First to Bid: A Bachelor Auction Romance (Unraveled Book 2) Page 6

  Did he have sex like that with everyone? I wasn’t delusional. A man who looked like him had to have sex a lot. A man who walked like him, smiled like him, talked like him, had to be confident in his own body—and with his skills in the sack. He looked like the superhero of sex.

  I sighed. I’d been spending too much time in Arcadia, gotten a little too lost in the graphic novels I picked up for the kids. I should know—all superheroes had a weakness, and either I was it or he was terrible at sex.

  Enough. I yanked the drain and stood, water sluicing off my body. A tremor ran up my spine. When he’d kneeled and shoved my knees apart… My core quivered. I wanted more of that. Maybe he’d been too…something. The way he’d charged into my room and announced we should have sex? Something was going on with him.

  One more chance.

  I dried off and dressed in my pajamas—blue flimsy shorts with white stars and a red tank top with the Wonder Woman insignia. Mara had started selling clothing in Arcadia, and she gave me awesome deals on all of it, not just the swimsuits.

  I wouldn’t be going out again tonight, and Flynn had already seen me naked.

  I’d had sex with Flynn. And I didn’t miss the curl of disappointment when I thought of it.

  Steeling myself, I trotted downstairs, but Flynn was out on the deck, manning the grill, his rigid shoulders toward me.

  Finding fresh veggies on the counter that he must’ve picked up on his trip to town, I prepped a salad, then toasted some garlic bread.

  The sliding door opened, but as the silence stretched, I turned to see what was wrong. Paused in the doorway, Flynn hastily looked away and carried the plate of steaming steaks to the kitchen.

  “Hope you’re hungry,” he said, presenting me with his epic ass. All that protein did him gooood.

  The aroma of the food teased my nose. This was almost as nice as eating out. Unless I was on a date, that never happened.

  We settled at the table, Flynn taking the far side.

  Okay. Hurt lingered that he didn’t choose the chair next to me, but I wasn’t up to interpreting his actions. The day had already been filled with new experiences, all made a tad overwhelming by the man across from me.

  I bit into the first cut of steak. Savory flavor burst over my taste buds and I closed my eyes and groaned.

  Flynn’s silverware clattered against his plate. My eyes popped open, but he’d recovered and was slicing his steak.

  More for conversation than interest, I asked, “What cut of meat is this?”

  “Ribeye.”

  “It’s good.”

  “Thanks.”

  We ate in silence. He didn’t touch the bread but ate up most of the salad.

  Before he had a chance to clear the table and run, I peppered him with questions. “How’d you get into construction?”

  His jaw clenched for a heartbeat before he answered. “My dad was a carpenter.”

  “You’re a business owner in your twenties. Did you follow your dad around, then take over for him?” There had to be a fascinating story, and Flynn seemed like a guy who’d relish telling it.

  He pushed his plate away, his expression blank. “His boss hired me on and it took off from there.”

  I waited, but he didn’t elaborate. “What type of construction?”

  “I build corporate spaces.”

  “There must be a lot more to that than houses.”

  He nodded, still reserved. “I used to build houses.”

  “How’d you make the jump?”

  He lifted a shoulder. “It just happened. Houses got bigger, I got talking with the owners… Where’d you go in high school?”

  I recoiled at the sudden subject change. He hit on a time in my life I never talked about, which was most of my life. I answered honestly, my irritation at his vague answers eating at me. “I dropped out.”

  His surprised gaze flew up. “What? Really?”

  “Yep. Got my GED instead.” Now that I’d opened the door, I had no wish to step through it. My Wonder Woman pajamas weren’t lending me any more girl power than I normally had. Standing, I gathered a bunch of dishes to carry to the counter.

  He did the same. “Why?”

  “I just made the decision and it took off from there.” How would he feel, having his own words flung back at him?

  “You started college early then?”

  “No, a year late, actually.” Ack. I was worse at this game than he was.

  “What happened?” He shadowed me around the kitchen, putting everything away.

  “Life happened.” I spun and started. He was right in front of me, his body blocking out everything. “I’m sure you know how it goes.” He must if he didn’t offer any of his personal history for me.

  “Is that when you changed your name?”

  “Close.” I exhaled and rubbed the side of my head. The filling, delicious dinner wasn’t enough to stave off the headache talking about my past brought on. “I’m sorry, Flynn. I don’t like to talk about it.”

  He replaced my hand with his own, one on each side of my head. His thumbs massaged my temples.

  Oh, that was nice. His strong hands were gentle. Couldn’t he have done this earlier in my bedroom?

  Abruptly, he stopped and stepped back. “I’ll let you rest then. Good night.”

  He was out of the kitchen before I could blink. I peeked at the time on the microwave. It wasn’t even eight p.m. Looked like I’d have time to plan my lessons after all.

  Best vacation ever.

  Chapter 6

  Tilly

  I swung my feet in the cool water. I was perched at the end of the dock. The sun was high overhead, warming the tops of my shoulders as I frowned into the clear lake.

  Sundays were usually a quiet day, but this was ridiculous. Flynn had stayed in his room all day. We’d said hi over breakfast, then he’d disappeared into his room. I’d been about to knock to let him know I had made lunch, but his voice on the other side of the door had persuaded me to leave him alone. He must be working on vacation, too.

  I kicked my feet and watched them glide through the waves, releasing my frustration with the effort. Sure, I’d brought work with me, but I didn’t do it when he was around. It just seemed kinda rude.

  But I wasn’t the owner of a multimillion-dollar business.

  As more hours passed, the excuse didn’t make me feel better.

  With a sigh, I drew my feet up and stood. I shed my shorts and T-shirt. Today’s swimsuit was one Mara hadn’t had to talk me into. The front was a red-and-black checkerboard pattern, and the back was half red, half black. While the suit wasn’t an obvious superhero design, it was cool as hell. Mara had invited me to the next Twin Cities Comic-Con, and I planned to dress up as Harley Quinn. To my students’ delight, I had the laugh perfected.

  I evaluated the water. It was deep enough to jump in, but not so deep that I might find myself sinking because I couldn’t swim. But I could float and the dock was right there.

  The responsible thing to do would be to use the shore to enter the water, but I wasn’t looking forward to treading over the rocks again. I narrowed my eyes. Going inside to ask Flynn to lifeguard for me wasn’t an option. Besides, I’d gone swimming in the community center. I would jump in and grasp the sides of the dock, and besides, it probably wasn’t terribly deep this close to shore. How much depth did a fishing boat need anyway?

  Steeling myself, I squeezed my eyes shut and jumped.

  With a splash, I cannonballed to the bottom. My toes hit the mud and I pushed back up. Sputtering at the surface, I blew out water and doggie paddled to the dock.

  Rhythmic pounding startled me and my hand slipped off the slick wood. I submerged. Again, I rebounded off the bottom and cleared the surface.

  “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

  I almost lost my hold again. Flynn loomed over me, his green eyes flashing with fury. I looked from him to the cabin. Had he seriously run out here from his room that fast? It’d bee
n less than thirty seconds since I’d made contact with the water.

  “I’m playing in the lake.” I sounded defensive. I was defensive. What I’d done wasn’t a good idea, but what else was there to do but work?

  He rested his hands on his lean hips. “By yourself?”

  “It’s my vacation.”

  “What would you have done i-i-if—dammit! Only you ever make me stutter again.” He shoved a hand through his hair and turned around, then spun back like he was afraid to take his eyes off me.

  “I’m sorry?”

  “Yeah. You should be.”

  I drew back at his adamant tone. Oh, no he didn’t. I pulled myself along the dock until my feet touched. “You should be, too. If you want to work while you’re here, fine. I’m going out of my mind with boredom, and I’ve already put in a few hours of lesson planning. If I’d known I’d be sitting on my ass alone in the woods, I would’ve planned some things to do.”

  Anger churned in his gaze, then died. “What would you plan?”

  I blinked at his abrupt change in demeanor. “This. I was close enough to the dock. Hiking. I’ve always wanted to hike through nature. Maybe tomorrow I’ll run in and grab some brochures for nature trails close by. Then there’s fishing. I’ve never fished before.”

  “Do you have a license?”

  “I need a license?” My heart sank. I wanted to fish. “Do they cost money?”

  “I’ll get you one.”

  “Oh no. You’re already paying for this whole week.”

  He cast me a droll look. “You paid for it.”

  “Sort of, but you bought the food.”

  He snorted. “Not nearly as much as you brought.” He glanced at the cabin and paused, his expression contemplative. “Look, I need to run into work tomorrow. We’ll cross one thing off your list today if you promise to stay out of the lake while I’m gone. Then Tuesday, we’ll do another. Think of one for each day.”

  He’d be gone all day Monday? Disappointment soured my outlook. Oh well. I was used to being alone.

  “Tilly? That sound okay?”

  What could I say? You let me down in bed yesterday, you’ve ignored me all day, and now you’re not even going to be here all of Monday. “Sure. Where are the instructions for the hot tub? I can get it cleaned out tomorrow while you’re gone.”

  A muscle jumped in his jaw as he stared at me. “Finish your swim and I’ll start on the hot tub when you’re done.”

  I jumped up and down with excitement, in slo-mo, thanks to the water. His gaze dropped to where my breasts bounced in the water. I couldn’t help the big grin as I fell backward. Water closed over my head and I bobbed back to the surface.

  “Don’t!” His hands fisted on his hips in frustration. “Fuck. Don’t do that to me.”

  I wiped my eyes clear. “This is only, like, four feet deep right here.”

  His expression clouded. “I don’t care, all right? Accidents happen.”

  “Can you swim, Flynn?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then why are you so afraid for me?”

  He ground his teeth. “Like I said, accidents happen.”

  Everything in me went still. “Who did the accident happen to?”

  He flinched and looked away. I didn’t think he’d answer, but he spoke low. “My sister.”

  My mouth dropped open and I gasped. “I’m so sorry.” I moved as fast as I could to shore. I’d just given the poor man a heart attack, no clue he’d suffered such a tragedy.

  “No. Please.” He followed along with me down the dock. “You don’t have to get out.”

  I adopted my most reassuring expression. “I can’t relax and swim when I make you worry so much. Don’t worry. The lake will be here Tuesday. I’ll help you with the hot tub.”

  “There’s not much you can help with. Why don’t you start dinner?”

  “You’ll have to show me how to grill.”

  He leveled me with a steady stare. “You think you’re man enough to learn?”

  I barked a laugh and made my voice nasally. “I’ve got the chest hair to prove it, Puddin’.”

  “Pud— Oh, your swimsuit.”

  Delighted he got the reference, I exited the water and stepped gingerly over the rocks. “I should’ve gotten swim shoes instead of swimsuits.”

  “No. The suits were, uh…a good choice.” He pivoted and walked back down the dock. A small smile crept over my mouth when he stooped to grab my things. The fluid way his body moved… Last night had to have been a fluke.

  I waited for him as he retrieved my sandals. After I stepped into them, we walked to the cabin. He ran through instructions on the grill and we decided on bun-less burgers.

  “What’s with you and carbs?” I’d never have believed it until now, but he could be…uptight.

  “I don’t work out just to cover my muscles in a layer of fat.”

  “You don’t enjoy working out?”

  His expression shifted like he didn’t understand the question. “Does anyone?”

  “I do. I mean, I’ve never belonged to a gym, but I go for walks, I run sometimes. The library has a nice collection of workout DVDs. It’s fun to try different ones.” I laughed at myself. “It made me come to terms with my coordination or lack of. Have you found something you enjoy?”

  His eyes heated, and I knew exactly what he enjoyed. And I wanted to, with him, so much.

  “I liked building houses,” he finally said.

  “Then why don’t you?”

  “I’ve got people for that.”

  “But you enjoy it.”

  “But I’m the boss. Someone has to be in charge.”

  Weird. Had he taken over a company because he’d had to and not because he’d wanted to? I would have asked, but I didn’t feel like a repeat of last night’s minimalist conversation.

  “So, there ya go,” he said abruptly, gesturing to the grill. “I’ll get the hot tub going. Just, uh, go ahead and stay in that swimsuit for it.”

  He marched off the deck. I gave myself a silent high five and turned to the food. Could tonight be the night Flynn opened up with me some more?

  Flynn

  I willed the tub to fill as fast as possible. I should pat myself on the back for coming out last weekend and cleaning it.

  Tilly was at the grill, preparing way too much food. Gotta set you up with protein, Puddin’. God, that drove me crazy. Every time she used that fake falsetto, I had to restrain myself from dragging her down to the nearest flat surface, moving that flimsy strip of fabric aside, and plunging into her heat. Would she be ready for me that fast? Cuz I sure as fuck was ready for her.

  Was she even still interested after I’d pulled my disappearing act? Then I’d barely talked to her over dinner and ignored her, unintentionally, all day.

  But I’d been watching her like a creepy stalker. I’d heard her go outside and I’d abandoned my laptop to watch her lush body saunter down the dock. As she sat and pondered the water, I’d kept my desperate gaze on her.

  How had she crawled under my skin so fast? She was supposed to be the weird girl from high school. Some crazy chick I had to figure out how to shake. She still laughed the same, but I lived for each moment. She still wore unusual clothing, and this morning I couldn’t wait to see what she had on. And to top it all off, she’d paid ten thousand dollars of her own money to charity for her first vacation.

  And she refused to talk about herself. Wasn’t she supposed to prattle on and be annoying? I had no clue about her. When we’d been younger, she’d asked inane questions about my classes and my sports.

  She’d dropped out of school. Had it been that awful for her? Probably. I hadn’t enjoyed it and I’d been on the most list—most wanted by the girls, most liked by my classmates, most favored by my teachers.

  Then she’d jumped in that damn lake and my heart had stopped.

  Even now, my pulse raced when I thought about her disappearing into the vast blue liquid.

  But she’d resurfac
ed when Lynne hadn’t.

  What the hell had made me open my big mouth and tell Tilly about my sister? No one knew. My lips curled in disgust. My mom certainly never talked about it. She was so angry at Dad about that day as if my old man could have done anything about it.

  I sighed and dropped my face into my hands. If I wasn’t careful, I’d spill the rest of the story and then Tilly the special-education instructor would think I was worse than shit smeared across her shoe.

  “Food’s ready,” Tilly called, following it up with a shrill laugh.

  If she was going to channel Harley Quinn all night, I might self-combust.

  Note to self: ask Wes to start pulling Suicide Squad comics for me.

  “Be right there.” I finished up with the tub. It should be ready as soon as we were done eating and cleaning up.

  I wolfed through my burger, Tilly’s clear joy over her first grilled meal going straight to my cock. Did she know how sexy she sounded, how uninhibited she seemed when she relished something as simple as well-cooked, quality food?

  We cleared the table. I was struck by how content I was. Having to work this morning had been, at first, a saving grace. I’d thanked my lucky stars that John Woods was a little too anal for his own good. I’d had to make some calls and double-check details, but the more I’d heard Tilly banging around the cabin, the more restless I’d gotten.

  Last weekend, when I was out here to clean the hot tub and check the grill and just do an overall inspection, I’d been thinking about how I just wanted a big project to get lost in, and this cabin wasn’t it.

  Now, irritation bloomed that John wasn’t satisfied with a verbal conversation and emails, that he insisted on meeting with me in person. I would bottle-feed him the data as fast as I could and get back here before Tilly dunked herself again.

  I left Tilly to jog upstairs and change into trunks. I’d love to wear absolutely nothing in the hot tub, but that’d only get me where I shouldn’t be.

  Back downstairs, I couldn’t find her in the kitchen. Swearing under my breath, I headed straight for the patio that held the tub.