Chapter Six
“Hey, how was your date the other night?”
Kenzie set the drink tray down at the counter and grimaced at Delonna’s question.
“Pretty bloody awful, actually.”
“You’ve got to be shitting me.” Delonna grabbed the empty glasses off it and pulled it behind the bar. “How does it get more awful than your last one?”
“Oh you know, ending up at a table full of Navy men, one being your date from seven months ago who disappeared off the face of the earth.”
“Wait, that Brett guy was there?”
“Aye.” Kenzie glanced around the pub, glad to see the dinner rush was mediocre at best. Even if it meant fewer tips, she needed a long break tonight to get some homework done for her online class.
“Well crap. That’s awkward.”
“Mmm. To say the least.”
“I’m not sure I understand why you ended up with a bunch of Navy guys in the first place. Wasn’t this a first date with the personal trainer?”
“I’m not sure I understand either, and yes, it was a first date. The restaurant Tad picked was surprisingly crowded and we would’ve waited at least a half hour for a table. He saw some friends who invited us over, and, bam, horribly uncomfortable moment with Brett ensues.”
Delonna scowled. “Did you give him shit for being an asshole? Dump your beer on him or anything?”
“No. I simply got through the evening.” She glanced away, hoping her friend wouldn’t see the flush of embarrassment in her face.
No need to mention she’d climbed into his truck and then kissed him good night. It was one bad call after another.
And yet that kiss was hard to regret. It had been just as titillating as the first one. Actually quite a bit more. Especially when he’d pressed his tongue into her mouth—it was almost juvenile the pleasure she’d taken in it. She was nearing thirty and how a French kiss could be so seductive and stay in her mind for days now was mind-boggling.
Or maybe it wasn’t the kiss, but the man behind it. She suspected that had more to do with it. She’d been right to send him on his way, though. Everything she’d told him had been the truth. If he’d been hoping to get laid, then he would’ve been sorely disappointed.
As much as she sometimes wished she worked that way, her mind and heart wouldn’t allow her to simply jump into bed the minute her hormones begged for it.
“Did he apologize?”
Kenzie glanced up to see Delonna pulling her blonde hair back into a ponytail.
“Brett?”
“Well, Brett and Tad both owed you one it sounds like.”
“Tad, somewhat. Brett, aye. He did.”
“Did he explain why he disappeared on you?”
“Said something about him not doing serious.”
“And he figured you were looking for a ring?” Delonna rolled her eyes. “Typical guy.”
“Who’s looking for a ring?” Aleck wandered out from the room at the back of the pub. His gaze skimmed the dining room before sliding back to Delonna and Kenzie. “Not one of you, I hope.”
Delonna gave a low laugh. “Bitch, please, I’m not getting married until I’m at least twenty-six.”
Kenzie smirked. At any other job, someone might’ve gotten fired, if not written up, for calling their boss a bitch, but for these two it was everyday banter.
“Twenty-six?” Aleck arched a brow. “That’d be in, what, ten years or so?”
“Right, because I just had my sweet sixteen last week.” Delonna swatted a towel at his arse as he walked by.
He laughed and deftly avoided the stinging slap. “Watch it, or I’ll have to properly discipline you.”
“Oh, you’re not offering to turn me over your knee are you, boss boy?” She batted her lashes. “Because, I gotta say, I’m kind of into that sort of thing.”
Kenzie glanced over at her brother just in time to see shock and a tiny bit of interest flicker in his eyes as he stared at Delonna, but then it was gone and he gave a small shake of his head.
“You are the epitome of trouble, Delonna.”
“So I’ve been told.”
When Aleck disappeared out onto the dining floor again, Kenzie turned to her friend.
“I swear you have some sick reverse sexual harassment thing going on here with him.”
“He likes it.”
“I have no doubt, actually. It’s probably a good thing you’re involved with someone or he’d be tempted to go after you.”
Delonna snorted and glanced off to where Aleck had disappeared. “He’s so busy chasing skirts he doesn’t even notice me.”
Kenzie gave a small grunt in reply. Delonna was safe from her brother for the time being. Not only was she a bit young for him, but he also stayed away from taken women and Delonna had been in a relationship for the past year.
“Speaking of being involved with someone.” Delonna cleared her throat. “Did James and I keep you awake last night? We were a little loud.”
Oh yes, Kenzie had heard Delonna and her boyfriend being a bit noisy in bed on more than one occasion. But then that was likely the joy of having a roommate.
“Not last night. I was out like a light from exhaustion.”
“Okay, good. I always get worried…”
“No need to apologize, Delonna. You’re having fun and I have nothing against that.”
Delonna grinned. “Oh, James is most definitely fun. He does this thing with his beard—”
“And you can stop at fun!” Kenzie ran the words together, covering her ears with her hands. “I can’t unsee that shite in my head now, damn you.”
Delonna’s laughter followed her as Kenzie made her way back into the dining area. Her footsteps faltered at the sight of the vase of gorgeous flowers on an empty table and the card next to it.
Flowers that hadn’t been there a few minutes ago.
Frowning, Kenzie moved to pick them up and spotted her name on the card.
Her gaze flew to the table across the way where an older couple sat eating.
“You didn’t happen to see who dropped this off, did you?”
The pair shrugged.
“I think I saw a young man come in a moment ago,” the woman replied, “but we were enjoying our fish and chips and didn’t pay much attention. Those are lovely flowers, though, dear.”
Aye, they were.
“Thank you,” Kenzie murmured absently and carried the card and flowers to the back room.
She sat down at Aleck’s desk and admired the mix of pink daisies and red roses. Before she opened the card, she dipped her head to breathe in the lovely scent. Maybe it was a way to stall before opening the card. They had to be from Tad, who hadn’t stopped calling or leaving messages.
In the messages he was most apologetic and embarrassed about his behavior on Friday night. She’d almost felt sorry for him, until in one of the last messages he’d asked—with a slightly whiny tone—if Brett had made a move on her.
None of your fuckin’ business, Tad.
Her lips twitched as she pried open the envelope and pulled out a card. Before she could read it, several pictures fell out and hit the desk. Frowning, she picked them up and noticed one seemed quite dated. There was a little boy of maybe seven and a girl several years younger.
The girl was crying over a scoop of ice cream that had fallen off her cone, and the boy was pointing and laughing.
Interesting. Her lips quirked as she flipped to the next one. A picture of the same kids, a few years older at Disney World, riding the Dumbo ride together.
The boy was starting to look somewhat familiar. She glanced at a couple more before arriving at the last one. She drew in a ragged breath as she stared at the grown man and woman, standing on Deception Pass Bridge, with the man’s arm around her shoulders.
Setting the pictures down, she finally read the card that clearly wasn’t from Tad.
The woman you saw me with at Safeway was my sister. She was out visiting from Louisiana.
Look, I know I screwed up. I never even gave us a chance based on my asinine assumption that you were looking for something serious.
I can’t get you out of my head, and I want you like I’ve never wanted another woman. To the point where there have been no other women.
Please, Kenzie, give me another chance. Those two kisses were just the beginning. You know we’d be explosive.
~Brett
She stared at the phone number below his name, knowing he’d left the ball in her court. Her pulse quickened and her stomach was doing little flips, but even still she couldn’t trust it completely.
And what did he mean by no other women? She snorted and tossed down the card on top of the pictures. Surely he didn’t expect her to believe that he hadn’t slept with anyone recently? He was a sexy man in his prime, a chief in the Navy. It was pretty certain that women likely threw themselves at his feet.
What kind of shite line was that?
“Everything all right back here?”
Seeing her brother enter the back room, Kenzie scrambled to her feet and collected the pictures and card.
“Fine. Everything’s just fine.”
“Good.” Aleck nodded, his expression unreadable. “Who are the flowers from?”
“Flowers? Oh right, these flowers. They’re from Sarah. She knew I wasn’t feeling well the other day and sent them. Emily helped pick them out.” Lie. Crap but she was lying to her own brother. What was wrong with her?
“Oh aye? That’s right decent of her.”
His words went along with it, but she knew her brother well enough to realize he was suspicious. If it had been another situation, anyone else, she might have admitted the truth. But she saw no point in dragging Brett into her brother’s life, especially seeing as they’d gotten off to a bad start.
Besides, even though the note and flowers were a nice gesture, it still seemed like a bad idea to try and get involved with Brett. Maybe she wasn’t looking for a ring right now, but as he’d guessed, she wasn’t exactly looking for a one-night stand either.
“I should get back up front. Thought I’d just rest my feet for a bit.” She struggled to gather the flowers, card and pictures in her hands and scooted past him.
Out in the pub again, she moved behind the counter to stuff the pictures and card into her purse. Only the card wasn’t in her hand.
Shite.
Alarmed, she spun on her heels to race back to the office and grab the card, which must’ve fallen out of her grasp.
Aleck pushed open the door before she could get anywhere near it. He held the card up and gave her a narrowed look.
“How about you share who this bastart is?”
Her teeth snapped together and she seethed out a breath, before shaking her head. “You read it? You had no bloody right, Aleck. That’s my business.”
“Where you’re concerned, it is my business. You lied to me and said this was from Sarah.”
“So? I’m a grown woman,” she snapped, grabbing the card from him, “but even if I was fourteen, you should respect my privacy.”
“I do it out of concern, and because I care, Kenzie.”
“Well sometimes you care a little too much.”
“Wait, you read her card?” Delonna came up beside them and shook her head. “Not cool.”
“This doesn’t bloody well concern you, Delonna. Go do your fookin’ job.”
“Jeez. Someone forgot to take their Midol.” Delonna’s words were tight and there was a hint of shock and hurt in her eyes.
This was the first time Kenzie could remember her brother having yelled at the younger woman.
When Delonna disappeared back behind the counter, Kenzie turned to glare at her brother again.
“Well wasn’t that just lovely of you. Let’s take this outside, shall we, Brother?”
Without waiting for him to finish, she turned and marched out of the pub to the nearly empty parking lot.
Aleck followed her, as she knew he would.
“Are you serious about him?”
She knew from the tension in his voice he was trying to sound calm.
Appreciating the effort, she grimaced. “There’s nothing to be serious over. We had one date.”
“Clearly he’s hoping for—”
“Aye, I know what he’s hoping for.”
Aleck’s gaze darkened. “Who is he?”
She would not admit he was the guy from the bar who Aleck had confronted all those months ago.
“It doesn’t matter,” she said softly. “Aleck, you need to let me live my life.”
“Have I not done that? You’ve moved out on your own.”
“That’s a big step, aye, but it’s more than that. You need to trust that I can make big-girl decisions regarding the men in my life, and as much as it may bug the lot of you, some day there will be a man who’s just as important to me as the McLaughlin brothers.”
Aleck’s scowl deepened. “That may be so, but I don’t much care for this wanker.”
“You don’t know him.”
“Are you serious about him?”
“You already asked me that.” She sighed. “I’ll not be seeing him anymore. It didn’t work between us.”
“Did he hurt you?”
Yes, but she’d never admit that. “It simply didn’t work, Aleck. Please. I’ll not ask again. Let me handle my love life without interference from my big brother.”
Aleck stared at her, his gaze searching hers. Finally he nodded, thrusting a hand through his hair.
“I know you’re right. It’s just hard not to be protective of my little sister. Especially after Charles, who we all thought was a nice guy.” He gave a cold laugh. “I want to vet every man who comes into your life, and I’m not alone. Ian and Colin feel the same.”
“I know you all do, and if it wasn’t so maddening, it’d be sweet.”
“I’m sorry, Kenzie. I’ll let you be.” Aleck pulled her into a hug. “But if he hurts you, I’ll bloody well hurt him.”
In his arms she frowned. “I just told you I have no intention—”
“Your eyes tell me something else. You’re interested in him, whether you realize it or not.”
Well if that wasn’t complete shite.
She walked back into the pub a few minutes later, her mood heavier and her irritation at an elevated level.
“What should we do with these flowers?” Delonna asked, lifting the bouquet from the counter.
It was on the tip of Kenzie’s tongue to tell her to toss them. But they were beautiful, and he’d likely spent too much money on them.
“Here, I’ll take them.” She took the flowers from Delonna and went to give them to the elderly couple in the restaurant.
*
Nothing. That was the response he’d gotten from Kenzie after he’d sent flowers and a carefully planned-out card filled with old pictures.
Sitting in his recliner after a tiring day at work, Brett sighed and flipped the channel from the baseball game to the news.
One week and there’d been nothing but silence. Which was pretty much exactly what he’d done to her after their first and only date. Except instead of a week, it had been over seven months. And there really was no way to get back onto someone’s radar with a fuckup that massive.
He should just give up on the idea of her now. There were plenty of women out there who’d made their interest in him known, but, hell, they may as well have been cardboard cutouts. There was no attraction. No chemistry. It had become a major problem. No woman had stimulated him on a mental and physical level the way Kenzie had.
Maybe if they hadn’t had that second kiss, that hot-as-hell second kiss on her doorstep, she might’ve been able to convince him she wasn’t interested.
But the way she kissed him back said otherwise. She didn’t want serious, but she didn’t want a one-night stand. Since his last girlfriend, he didn’t stick around with a woman for more than a month. It was a self-imposed rule he stayed pretty rigid to. Self-preservation and all.
The news went to a commercial and he scrubbed a hand down his jaw, sighing with frustration. No woman should take up this much of his thoughts. She’d successfully occupied his mind for over a year now. That was insane for a woman he wasn’t even sleeping with.
The words of the commercial registered and he turned his focus to the screen. Frowning, he watched the images flash across it. Bagpipes, women and children dancing, some kind of games involving a long pole, and then lots of men in kilts. The Highland Games. This was a local commercial for the upcoming Highland Games.
He sat up straighter. Kenzie was Scottish. Her family ran a Scottish pub. It was a long shot, but maybe there was a chance she went to these sorts of things.
It was this weekend. Two days from now. Chances were there was a group of sailors who’d be heading over there. Maybe he could tag along on the ruse of needing to get some culture. Or some kind of bullshit.
Right now, he just wanted another chance to see her. If it meant showing up at some testosterone-laden event, then he’d damn well do it.
Yeah, tomorrow morning, he’d ask around the base and see who was up for it.