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After a week split between work, spending time with Denise, and avoiding an even quieter and more withdrawn Maeve, AJ kissed Denise goodbye. The goodbye kiss was decidedly more forced that the one he’d given her that first day—and he hated it. He hated that the woman he’d been so eager to meet no longer inspired the lust or passion she had in her emails. She’d tried to seduce him throughout the week, but he’d held her off with promises of “taking that step” after she was moved and settled, and they could continue getting to know one another. The night before her departure, she’d begged him to come with her so they could spend more time together, but he’d declined. His excuse was his it was Christmas the following week. The truth was, the thought of spending another minute with her made him jittery.
Denise was the kind of woman you handled in small doses, and one whole week with her was enough of a dose to hold him over until Armageddon.
With a pout in her lips and the promise to call and text every day, Denise headed back to Miami to start the process of listing her condo and getting her house packed for the move.
To Jackson Key. Where he lived.
The excitement he expected to feel—he wanted to feel—wasn’t there. Instead, there was only an icy, slowly spreading anxiety.
What the fuck was wrong with him?
“Okay, what the hell is wrong with you?” Sally plopped down on the white leather couch beside him, nearly spilling the margarita in her hand. She was just on the other side of drunk, when Sassy Sallina made an appearance, and her usual filter—already dangerously thin—disappeared.
“What do you mean?” he asked, leaning forward to put his still full beer bottle on the coffee table…and to give himself something to do other than to focus on who wasn’t there.
Maeve had been invited to spend Christmas with them, but she’d declined, telling Sally that she wasn’t feeling good and wouldn’t want to “intrude on a family thing” anyway.
He remembered the look on Maeve’s face when she’d spotted him with Denise that first day. Pale. Stricken. So, he could guess at her sudden “illness.”
God…he needed to talk to her. To explain. To apologize. He’d never meant for their—whatever the hell it was—to go as far as it did. He never meant to hurt her, though he knew he did. Maeve was a gentle soul, someone who put their whole emotions into something. And their shared kisses…they’d been passionate, hot, blazing with need, desire, and unspoken yearning. Maeve had given of herself in those kisses.
Like Swan had that night in the dark….
Shaking off that thought, AJ flicked his gaze to the open French doors. Anna was outside curled up on a lounger next to Blaze who was arguing Fantasy Football with Sly.
Though it was Christmas, it was like any other Saturday night, and AJ and his sister and their friends were settled in a Sly’s beachfront mansion for a BBQ and drinks. It was a monthly tradition at that point, and one he usually looked forward to. Usually, he’d come, grab a drink, and relax after a long week of pressure and back breaking work. Usually, he could smile and laugh and actually enjoy himself. Usually, he could let his mind wonder to less important things, like what he was going to do the next morning after his morning coffee and work out. Usually, his head and heart weren’t a fucking mess.
“I mean that instead of being outside with Blaze and Sly, chatting about man shit, you’re in here, by yourself, brooding. You, dear brother, are a lot of things. You’ve never been a brooder.”
He snorted, rolling his eyes. “I brood. It’s part of my wicked charm. Chicks dig brooders.”
Sally rolled her eyes, then slapped the back of his head. “You’re an idiot. Chicks? Seriously? When did you descend into frat-bro-land? And don’t try to get me to change the subject by being a douche on purpose. Tell me what has my big brother thinking so hard and looking so troubled. It is work?” Her immediate conclusion that his issues were work related made him feel like shit. Blaze and Sly were good men, they didn’t deserve unnecessary shade thrown over their business, even by a well-meaning sister/girlfriend.
“Nah, nothing like that,” he admitted hurriedly. “Business is good. Better than ever, actually.”
She took a small sip of her drink and pinned him with a gaze she often used as a little girl, one that said, “Lay it on me, big bro.”
He sighed, throwing his head back against the top of the couch, and groaning. Taking a moment, he stared at the sprigs of bright green garland and deep red berries, and white twinkle lights decorating the room. For a Florida Christmas, it was nice.
“AJ?” Sally prodded.
He heaved a sigh, his insides rolling and twisting. He knew that keeping Denise and her new role in his life a secret from his sister would bite him in the ass sooner or later. He was hoping later, though…like when he finally figured out what the hell he was supposed to do about her.
This was not how he wanted to tell his sister. Blaze and Sly knew what was going on. Sly had offered some advice in dealing with Denise: don’t. Blaze still threw wary and puzzled looks his way, and had offered to listen whenever AJ wanted to talk. But both men knew better than to tell their women, who would have thrown themselves into his business without hesitation. He didn’t need that kind of drama, and his best friends knew that. And he appreciated them keeping his secret, even though he got plenty of lip about in the privacy of their offices. He should have known, though, that Sally would find some way to dig up something when she wasn’t even aware there was something to dig for.
“There’s…this woman—”
“Holy shit! My big brother needs sisterly advice about a woman. It’s a Christmas miracle!” Sally squealed, definitely spilling her drink this time. The pink slush hitting her lap. She ignored it, placing her glass on the coffee table and snatching his hands to hold them between hers.
“Come on, AJ. Tell Sissy Sallina all about your woman problems.” She sounded like Oprah, eager for celebrity dirt.
He sighed again, knowing this was going to go down in flames.
“Women, actually,” he admitted, cringing.
Sally’s mouth dropped open but shut quickly, her eyes narrowing into dangerous slits.
“I didn’t take you for a cheater, Alejandro—”
