Naked (7 page)

When she was settled on a blue fleece blanket, she turned, giving herself a perfect view of his body. Somehow, while he worked, it contorted and flexed. She swallowed hard, her throat constricting and her body heating in the most delightful way.

“So Violet…” Harper brought back her attention to the group. “Are there any hot guys in this town?” She pointed to Charlotte. “We need to get my friend here laid.”

“Harper, mind your own business.” Charlotte was unamused. She sipped on her drink, making a face with every swallow. She obviously wasn’t a fan of martinis.

The two women couldn’t be more opposite but there was a camaraderie between them that was blatantly evident.

“Um…” Hot guys? So far, the five months she’d spent in this town she’d kept to herself. And she hadn’t encountered any eligible bachelors. Except for one. She turned her head to watch as Noah lifted a roll of dirty carpet. His biceps flexed as he lifted it over his head. Her body heated and a dull ache throbbed between her legs. Why was just the sight of this man more than she could handle? With every other man who’d walked into her life, even if on the periphery, she had the ability to control her reactions. But not with Noah. This man made her want to let go. Let him in and see what kind of dirty, sexy things he could give her. Or even more, what kind of dirty, sexy things she could
take
from him.

Fuck. Rinse. Repeat.

“I guess the hot guy in town is already at this party.” Harper cleared her throat and Violet turned her attention back to the women.

She was sure there was nothing embarrassing about liking Noah. There must be some kind of reciprocation, otherwise she wouldn’t be here. But it didn’t stop the flush from rising up her neck and settling on her cheeks.

“Charlotte, I think our new friend is blushing.” Harper smiled deviously.

“Seriously, if Noah is the only hot guy in town, you need to move.” One eyebrow arched on his sister’s face. “Like, tomorrow.”

Violet chuckled. There was nothing sexy about Charlotte. Not like Harper, whose sexuality rolled off her like a magnet that sucked you in and forced you to take notice.

“So what’s your story, Violet?” Harper asked. She stared from her spot on the opposite side of the faux coffee table, waiting for a response.

Charlotte slapped Harper on the arm and stared her down.

“Right.” One of Harper’s eyebrows lifted in curiosity. “You don’t want anyone to know anything about you.”

So he’d told them about the deal. Which meant he was talking about her.

“It’s not that…I just…”

“That’s cool. I get it. I’m just going to say you’re a spy or something.” Harper shrugged, the situation rolling off her shoulders with ease. What Violet wouldn’t give to be able to do the same and shrug off her own responsibilities even for a day—the company, her father’s illness, her lack of self-confidence, and the utter devastation of her body. But those items were too big, too important.

A sharp hammering sound began and the conversation stalled.

“Will you two keep it down in there. We’re trying to get to know Violet,” Harper yelled over the noise.

It didn’t take long for Luke to wander into the living room. The noise had ceased, so he had been the one making all that racket. “Why don’t you come help, Jones? I’ll make it worth your while.”

“You have nothing to offer me, Soy.”

With zero shame, Luke surveyed Harper’s body, even though she was sitting and half of her good parts weren’t visible. The glimmer in Luke’s eyes told a story, one where Harper was naked and Luke was devouring her. These two were hot for each other. Luke might have been too far away to notice, but Harper’s lips parted and Violet heard the sharp intake of breath to her right at Luke’s blatant ogling.

“Suit yourself.” He turned and walked back to his duties. The hammering resumed as if the conversation had never taken place.

Without even a reaction to the wall of hotness that had just interrupted them, without even missing a beat, Harper badgered Charlotte. “When are you going to come by the shop so I can have my wicked way with you?” Her fingers traveled up and threaded through Charlotte’s hair as she studied the shiny blond strands. “I know getting you naked in front of the camera would be my best work yet.”

“I couldn’t possibly.” A snort erupted from Charlotte’s mouth.

Naked pictures? There was so much more to this woman than met the eye.

“I thought you ran a tattoo shop?” Violet asked. She’d never been more curious to learn more about another woman.

“Co-own. Yes.” Harper settled her back against the wall and crossed her legs in front of her. “But I also have a side business, a passion project, if you will.” Harper looked like she had passion in spades.

“What is it?”

“It’s a wellness agency for women. Basically, I help women find their sexy.”

I help women find their sexy.
Harper’s voice echoed in her mind.

She was like a sign sent from…somewhere.

Suddenly, the little random pieces of her life were starting to fit together. To make sense. There was a reason why her father had picked this town as the possible site for the residential project. There was a reason why Noah had purchased the house next door. And there was definitely a reason why Harper was one of his best friends.

Maybe she hadn’t come to this small town to hide? Maybe she had come here to break free.

“Women come to me for advice, motivation, tips. Sometimes it’s an older woman trying to get the spark back in her marriage. Sometimes it’s a cancer survivor who, after chemo and radiation, just doesn’t feel like a woman anymore.” Harper tapped her finger on the rim of her glass. “I firmly believe that sexy is a state of mind. It doesn’t matter what you look like on the outside. If you feel sexy inside, it will come across in everything you do.”

Harper was certainly drinking the Kool-Aid she was selling, but there were some things that even confidence couldn’t overcome. Like scars from a fatal car accident that took the perfect life you were supposed to live—and the subsequent guilt for being slightly relieved it had.

“And you want Charlotte to find her sexy?” Violet prompted.

Although it made sense. She was shy and uptight.

As if you’re one to talk.

“Part of my service includes boudoir photos and I’ve been dying to get his little minx in front of the camera. I know there is a sex kitten hidden under this sweater set.” She pulled at Charlotte’s collar, bypassing the pearls on her way. “Somewhere.”

“I’m nowhere near a minx.” Charlotte frowned. “I’m the least minxish woman ever created.”

She said it with a frown. She didn’t like not being a minx.

“It’s in there somewhere.” Harper cocked her head to the side. “You just have to be willing to look for it.”

Violet hated to say it, but Charlotte was…unmemorable. She’d even forgotten she was in the room within three minutes of meeting her. She didn’t command a room. She didn’t turn heads. But maybe there was something to be said about being demure, and Charlotte was exactly right in choosing to fly under the radar.

No.

Being meek wasn’t going to get her project approved nor was it going to make a room full of men confident in her decisions.

Violet just needed a little nudge.

And maybe Harper could help her with that.

“Here’s my card.” Harper slid a white-and-pink rectangle across the plywood. Her business name, Body & Soul Wellness for Women, beautifully lettered across the front in calligraphy. “If you know anyone who might be interested I’d appreciate the shout-out.” She stilled, eyeing Violet with the most curious look. As if she was contemplating every moment of their interaction so far. “I practice discretion, of course.”

Was that for her benefit? Was it an invite?

Violet knew it was stupid. She knew she was being unreasonable. But she’d lived her entire life to an almost impossible standard of perfection. Pretending to be pretty damn close to perfect. But now her outsides matched her insides. And although it was her body that was scarred, it affected every part of her. Because of these scars, she lacked confidence not only in her appearance but as a businessperson.

She’d shown up tonight thinking maybe she could finally break through her self-imposed barrier and possibly have sex with a hot guy. But surprisingly, Noah had given her something she hadn’t been expecting. Something she hadn’t even known she needed.

A place to relax and be herself.

These people were casual. No pretensions. They didn’t care about the latest model of Mercedes or the best real-estate purchase. They ate chips out of a plastic bowl that was probably purchased at a dollar store. They were real. Safe with one another.

Noah was a bad decision wrapped in tattoos and facial hair. But a decision that was free of consequences. Free of judgment.

Maybe one more bad decision was exactly what she needed to get focused. To get back on track, just as her father had asked, before she went back to the place where every decision came with the weight of the world. There were so many strings she was bound to get tangled up.

What would it be like to shed her clothing? To channel Harper even for just one evening?

Watching Noah, sweaty and delicious, she knew he was exactly the right man to make her feel safe, shed her armor, and be the woman she knew was hiding underneath.

Chapter 6

When Noah had dropped the Hail Mary of an invite, he wasn’t confident she’d show up.

But she was here, and that meant she was ready to be kissed.

Luke had convinced him to pack it up for the evening even though they hadn’t pulled all of the carpet from the dining room, promising they’d finish before he left in the morning. None of them were in any shape to be driving home. Especially now that, courtesy of Harper, they’d begun to play Would You Rather. She was always interested in people’s deep, dark secrets. No doubt she initiated the game to learn more about Violet.

“Are you telling me you’d rather die by getting eaten by a zombie than by drowning?” Luke stared at Charlotte in bewilderment.

She nodded in confirmation. His little sister had been afraid of the water for as long as Noah could remember. Post-traumatic stress from watching
Jaws
. Every summer they’d all go to the community pool but Charlotte always stayed on her beach towel soaking up the sun. He and Luke had tried a couple of times to get her in the water, but she’d refused. Even when their parents had tried to put her in swimming lessons, she’d freaked out and run. Every damn time.

“You do realize you’re alive when zombies eat you.” Luke’s neck was strained in frustration as he grilled Charlotte. “You feel it. All of it and it could take hours for you to die.”

“You shouldn’t diminish someone’s worst death fear,” Violet piped in. Everyone turned their attention to her and she went white with terror.

“Thank you, Violet.” Charlotte glared at Luke, hitting him in the arm. “I’m afraid of the water, you ass. Remember?”

Luke held up his hands. “You’re right. It’s just weird.”

“I’m afraid to die from falling off a tall building,” Violet blurted, then sucked back the rest of her martini.

Such a random fear, but it made sense given her attention to his lack of safety measures on the roof.

Despite her rule, the more she drank, the more tiny details she disclosed about her life. Like how she’d been a ballerina when she was a girl, or that when she’d graduated from high school she had been voted Senior Princess.

Neither had been a surprise. Her legs gave away her ballet story and there was no question he would have voted for her in high school.

With every detail she disclosed, the more he wanted to know.

It’s just because she’s withholding. Otherwise, you wouldn’t care.

“Besides, the zombie apocalypse is never going to happen, so that’s a moot point,” Charlotte said.

Luke looked over at Harper, his mouth practically on the floor. “She doesn’t believe in the zombie apocalypse.” He pointed at Charlotte with his finger.

“You’ll be the first to die when it happens.” Harper was on Luke’s side. “You won’t be prepared.”

“I will not die.” Charlotte slammed her martini on the plywood. “Noah will keep me alive.”

“Every man for themselves, Charlie.” He winked, but he was kidding. He would do everything in his power and capability to keep his friends and family alive. That was a guarantee. They were the most important things in his life.

Hypothetically speaking, if he was ever going to settle down, that someone would need to understand his dedication.

Charlotte snuggled closer to him and rested her head on his shoulder. He missed this. He missed living a ten-minute subway ride from his mom and Paige. Missed living down the street from Luke. He was isolated out here, but he knew it was only for a few more weeks.

He rested his head on top of hers and looked over at Violet. She stared at them with affection. He wondered if she had any siblings. What her family was like? Was she the type of person who would risk everything to save them during a zombie apocalypse?

After getting cornered by Harper about whether he’d rather be able to fly or read minds, he left the group and went to the kitchen, taking with him a few empty beer bottles and the empty jar of olives.

For the record…he’d rather read minds.

He cleared a space with his arm, trying to move the tools and debris from his renovations out of the way.

Fuck. His house was a mess. He probably should have tried to make it a little more presentable knowing Violet might show up, but that would have taken time away from the real renovations and he couldn’t afford any lost time.

He’d gutted the small bungalow. The bathroom was the first room he’d renovated. He’d replaced the toilet and fixtures with brand new water-savers. He’d ripped out the blue tile in the shower and had replaced it with crisp white. He’d added pewter towel and toilet paper holders and replaced the pedestal sink with a vanity with cupboard space. One thing old houses didn’t have much of was storage. He’d even refitted the tub. There was only one bathroom, so he knew he had to make it efficient and stylish. He’d wanted to build a second one, but he wasn’t certified as a plumber and it would have cost thousands of dollars to move the plumbing.