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I wipe my face, sure that my makeup is smudged all over, and hand him back his shirt. “Thanks.” Even with saltwater burning my eyes, I’d be an idiot not to notice how unbelievably sexy he looks without his shirt on. His rock-solid chest leads down to an impressive six-pack. The muscles in his shoulders and arms are flexing with every little move he makes. It’s making me wonder what is happening under those shorts.
“Come on,” he says, standing up and holding out his hand for me. “Let’s go up to the house so we can dry off properly.”
I grab his hand and he helps me up. As soon as I’m standing, I notice how irritating the sand feels clinging to me. I start brushing it off of me and I swear the more I wipe off the more it appears. I look at Braden with pleading eyes and he laughs. “Holy shit. This is annoying, how do you get this off?”
“Seriously? Haven’t you ever gotten sand on you before?” he asks, while he continues to laugh at my expense.
I stop my frantic wiping and look out at the ocean. “No, this is the first time I’ve ever been to the beach, seen the ocean, felt sand on my feet.”
“In that case, stop trying to wipe it all with your hands. You have sand on them too and it’s not helping. Come up to the house and I’ll give you a dry towel to use,” he says as he starts walking toward his house.
I’m not sure what the hell the dry towel will do, but the sand is starting to itch, so I’m willing to try anything.
When we make it to the stairs leading up to his house, he grabs a towel off the railing and hands it to me. I start wiping the sand and son of a bitch, it’s starting to come off.
“Why does it itch and burn? Am I allergic to sand or something?”
He tries hiding his smile as he says, “No you aren’t allergic to sand. It gets irritating, which is why we normally rise off in the water. Do you have a bathing suit on?”
“Umm, yes. Why?”
I don’t want to walk all the way down to the water and then have wet feet to walk back to my car.
“I have an outside shower you can use to get most of the sand off. The rest will come off when you get home and shower.”
Not giving me a chance to answer he starts walking up the stairs, so I follow. I don’t understand what is going on. One minute I’m trying to avoid him, the next we are making out on the beach, and now we are just acting like nothing happened. I’m so damn confused.
After he shows me how to use the shower, I take off my clothes and step in with my bathing suit on. When I think I’ve gotten most of
the sand off. I step out and Braden is standing there with a towel. “Oh, thank you,” I say as I wrap it around myself.
He nods his head and sits down at the table. “McKinley, let’s talk.”
I walk over and sit down across from him. Searching my eyes, he takes a deep breath. “I’m just going to be honest with you. I’ve been hurt and I don’t trust easily. I question everything that happens, and I am damn protective of those I love.” I listen closely with my stomach in my throat. “The thing is, you came crashing into my world and I didn’t know how to avoid it. You are here to build a relationship with your brother, and I can’t stop thinking about you. So, I need to know everything, I need you to be honest with me.”
My heart is pounding in my chest. It’s a combination of fear and excitement. I feel the same way about him, and I don’t know if that’s a good thing. Being with Braden is what my body wants, but my head isn’t so sure. I’m here for a reason and dating isn’t it. I’m not sure what to do at this point, but I know I need to answer him. “What else do you need to know? I told you why I’m here, about my family, and where I grew up. What else is there?”
“I’m not saying you need to say anything right now. What I mean is no matter what kind of relationship we have, honesty is key.”
Honesty is key. How can I be completely honest with him? If he or anyone knew I came here with totally different intentions, I’d lose them all. That is something I’m not willing to risk, definitely not.
Chapter 8
Braden
* * *
Sitting here waiting for McKinley to say she’ll be honest with me is torture. It was so ironic I saw her on the beach when I did. I went out there to think about what to do with these feelings I’m having. Especially after talking to Kallie because she told me how McKinley was attracted to me.
It definitely got heated fast, but that’s what happens when I’m around her. I can’t control myself. I’ve got a million questions, and when I told my sister that, she told me sometimes I just need to let go. Maybe she’s right, I don’t know. Either way, I won’t be able to do anything else unless McKinley can tell me she’ll be honest with me.
“Yes, I’ll be honest with you,” she finally says.
I close my eyes briefly; thankful she gave me the answer I wanted.
“How about this? I’d like to make dinner for you tonight.” I chuckle thinking back to her with the sand. “I know how badly you want to shower, so I’ll take you to your car. You go home and get ready. Come back, say around eight?”
She smiles an honest smile and nods her head. “I’d like that.”
