The Man I Want to Be (Under Covers)(13)

Because he was. He was never anything more than that.

 …

Tyke ripped the pink umbrella from his glass of water and shook his head  as he rested the item on the other side of the table. He'd asked for  ice water. Not water without ice but with an umbrella.

Sitting at an ocean-view table at one of the many hotel restaurants on  the beach, he reviewed the list Kilos gave him. It contained the names  of everyone in attendance at the wedding, plus any male who worked at  the resort. Consolation for the fact that the hotel wouldn't have the  video footage of the hallway outside Kenna's hotel room ready for a day  or two. Something about the storage servers being off site.

Tyke figured the thief was someone involved with the wedding, since both  suspected robberies involved people in some way associated with the  event. That seemed to be the only connection.

A plate clattered onto the table in front of him, filled with beef sandwiches, asparagus, cubes of cheese, and mashed potatoes.

"Thought you might be hungry," Reese said, taking a seat next to him  with his own full plate of food. He unwrapped the napkin holding his  silverware and laid it out over his lap. Slowly and methodically, Reese  cut into his food. "I didn't see you at rowing this morning. Did you  sleep in?"

"Uh, yeah." Tyke dug into the food. He'd left Kenna's room so early, he  didn't have breakfast. With the fragrant scent in front of him, his  stomach grumbled. He was tired as hell, too. Barely slept so he could  keep watch all night. He'd promised her she'd be safe, and he wanted to  keep that promise. That slick son of a bitch wasn't going to sneak in on  her again.

"You missed a good time," Reese said, chewing through one small morsel  of asparagus. "Cass's team won. They beat the others by a good three  minutes."

Tyke grunted. If he'd been there, they would've kicked everyone's ass by at least ten minutes.

He tossed some potatoes into his mouth and looked up at Reese. That's  when he noticed the other man's attire. Bright red, skin-tight tank top  with navy blue spandex shorts that didn't do a damn thing to hide his  man-junk bulge beneath the napkin.         

     



 

"What the hell are you wearing?" Tyke asked, feeling the food he's just swallowed start to roil in his belly.

Reese glanced down at himself like he'd forgotten what he'd put on.  "It's my rowing uniform." For as nonchalantly as he said it, he could've  been wearing loose gym shorts and a T-shirt.

"That's what Sam made you wear?" Tyke asked.

Thank Christ he'd missed it.

"She didn't force us, no," Reese said, dabbing his mouth with his  napkin. "I brought it with me when I saw the schedule of events in the  invitation."

He sat up taller, throwing his slim shoulders back. Reese wasn't built  by any means. He had muscle, but he was so damn skinny that they could  do nothing but protrude. He probably weighed about one-eighty versus  Tyke's two-eighty. What he lacked in mass he sure as hell made up for in  strength, though. Reese could do one-handed pull-ups for hours without  stopping. And handstands. Tyke had seen Reese do handstands on the side  of a mountain, slowly folding himself over the side without falling. It  was impressive as hell. No way Tyke would attempt that.

Reese's compact chest was still puffed out. "I'll have you know that I've won quite a number of championships in this uniform."

The pride on Reese's face made it impossible for Tyke to hammer him too  hard about it. Hey, everyone had a passion for something. Tyke wouldn't  be caught dead in anything squeezing his balls like that, but if it was  Reese's thing, then good for him. It seemed to be working for him with  that blond chick he'd been hanging with.

Tyke was about to ask what she thought about Reese's man knob, but Reese gestured with his chin to the list on the table.

"What's that?"

"Investigation," he said through another mouthful.

Reese rested his fork on the plate and looked directly at Tyke through his wire-frame glasses. "What happened?"

He gulped his water, swallowing down a half-chewed piece of meat, then  said, "A few guests from the wedding are missing things. A little too  convenient and similar."

"Like what?"

"One of Cass's coworkers is missing a watch. Kenna said her mom's ring  was taken from her room last night. She thinks she saw the guy who did  it."

"Hmm," Reese mused. "What do we know so far?"

"I got hotel security caught up on the situation. They're preparing  video feeds from the last few days, including the time when Kenna said  she saw the guy near her room. He's average height and lean with dark  hair. She didn't get a look at his face."

"Hence the list," Reese added.

Tyke nodded. "I'm trying to narrow it down to viable suspects. Problem  is-" He turned the papers to face Reese. "It's so fucking long. Maybe we  can get through it a lot faster if we break it up."

Reese's eyes grazed over the paper. "Out of the one hundred people in  attendance, about forty-five percent are males. Take out another ten  percent for older men with gray hair. That leaves about thirty-five. We  could probably scout most of them today."

"Perfect." Tyke ripped the paper in two. "We need to nail this guy. That ring means more to Kenna than anything."

Reese lowered his chin and met Tyke's gaze. "Also, we don't want the  thief to think he can steal anything else from the wedding guests.  Correct?"

Tyke swallowed. Right. "Yeah, that, too. Do your thing and let's discuss  more at the bachelor party tonight. Oh, and don't breathe a word of  this to Ash and Luke. I don't want them worrying just yet."





Chapter Six


"All right, ladies. We gonna do this or what?"

Aunt Estelle busted into the resort bar on a mission. Her brown hair was  teased higher than normal, making it look like a can of Aqua-Net and a  cotton ball had had a baby. She wore a denim skirt that hit mid-thigh, a  navy-blue tank top that showed off her deep cleavage, and platform  sandals. She had a slick glint in her eye that promised the kind of fun  that usually got people arrested.

"Hey, Estelle!" Sam yelled back. "Come on in. We're just getting started."

Ten shot glasses filled with red liquid lined the bar. The women had already toasted Cassandra. This round was for Sam.

Aunt Estelle snaked her way to the bar, stopping at Kenna's side. "How ya doin'?"

"Good," Kenna said.

"Bullshit," she said.

Kenna snapped a glance at her great-aunt. "Excuse me?"

"How are you really doing?" Estelle asked. "And don't lie to me this time."         

     



 

Kenna scrunched her face up as she thought about her answer. She'd told  herself she was over Bear. But if that was the case, then why did her  heart hurt so bad seeing him again? Why did her body respond the way it  did around him? Why did she long to wrap herself in his big, safe arms  and force him never to leave again?

"It's hard," she said a little less composed than she wanted. "I didn't  think I'd ever see him again. I'd come to terms with it. But now … " She  blew out a breath. "It's … " Another breath. "I need to get through this  week so I can get on with my life without him, just like I did before."

Estelle placed an arm around Kenna and squeezed. Needing the comfort,  Kenna turned into her aunt and circled her round midsection with both  arms. The tight hold made her feel at ease for the first time since  seeing Bear and being thrown into this tornado of wrecked emotions.

"I missed you," Kenna said into the other woman's shoulder.

"Missed you, too, girlie."

"This is going to be a great week."

"Damn right," Estelle said.

"This is about Sam. I don't want to dwell on my past. I want tonight to be about her."

"I agree, hon. Tonight's not about relivin' past mistakes. It's about  makin' new ones." Estelle winked as both women laughed and toasted to  not having regrets.

A squeal came from farther down the bar, so the women pulled apart to look in that direction.

Sam had an arm around the other bride, Cassandra, smiling as they lifted  shot glasses into the air. Everyone else followed suit, lifting their  shot glasses and then downing the contents in one take. It was fruity  with a kick that burned on the descent. Perfect start to the night.

What a joy it was to see Sam happy and in love. She and Kenna used to  sit in their bedrooms and dream about their weddings and future  husbands. Of course, back then Kenna's Prince Charming had a face. Sam  used to say that one day she'd meet a man just like Kenna's. Big, broad,  brooding, and badass. Either she'd had a crystal ball or she had a very  distinct type of man, because Ash fit that description well. He might  not be as large as Bear, but Kenna had no doubt of his badass level. Ash  exuded power and strength.

Sam caught Kenna's stare and beckoned her over. Stepping forward, Kenna tugged Estelle with her.