"Is that it?" I knotted my fingers in front of myself, unsure.
One thick shoulder rose and fell. "Does there need to be more?"
"I'm not sure."
He took one step toward me, and then another. With him standing at the bottom of the stairs and me on the second, we were eye to eye. His hands tangled with mine, first one then the other. God, his skin was so warm.
Our bodies gravitated toward each other. The pull of one messed-up heart to another. I watched him warily, trying to hold something back for safekeeping. It didn't really work.
"You're right, I was an asshat."
"Yeah, you were."
A little nod. "I'm going to kiss you now," he whispered.
"Oh. Okay," I whispered back to him. I had no idea why we were whispering.
I didn't have a good reason not to let him kiss me. Well, there was always protection of the heart and all that. Really, though, given the grinder I'd already put mine through, it was a little late for that.
His lips brushed against mine. Such a soft touch. Up and down in the tiniest of motions, he grazed his mouth against mine. It was sweet, lovely, and a little weird. I'd never been kissed like this. Not by anybody. Every part of me yearned to press forward, to push for more. But at the same time, what he was giving me was so good. To rush him and his artistry would have been wrong.
His breath warmed my face and his fingers tightened around mine. I held perfectly still while he gently rubbed his lips against mine, doing what he wanted. The tip of his nose nudged my cheek, time and again, and my chest leaned against his. With what he was doing, I'd have been knocked on my ass otherwise. His kisses were hypnotizing.
When his lips opened a little, just enough to softly kiss my bottom lip, I swear I swooned. Over and over he kissed my lips, first the top then the bottom, the sides and the corner from where my smile started. No part was left untouched. My smile grew wider, my nipples hard and my loins Vaughan-addled. That's a medical term.
He drew back slightly, smiling too. "You forgive me?"
"I'd have forgiven you without the kiss."
"I know," he said, still speaking softly. "The kiss was more for me."
"Was it?" God, he was pretty. The prettiest man I'd ever met. "Do you believe in crazy at first sight?"
Lines creased his brow. "What?"
"I'm not down with the whole L-word and I don't think this, whatever this is, is that. So don't freak out and suddenly accuse me of being a stage-ten clinger or something, got it?"
"Okay." He looked amused.
"But what if there was crazy at first sight? Because I think we have a credible basis for that."
For a moment he just stared at me, obviously deep in thought. "I definitely thought you were crazy the first time I saw you, sitting in my shower in that dress."
"Mm-hmm."
"And you do drive me crazy, sometimes."
"Ditto."
His tongue played behind his cheek. "I might be a little crazy about you too."
"You definitely are about my breasts."
"Your tits are world-class," he said, hands flat on my back, pressing me harder against him.
"Thanks. I appreciate that."
"It's more of an all-of-you thing, though, on the crazy front. Just so you know."
I could only grin. "Yeah?"
"Yeah." He leaned his forehead against mine, getting closer. "What about you? I confessed. Come on."
"I came up with the idea in the first place."
"Doesn't let you off the hook."
I groaned. "Fine. I'm crazy about you too. Crazy in all the ways the word can be taken."
"We've only got a few days," he said, bringing all of the happy crashing to earth. Suddenly the sun didn't shine. The earth didn't spin. Everything was fucked.
No. I wouldn't let it be.
"I know. I mean, I know this isn't a permanent thing for either of us." Something inside of me screamed denial. "It's more of a crossing of paths on the great journey of life."
"Right." He kissed me lightly once more. "Doesn't mean I'm not crazy about you."
"I know."
"And about what you said," he started, gazing off over my shoulder. "I know you were trying to help. I'll think about it, okay?"
"Okay."
His hands rubbed my back, then he set me loose, exhaling hard. "Unless you want to go hit the mattress with me right now, I better take a breather. Go finish the car, start on mowing the lawn and shit."
I looked down. Yes, something was definitely hardening in the front of his pants. Huh. We hadn't even used tongue. And they said romance was dead.
Time on the mattress sounded great, but while we were short on time, I also didn't want to rush things. What if we had sex and then the build-up, the rush of all those good hormones and hopes and dreams through my, body was over? No. We needed to take it slow. Man, it was so hard to judge the ins and outs of this situation.
"I'll let you go do your jobs," I said in a rush, moving back from him a little.
"Okay."
"Oh, another thing I was thinking about, though." I put a hand on his super-hot bare chest to stall him.
He gave me a wary look.
"Relax. I was just wondering if you'd help me buy a car. You know about their insides, right?" I pawed at his chest in a totally nonsleazy subtle way. "I'm going to need wheels to escape this place."
"Sure. Be happy to, babe."
"Babe?" I looked at him down the length of my nose.
"Babe," he said, resolute.
Meh. Who was I to fight him? "Fine."
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Nell waltzed into the house late Monday afternoon, with Rosie the waitress hot on her heels. One carried booze, the other pizza boxes. Immediately my stomach rumbled in need. Pizza was just the best.
"Did I miss the part where you knocked?" Bent in half, Vaughan sat on the sofa, tying his shoelace.
"You're funny, little brother," said Nell breezily, dumping her box full of wine bottles on the kitchen counter. She was wearing a denim miniskirt and orange shirt. Rosie rocked a breezy blue maxi dress. Definitely not Dive Bar uniform.
"I'm serious," said Vaughan.
"I know. That's what makes it so amusing."
"What's going on?" I asked, stuffing crap into my handbag. We'd been preparing to head to work. Given the swift departure of Eric's waitress friend, Stella, I'd agreed to fill her shifts until a replacement was found. Or until it was time for me to leave town. Whichever came first. I was wearing my best black slacks and a matching Dive Bar shirt Nell had given me the night before.
"I'm giving us the night off." From a cabinet she pulled out three wineglasses, rinsing them beneath the tap. "Lydia, Rosie, and I are doing some girl time. Be a darling and go away, would you?"
"I really need to start locking the doors," Vaughan muttered, stretching out on the couch. "Who's running the bar?"
"Eric."
"And?"
"Just Eric." Nell beamed. It was an unnerving sight. "He'll also be tonight's waiter. Boyd has got the kitchen under control, but otherwise, Eric's on his own."
Rosie also grinned like a loon.
"Is that good for your business?" I asked without thinking, and accepting a very large glass of red. "Wait. Never mind. Forget I said that. I will not rain on people's parades with unnecessary practicalities they can figure out for themselves."
Over on the couch, Vaughan gave me a small smile, a look of understanding.
"O-kay. It's fine." Nell laughed. "We probably need a voice of practicality around here. But the thing is, sometimes, you just have to teach people a lesson. Either that or resort to homicide, and I'd rather not go to jail."
"Word," said Rosie, taking a sniff of her wine. "Ooh. You grabbed the good stuff."
"Of course I grabbed the good stuff." She turned to her brother and me, curiosity filling her eyes. "So what have you two been up to today?"
"Vaughan worked on his car for a while, then he helped narrow down s
ome potential sets of wheels for me." I left out the part where my real estate agent pal had stopped by to take a look at the house.
"She wants a Prius." Vaughan snickered.
"They get good mileage."
"Lydia." Nell winced. "No. Just no. Okay?"
Even Rosie seemed mildly terrified by my taste in vehicles.
"Do none of you care about the environment?" I raised my shoulders, amazed.
"It's for your own good that we save you from this." Nell held her glass of wine high, toasting my lack of style, apparently. "You'll thank us one day."
"I doubt that." So this was what having friends involved. Maybe I should just get a pet rock or something. A plant, maybe. Anything incapable of answering back.
Once again the door swung open, this time care of the opposite sex. A tall dude with a massive beard and the sides of his head shaved walked in with a growler full of beer in each hand. Almost every inch of skin on him was covered in ink and a silver ring hung from his nose.
The instant he saw Nell, he stopped dead. "Shit."
"Pat," she said in a low careful voice. "I thought you were going to Whitefish."
"Changed my mind."
She nodded, gnawing at her lip.
"Hey." Joe walked in behind him, another couple of growlers in hand. Seemed everyone was planning a party.
Last came a slightly older guy. Not as tall as the other two, but built and very good looking, in an I've-seen-some-life way. Gray streaked his short spiky hair and the stubble on his jaw and cheeks. In one hand he carried a guitar, in the other he balanced a couple of big pizza boxes.
"Andre." In a rush, Vaughan got to his feet. "Fuck, man. Good to see you."
"Thanks for letting me know you were back." Andre thrust the guitar at Vaughan, all the better to grab the pizzas with both hands. "Joe had to tell me."
"Sorry." Vaughan took the guitar under one arm, holding it ready to play. Then he strummed a chord. "She still sounds sweet."
"Course she does. Martins only get better with age."
With a wry smile, he handed the instrument back, taking charge of the pizza. "I don't want to go falling for something I can't afford."
Andre laughed, shook his head.
"Lydia," said Vaughan. "Want you to meet some old friends of mine, the one with the Gandalf-length beard is Pat. He owns that tattoo parlor next to the bar."
"Hi." I raised a hand in greeting and the man gave me a chin tip.
"And this here is Andre." Vaughan gave the man's shoulder a squeeze. "He's the one who taught me to play. Bought my first guitar off him when I was ten. He'd just opened his store."
"Yep," said Andre. "Took all your Christmas and birthday money."
"Typical." Joe set his growlers down on the dining table. "Ripping off small children. Should be ashamed of yourself. Bet you stole their candy too."
Ever so discreetly, Andre flipped him off.
"Oh, it cost me," agreed Vaughan. "That secondhand Epiphone had taken some hits, but you were right. She had a beautiful sound, did the job and then some. I've still got her."
"No shit?"
"Haven't played her in a long time. But I couldn't bring myself to let her go."
They both smiled.
"Anyway," said Vaughan. "I used to work in his shop sometimes after school and stuff."
"The music shop near the Dive Bar?" I asked, sipping my wine. Excellent quality, Rosie was right.
"That's the one," answered Andre, setting the acoustic down on a chair. He wandered my way, looking me over. "Good to meet you, Lydia."
Then he came closer, dropping his voice to a murmur. "Delaney's a dick. That was a lucky escape on your part. You can do a hell of a lot better, honey."
I huffed out a laugh. "Thank you."
The man leaned in, giving me a kiss on the cheek, smiling. Damn, he was smooth. He also wore a very nice aftershave.
"Hey," came a cranky voice. Vaughan was instantly by my side, shooting laser beams at his old friend. "Go easy, man. You only just walked in the door."
"I'm sorry, Lydia," said Andre. "Did I make you uncomfortable?"
"No."
The laser beams and frown turned my way.
"Good." After a pat on Vaughan's shoulder, Andre walked away. Next he went to Nell, kissing her on the cheek, and then Rosie. Clearly, it was just his way of being friendly with women he liked. As if I'd suddenly be catching the eye of every hottie.
"You have a lot of good friends in this town," I said, moving the conversation along.
A grunt.
"It's great to get to meet some of them."
"Yeah," he said. "Listen, Andre is a bit of a player and I don't want to see you get hurt."
I covered his mouth with my hand. "Stop right there. You think I'd take up with one of your friends?"
His worry didn't seem to ease.
"I wouldn't--especially after today," I lowered both my voice and my hand. "Remember the part where you kissed me?"
His gaze dropped to my lips. Ye gods, this man. "I remember."
"And the part after when we talked about crazy at first sight?"
"Yeah."
"That wasn't a commitment on either of our parts. I know that. But it was a statement."
His hand slipped beneath my low ponytail, thumb stroking the back of my neck. Shivers ran down my spine. Just that easily he got me all stirred up. Stupid me for not dragging him to the closest mattress earlier.
"Forty-eight hours," he muttered.
"What?"
"I've known you for forty-eight hours." He lowered his face, bringing us closer.
"That's right." This was a safe space. And it was beautiful. "Feels like we've covered a lot of territory in a very short amount of time. Kind of speed-friendship with the potential for benefits."
"Mm."
"And I just want you to know that I don't think less of you for driving a gas-guzzling environmental disaster of a car."
"Thanks, babe."
I screwed up my nose. "You caught me in a weak moment earlier. I didn't really mean to say you calling me babe was all right."
"No?"
"No."
"Sucks to be you." He placed a soft kiss on my forehead.
"Vaughan," said Joe, clapping his hands together loudly. "Still got that fire pit out back?"
"It's overgrown, but it's there." He gave the nape of my neck one last squeeze, then he took a step back. "You thinking we should get it working again?"
"You read my mind."
"Let's do it," said Andre.
Vaughan looked between Pat and his sister, neither of whom appeared to be particularly relaxed. Nell's smile seemed strained, the wine in her glass disappearing at lightning speed. A muscle jumped in his jawline. "Yeah, let's do that. Leave the girls in here to do their thing."
"Thank you, gentlemen," sang Rosie, the wine in her glass also greatly reduced. "My husband only agrees to baby-sit once every blue moon. I mean to make the most of it."
"Have fun." Vaughan picked up the growlers Joe had left on the table, then moseyed over to the big glass doors heading out back. "Grab some glasses."
"On it," said Joe.
"Coming, Pat?" Andre asked before going out into the early evening.
Without a word, the tattooist followed. Nell's gaze did too. There was love, in all its pain and glory, written over her face. In comparison, what I'd felt for Chris was laughable.
"We grew apart," said Nell, meeting my eyes.
"I'm sorry."
She shrugged and drained the last of her wine. "These things happen, right? Grab the bottle from the kitchen, would you?"
"Sure."
All three of us crowded together on the couch, topping off our glasses.
"Shit, I forgot. Pizza!" Rosie raced into the kitchen, bringing back one of the boxes. "Calabrese, tomato, and basil. My favorite."
"Nice." My stomach rumbled to life and I helped myself to a slice.
"Want me to heat it up?"
"Th
ere's no time for that," I said, taking a bite. "Oh. This is good. Really good."
"Sure about that?" Rosie laughed.
"You just wish you could talk with a mouth full of food, and still look this attractive."
That even made Nell snicker. Score.
"Made them for us before abandoning ship. I'm glad you like my cooking," she said. "Since I see my brother hasn't bothered to stock the house. You'll likely be relying on me for the duration of your stay."
"I'll go to the supermarket tomorrow," I said, pausing to gulp down a mouthful of the very good wine. "Vaughan's been busy."
"Wouldn't matter if he hadn't been," she said, swirling her glass of red. "He won't do anything that feels like settling in here. This place ... it's just too hard for him. Too many memories, I guess. He'll be gone as fast as he can be."
"You really think he's going to sell it?" asked Rosie.
Nell lay her head back against the top of the couch, staring up at the ceiling. "All he ever wanted to be was a guitarist, play in a band. He needs the money."
"Shit," whispered Rosie. "I'm sorry."
I ate more pizza and drank more wine. My heart hurt for her, but there was nothing I could say.
"It's like I lost him when I lost Mom and Dad. Now Pat's gone too." Nell sniffed, quickly wiping at her eyes. "Fuck. Sorry, girls. Didn't mean to get all weepy on you."
"It's okay," I said, touching her elbow. "You're safe here, Nell."
"What she said," echoed Rosie, rising to grab an old box of Kleenex from the corner. I really did like her. She was good people.
"I'm the hard-core bitch," said Nell. "I'm not allowed to cry."
"We all cry sometimes. It's no biggie."
"My period's due any day now. Let's blame it on that."
"Done." I smiled.
Rosie shoved the box of tissues at her, then ran off to the kitchen to grab another bottle of wine. This night was going to get messy. Everyone needed to cut loose now and then.
I couldn't help but wonder if this was the only end result of love. Feeling lost, hurting, clinging onto what was left of your life? Thank goodness I hadn't gone through with the wedding. And thank god this thing with Vaughan had an end date. Otherwise, who knew what might happen. I could wind up broken, left in an even worse state than after Chris's betrayal. Because Vaughan could do that. Forty-eight hours in, and already he stirred up feelings I didn't want to mention. We were a train wreck waiting to happen. But, damn, it'd be hard to avoid going down that track. Even if I'd regret it for the rest of my life.
"Considering we work in the same building, Pat's gotten amazingly good at sticking close to the tattoo parlor and avoiding me," she said. "I haven't seen him in weeks. I think that's what caused our split."