied after one of my more brutal jabs. “Pretty girls like you spent your days ignoring me, so I spent a lot of time with my nose in a book.”
“I happened to like nerds back then,” I said, elbowing him lightly in the ribs. “I still do obviously.”
“Obviously?” He mocked hurt.
“Once a nerd always a nerd.”
“Well, I think we’ve talked enough about me.” Nick dusted sand from his hands. “Your turn.”
“I was not a nerd. That’s all you really need to know.” I smiled sweetly and hoped that would be enough for him. I had done my share of storytelling last night and wasn’t in the mood to relive that experience.
Nick wasn’t going to give up that easily. “Okay so if you weren’t a nerd, what were you? Cheerleader? Jock? Musician?”
“I don’t believe in labels.”
“You don’t have to believe in them to belong to one of them,” Nick quipped lightly. “I’m going to take your reluctance to talk about it to mean that you were actually an even bigger nerd than me.”
“Take it whatever way you want.” The annoyance in my voice was hard to ignore but that didn’t stop him.
“Mathlete?”
“Nick. Let it go, okay? I don’t want to play this game anymore.” I attempted to stand up, but Nick was quick to grab my arm and hold me in place.
“Charley, don’t get upset. I’m just trying to learn more about you.” Nick kept his grip on me until he felt me relax back into the sand. “We can change the topic of conversation. Books? Reality television? Bad dates?”
He was being so sweet and earnest that even my heart of ice began to melt. “Class President,” I said in defeat. “And I played tennis and was a flautist in the band.”
“I knew it,” he said with a delighted laugh. “Nerd!”
“Yeah, well, takes one to know one.” My annoyance had faded and I was quickly becoming aware of just how smitten I was with Nicholas Moore.
His persistence paid off because before I knew it, I was telling stories about my childhood. He laughed heartily when I told him about the time that Tim and I ran away from home, but returned an hour later because we were hungry and forgot to take food with us. We both laughed as I recalled my short-lived stint in the marching band, removed after tripping over my own feet and knocking down the school mascot.
We were both reluctant to leave the beach, but the wedding was only an hour away and we still needed to change. When we stood, sand clung to our clothes and Nick helped me brush it from my pants. I was very conscious of the feeling of his hands skimming over my body. It took a lot of will-power not to jump him right there.
Nick must’ve agreed because he said, “We could always skip the wedding. They probably won’t even notice if I don’t show up.”
“I thought this was a good friend?”
Nick shrugged. “I have other friends.”
“Nice try,” I said, grabbing his hand and tugging him away from the water. “I’m not going to be responsible for the end of your friendship.”
“You’re not even going to like Craig when you meet him. He’s rich and smug. I don’t even like him most of the time.”
“It’s not going to work. We’re going to your friend’s wedding.” I stopped walking and kissed Nick on the cheek. “Don’t worry, we still have the rest of the weekend for us.”
Nick’s face turned serious. “I really hope we have more than just this weekend.”
“Me, too.”
* * *
“There are a lot of rich people here.” I looked around the parking lot at the other men and women that were headed toward the chapel. One gentleman looked familiar. “Is that our mayor?”
“Yes.” Nick didn’t sound surprise.
“Why is that not a big deal? He’s practically a celebrity.” After I said that I realized how ridiculous it sounded. Nick himself was even more famous than the mayor.
“Craig and the mayor were roommates in grad school. They worked together on Wall Street for years. I would be more surprised if he wasn’t here.” Nick took my hand and led us into the crowd that was headed inside.
“Wait,” I whispered loudly. “Is your friend Craig Bender? The Craig Bender? The billionaire?”
“Yes.”
“Way to bury the lead, Moore.” I glanced around, nervously trying to determine if I fit in with rest of the attendees in my off-the-rack dress. Inside, the chapel looked like a miniature version of a royal wedding. Diamonds sparkled like stars in the night sky.
We slid into a pew near the back and I leaned close to Nick. “This was a bad idea,” I said in a hushed tone. “I don’t belong here.”
Nick’s face registered confusion. “What are you talking about? Of course you belong here– you’re my guest.”
“You should’ve brought someone else,” I insisted, fiddling with the hem of my midnight blue dress. “Someone fancier. Prettier. Richer.”
Nick rolled his eyes. “Fancier and richer are overrated qualities in a woman.”
“Well, fine. Prettier then.” My eye caught site of a woman that had likely been a swimsuit model at some point in her life.”
Nick’s arm went around my shoulder and he pressed his lips to my ear. “I’ve never seen a more beautiful woman in my life.”
I was about to tell Nick that I thought he was full of shit, but the organ struck up the bridal march and there was nothing I could do but relish in the lingering warmth from his breath on my ear.
By all accounts, it was a normal wedding. Not average in anyway, but normal. Unflattering bridesmaids’ dresses, an obviously drunk groomsman, and a beaming bride. If the bride’s dress hadn’t cost more than my car, I could’ve almost forgotten that the groom was one of the richest men in the country.
The pastor gave the usual speech about marriage being the union of two people and I stifled a yawn. When the couple began to exchange their vows, Nick’s arm tightened around my shoulders and his breathing quickened. It occurred to me that this was probably the first wedding he had been to since his engagement had ended. I placed what I hoped was a comforting hand on this thigh and he let out a low sigh and squeezed my shoulder.
I dos were said and rings were exchanged. The whole ordeal lasted less than twenty minutes, but it felt much longer. We joined the other attendees in a round of warm applause while the newly married couple swapped some spit in front of all their loved ones. The whole thing was sickeningly perfect.
I wanted to check in with Nick to see how he was holding up, but as soon as we stepped outside we were surrounded by people that wanted to say hello to Senator Moore. I stood by his side and smiled politely, shaking hands and making polite conversation. Fortunately, they weren’t there to see me. Nearly all the conversation was directed at Nick and he responded to it in perfect political form.
By the time the crowd scattered to find the nearest bar at the cocktail hour, my cheeks were sore from all the awkward smiling. “That was intense,” I said as we walked back to the car.
“Welcome to my life,” Nick responded with a grimace. “Everyone hates politicians until they need something. Then they’re the most popular people in the room.”
We drove to the reception in silence. Nick was still tense and I couldn’t think of anything to say that wasn’t a comment on the wedding– the very topic I was trying to avoid. Since the town was so small it only took us two minutes to drive to the reception, but I was still anxious to get out of the car.
“Drink?” Nick said as soon as we walked into the lobby. An open bar was up and running just feet from the entrance.
I nodded and he took off without asking what I wanted to drink. Without Nick by my side, I felt very out of place in a crowd of people that all knew each other very well. I rocked on my heels and twisted a strand of hair between my fingers.
“Charley, right? We met back at the chapel.”
I whirled around and found a woman that looked vaguely familiar holding out a dainty hand for me to shake. “Of course,” I said, though I barely remembered meeting her.
“Diana,” she said helpfully. “I’m friends with Craig and Nick. We went to college together.”
I tried to form some kind of coherent thought, but words escaped me so I nodded instead.
“I’m so glad Nick found a date to this circus. No one should have to face this alone.” Diana made a face like she smelled something rotten. “Plus, now he’ll look less pathetic.”
“You and Nick are close?” I wasn’t sure yet if I liked Diana, but she certainly was honest and I could appreciate that.
“Sure. He introduced me to my husband, Peter. He was best man at our wedding.” This time her face emoted pity. “It’s a shame what happened with Heidi. She really did a number on Nick. He’s been so pathetic since the break-up. Dating those slutty bimbos. Present company excluded, of course.”
“Of course.” My mouth suddenly felt very dry.
“I see you’ve made a friend,” Nick said, handing me a drink.
I ignored the remark and took a grateful sip. “Whiskey?”
“I took a guess.” Nick continued to ignore Diana. “Would you like something else?”
“No. Whiskey was a good guess.” I smiled and took another sip.
Nick nodded, pleased that he had guessed correctly. “So, Diana, have you managed to insult my date yet?”
“Without a doubt,” she replied. “So far, she seems less trampy than the others but she doesn’t talk much.”
“You talk enough for ten people.” Nick was smiling, but I could tell that he wasn’t entirely joking. “Where’s your husband? Shouldn’t you be nagging him or bossing him around?”
Diana waved a dismissive hand. “He can wait. I want to learn more about your lady friend.”
“Not now, Di.” Nick was done with the friendly banter.
“What’s up your ass, Moore?” she asked with flashing eyes.
Nick placed his hand on the small of my back as he squared off against his friend. “I like this one and I’m not going to let you scare her away.”
“Huh.” Diana’s head tilted as she studied Nick. “So you do. Good. I’m sure I’ll like her, too.”
“Two people who like me in one room? I guess there really is a first time for everything.” I almost cringed at the amount of sass in my tone, but Diana laughed.
“You and I are going to be good friends.” She winked and toddled away on her impossibly high heels.
“I apologize for everything she said, which I’m sure was crass and rude.” Nick shook his head as he watched her leave.
“Don’t worry about it. I kind of like her.” So far she was the only person that had even bothered to talk to me. When I looked at Nick, he jaw was clenched. “How are you doing?”
Nick looked away. “Just dandy. I love weddings.”
“Salt in an open wound?” I asked as nonchalantly as possible.
“Something like that.” Nick flinched and turned back to me. “Charley, I’m sorry. I had no idea this wedding was going to bother me so much. I thought I was over everything that happened with Heidi.”
“Nick, don’t worry about it.” I touched his arm. “Can I do anything to make it better?”
A slow smile appeared. “I’m sure you can. I’ll let you know.”
This time I gave into the urge to hug him and he returned my embrace enthusiastically. His hands stroked my back as he exhaled into my neck. “For the record, just being with you helps.”
“Ditto.”
Nick went to get us another drink while I made my way into the ballroom to find our seats. According to the place card I was handed at the door, we were sitting at table 8. The other seats at the table were already filled and nobody looked in my direction as I stood behind the two remaining seats. After a pregnant pause, I slipped into my seat as quietly as possible.
“I agree, Alexa. No one thought he would actually attend. After what happened with his engagement, he must be mortified.” The skinny woman across from me was talking loudly to the woman on her left, presumably Alexa.
Alexa spoke equally loud. “Oh, yes, Talia. It was terrible what happened. We all agree about that. But I think we all can also agree that he wasn’t completely innocent in the whole thing.”
“What do you know?” Talia leaned so far forward in her seat that she nearly slid right off it.
“Well, mostly it’s just gossip. But Katie’s sister Betsy worked with some woman that was supposedly sleeping with the senator for years. I’m sure Heidi knew about it, too. Everyone knew about it.”
It took me that long to realize they were talking about Nick. I didn’t want to hear any more gossip from women who couldn’t even be bothered to acknowledge my existence.
“It’s a shame Nick couldn’t keep his pants on. Their wedding would’ve been lovely.”
I opened my mouth to interrupt them, but someone beat me to it.
“I see we’ve been seated with my fan club,” Nick said smoothly, placing our drinks on the table with a loud thud that caused the others to look in our direction at last. He took his seat next to me, his knee bumping against mine.
“Nick.” Alexa turned a bright shade of pink.
“I take it you’ve introduced yourself to my date?” Nick took my hand. “Charley, these are some catty women that know Carrie.”
“It’s a pleasure I’m sure.” I didn’t even glance in their direction. “Let’s hope the food is better than the company.”
“I don’t see how it could possibly be any worse.”
No one spoke a word throughout dinner. Nick and I maintained our stern expressions in the interest of making the others uncomfortable, all the while engaging in excessive groping underneath the table. Nick’s hand was all the way up my thigh when they announced that the dancing would begin in five minutes.
Nick and I groaned at the same time and his hand resumed its journey. I stopped him just as his finger traced the edge of my panties.
“Come with me,” I urged, rising out of my chair. Nick was startled, but he recovered quickly and followed me across the room.
Since the reception location was really just an old mansion, I assumed there were plenty of rooms we could duck into to release some sexual tension. I led Nick up the stairs and he stopped me once we were on the second floor.
“I appreciate the enthusiasm but we don’t have to do this. We could just go back to the house.” Nick’s cheeks were flushed and he sounded slightly out of breath.
I didn’t give him a chance to recover. Instead, I grabbed the lapels of his suit jacket and pulled him close. “Why wait?” I asked pressing my lips eagerly against his and forcing my tongue inside.
Nick responded by lifting me against him and backing me up until I was pinned against the wall. One hand caressed the side of my neck while the other slipped below the hem of my dress.
“Let’s find a room,” Nick panted. He pulled away reluctantly and opened the door to the first room on the left.
We had both stepped all the way into the room and closed the door before we realized we weren’t alone. In fact, the groom was standing next to the bed, caught quite literally with his pants down.
“Shit, Craig. Sorry, we thought the room was empty.” Nick started to back us out of the room.
“Nick.” Craig reached for his pants and lost his balance. He caught himself before falling but not before taking a couple of steps to the right, revealing the reason why he was in the bedroom with his pants around his ankles. Mayor Hutchinson stared at us from his seat on the bed.
“Shit,” Nick said again while I stood dumbly with my mouth hanging open.
“This isn’t what it looks like.” Craig hurried to fasten his pants. “Nick, it’s not what you think. I swear.”
Nick shook his head several times as if he could clear the image from his brain. “We were just leaving.” He turned and left while I still stood there staring blankly.
“We’re sorry,” I echoed lamely as I hurried to follow Nick. I caught up with him in the lobby downstairs. “Nick. Stop.”
“I can’t talk about this right now, Charley.” When Nick turned around his eyes were wide and his hands were shaking.
“I think you have to, Nick. You can’t ignore what we just saw.” I noticed that several people milling around in the lobby were watching us. “Let’s go outside.”
Nick charged ahead of me and we walked around the building until we were out of earshot of any eavesdroppers.
“You need to talk to Craig and let him explain. Maybe it really wasn’t what we think.” I knew my protest sounded silly, but the situation was too ridiculous to be true.
“Craig was upstairs in a bedroom with his pants around his ankles during his wedding reception with someone that wasn’t his wife. With someone that isn’t even female. He’s a cheater and a liar.” Nick gave me a skeptical look. “What else could that have been?”
I put a hand on his chest to calm him down. “I don’t know. That’s why you need to talk to him.”
“Nick.” Craig appeared around the corner, looking utterly distraught. “We need to talk, man.”
Nick glared at him. “Not now, Craig.”
“Nick, you have to let me explain.”
“What could you possibly need to explain? It’s pretty obvious you’re cheating on your wife with Brad. On your wedding day.” Nick continued to stare down his friend. “Am I wrong?”
Craig sighed. “No, you’re not wrong.”
“I’m going to go back inside and let you two talk,” I said, backing away slowly. Nick still looked pissed, but at least he wasn’t yelling anymore.
“Thanks.” Craig shot me a grateful look.
My first stop was the bar where I ordered two drinks. After finishing one right there, I took the other and found a quiet corner of the ballroom where I could watch people dance around like chickens. I was aware that some people were watching me, wondering where Nick had gone and why I was sitting in a corner drinking alone. I could practically hear the rumors swirling in the air.
At least a half-dozen songs played while I waited for Nick and when he finally approached my table he looked defeated. I stood up before he could speak and asked. “Do you want to go?”
“Yes, but not yet. If we leave now it might seem odd.” Nick held out his hand. “Dance with me?”
“Yeah, okay.”
We found a relatively clear spot on the floor and Nick took the lead. He was a surprisingly smooth dancer.
“So how did it go?” I kept my voice as low as I could while still being heard over the music.
“Pretty much exactly how you would expect. He admitted the whole thing. It’s not like he could’ve denied it.”
“What’s the whole story? How long has it been going on?”
“Ten years. Can you believe it?” Nick scoffed. “He’s been lying to me and everyone else for ten years.”
“Why lie? Was he just afraid to come out?”
“Craig wasn’t, but Brad was. He thought it would ruin his chances of a political career, so Craig agreed to keep it on the down low. He thought that Brad would eventually come around, but once he was elected mayor and then married his wife, it was pretty clear Brad expected him to keep up the ruse.”
“But why did Craig get married? What is the point of this whole charade?”
“Apparently, there were rumors. Nothing that was substantiated, but enough that Brad was starting to get nervous. Even marrying his wife didn’t seem to help, so he ended the relationship with Craig. Craig was in a downward spiral when he met Carrie. She helped him put his life back together. He said that he loves her. Not romantically, but he still loves her.”
“Does she know?” I glanced over Nick’s shoulder to where Carrie was dancing with her father and felt a wave of sympathy for the poor girl.
“Not a clue. Craig wants to keep it that way.” Nick looked equally bothered by the situation. “Plus, apparently Craig’s new marital status is a big turn on for Brad.”
“Is it weird that the kilts ended up being the most normal part of this wedding?”
Nick managed a small smile. “I could’ve predicted that.”
“Not that I’m complaining, but how much time to we need to serve before we can leave without drawing attention?” As much as I was enjoying being in Nick’s arms, the wedding had become a perverse form of torture.
Nick studied me carefully and his arm tightened around my waist. “We should probably finish the song.”
“We should.” I ran my fingers up the back of his neck and pulled his head down, kissing him forcefully.
Nick pulled back and cleared his throat. The song was still playing when he said, “Good enough. Let’s go.”
We were both anxious to forget everything and resume our original quest for an empty bedroom. Fortunately, back at the house we had plenty of options. The second the front door closed behind us we were on each other, kissing and grinding like horny teenagers. I stripped away Nick’s jacket and tie, throwing them carelessly across the room.
Nick unzipped my dress slowly and slid his fingers beneath the shoulder straps to slide it from my body. I stepped out of the silky fabric and kicked it away. We stumbled down the hall together, our bodies entwined. My room was the closest bedroom, and we burst into the room in a storm of heat and passion.
* * *
Hours later, we lay unmoving in bed. Neither of us moved nor spoke for a long time. Nick was heavy, but I enjoyed the feeling of his body pressing around me. He was warm and solid and I felt safe. I ran my fingers up and down the soft skin on his back and marveled at how comfortable I felt with this man I had known for less than a week.
Eventually Nick rolled away, but he didn’t go far. Propped on his side, he trailed a hand over the bare skin on my stomach. “Thanks, Charley.”
“For the sex?” I laughed and poked him in the ribs. “You’re welcome.”
“No, that’s not what I meant.”
I pretended to be offended. “So the sex wasn’t thanks worthy?”
“I figured the orgasms I gave you would be thanks enough,” Nick joked. “What I meant to say was, thanks for coming with me this weekend.”
“I see.” I turned on my side until our faces were inches apart on the pillow. “I had a nice time, despite what happened at the wedding. Thanks for inviting me.”
“No regrets then?” Nick’s hand was still stroking my body.
“No regrets, Nick. Not with you.” As our bodies came together again I knew that I was right where I was supposed to be.