Kissing Dalton was better than some of the sex Camille had had. That should be a pathetic thing to say, but it wasn’t. The kiss had been that good. Like set a girl’s panties on fire good. Shake the world to its foundations good. Supernova good.
“So, you like this eye doctor. Dalton.” Maria grinned like a maniac from the other side of the elevator car. “Me breaking your glasses was a nice thing, in the end.”
“That remains to be seen. He could be terrible in bed.” And lightning was going to strike her for that lie. Any man who kissed that well had to be something else in the sack. It would be a crime against nature otherwise.
“Then I will pray to all the saints that he is excellent between the sheets.” Maria’s grin only got wider. “You’ve been gone for several hours. What have you been doing?”
The elevator dinged and slid open to let them out on Camille’s floor. “I got contacts and Dalton took me to coffee and lunch.”
Her friend followed her to her room. She swiped her keycard and held the door open.
“What else?” Maria demanded. “You have un sarpullido. You don’t get that from talking.”
That didn’t sound good. “What the hell is un sar-whatever?”
She took hold of Camille’s shoulders and turned her toward a mirror on the wall. Pointing to Camille’s throat, she said, “That. He had stubble and got close enough to use it.”
“Beard burn.” Ah, well. It could have been worse. She could have a giant hickey on her neck. Thankfully, he hadn’t bitten her that hard, though she doubted she would have protested at the time. She’d been more than ready for him to do any and everything he wanted. She ducked away from her friend, went to the desk, and pulled out the bag Dalton had given her.
“He invited me to dinner tomorrow night, as you heard.” She slanted a look at Maria. “You’ll need to find someone else to dine with.”
Maria’s eyes went wide and wounded. She pressed her hand to her heart with dramatic flare. “You would leave me alone in this strange town?”
“Alone?” Camille smirked. “I saw Tarun Gadhavi was on the speaker list. His presentation is right after mine tomorrow. So, tell me again how you’re all alone and not planning to hook up with your ex-boyfriend?”
“I suppose I will have to throw myself on his mercy for entertainment.” Her friend heaved a sigh, though her eyes sparkled with mischief.
“Mercy, is that what they call it in Spain?”
Maria’s mouth opened to retort, but Camille’s cell rang. It was one of her sisters’ ringtones. She tapped the screen to answer and put it on speakerphone. “Hi, Hazel. I’m here with Maria Castro. Say hello.”
“Hey, Maria,” Hazel answered without missing a beat. “I remember meeting you when I visited Camille at Cal Poly. How’ve you been?”
“Muy bien. I’m getting my doctorate now. You are as well, yes?” Maria perched on the edge of the mattress and crossed her legs.
“I completed my PhD in marine biology and I’m working on a postdoc fellowship now.” Hazel sighed, making the connection crackle. “I finish that very soon, thank God.”
“I’m still a few years away from that glorious day.” Maria shook her head ruefully. “But let’s talk about something more pleasant. Let’s talk about Camille having beard burn from a very cute Chinese man with a Southern drawl. It was a charming contradiction.”
“He’s half-Vietnamese, not Chinese,” Camille protested, as if that was the important part of what her friend had said.
“Oh, ho!” Her sister chortled. “I guess those condoms Nora shoved in your suitcase might get a workout.”
“It was just a kiss.” Yeah, kind of like Excalibur was only a sword. It was just the best kiss ever in the history of all kisses. Though they might be able to top it if they tried again. Which her hormones told her was definitely on their horny agenda. If he didn’t back off again. That was a concern. Damn it.
She had to admit she was fascinated by him, albeit reluctantly. It was clear that he wanted her. He’d made no secret of that, but he held back where other men pushed, waited when other men rushed. But he wasn’t opposed to making bold moves. He had started their first date off at his house. If a date was what she should call it.
Frankly, she’d never met anyone quite like him.
“She lies,” Maria claimed. “If you could see the look on her face, you’d know, Hazel. She’s going to do very bad things with this man.”
“And I hope she enjoys it.” Hazel hooted. “Go, little sister. Get some.”
“The two of you are incorrigible.” Camille rolled her eyes, set the phone on the nightstand, and went to find some lotion to rub on her abraded neck.
In a way, she was glad Dalton had pulled back from their make-out session. He was right about that, though she didn’t like to admit she might have flung herself headlong into something without considering all the angles. So not like her. And, apparently, not like him either, but he had more discipline than she did. Ugh.
Okay, she needed to get a grip on how far she really wanted this to go. Just a night of hot, sweaty sex? A weeklong affair, as he’d suggested? She’d be the first to admit she’d ignored that part of her life while she built her career. Engineering was a male-dominated field, and since she had no interest in being seen as a sex object instead of a hard-nosed colleague, she’d never fished in the office dating pool. But with the hours she’d been working the last few years, that hadn’t left much time for romance.
Maybe she should change that and do as her sisters and friend advised—indulge in her feminine side for a little while. God knew her hormones wouldn’t mind the opportunity to run wild. Cutting loose for a few days couldn’t hurt much, could it? This conference moved to a new resort town every year, so it wasn’t as if she’d ever see Dalton again if this ended up being a mistake.
Okay, so…weeklong shagfest. At this point, she had no doubt the sex would be good—it was just a question of how good.
Now she just had to convince him to give up a bit of his control. Which might be easier said than done, but she hadn’t become an engineer because she didn’t like a challenge. She grinned as she dug a small bottle of lotion from her suitcase.
“I should thank this Dalton. He’s keeping you occupied while I make Tarun regret he broke up with me.” Maria shimmied her shoulders. “And then I will leave him brokenhearted and return to the beautiful men in Europe.”
“Sounds like a plan.” Hazel chuckled. “Slightly evil, but I do love a good vengeance scheme.”
“Your sister does too.” A laugh tinkled out of Maria, and she pulled a compact from her purse to fix her lipstick. “In college, she helped me put Nair in the shampoo of a boy who cheated on me.”
“Cami, you never told me about this! You’ve been holding out on me. My own sister.”
“It was a private matter.” Camille went to the wall mirror and dabbed cream onto her reddened skin. “Besides, I think you were studying for you GREs. I didn’t want to distract you.”
Her sister harrumphed.
“Did you have a reason for calling, or were you just checking in?” Noticing she had a small splatter of barbeque sauce on her capris, Camille sighed. She was going to need to change before she went downstairs. At this rate, she wasn’t going to see a single presentation today.
“Just checking in, and I’m glad I did, since Maria filled me in on this guy Dalton—sexy name, by the way. I’m guessing you’d have kept it hush-hush until you knew if it was a thing or not.”
“She never tells the good stuff,” Maria commiserated.
“I see nothing wrong with a little discretion. Not much, just some.” Though there was rarely anything to tell. Her sisters knew about her friends with benefits, but it had been years since there’d been a real date to gossip about. Then again, would dinner with a guy she hoped to have a vacation fling with count as a real date? “I’m seeing him tomorrow night. I may or may not sleep with him.”
“If he’s as cute as Maria says, I vote yes,” Hazel said. “Live a little. You deserve it.”
“Fortunately for me, you don’t get a vote,” Camille rejoined. “I don’t care if you are older than me. It’s only by eighteen months, so you’re not that much older or wiser.”
“Hey, one of us should be getting laid.” Her sister’s voice turned cajoling. “We’re the last two Kirby spinsters and our big sisters have hot hubbies.”
“A sad truth, fellow spinster.” Not that she particularly cared about being single, but it was the first time she’d realized Hazel cared. That was something she’d have to ask about at a more private time, make sure Hazel was okay.
“What is a spinster?” Maria appeared baffled.
Camille thought about how to convey all the cultural history and connotations that went into the term. “It’s a woman who’s past her prime and not married yet. She’s seen as a pitiable creature.”
Her friend waved that away. “A Latina is never past her prime. She only perfects with age.”
With a laugh, Hazel asked, “Can I be Latina?”
“Sorry, no.” Maria tsked. “You’re too red and too Irish, Dr. Kirby.”
“Not a doctor yet, but very soon.” Hazel heaved a heartfelt sigh. “The ginger hair never stops punishing me. Can’t go in the sun. Can’t be Latina. It’s shameful.”
Maria made a sympathetic noise. “Poor pelirroja spinster.”
“I think I’m insulted.” Hazel’s tone went drier than fall leaves. “But I have to head to the lab. My two student assistants aren’t safe to leave unattended, unfortunately.”
“Thanks for calling, hon.” Camille smiled at the phone, even though her sister couldn’t see. “I’ll talk to you later.”
“You’d better,” Hazel shot back. “I want details on how things go tomorrow night. All the details—nothing spared. Your fellow spinster needs some thrills.”
“Voyeur.” Camille snorted and shook her head.
“And that’s a problem, why?” her sister asked, sounding innocent.
“Bye!” And then she hung up. She turned to Maria. “So have dinner with me tonight before you run off and seduce the poor, hapless Tarun.”
“Excellent idea, amiga.” She rubbed her hands together. “You can help me plan my revenge seduction. It must be perfect!”
Camille laughed. “How can I resist that offer?”
* * * * *
Dalton’s aunt met him at her front door, with hands planted on hips and an evil grin on her face. “I got a very interesting call from Mema Hunt.”
Figured. The small-town busybody network was in full effect. “The pecan-peach cobbler offer better not have been some ruse to get me over here just to grill me on my love life.”
“I’m not that dumb. Without a bribe, you might leave before I finish my interrogation.” She opened the door wide and the heavenly scent of fresh-baked goodness reached his nose.
His mouth watered as he stepped inside, pausing to drop a kiss on her cheek. “Aunt Opal.”
She patted his shoulder and led the way to the kitchen. The aroma got more intense as they went through the house. It lured him like a Lorelei.
“Sit down. I’ll get you a plate.” Opal waved him toward the table, where his uncle already sat with a heaping portion of golden-crusted perfection.
“Run and hide,” his uncle whispered, then shoved a forkful of dessert into his mouth.
“As if that’d save me.” Dalton snorted and parked himself in the seat beside the other man. “You just want to keep the cobbler to yourself.”
Uncle Landry winked. “Guilty.”
“Are the twins around?” After grabbing a napkin from the holder, Dalton spread it across his lap. This room looked exactly as it had all through his years of growing up. A few updates here and there, but it was still the same warm room that was the heart of this home. This was where all the really important events had happened. Laughter, tears, arguments, decisions…life altering and mundane. But this was Opal’s domain, and she was the heart of the family, so it made sense that this should be a room that featured so centrally in his childhood memories.
“Your cousins should be along soon, I’m sure,” Landry groused. “Their mama sent them the same slanderous text she sent you.”
While Landry was usually the most laid-back man alive, he turned into a real bear when someone came between him and his sweets. Dalton decided that poking the grizzly was a good way to go. “It was in writing, so is that technically libel or slander?”
“Hell, I don’t know. I’m a doctor, not a lawyer.” His uncle stabbed a fork at him. “I just know a passel of people are coming to steal my dessert.”
“I made it, so it’s my dessert.” Opal slid a serving in front of Dalton while scolding her husband. “Keep up your nastiness and I’ll take it back.”
Landry’s arms wrapped protectively around his plate. “The South will rise again if you try it. Right here, right now.”
“Oh, hush.” She flapped a hand at him. She settled into the chair across from Dalton, her gaze gleaming. “So?”
But before he could hand his aunt any juicy details, his cousin’s voice came floating through the open kitchen window. “I heard Dalton was having wild sex on the picnic tables at Mema Hunt’s.”
A voice that sounded eerily similar replied, “Well, Jimmy Barnes always claimed her barbeque sauce was an aphrodisiac.”
Opal rolled her eyes. “I raised you two better than to be peeping through people’s windows. Get in here.”
The backdoor opened and his identical twin cousins strolled in, each of them wearing the angelic smiles that had spelled trouble for almost three decades now. They both had their mother’s blond beauty, so those who didn’t know them were often fooled by their knack for exuding innocence.
Ha. Innocent, his ass. Those two knew more about mischief than any twelve people deserved. He was surprised he’d made it out of high school without gray hair. He was three years older, and had been scrambling to keep them out of trouble since they’d started crawling.
He gave them a genial smile. “Savannah. Leigh. So good to see you outside of work. How have y’all been spending your day?”
“Forget about that.” Leigh waggled her eyebrows. “Is she hot?”
“Why, were you hoping to get in on the action with her?” he shot back.
The smile slid off her face and she huffed. “Hardly. What would I want with another woman?”
Well, that was a bit more defensive than it needed to be. He considered his cousin for a moment, and decided to let the matter drop. He’d long wondered if Leigh had certain preferences, but…no. Better to let her figure that out on her own. Or not.
“What’s this woman’s name? I assume the public nudity was an exaggeration, but clearly there’s a girl and no one knows who she is. Tourist, right?” Savannah went straight to the cobbler and scooped up two healthy platefuls.
“Yeah, that’s right. Her name is Camille and she’s an engineer in town for a conference. Her friend somehow managed to mangle her glasses, and I happened to be in the office, so I helped her.” He took his first bite of peach-pecan bliss, and closed his eyes as ecstasy rolled through him. Sweet Jesus, his aunt’s cobblers were divine. He might have to run an extra mile or twelve to burn this off, but it was going to be totally worth it. “We’re having dinner tomorrow.”
Opal slanted a glance at him out of the corner of her eye. “I don’t know about indecency on picnic benches, but Mema Hunt said you kissed her and were cuddling up together.”
“We were putting on a show to get Bobbie Jo to back off.” Not one-hundred-percent true, but close enough that it wasn’t a lie either.
“Won’t work,” Leigh said around a mouthful of dessert.
He shrugged philosophically, forking up bites of cobbler and savoring each one. “I managed to eat there and not get ogled. That’s a big win in my book.”
Shaking her head, his aunt sighed. “Bless her heart. Even me talking to her mama didn’t make her stop. I’m not sure there’s a clue stick big enough to hit her with.”
“Unrequited crushes are hard.” Savannah winced in sympathy. “Not that hanging all over Dalton is okay, but…unrequited crushes are hard.”
They all knew she spoke from experience. She’d had a thing for Dalton’s best friend for over a decade, and Warrick had avoided her like the plague. Until last year. Dalton had been pissed off and seriously uncomfortable when they’d started dating each other. Once he knew his hit-it-and-quit-it friend was dead serious about Savannah, the anger had faded. The discomfort hadn’t. It was just…weird. He’d get over it, because they were obviously happy together and he wanted them to be happy.
But it was weird to have his best friend/brother dating his little cousin/sister.
The look Uncle Landry gave him spoke volumes, as did the older man’s what-can-you-do shrug. It seemed like Dalton wasn’t alone in his discomfort. Ah, well. They’d deal.
“Where’s Warrick today?” Opal asked. “I know he wouldn’t turn down my cobbler.”
Savannah winced again. “Visiting his Uncle Delroy.”
“Speaking of ogling,” Leigh muttered.
“Y’all don’t know the half of it.” Savannah leaned forward and lowered her voice as if someone might overhear. “He likes to accidentally brush against any woman he passes, aiming for the T and A areas. He only pulled that with me once before I accidentally kneed him in the balls.”
Leigh and Opal choked back guffaws, while Landry and Dalton grunted in satisfaction. Good for Savannah.
She shrugged delicately and scraped up the last of her dessert. “I haven’t been invited back. I can’t imagine why.”
Landry stood, picked up his empty plate, and popped a kiss on his daughter’s head as he made a beeline for the counter. “Good job, honey. This calls for more cobbler.”
They managed to finish off the entire dish in short order, and within twenty minutes they were all leaning back in their chairs, satisfied, groaning slightly, and just a little sick to their stomachs. Dalton dragged himself upright and staggered over to put on a fresh pot of coffee. That was what they’d need when the sugar rush crashed: caffeine.
After the machine finished percolating, he poured a round for everyone and took the cups to the table.
Leigh accepted her mug and sipped the piping-hot liquid. “Where are you taking Camille for dinner tomorrow?”
“Not telling you.” He flopped back into his chair. “You’d show up just to mess with me.”
“You’d better not.” Opal leveled a serious gaze on her daughter. “At the rate he’s going, I’m never going to become a great-aunt.”
He shoved down the mild panic that caught him at the thought of having children with a virtual stranger. Sex, yes. Babies, no. It would take years and years before he’d be ready to commit to procreating with someone. Reaching over to pat Opal’s hand, he assured her, “You’ve always been a great aunt.”
The joke just made her shake her head. “Hush up and find the right girl, you hear?”
“The right girl can’t be a tourist,” Savannah protested. “They don’t stick around.”
Just like his ex-wife. He kept that thought to himself. No need to set his cousins off on the topic of his ex. They were bitterer about it than he was. And he’d never admit it, but it felt good to have them defend him with such vitriolic fire. That was family.
“Well, it can’t be Bobbie Jo either.” Leigh threw up her hands. “I’m just sayin’. If there’s no one in town you want, you have to broaden your playing field.”
Spoken from experience, since she dated even less frequently than Dalton did. Then again, she’d never been hot and heavy with anyone, as far as he knew. Not in high school, and not since returning home from grad school. Savannah would know better, since they’d gone to all the same universities, but she’d never mentioned a word about her twin’s relationship status. Or lack thereof.
“Is that what you do when you go on all those weekend trips to see ‘friends’?” Opal made air-quotes around the last word. “Broaden your playing field?”
“Maybe. Maybe not.” Leigh grinned. “I’ll never tell.”
Before Opal could pry further, Savannah turned her gaze on Dalton. “Does Camille have a last name?”
“Yes, and I’m not saying.” He stabbed a finger at his cousin. “You’ll Google her name and it’ll turn into a mild case of cyber stalking.”
A wounded expression crossed her face. “I’m just looking out for you.”
He grunted. “It’s just dinner, and she’s only here for a week. Leave it alone.”
“But you like her.” She leaned forward. “I can see it all over your face.”
Damn, he needed to get better at hiding his feelings. Then again, the twins had always managed to ferret out his secrets. Which was why he usually didn’t bother to keep any. What would be the point?
Sipping his coffee, he arched an eyebrow. “I don’t date women unless I like them.”
“Unlike Warrick, he means.” Leigh grinned, slanting a sly glance at her sister. Savannah flinched and focused on her coffee, her lips compressing.
“Unlike what Warrick used to do,” Dalton corrected. “Stop rubbing salt on that wound, Raleigh Jane.”
Leigh blew a raspberry at him for using her full name, but let the subject drop. She might be blunt and brash, but she wasn’t mean. It was obvious her twin was still sensitive about the fact that Warrick had slept with any willing woman for years except her. One of many reasons Dalton hadn’t been thrilled when the two started dating. He loved his best friend, but the man had been a hound dog.
Even hound dogs could reform, it seemed. At least, Warrick had.
Thank God, or Dalton would have been in the awkward position of needing to beat his oldest friend to death.
Landry set his empty mug down with a clink. “Have fun with your tourist. Don’t let this lot harass you into any details you don’t want to give.”
The twins made noises of protest while Opal aimed a beady eye at her husband. “Why wouldn’t he like sharing details with us? We’re family.”
“Why, indeed?” He shot her a grin filled with wry affection. “A man can use some privacy, dear. Let him have it.”
She wrinkled her nose and turned away. “Fine. I won’t pry anymore. He can share whatever happens with this Camille or not.”
Dalton shook his head at his uncle. “You know she won’t feel like baking any more cobbler until her need for information is satisfied.”
“Sometimes that’s the price you pay.” His uncle nodded sagely. “It’s up to you what to tell or not. I hope you have a good time.”
“Me too.” He toasted the older man, then downed the rest of his liquid caffeine.
Did he have much doubt though? The question wasn’t whether or not he’d enjoy himself, but if he’d enjoy himself too much. He was more attracted to Camille than he had been to anyone in a long time, but she was leaving. Soon. As he’d admitted to her—and to his family—he liked her. Within moments of meeting her, he’d been both enticed and oddly comfortable. It was a combination that even his ex-wife hadn’t managed to evoke in him, not immediately.
The feelings made him wary and utterly intrigued. The more he mulled it over, the more he realized he didn’t want to back out of the date, but it also made him realize just how dangerous what he felt could be to his sanity. To find a woman who stirred something inside him after so long was awesome, but there was a deadline. She’d said when she left, that was it. As it should be. So he had to focus on enjoying what he could.
He’d just never had a fling before. He was a serial monogamist. When he found a woman he liked, he usually stuck it out with them until the relationship soured. Several months, at a minimum. Not a single week. It was going to be easy to get in over his head here, so he needed to keep himself in check. Just the few hours he’d spent with her were enough to tell him that.
“What are you thinking?” Aunt Opal cocked her head, staring at him. “You have the oddest look on your face.”
He shrugged. “Life is just funny sometimes.”
Because that fickle wench Fate had just hand-delivered the first woman to really pique his interest since his ex-wife had left him. And she was destined to leave him too.
Fan-damn-tastic.
At least he was going into it this time with his eyes wide open. That had to count for something, right?