Last Resort(13)

She saw his eyebrows shoot up momentarily, but his face and eyes masked his emotions. Then he nodded slowly. “When do you have a night off?”

“Monday.”

“Monday is good, but how about tonight?”

“Tonight?” She tilted her head, trying to figure him out.

“Sure, you know, the part of the day that comes just before sunset.” He smiled.

“I’ll be here tonight.”

“Great.” He took the last bite of his donut and stood. “I’ll see you tonight, then.” He reached down and took her hand, pulling her up from her chair, pulling her so close she could feel his heartbeat next to her breasts. He leaned towards her slowly.

She saw the kiss coming, but after his lips touched hers, she realized nothing could have prepared her for the desire that slammed into her. His hands stayed on her hips, holding her close to his body as his mouth explored her own. His rich taste on her tongue caused her to moan and pull him closer as she explored him more. Her hands went into his thick hair, holding him to her until she felt out of breath. Then he pulled back, and she swore she saw a flash of humor in his eyes as he smiled down at her.

“Well, I think we established there is definitely something here.”

She tried to smile, but her lips and mind refused to focus. How could a man do this so quickly to her? She felt like a mass of jelly. Gooey all over.

His hands dropped and he stepped away. She thought she saw them shake, but he pushed them deep into his jean pockets before she could be sure. “See you tonight, Cassey.” He turned and walked away as she stood there staring after him. When the gate closed, she melted into her chair with a huff, her mind racing.

Her lips still tasted of him. She could still feel his mouth on hers. She closed her eyes and leaned her head back against the chair and wondered just what she had gotten herself into.





Luke spent the next couple of hours in his hotel room. He was staying in a small place just outside of town. His laptop keys clicked as he answered emails, moved his schedule around, and sent a dreaded email to his father. He clicked the send button and less than five minutes later his cell rang. Knowing it would be his dad, he closed his eyes and sighed. He’d really hoped to put him off for a few hours.

“Hi, Dad,” he answered and held the phone away from his ear, waiting for the explosion he knew was coming.

An hour later, with his ear ringing and his head pounding, he showered and dressed to go to Cassey’s place. He knew his father wouldn’t like the update he’d sent, but he had no idea the old man would threaten to disinherit him if he didn’t make this deal happen. Why was Cassey’s property so important?

He had more questions now than when he’d been given the assignment, and he knew only one place to get some answers.

As he walked down the boardwalk towards The Boardwalk Bar & Grill, he looked at the other business along the way. There were souvenir shops, small food vendors, an ice cream parlor, even a tattoo shop. Each place had small-town charm. However, some of the businesses sat empty, and their dark windows hung like a cloud over the otherwise happy boardwalk. Cassey’s was the largest building and lot along the mile-and-a-half-long strip and the best located. There were tables and chairs sitting outside surrounded by bright flowers in colored wood boxes, making the small patio area look secluded and romantic. Since the weather was turning colder, there weren’t any customers dining outside.

When he walked in, the place was almost packed again. If she was struggling with nights like this, he wondered how it used to be and where all her money was going. He knew she had a loan out on the place, but he’d checked the records, and the payments were low enough that she could easily covered them with the traffic she was having. Maybe she owed her family?

He walked up to the bar as Wendy smiled at him. Tonight her top was even lower than the night before and still he found her ample cleavage lacking.

“Back again.” She smiled as he nodded. “What’ll you have, sweetie.”

“Rum and Coke.” He turned to look at the place as she went to get his drink. The huge room was separated into two sides. In the back was a stage area with a large dance floor. The dance floor was separated from the dining area by a small half wall. There were two steps leading down to the area, and he had no doubt that the area packed out on nights they had live music.

The other side was the dining area with the bar to the side. There were tall booths that lined the wall and tables in the middle of the floor. The cream-colored tablecloths, along with the lighting and flowers on each table, gave the place an almost rich look. He had to admit, she’d done a great job making the two halves work side by side.