Alluring Temptation (Bayou Stix #3) (15 page)

I shrug and tighten my hand around hers. She lets out a breath and her hand relaxes.

I force myself to look away from her and back at the dark road. “Actually down by Jude and Lexi’s. They own the land on both sides of their house and there’s a really nice beach down there that they’ve installed a gazebo and some benches on. Is that ok?”

Her eyes are searching the side of my face. I can feel her gaze. Glancing over, I see her nod. She says, “That sounds lovely. And it’s cool enough that the mosquitos shouldn’t feast on us either.”

Shit, I didn’t even think about mosquitos. I was so focused on trying to go someplace quiet with her that we would have privacy to talk, I forgot that we live in Louisiana. I do have blankets in the back of the truck though. In case she gets cold. I could keep her warm though…

Dammit, stop thinking about that, Liam. But shit, she’s so perfect and sweet over there. I just want to touch her.

Don’t be a creep!

She chuckles. “Are you talking to yourself, Liam?”

My head whips around. I can see her eyes twinkling in her amusement. I gruffly respond, “Yeah, I guess so. As long as I don’t answer myself, right?”

She laughs outright. “No worries. I talk to myself all the time. Hell, I even answer myself sometimes.”

Her personality is refreshing. She’s real and not afraid to show her flaws and quirks. I really like that she’s here with me.

My turn comes up and we follow the winding path back for a bit before we come to the levee. I drive past the “No Trespassing” signs and stop the truck to open the gate. After we drive through, I stop again to close it. No sense in inviting people to join us. Though, Jude has this place pretty well secured.

We park near the water and I use the headlights to illuminate the path. We’re next to the river, so there are no lights out here. Jude has set up a gazebo and it’s surrounded by tiki torches though.

I’ve been out here a few times when I needed some quiet time or I just wanted to write. I’ve never brought anyone out here with me though. This is a first.

Looking over at Clove, I tell her to stay put while I go light the torches and grab the blankets. Her brows raise at my command, though she says nothing. She just looks at me introspectively.

Once I’m done and I have the blankets on the benches under the gazebo and the torches lit, I look around. This place screams romance. That’s probably why I’ve never brought anyone out here before now. It’s perfect for Clove, though.

How fucking crazy is this? Instead of running scared, I’m running straight into the damn fire with her. But something tells me, she’s worth it.

I watch her watch me as I head back to the truck to fetch my date.

Opening the door, I help her out, since my truck is high and she’s not very tall. She fits perfectly against me. Her head reaches my chest. I made sure to let her slide against me. It’s such sweet torture. Her feet touch the ground and she looks up at me and smiles.

She chuckles and says, “If I didn’t know better… I’d think you were trying to seduce me, Mr. Christianson.” She steps around me and walks to the gazebo calling over her shoulder, “Coming?”

Hell yes I am.
She’s like a breath of fresh air. I have no idea what’s happening next with her and I love it. She makes me feel like a regular guy. It’s a nice, new feeling.

As she fluffs one of the blankets, she looks over at me with a peculiar expression on her face.

“What’s that look for?” I ask from the entryway.

She looks away and I can tell something is bothering her. She looks back at me and her shoulders square. “Is this blanket clean?”

What? Is the blanket clean? What the hell?

I realize what she’s asking and I can’t help it, I laugh in glee. Her eyes snap to me and her mouth tightens. Walking over to her, I crouch down and take the blanket from her fingers and open it up, before tucking it over her legs. She watches me the entire time.

Leaning in, I brush my mouth over hers. She sighs and leans in as her shoulders relax. Pulling back, I look at her and smirk.

She looks at me in expectation. Smiling I tuck the blanket around her tighter. “Yes, the blanket is clean. I’m not really in the habit of fucking in my truck, Clove.”

She shoves me and laughs as I almost lose my balance. I say, “Hey, that wasn’t very nice.”

Still laughing, she rolls her eyes, “My bad. Of course I’m going to question it. I mean you do have a habit of screwing everything that opens their legs. How am I supposed to know your truck is not used for that purpose?!”

Damn, that’s harsh. But she’s so right. I’m disgusting and I have fucked far too many women. What am I doing here with her? She’s too good for me. I’m going to ruin her.

She’s watching me and I can see her face. She loses her smile. “Hey. Liam, I’m only teasing you. Stop with whatever has that look on your face.”

I just stare at her as the realization that she really is too good for me comes across loud and clear. She might have been joking, but there was truth there, too. You don’t say things like that unless you mean them. And in my case, she’s absolutely right.

She gets a look of apprehension on her face as she watches me. I don’t say anything. What is there to say?! Taking the blanket off, she stands up. That’s it. She wants to go home. She knows she’s too good for me.

She takes a step towards me and I just watch her. Then, she’s standing in front of me. She takes my hands.
What is she doing?

As she gazes at me in silence, I can’t help but stare at her. She’s so beautiful. Not like fake beautiful, but really beautiful. Her face is so open and honest. She’s wearing make-up, I know she is, but she doesn’t look like she’s wearing anything and I don’t think she’s wearing much. How did I not realize how perfect she is until now? I’m a fucking moron. And my behavior is despicable, so of course, she wants nothing to do with me. I can’t even blame her.

Her hand reaches out and tentatively touches my face. “Hey.”

I stare at her and try to memorize every line of her face. She’s so perfect, I could write a song about her.

She says softly, “Hey, what’s wrong? What’s going through that head of yours, Liam? Talk to me.”

I shake my head and as it turns, I press a kiss into her palm. She sighs.

I take a step back. I need some distance from her or I’m going to grab onto her and never let go.

She frowns at me. “What are you doing, Liam?” She’s starting to sound pissed. “What the hell is happening? We’ve been having a good time. We’re getting along and I’m enjoying myself. I swear you are too, so why are you suddenly shutting down? What the fuck kind of game are you playing here?”

I jerk back with a start. I’m not toying with her. I’m trying to do the right thing. “What? I’m not playing at anything, Clove. I just realized that I’m not good enough for you. I already knew that, but you just confirmed it. I’m a loose rock star with no morals. You are a perfect, beautiful woman who doesn’t need that kind of shit around you. Especially not now!”

Her eyes get huge and I see them harden as she pins me with her furious gaze. Her chest flushes and her cheeks turn bright red, but she’s not blushing. She steps up to me and the urge to take a step back is strong, but I don’t. Before I can interpret her ire, her hand lashes out and stings my cheek.

She just slapped me. Hard.

I’m too shocked to move. Damn, that hurt! My cheek is burning.

She’s shocked herself, too, because her face registers her surprise, but she quickly overcomes it and she’s in my face. Her finger jabs into my chest. I can do nothing but take in the view that is a seriously enraged Clove Rodrigue.

“Are you serious? Let me tell you something. I am
not
a goddammed child! I do not need you or anyone else telling me what I can do or what’s good for me.” She jabs me again. “
YOU
asked me to give you a chance. I did. I went against everything I know and everything you pretend to be and I did. I had a good time tonight Liam and so did you! We were having fun.” She gestures from me to her and waves her hand around to encompass everything. “
THIS! This is a date!”
She points at me. “You are not perfect. You are seriously fucking flawed.”

My mouth drops open. She’s really holding nothing back.

She pokes me again. “You have no morals when it comes to women and I hate that! I hate it! But you have treated me with respect tonight. And I really like that! You are not pressuring me about sex and I love that! I’m not fucking perfect, Liam. Stop saying that! I’m nowhere near perfect! I am twenty-three years old and knocked up. For a loser! I didn’t know, but that’s my fault. I didn’t pay attention! I should have known, but I didn’t. And it sucks. It sucks this happened to me, but you know what, it’s
my
fault! I don’t blame anyone else. Yes, Marcus is an inconsiderate asshole and I’d love to strangle him. BUT you know what, I got this baby out of that bullshit and this baby is mine. I want it and I’m going to be an amazing mother.

You’re not good enough for me? Obviously, I don’t agree with that! I’m
HERE
! Dade doesn’t believe that! He didn’t kill you or mess up your face! So, stop with the bullshit! Just fucking stop it!”

As soon as she’s done, her shoulders slump and she turns away from me.

Wow… she unleashed on me. No one has EVER done that before. She slapped the shit out of me. I can’t believe she did that. But she said I’m worth it.

My chest is suddenly lighter and I have to kiss her. Like right now. Stalking across the gazebo, I grab her arm. Turning her around, I see the tears streaking down her face.

Oh God, I did that. I made her cry. I have to make it right. I’m such an asshole. I don’t know how to do this dating thing!

Her tear filled eyes stare up at me as I gaze down at her. Leaning down, I kiss the tears away as I mutter, “I’m sorry. I don’t apologize. Ever, but I’m sorry. I don’t think you’re a child. I don’t think that at all. I do want you to give me a chance. I want to do this. But I don’t want to fuck it up. And I will. I know I will.”

She stares at me and says nothing.

Cupping her face in my hands, I trace her lips with my thumbs. “Clove, help me. Please? Show me how to do this right?”

She looks at me a bit longer. Just long enough for me to feel like I’m going to puke. Then she smiles at me and whispers, “Well, for starters, you should kiss me now.”

I smile back and lean in to take her lips. Her hands cover mine on her face. Her mouth is like a drug. After we kiss for a very long time, we both pull back and smile at each other.

She takes my hand and pulls me to the bench where she picks up the blanket and straightens it over the both of us as I turn her and cradle her between my legs with her back against my stomach.

Signing in contentment, I can’t help but think,
this has to work. She’s already finagled her way into my heart.

Clove

W
e sit in companionable silence for a bit and look through the trees at the moon reflecting off of the water.

Well, that was scary as hell. Just when I decide to take a chance and I finally have a shot with Liam after all this time, he decides to run scared.

I can’t believe I slapped him. The expression on his face was one of utter shock.

Picturing his face, I start to giggle.

I feel him smile into my hair. “What’s funny?”

I chuckle and lean back to snuggle further into his chest. I can’t believe that I’m here and I can’t believe that I fit with him so well. Leaning my head back, I look up at him. “I slapped you.”

He grimaces. “You did. Hard, too.”

I shrug and feel my cheeks redden. “I’ve never hit a man. I didn’t even know I was going to do that.” Looking at his cheek, I see the outline of my hand. “Does it still hurt?”

He chuckles. “It doesn’t feel good.” He flexes his jaw and I frown. Leaning down, he kisses my mouth softly, before saying. “It’s ok. I deserved it. But you pack a wallop.”

Well, he did deserve it. He pissed me off. But I can’t believe I hit him. I have to tell Dade that one. And Bradi and Blue. They’ll get a kick out of it, I’m sure.

A few minutes later, Liam breaks the silence again. “So, you wanted to know about my family. What do you want to know?”

Turning slightly, so I can see him, I trace his face. It’s suddenly lined with tension, so I know this must be a hard subject for him to talk about. His arms tighten around me.

“Whatever you want to tell me.”

He sighs and closes his eyes before he looks at me. His bright eyes are full of emotion. “Ok. I’ll start at the beginning. Stop me anytime you have a question, ok?”

I nod.

He starts talking. “When I was three, my mom dropped me off with my grandparents. My brother was eight and was already at their house. I remember that she was not around a lot when I was a young child and when she was, she was flighty and always nervous. She’d dropped me off there before, sometimes leaving me there for more than a week before she’d come back to get me. Sometimes she’d take my brother, John, too, but usually just me. Anyway, this time was different. She dropped me off and cried and cried. She hugged me for a long time and she called my brother out of the house… she never went inside… he walked out and she hugged us both and cried for a long time. She unloaded a suitcase and a box full of toys and she drove away. That was the last time I saw her.