CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
Ben
I groaned at the sound of the crickets. First my phone and then Chelsea’s chirped with the morning alarm. It was dark, and I heard the rain pelting the aluminum roof. A man couldn’t possibly get out of bed with that perfect symphony tapping overhead.
A low rumble of thunder echoed, and she snuggled under my arm, radiating warmth against my bare chest. I pulled her against me. There was no way we were going into work at five thirty. I fished for the phones and silenced them, powering each one off. To hell with Hayden Davis if he had a problem with it.
Other than the hurricane, we never slept in together. Today was an exception. The store could take care of itself. I wanted to hide under the covers all morning with Chelsea and listen to the rainfall. I needed this.I needed her in my arms.
***
“I’m going to be in so much trouble. I can’t believe you turned our phones off.” Chelsea bent next to the bed to collect the lacy lingerie set I had peeled off her body last night.
“Do you ever call in sick? Have I ever called in sick?” I teased. I could tell she was annoyed, but I didn’t regret it for one second.
“That’s not the point.” She turned for the bathroom. “My father probably used to like you. Now, you’re done.” She closed the door behind her, and I laughed.
“I’ll take full responsibility. Ok?” I called to her through the flimsy door. The sink was running. I wasn’t sure she could hear me.
She slid the door open. “What are you going to say? That I stayed over here last night? Uh-uh. No way.” She closed the door. “You do not understand.”
I strolled to the hall and leaned against the opposite wall so I didn’t have to speak as loudly. “You don’t think he knows about us? Come on, Chelsea. We’re adults. We can do whatever we want. Who cares what your dad thinks?”
The water stopped and the door moved to the side. She clutched her toothbrush firmly in her hand. “I care. I don’t want him to think I’m anything like him.” Her eyes hit the floor, and I recognized the look when she was trying to push tears away.
I had never considered she would connect our relationship to her father’s affair. It wasn’t bad; it didn’t hurt people. Was it because we weren’t married? Sure, we were in a conservative part of the South, but Chelsea wasn’t close-minded. She had been to a liberal arts college, had relationships, slept with other guys—as much as I hated to think about that part.
I tried to gauge where all of this was coming from. “You know what we have isn’t in any way like some secret affair, right? We can be together, go out. There are no other people. There is nothing wrong with what is happening between us.”
She put her toothbrush back in the holder and turned to face me. “I didn’t mean for that to sound like it did. Of course, I don’t think there is anything wrong about us. I love being with you. I loved last night.” She smiled. “But my parents have preached waiting for sex until marriage since the day my mother gave the birds and the bees talk. As far as they know, I’m as virginally white as it comes. I’ve never let them think otherwise. When he finds out, my father is going to think of me the same way I think of him. Like I’ve done something bad.” She paused. “And he’s going to hate you for corrupting me.”
I arched my eyebrow. If we weren’t in the middle of such a serious discussion, I would throw out a joke about how there was no way I was the corruptor in this scenario, but that was better left alone.
“Then, that’s his own damn fault for not knowing what’s right and wrong.” I reached for her waist. “Because, this is about damn near perfect.” I kissed her lips, tasting the fresh mint on her mouth. “Don’t let him make you feel guilty about us.”
“I don’t have one ounce of guilt about you. This has been the best summer of my life.” I loved when her blue eyes lit up like this. “But part of me still doesn’t want to disappoint them. Is that stupid?”
“It’s not stupid at all.” At twenty-eight, I was still doing things to get my dad’s attention. Hoping the next movie would elicit some kind of praise or compliment. Where my mother was concerned, I didn’t want to embarrass her or cause her any pain. It wasn’t stupid. Chelsea loved her parents, faults, sins, and all. It wasn’t something you outgrew.
“But, at some point, they have to recognize you as an adult. And you can’t feel guilty about it.” I kissed her on the forehead before walking to the bedroom. My extra towels were in a drawer at the end of the bed.
“That’s easy for you to say. Your father isn’t having an affair and getting ready to find out you’re sleeping with the clerk you hired.” Her eyes closed and she leaned against the door. “This day is going to be a freakin’ disaster.”
“Did you already forget about your call this afternoon? It can’t be a bad day.” I grabbed one red and one white towel.
“How can I forget that? I woke up thinking about Austin.”
I was glad she was so excited about the call. Blue Steel Records was owned by one of the wide receivers I played with in college. Brandon was a good guy; he would watch out for her.
I threw a towel at her. “Here.”
She tilted her head to side. “What’s this?”
“Get in the shower. Now.” I stood, towering over her.
“Oh no. There’s no way we’ll both fit. You can barely get in there.” Her head shook.
“Darlin’, we will fit.” I turned the knob on the hot water side. “But we only have seven minutes for me to wash all these problems away for you, so stop arguing with me and get in.” My eyes darted to the stream of water sputtering behind her. For a second, I thought she might not take me up on my offer. I considered lifting her up and putting her under the water, but before I could act on it, she tugged the tank top off her chest, shimmied out of something silky and blue, and stepped into the shower.
“Damn, girl,” I muttered, bracing myself against the wall. Maybe she thought I did all these things to make her feel better, to erase her doubts and fears, but she didn’t know that making her smile turned my world right side up.
***
“Mr. Owen, sir. I’m really sorry Chelsea and I weren’t here to help Bertie open the store this morning.” I folded my hands behind my back and waited for the store owner to give it to me. I was prepared.
Hayden stayed seated in the cramped office. “Son, I have brought you into my business. Cindy and I had you over for dinner.” He cleared his throat. “And I’m having a real hard time right now listening to this.”
I realized this wasn’t the most comfortable conversation between two men. If I ever had a daughter, I knew I would be the kind of dad who eagle-eyed any boy who stepped within ten feet of her. Regardless of the situation with Eileen Meeks, I did feel for the guy sitting behind the desk. This was damn awkward.
“I know. I know. And I appreciate everything, sir. I did not intend to keep Chelsea from work. It won’t happen again.”
“Fell asleep watching a movie and you both forgot to charge your phones?” the father asked skeptically.
We both knew that wasn’t the entire story, but I was sticking to it. We could all pretend that’s what happened and maybe the consequences for Chelsea wouldn’t be so bad. I had volunteered to face the firing squad to spare her the embarrassment.
“Yes, sir. It was irresponsible on my part.” I hoped we could drop the details, and Hayden would let me get back to the kayaks and snorkel sets.
“All right, let’s just leave it at that.” He cleared his throat. “If it happens again, you won’t get a warning.”
I nodded. “Yes, sir. Understood. It won’t.” I turned for the door, anxious to end the conversation. I’d had knock-down, drag-out arguments with directors that were easier to deal with than the tension in this office. I closed the door behind me and strolled out to the docks.
A grandfather was teaching his grandson how to pin fish at the edge of the pier. The clouds had dispersed, and there were patches of sunlight peeping through.
I chuckled as I took my station in the rental stand. I hadn’t felt that much like a teenager since I was one. It was downright hilarious that I had almost gotten an ass-chewing from an overprotective father. Now that was a headline Celebrity Watch should run: World’s Most Eligible Bachelor Sent to Time Out. I flipped through the checklist on the clipboard and counted how many pieces of equipment were out on the water.