Chapter Sixteen
Taylor barely heard his mother’s voice as he glanced over at Caitlin sitting on the log next to him. Beau was curled at her feet. The gold and orange light from the campfire danced across her face, making her look magical and dreamlike—sort of like waking up with her hand on his dick had been. Taylor speared another two marshmallows on the end of his wire coat hanger and thrust them over the flames. He’d been stunned to wake up and find her stroking him in her sleep.
“After the second to last goldfish died,” his mother said, “Taylor put his R2D2 and Princess Leia figures in with the remaining one so he wouldn’t be lonely.” She laughed. “That fish lived forever.”
“Because the Force was with him,” Taylor said, pulling his marshmallows off the wire and smashing them between layers of chocolate and graham crackers.
“Well, that’s it for me,” Attie said. “I’m turning in. You are too, old man.”
Rock grinned, stood, and took her hand. “Yes, ma’am.”
“We should all call it a night,” Dad said. “Long drive tomorrow.”
“But it’s my last time to hang with Caitlin before we leave,” Bethany whined.
“We’ll have plenty of opportunities to see her.” Grams pushed to her feet. “I’m sure Taylor will bring her with him to family dinners.”
Taylor’s mom put an arm around Bethany’s shoulders. “You can see her again and say goodbye in the morning. And besides, there’s the wedding planning. I’m sure you’ll get to be in the wedding.”
Bethany’s face grew brighter than the fire, while Taylor’s mood darkened. He shoved the remaining chunk of s’more in his mouth. This was more complicated than he’d imagined. Now he’d have to come up with a way to untangle this charade without hurting his little sister.
“Oh, my gosh! Really?” Bethany squealed. “Can I be a bridesmaid, Caitlin?”
Taylor was certain his “fiancée” wanted to skewer him, but she speared her marshmallow instead and thrust it over the fire before smiling at Bethany. “You’re the groom’s sister. Of course you’d be in his wedding.”
Taylor’s breath caught. A quick glance at his mom and dad and Bethany gave him some relief, though. All smiles, they clearly hadn’t caught her slip. Grams wasn’t smiling, though. She was studying him, face grim. Dammit.
Mom, Dad, and Grams headed toward their cabins, and a reluctant Bethany followed, leaving him alone with Caitlin. For a long time, she didn’t move or speak, and Taylor waited, not wanting to push her after what had happened in the cabin.
She pulled a graham cracker out of the cellophane sleeve on the log between them and broke it in half. “I really like Bethany.”
“She likes you too.” He loved that his little sister adored Caitlin. Hell, his whole family adored her. Something in his chest tightened uncomfortably. He adored her.
Sandwiching the marshmallow between the cracker halves, she slid it off the end of the wire, then pushed a square of chocolate inside.
“This is hard,” she said with a sigh.
It was. Somehow, in a short span of time, she’d managed to fit into his life to a degree that shocked him. His family had folded her in as if she’d always been there. His little sister was clearly entranced. And so was he.
His timing sucked. Why now? Why, when for years he’d not been interested in anyone in particular, had fate thrown this at him right when he was leaving?
Still holding the untouched s’more, she stared at the fire as she spoke. “I’ve been thinking about what you said in the cabin—about how my words and actions are conflicted.”
So had he. He held his breath, hoping she’d go on without prompting.
Her eyes reflected the vivid oranges and blues of the dwindling fire, and she blinked rapidly before taking a deep breath. “I think I need to pick a side.”
It took everything in Taylor to not open his mouth, but he did it, remaining silent while she worked things through.
“Do you want this?” she asked, offering him her s’more.
“No. I want you,” he blurted out, wanting to kick himself the minute the words left his lips.
To his amazement, she didn’t flinch or scoot away or tell him to fuck off. After pitching the s’more into the flames, she met his gaze with leveled calm. “I want you, too. More than anyone I’ve ever been around.”
Well, that didn’t say much for her ex…or maybe it said a whole hell of a lot for him. And it struck him that more than anything, he hoped it was the latter. He wanted her to feel about him the same way he felt about her—that this link between them was somehow special and different.
A log shifted in the fire, sending a column of smoke and smoldering cinders into the air. “So where does that put us?” he asked.
“You tell me,” she said, eyes searching his face.
It took him a moment to respond, wishing things were different. “I’m leaving for Boston.”
“I know. But you’re not leaving tonight.”
Taylor’s heart kicked up to a million miles a minute when she scooted closer.
She placed a gloved palm on his thigh and grinned. “And we have tomorrow morning, too.”
She closed the distance and their lips met, sending shocks of adrenaline through him like wildfire. Wrapping his arms around her, he deepened the kiss, and she groaned into his mouth. She felt so damned good pulled tight against his body, even bundled up and wearing gloves. But before they really got started up good, she pulled away. Taylor could only stare in astonishment as she stood and struck out away from the fire, shooting a sexy, what-are-you-waiting-for grin over her shoulder.
What was he waiting for? Not a damned thing. With a grin of his own, he followed her toward the cabin.