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She finishes off her wine as I just sip mine. “Can I ask you a question?” she asks.
My heart races and my stomach swims with butterflies wondering exactly where this was going. Of course, I simply nod my head and take a large sip of my wine.
“Is there something going on with you and my brother?” She grins and motions to the living room.
“No!” I nearly shout and she turns giving me a confused expression. “I mean, yes, no…I don’t know.”
We sit down on the couch and she tilts her head, almost checking me out. “It’s not my place to go into detail about Braden’s past, that’s his story. All I’ll tell you is my brother has the biggest, most genuine heart I’ve ever seen. He would lay down his own life for the people he loves. He’s been hurt and trust doesn’t come easily. If you are interested in him, like he is in you, you are going to have to be the one to make it happen. You’ll need to gain his trust and prove you can be trusted.”
This is so much to take in and I don’t know what the hell I’m doing, but when she says he’s interested in me I can’t keep the smile off my face.
“How do you know he’s interested?”
She laughs and lightly hits my arm. “McKinley, the way he looks at you says it all. Not to mention I did walk in on that kiss. That girlfriend was not just a friendly kiss. That was him putting himself out there to you. I’d say it’s up to you at this point. The ball is in your court.”
With so much information swimming in my head, it’s hard to focus on anything else she is talking about. She’s telling me stories of models and photographers and I should be listening. I should be taking damn notes, but I’m not. My thoughts are consumed by Braden.
“Alright it’s getting late, and I’ve kept you long enough. It’s almost time for my nightly FaceTime with Jax too.” She winks as we stand up from the couch.
“Thank you again for everything today. I don’t know how to thank you enough,” I say, grabbing my purse off her counter.
“It was my pleasure. Oh, and here. Just in case. Be safe driving,” she says, showing me to the door.
Once I’m in the confines of my crappy car I open the paper she headed to me. She not only wrote down Braden’s phone number, but also his address. I guess she’s right, the ball is definitely in my court.
I wake up the next morning after a restless night's sleep. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw his. I felt his touch, I tasted his lips. I wanted more.
When I leave the most comfortable bed I’ve ever slept in, I make my way to the kitchen to make coffee. It’s still unreal to me that I am renting this house. London and Blake were just amazing, and I don’t know what I’d do without them.
Making my coffee I bring it outside and sit at the table. I play around with my phone, debating what to do. I programmed Braden’s number last night, but now I am second-guessing it all. I don’t know what the right thing to do was.
If I call him and he rejects me I’d be humiliated. If I call him and he wants something with me, what if I can’t live up to his expectations? I’ve always been considered poor, white trash. I’m afraid he’ll see me the same way and it terrifies me.
I drop the phone and decide it’s best to just walk away before either of us gets hurt. Besides he’s the one who said I should work on my relationship with Blake.
I shake my head and get up to start my day. What that consists of, I have no idea. I haven’t started working yet, so my time seems endless. Maybe I’ll explore this town a bit, get to know it a little better. I haven’t even gone to the beach yet.
With my mind made up, I
get in my bikini, throw on a sundress over the top and head out.
I’ve been driving around for a while. I found some restaurants I want to check out and I found a grocery store closer to my house than the one I’ve been going to.
With the music blasting through the speakers, I continue to drive until I find a beach. I park and look out to the water. It’s so beautiful. I’ve never been to the beach so I’m excited to feel the sand and water on my toes. Walking toward the sand I feel like a kid and if it didn’t look ridiculous, I’d run to get there faster.
I finally step onto the sand and start walking toward the ocean. The thing I notice most is how hard it is to walk with my flip-flops on. I kick them off and even though the sand is hot, it feels good. Making my way to the water is much easier now and I stop just about a foot from where the waves are crashing on the beach. It’s unreal. I’ve seen it so many times on TV or in magazines, but to be standing here feels like a dream.
I walk closer and let the water rush over my feet. I giggle when I feel like the wave is pulling me back out with it. Once I feel brave enough, I move further in, up to my calves. Staring out into the beautiful hues of blue I get lost. There is nothing but water as far as I can see. It is so relaxing and terrifying at the same time.
Having no idea how long I’ve been standing here captivated, I decide to walk down the beach more and explore.
I stay close to the water, letting it rush just over my feet when the waves crash. As I make my way down the beach, I take notice of the many families, friends, and couples. Everything about this intrigues me. I’d love to sit on the beach with friends or a boyfriend.
The more I walk I discover shells, rocks, and even little crabs that actually scare the shit out of me at first. I bend down and pick up a few shells closing my hand over them. I’ll keep these forever to remind me of my first time seeing the ocean.
Not paying much attention to my surroundings I realize there are now houses away up at the beginning of the beach. I stop and look around, not sure if I’m allowed to venture this far. Biting my cheek, I decide it’s probably best to head back the way I came. I’m sure these people pay a fortune to have their piece of paradise and having a stranger on their beach is probably not what they want.
Spinning around I make my way back, once again captivated by the endless ocean. “McKinley?”
