Page 7 of Sweet Love at Bayside
“I don’t know, bro,” Drake said, keeping pace with Rick. “You can’t catch the dog. You got blown off last night, and still no booty call. I see a pattern here.”
“I didn’t getblown off. She’ll get in touch, but it won’t be for a booty call.” Rick ground his teeth together, hoping Desiree wouldn’t prove him wrong. There was no way he’d misread the sparks between them, and she definitely wasn’t the type of woman who made booty calls, much less the type of woman a guy slept with and forgot. He’d spoken to her only once and she’d stuck like glue in his mind.
“Not a booty call, and you’re still interested?” Dean arched a brow.
Rick ignored the comment. He wasn’t a player, but he didn’t feel the need to correct their misconception of his private life. He was busy with the resort, handling his own business remotely, and spending time with family. He knew they assumed he was into one-night stands because women hit on him often and he’d sometimes meet them for drinks, but he rarely slept with them. At thirty-one, he wasn’t just out to get laid, and since he was set to return to DC when the renovations were complete, he also wasn’t scouting for a girlfriend. There was no denying he’d spent more time than he’d like to admit thinking about what it would feel like to thread his fingers through Desiree’s hair, to kiss her incredibly sexy lips and feel her gorgeous body beneath his. But he’d given equal time to wanting to know more abouther, and it had been so long since someone had captivated him enough to slow down and think that way, it had taken him as much by surprise as it was taking Dean.
They slowed to a walk, pacing the beach in front of the resort as they cooled down.
“You saw what happened when I first noticed her,” Rick finally answered. “I couldn’t look away. It was insane. And she’s even more beautiful up close, but it’s not just that. She’s sweet, and careful, but not weak or timid. She speaks her mind, but she’s not witchy or snarky. She’s just…different.”
“Sounds like the quintessentialgirl next door. Not exactly the type that goes for a bull in a china shop. Which explains why she didn’t text you last night.” Drake was a year and a half older than Rick, and calm as a stream, while Rick rolled more like white-water rapids. “If she’s really that sweet, maybe you’re barking up the wrong tree.”
Rick dropped to the sand and pumped out a quick set of push-ups, then took a knee and squinted up at his brother. “I can’t explain it, but she’s the only tree I want to bark up, and for all I know, she’s leaving town today. I was an idiot not to get her number.”
“I have to admit,” Dean said. “That got me when you said you gave her your phone number but didn’t take hers. Where’s the sense in that?”
Rick started another set of push-ups, and Dean dropped down beside him, matching his efforts. Dean had about twenty pounds of muscle on Rick, short brown hair, and serious eyes. He always looked like he was ready for a fight, but having been a trauma nurse for years before turning to landscape architecture, he was one of the most patient guys Rick knew.
“I don’t know,” Rick said. “I could kick myself for it, but I know she’ll call.”
Drake jogged up to the path, craning to look at something, which Rick guessed was probably Serena arriving at work. Serena Mallery had grown up with their younger sister, Mira, and she was the temporary manager of the resort. “When you get lonely because she doesn’t, you can join us. Dean and Serena and I are going sailing tonight.”
“No, thanks.” Rick hadn’t been on a sailboat since they’d lost their father in a sailing accident when Rick was fourteen. Drake had been riding his last nerve this summer, nudging him to get back on a sailboat. Give Rick a powerboat, water skis, a Jet Ski, or just about any other floatation device and he was fine. But he couldn’t think about stepping foot on a sailboat without painful emotions bombarding him. It had almost caused him to refuse the opportunity to buy into the resort. Although Rick had followed in his father’s footsteps as a high-end builder and investor, he’d escaped the painful memories of his father’s death by starting his business in Washington, DC, and he hadn’t been back for more than a few short visits each year. He had been on the fence about returning to the Cape for an extended period of time, but Drake had been persuasive, and Rick had never been one to pass on a solid business investment.
Drake’s brows slanted in disappointment. “Then just remember, as an owner, you can’t fraternize with the female guests.”
Rick scoffed, wiped the sweat from his brow, and hiked a thumb at his brother. “Listen to this guy. He practically drools over Serena day in and day out and he’s tellingmenot to fraternize?”
“She’s not a guest.” Drake flashed a cocky smile. “And I don’t drool over her. She’s a pain in my butt half the time.” He took his shirt off, hung it over his shoulder, and headed toward the resort.
“That’s why he’s going straight to the office with his shirt off,” Rick said as he and Dean pumped out one last set of push-ups.
“He lives above the office,” Dean reminded him.
He gave Dean ayeah, rightlook.
“I’m just giving him the benefit of the doubt,” Dean said as they headed up to the resort. “The same way I’m not giving you a hard time about going after the super-sweet girl.”
“IwishI could go after her. I have no idea where to find her, but thanks for having my back.”
They stopped to stretch on the lawn in front of the resort. Rick had built properties up and down the East Coast, and though Bayside Resort was less elegant than some, it was a spectacular sight. An array of cottages flanked the recreation center they were renovating, and the pool and tennis courts were just beyond, opposite the office.
“The rec center is coming along nicely,” Dean said. “I finished the plans for the gardens around the patio, and the materials should be in soon.”
Rick and Drake had almost finished the interior renovations, and with any luck, they’d have the entire project wrapped up in the next few weeks.
“You sure you still want to go back to DC next month?”
He’d asked himself the same question several times over the past few months. Somewhere on his path to success he’d gone from designing and building gorgeous homes to managing a multi-million-dollar business. It was a refreshing change to get his hands dirty again. In some ways, his time at the Cape had been a much-needed reprieve. Ever since one of his partners had gotten divorced, he’d been too sidetracked to bring in his share of the revenue, which meant Rick and their other partner had to double down their marketing efforts. Rick and Drake might not always see eye to eye, but their arguments were a piece of cake compared to the mounting discontent between his partners. Rick had little patience for drama, and every trip back to DC had brought him closer to the breaking point. The trouble was, being back on the Cape meant standing on the blade of a double-edged sword. He’d gotten a good dose of the family and friends he missed, but seeing them had stirred painful memories.
“Yup, still DC bound, as planned.”
“That sucks. It’s been great having you around.” Dean elbowed him, nodding in the direction of the pool, where the soaking-wet dog Rick had been trying to catch was trotting toward the bushes. “Looks like your visitor is just leaving.”
“He’smine. I’ll be back.” Rick took off running.
DESIREE SANK DOWN to the comfortable couch in the living room and tucked her feet up on the cushion beside her, talking with Violet about their conundrum and tryingnotto think about Rick. She had tossed and turned all night. Every time she’d closed her eyes, he was right there, luring her in until she’d picked up her cell phone, debated sending him a text, and chickened out.Repeatedly.She’d hoped to talk with Violet last night and make a plan about their mother’s businesses, but by the time Desiree had realized Vi had come home, the sexy sounds coming from behind her sister’s bedroom door had kept her from knocking.
