JUST AS NATHAN finished ordering his drink from the sinfully handsome bartender at the octagonal nipa hut bar without walls on one of the famous black beaches of Santorini a couple of days later, his cell phone rang, playing “Love Somebody,” his theme song for his cousin’s current state of lovey-dovey bliss. It was a video call.
Caleb’s handsome face blinked into view a second after Nathan swiped right.
“You cut your hair,” Nathan said, noticing the shorter strands immediately.
His cousin combed his fingers through, causing the lush locks to tumble over his forehead. “Do you like it?”
“I suggested it,” someone said from the background. Then the phone’s camera swung around to reveal the mischievously smiling face of Diana Alexander, aka Didi and the apple of Caleb’s eye.
“It’s a little too short for my taste,” Nathan teased.
“And that’s exactly why I made him do it. Never mind that he looks delicious. I knew it would annoy the hell out of you,” she teased back with a comical wink.
“I can’t exactly think of my cousin as delicious, now can I? We’re not in Utah.”
“Go back to your painting, D,” Caleb said. “And stop talking about me like I’m not here. I thought we already discussed this. I’m not food.”
“You’re definitely my main course, babe.” Didi kissed his cheek so hard Nathan could actually hear the mwah. Then to him she said, “Ciao,” as the camera swung back around to feature Caleb’s smiling face.
“So,” he said, lengthening the single-syllable word and turning it into a question. “How’s my European adventure going?”
“I’d say the statute of limitations on that ran out the moment you turned back around to sweep your girlfriend off her feet,” Nathan said, a chuckle bubbling up from his chest.
“And sweep me off my feet he did,” Didi said from somewhere. Nathan assumed she was behind her easel, brush and palette already in hand.
A part of him envied what Caleb and Didi had.
“Did you tell him yet?” came her follow-up question.
His cheeks automatically flushed; then just as quickly all the heat receded. Of course she knew. “Well, no.”
Blurting it out at a concert didn’t count.
“If you don’t tell him, you’re forever stuck in this limbo of nothingness. If he rejects you, then you have a chance at moving on,” Caleb said, genuine concern in his blue eyes.
“I honestly don’t think I can move on.”
“I’m positive Preston feels the same way,” Didi chimed in.
“What?” Nathan slapped the bar with his free hand. “How can you be so sure?”
“It’s my superpower,” she declared.
Caleb threw his head back and laughed.
Okay, this conversation had gotten out of hand. Nathan needed to divert their attention before he said more than he had been prepared to say. There was an idea he had been toying with since Rome. With the amount of work still left ahead of him, he needed help. And since Didi had already declared herself a superhero of sorts …
“Hey, Caleb, can you put Didi back on for just a sec?”
“Sick of me already?” Caleb asked back, sobering.
The phone was wrenched from Caleb’s grasp before Nathan could reply with a sarcastic quip. Didi’s face came into focus despite his cousin’s protests.
“You summoned?” she asked cheerfully.
Nathan’s heart turned to mush for the artist. He loved her almost as much as Caleb did, and she already felt like a sister to him the way Natasha was. Didi was family.
“I don’t know if my idiot cousin told you—”
“Hey!” came Caleb’s voice.
“We love you,” Nathan and Didi said at the same time.
“Jinx!” They smiled at each other.
“You owe me a Coke,” she said, pointing at him through the screen.
“I’ll owe you more than that if you do something for me.”
She grew serious. “Does it involve a body? Because I know the best hiding place.”
He chuckled. “I’ll keep that in mind in case I murder someone. But no. This has something to do with the luncheon.”
“Oh, that big party that Preston’s mom is in charge of. Where is that hot hunk?”
“Will you stop it?” Caleb asked from somewhere, and Didi looked off to the side and blew him a kiss.
“At the gym.” Nathan grinned, a thrill in his stomach. “Anyway, I need you to act as my assistant. It will come with pay, of course.”
Her expression soured. “What’s with you Parker men and the need to throw your money around? You know I would do it for free.”
“I know that, honey. But this is an official gig. Employees get compensation.”
“Well, if you put it that way…”
“Can you do it while working at the art store?”
“Of course!”
“Because I don’t want you overexerting yourself.”
She tilted her head, thinking. Then she asked, “What do you need me to do?”
“Mostly coordination stuff with the caterer, the florist, and other vendors I will be using for the event. Just signing for stuff and making sure that what’s delivered is what I ordered for the event. Can you do that?”
“I have the morning shift at the store, but I have afternoons free.”
“Perfect.”
“I can help her too,” Caleb said, after placing a kiss on Didi’s cheek.
“Wouldn’t have expected anything less.” He rolled his eyes at the PDA, which was fast escalating into a make-out session as Didi sat on Caleb’s lap. “I’ll e-mail everything to Caleb by tonight.”
“Uh, sure,” Didi said absentmindedly, trailing kisses along Caleb’s jaw while still holding on to his phone.
“Got to go,” Caleb said, officially distracted.
“Make good choices!” Nathan said as a parting shot, which earned him the finger from Caleb while he kissed his girlfriend soundly.
Once the call had ended, Nathan found himself staring at the pretty pink drink the bartender had set down in front of him. How he wished with all his heart that he would get to experience that kind of love. Didi and Caleb didn’t just have a physical connection. They understood each other on a level that allowed them to express their feelings without holding back. He wanted that. Wanted it so much it almost hurt just thinking about it.
* * *
Picturesque Santorini.
Preston had never been to the island southeast of Greece’s mainland before, but now that he was here, he might never leave. The candy-colored houses seemed to be carved into the cliffs. The sapphire waters of the Aegean Sea called to him. The gleaming white buildings topped with half spheres the color of a stormy sky blew his mind. And the sun didn’t seem to shine quite as brightly anywhere else.
Preston had only been to white sand beaches before, so he considered it a rare treat to actually walk on volcanic earth.
Ready to take a dip in the Aegean after an hour of weight training, he ambled his way down to the beach. He followed the path of flat volcanic rock set into the grass until green gave way to sand. He paused at the last stone step and stared. The sand was indeed black. Not as fine as the white sand because of the pebbles, but it was beautiful in its own way.
He slipped off his flip-flops and picked them up before venturing forward. The rough texture beneath his feet made his toes curl. A contented sigh escaped his lips as he tilted his head up toward the clear blue sky. The warm sun kissed his cheeks. It was a perfect day for a swim. In fact, he was raring to go, given that he hadn’t been in the water since Ireland. This was the life.
Relaxed to the tips of his toes and his shoulder in top shape, Preston went off in search of Nathan among the ocean of white umbrellas and lounge chairs that dotted the shore. He eventually found his friend underneath the shade of one with his shirt off and what looked like a cocktail already in his hand. His windswept dark hair fell over his worry-free forehead. A gentle breeze danced through the strands. He had his eyes closed, not noticing Preston’s approach. He wasn’t athletic the way Caleb was. And he wasn’t muscular like Preston himself was. Nathan’s body was more compact, with lean, sleek lines.
“Do I have something on my face?” Nathan asked sleepily.
“What?” Preston jerked in surprise.
“You were staring at me like I had something on my face.”
Shit. What the hell had he been doing? He’d never actually studied Nathan’s looks with such laser focus before. Unable to find the right response without lying through his teeth, he did the only thing he could think of. He licked the pad of his thumb, then rubbed it against Nathan’s cheek.
“Yeah, right here,” he said, clearing his throat.
“Thanks.” Nathan rubbed his cheek against his shoulder after Preston finished removing the imaginary stain. Then he stood and offered up his drink. “You should taste this. It’s so good I’m thinking of stealing the recipe for future events.”
Preston studied the bulbous glass with a curved neck, which had what looked like pink slush inside, a pineapple slice with a pink umbrella stuck to the lip, and a bendable straw. “What is it?”
“Nonalcoholic, if that’s what you’re thinking.” Nathan grinned. “I know you’re going to swim, so I’m not getting you drunk.”
Tentatively, Preston took the glass and brought it to his lips.
As he was taking a sip, Nathan said, “It’s called a Screaming Orgasm.”
Swallowing wrong, Preston lapsed into a coughing fit that had Nathan in stitches.
Preston scrambled for one of the water bottles in a bucket of ice beside Nathan, who was completely useless, still laughing at his expense. He twisted the cap off and swallowed grateful gulps.
After he’d downed about half the bottle, he resealed it and swallowed a couple of more times. Inhaling deeply, he resettled his gaze on Nathan, who finally stopped laughing. Well, mostly stopped. Chuckles still escaped his lips as he wiped away a stray tear from the corner of his eye.
“Now, what do you have to say for yourself?” Preston asked in a chiding tone after finding his voice.
Clearing his throat, Nathan said, “You have to admit, it was pretty damn hilarious.”
“I guess that’s the closest to an apology I’m getting from you for almost drowning me.”
Fire sparked in Nathan’s eyes as he yelled, “I did not!”
Preston threw his head back and laughed. Then he reached up behind him and tugged off his shirt in one smooth pull.
“Are you seriously going to make me apologize?”
“What made you pick the one drink that’s made of sugar, anyway?” Preston swallowed again, barely suppressing a gag at the sugary aftertaste still clinging to the back of his throat.
“If you must know, Innocent Passion, which is the real name of the drink, is actually made of a combination of pineapple juice, orange juice, and cranberry juice, which gives it that lovely pink sunset color, along with strawberry daiquiri mix. It also has piña colada mix and a splash of grenadine.”
“That’s disgusting.”
“I can get you something else. Adonis over at the bar knows his stuff.”
“An Adonis?” Preston looked over his shoulder at the octagonal structure a few yards away. He studied the man behind the bar, the sudden need to kick his ass surfacing. Where were these dangerous feelings coming from? He’d never seen himself as a violent person, but recently, the instant Nathan found someone remotely attractive, his inner caveman emerged.
“No.” He shook his head. “Not an Adonis. Although he does look like something that walked out of GQ magazine. The bartender’s name is Adonis. What he must make in tips…”
Preston’s gaze narrowed as he looked back at Nathan. “Why don’t I be in charge of drinks from now on?”
Confused, Nathan tilted his head. “Aren’t you going to spend most of your time in the water?”
“I’m not leaving you here alone.”
“I’m a big boy,” Nathan argued. “I can get my own drinks.”
Preston took a step forward until there were only inches of air separating them. Because of his height, Nathan was forced to lift his chin just to look Preston in the eyes.
“Nate,” he growled out.
Below the primal urge that begged that Nathan look at no one else but him was something more tender. Something he couldn’t quite name but was certainly familiar with. It had come into focus during the concert in Rome. A holding of one’s breath. A thrill. The kind of feeling that made him choose to stay on the beach instead of heading straight for the water.
“Trouble in paradise already?” asked an all-too-familiar female voice.