I pulled into the next gas station and rolled to a stop at one of the pumps. I flipped down the kickstand and carefully dismounted. My prosthetic was state-of-the-art, but I still hesitated moving certain ways. I’d practically killed myself in physical therapy in order to normalize my gait pattern. I still had a slight limp, but it was barely noticeable I’d been told. I’d just removed my helmet when I spotted a gorgeous blonde woman filling up her Beemer at the next pump over. Except for her smaller build, she reminded me of another gorgeous blonde I would never forget but wished I could.

Being a healthy male, I couldn’t help smiling at her, running my gaze up and down her body as I ambled toward the entrance of the building. She caught me staring and quickly flashed me the rock gracing the fourth finger on her left hand. My gait briefly hesitated, and my smile vanished. No need to piss off the fiancé who might be giving me the evil eye from inside the store. I nodded slightly as I kept walking past her, my limp slightly more pronounced, careful to keep my eyes averted.

I quickly paid for my gas, filled up, and hopped back on the bike. I sped down the road, revving the engine a few times to feel the vibration of the machine under me, passing the same Beemer I’d seen a short time ago. Not long after, I reached my destination.

After grabbing my saddlebags, I knocked on the door of the enormous beach house. The sound of seagulls cooing filled the air, and the faint sound of the surf could be heard from the front porch.

I’d been enjoying the sounds when the door swung open.

“Welcome to Casa de Paradise.” Trevor and I wrapped fists and pulled each other in for a half-body man hug, bumping chests and each clapping the other on the back.

“Good to see you, man. The house looks awesome.”

“Dude, Gannon’s ex-mother-in-law outdid herself, that’s for sure. We got a pool and Jacuzzi as well as a badass game room. Your room is the first room on the left at the top of the stairs. Drop your shit up there and head out to the back patio. We got the grill fired up. Oh, and man, the chicks next door are hot. Nothing like some gorgeous babes to make a vacation that much better.”

I couldn’t help laughing as Trevor left me to find my way to my room while he headed back outside to check out the “hot chicks”. I laughed, mostly because I knew his macho attitude was just a front. Trevor was the last person to be interested in a woman just because of her looks. He was a good guy who treated all women with respect. He was straight-laced with the biggest, most tight-knit family I’d ever seen. There were times I was so envious of his relationship with his family that I had to stop myself from hating him. It wasn’t his fault my parents were dead and any family I did have wanted nothing to do with me.

After throwing my bags on the bed in the room, I headed out to the patio, the smell of burgers grilling wafting through the air. My stomach grumbled, and I was reminded that I hadn’t eaten since this morning at the hotel where I’d spent the night in Jacksonville. I couldn’t spend more than five or six hours at a time on the bike anymore, not with my leg, so I usually had to stop somewhere during long road trips. Now that the delicious smells hit my nose, my stomach made its protest known. I grabbed a beer out of the fridge on my way out. I stepped out onto the deck and inhaled deeply. I noticed the attention of the guys were fixated next door so I had to take a look at what had them transfixed.

My eyes fell on a blonde drinking a longneck, and I stopped breathing. My heart started beating again when I realized, with a smile, that it was the blonde from the gas station. I tipped my beer in greeting and just when I lifted it back to my lips for a sip, I froze again. This time, though, my eyes weren’t playing tricks on me.

Standing just behind, and to the right, of the wrong blonde was the right one. It was the woman whose face I would never forget in all my days. Callie Foster. Her stare locked on mine. What the fuck was she doing here? Before I could puzzle it out, a crash sounded, and everyone’s gaze gravitated to the source. Blondie stood with her eyes wide in shock and her mouth slack-jawed. I turned my head to see what had her immobilized, and my eyes fell on my buddy, Gannon. From his matching expression, they both clearly knew each other. Well, this week just got slightly more interesting.

My concern quickly returned to Callie, but she was no longer looking at me. Out of my peripheral vision, I noticed blondie and another woman rush inside. I couldn’t keep my eyes off Callie, but soon I was forced to as she too followed the other women inside. I finished my beer before I noticed Gannon was no longer outside with us.

“What happened to Gannon?”

Dondre tilted his head toward the neighboring house. Well, well, well, what secrets had Gannon been keeping from us? Knowing I wasn’t going to get any answers right away, I plated some food and grabbed another beer. I joined Trevor and Dondre on the sand dune and ate in contemplative silence until Gannon joined us a short time later. Gauging by his expression, he wasn’t in the mood to talk. I could totally understand that. Respecting his privacy for now, I finished off my burger and beer and headed back inside to relax with a book. I also needed to figure out what I was going to say to Callie. A week living in such close proximity was going to be brutal, knowing the chances of us seeing each other frequently were pretty high.

Coming face to face with Callie again brought forth emotions I wasn’t ready to deal with. Arousal. Longing. Insecurity. Fear. Everything I’d ever loved had been taken from me. My parents. My fiancée. My platoon. I knew my therapist would call my feelings avoidance, but whatever. Tomorrow, I’d seek her out and we’d talk. Like normal adults. I’d enjoyed her company in Miami. Of course, I’d had to fuck it up by taking it a step further. But there was something about her I hadn’t been able to resist. Maybe it was the vulnerability hidden behind the bold and outgoing personality. Either way, I’d had a taste of paradise, and it scared the shit out of me.

After a night spent tossing and turning, I woke up early. My morning ritual followed; I did all the exercises my PT had assigned me and some light yoga to maintain my flexibility. I took a short walk along the beach. Just when I reached the pier, I saw a familiar silhouette standing at the end of it. How I recognized her from so far away, I had no idea, but I strode toward where Callie stood leaning against the wooden railing.

“Didn’t expect to see you here.” I mentally slapped myself on the forehead. What a dumb thing to say. I hated that my statement sounded accusatory. As though she had no right to be here.

She sneaked a quick glance at me before returning her attention to the vast ocean in front of us.

“Yeah, well, it was a shock to see you here as well.”

When she didn’t say any more, I shuffled nervously, hating the awkwardness that hung in the air. Everything had been effortless between us two weeks ago.

“I’m sorry.” It was the only thing I could think of to say, although I couldn’t pinpoint exactly what I was sorry for. There were so many things. Sorry I let things get as far as they did. Sorry I pushed her away with no true reason. Sorry I didn’t think I could give her the things she needed. Sorry I was a coward.

Callie shrugged, as though my words were of no consequence to her.

“I’m not sure what you have to be sorry for. We had a good time together. We screwed a few times, and then we parted ways. You don’t have to apologize for that. Men do it all the time.”

“I don’t do it all the time. Like I told you, it’s been over a year since I’ve been with anyone. I’m not some guy who picks up chicks to fuck and then moves on. It’s not the way I was built, Callie.”

Finally, she turned toward me, her posture remaining defensive as though warding off my words.

“And I’m not some woman who begs for a man’s affection. You made it perfectly clear where you stood Kyle. I wasn’t asking for a ring on my finger. Hell, I wasn’t even asking for the promise of a ring. We don’t even know each other. The only thing I was looking for from you was friendship with the chance to see if it became something more. You seem like a good guy, and we hit it off well. Look, I think it would be best if we just avoided each other this week. If you’ll excuse me, I’m going to have breakfast with my girlfriends.”

She breezed past me, shoulders stiff and proud. Her words replayed over and over in my mind as I watched her trudge down the sand back toward their house. Everything she said was true. We had gotten along well. Don’t get me wrong; the sex had been out of this world, crazy good. But that wasn’t what had drawn me to her. It was her spirit. She had this personality that rocked me to my core. She listened as though she could hear all the hidden meanings behind your words, but it wasn’t like she was analyzing you. She accepted you just the way you were, flaws and all. It was nurturing almost.

Suddenly, it hit me that she was the type of person who would never leave you. She would stick with you through thick and thin. No matter your relationship. Callie was the type of person you wanted to be friends with, because you knew she was the real deal. I hated that I’d caused her pain, and I swore I would do what I could to repair our relationship, even if we wound up just being friends. I needed all the friends I could get.