Lakeshore Candy: The McAdams Sisters (By The Lake Book 4) Page 13

  Abby went to work preparing a hangover tea for Avery.

  Ems was short for Emily Gordon and if he’d called her anything but Ems, her long-time nickname, Abby wouldn’t have been positive it was her.

  She set the tea in front of him with an urge to slap his head for falling for a girl in his band. Then her eyes fell on Riley, who was sitting back in the chair, bare chest and sending wild fantasies through her with his devious eyes.

  After two years she’d nailed Riley, she couldn’t help but be proud of herself.

  Okay, that was a little extreme, even for her, but it still excited every last conquering bone in her body. More exciting was the fact it wasn’t only a onetime event...they were planning on planning...a future? Something. Abby couldn’t label it yet.

  Abby sat between Riley and Avery, trying to ignore the edge of the table in front of Riley.

  “I was up reading these letters last night in the attic.” Abby left out the part where she’d just finished making amazing love to the man sitting on her left and that she wanted to go do it again.

  Get on with it McAdams. They all needed a distraction: Abby and Riley from each other and Avery from his first hangover.

  “There were piles of these letters from a lady named De’laine Braxton. They were beautiful and detailed. As I continued to read it was as though I was getting to know this family...” It had grown late as she read the letters and that may have been a factor in feeling like she’d known these Braxton’s her whole life. Riley had fallen asleep before she’d even finished the first letter, but the sound of his deep breathing and the rise of her head on his chest made her feel...complete. “It turns out that this De’laine lady is...drum roll please...” Abby pounded her fists on the table.

  “God no! Please! Quiet. Holy mother of all that is quiet,” Avery groaned.

  Abby ignored him. “...Gran’s twin sister.” Abby reached across the table for the letter and slid it to Avery.

  Avery didn’t budge. She wasn’t even positive he heard her. That was a waste of a drum roll. She continued on. “She lives in Oakston.” The city, where Peyton and Colt used to live, a few hours away, where all the action was happening...according to the letters.

  Riley choked on his coffee, hitting his chest with his fist.

  Abby reached for him. “Riley! You okay?” She rose to her feet, and Riley grabbed her arm and pushed her back down.

  He nodded. “Yes. I’m good. Went down the wrong pipe.” He squeezed her hand reassuringly before taking another sip of coffee. “Continue.”

  “O...Kay.” She turned back to Avery. “What if she doesn’t know Gran died?”

  “Phone her,” his muffled voice said, without even bothering to look up from his arms. He had been listening.

  “That’s a little impersonal, don’t you think? To deliver a death notice over the phone.”

  Avery slowly sat up, his eyes squinting against the light, cradling his tea. “What are you going to do? Drive up there?”

  Her eyes lit up. “That’s a great idea.”

  “I was joking.” He took a sip of the tea and cringed his gorgeous baby boy face. It was a baby boy face to her because he was her twin, but to the women it was a strong and chiseled look.

  “No, this is perfect. I have her address but no phone number.”

  “There’s a thing called Google. I don’t know, maybe you’ve heard of it? You just look up a name online and pop...there is their phone number. It’s really that easy. You should try it.”

  She ignored him. “I wanted to take a vaycay and what better place to spend a week then Oakston? That city is amazing. I remember all the stories Peyton told us while she lived. We can check out her favorite bars and restaurants. Oh, it will be perfect.” Abby turned to Riley. “Have you ever been?” she asked.

  Riley surprised her with a stare as though she was invisible. Every last part of his dark passion was swallowed up by his own world and he didn’t even hear her question. Was he regretting them? The fear that stung through her veins scared her.

  Abby snapped her fingers in front of him. “Hello...earth to Riley. Hello?”

  “Huh?”

  Avery’s watching, stick to the conversation at hand. She wanted to ask him if he was all right. “Have you ever been to Oakston?” she repeated.

  “Who hasn’t?”

  “That’s settles it then. We are going to Oakston for a vaycay. Who’s in?”

  Abby waited for Riley’s response...maybe he would invite himself. Was it too early to invite him? Would he even want to go? What did it mean when she wanted to invite him? Benefits with friends?

  “I should get back to the bakery,” Riley said standing. Without waiting for a reply from her, and without bending down to give her a kiss or even look at her, he walked down the hallway.

  “I guess he’s not going with you,” Avery said dryly.

  Abby didn’t need Avery to spell out the obvious. “Oh shut up. You can drive me. You owe me anyway after that whole Gran/attic crap you pulled last night.” Abby needed to keep Avery’s thoughts away from Riley because she had no answers to give him, but her eyes trailed down the hall before returning to her brother.

  Avery got his cute little face in a corkscrew, obviously not remembering.

  “You blabber mouthed the attic to the sisters and now they’re going to be all poor Abby’s not okay. And look.” She waved the letter in front of him. “There was something up there.”

  “Abby! I need my shirt!” Riley’s voice travelled down the hall sounding strained.

  “And a quickie,” Avery added as she walked past. “I’m not sure I like this Riley guy and when I’m sobered I will be giving it more thought.”

  Abby slapped the side of his hungover head and his painful groan answered. He didn’t have to like Riley because Abby liked him enough for the both of them. “You’re driving so get your emotions in check. We leave tomorrow morning.”

  “You have to run this by the sisters. You are in business with them now,” his voice called after her.

  Abby wasn’t worried about her sisters not understanding that she needed to go to Oakston and talk to De’laine...then maybe she could move on. For the first time since Gran’s death, Abby actually felt like she could move on and a lot of that had to do with Riley. If only he was pulling her away because he couldn’t get enough of her. A quickie would be all right by her.

  But she was having that sinking feeling too, remembering his lost eyes that this rendezvous down the hallway had nothing to do with a quickie.

  Chapter Twenty

  RILEY HAD TO get out of Abby’s house before he exploded. His chest was so tight he was having difficulty breathing. Even the usually soothing coconut scent wafting in from Abby’s bedroom beside him didn’t soothe his frazzled state. His legs were so numb he wasn’t sure how he was still standing and his stomach was doing roller coaster motions as he paced from side to side waiting for Abby.

  Just leave your damn shirt.

  Could she take any longer to walk down the hallway?

  He wished his eyes could focus on the way her hips purposely swayed beneath his shirt as she made her way toward him...finally. Or how her fingers ran up his bare chest just ten minutes ago would have tingled hot desire through his pulsing veins. Or when she wrapped her arms around the back of his neck and she reached up to kiss him, he felt her lips instead of the hastening feeling that they were rushing things. He would rather grab her derrière, his fingers had grazed earlier, pick her up and carry her in the bedroom to tear the shirt away, but his mind was so far away from his body...her body...his hands caught her wrists and pulled her away.

  Worry crossed her face. He was tired of putting worry on people’s faces. He especially didn’t want to put it on Abby’s. “Did I do something wrong?”

  You did nothing wrong, Abby.

  It was the opposite. This morning waking up beside her curled against him, laying all her trust, faith...everything in him that she’d never given to another
man, she’d awakened so much more in his body. She’d awakened emotions he’d never experienced and that had felt so incredibly enlightening, so right, that he hadn’t minded when Avery caught them. He wanted these feelings with Abby forever and he planned on telling her so. But reality stepped in, knocking the wind out of him and almost throwing him from the chair.

  “Riley?”

  Hadn’t he answered her? Told her she’d done nothing wrong?

  He had to calm down for just a moment to talk to her and just...ah hell, he didn’t know. Tell her the truth? Tell her what he was thinking?

  He couldn’t find those words. “You didn’t do anything wrong, Abby.” He kissed her worried lips, hoping they would calm him like he was hoping they would calm hers. They didn’t. “Keep my shirt. I just have to go.” The words came out so strained and forced. His breathing wouldn’t settle.

  “Go? Why?”

  Because you don’t know! And I’m not ready to tell you. And all I want is to forget it and be with you but that’s not possible. I thought I had more time.

  “I want to check on Mrs. C. She didn’t have anyone else booked to work today.” That was an excuse the size of his worry, but it came out calm and she smiled, believing him.

  Abby stepped back and hung onto the sides of his shirt that formed unknowingly to her around her breasts in a seductive way. “Alright.” She looked shyly at their feet then up again with the side of her mouth pinched together. It was so adorable seeing this side of her. Her true emotions, her true side. “Do you regret last night? I mean you didn’t act like it with Avery, but then you left so quickly and now you’re pulling away from me.” She sucked in the breath he couldn’t find. “I’m a big girl Riley. You don’t have to lie to me. I wasn’t going into this thinking you were automatically labeled my boyfriend. If you’ve changed your mind...about us...that’s fine.”

  Fine? Fine! Just like that? He knew Abby was only building a front, giving him an excuse. He hated that she felt the need to give him an out.

  “Just say the word and I will keep my hands to myself. Strictly friends.” Her eyes begged him not to say that and he sure as hell didn’t want to say that.

  “Honestly Abby. We kind of jumped the gun here, you know? We were supposed to do the whole dating thing, get to know each other and now we’ve jumped into bed together...”

  What are you talking about? You’re making it worse than it is.

  He groaned and ran his hands over his face, turning away. Just tell her the truth. The truth was why he was making up this shit. “I don’t know what I’m thinking or feeling right now,” he said, stopping in front of her.

  She nodded. “I’m kind of feeling randy right now,” she teased, trying to deflate the situation, but failing to even spark a look of desire in her worried eyes.

  “I don’t know if that’s the best path to travel right now.” He needed to think and letting her touch erase the panic in him would only bring it back worse.

  “Right now with Avery thinking we’re having a quickie or right now because you don’t know if we should have a quickie.”

  Had it only been five minutes ago that he’d been ready to drag her down the hall and into the bedroom?

  Riley didn’t like the agony still set across her face. He’d never felt the pull in his gut to soothe a woman like he did with Abby.

  Riley stepped toward her and rested his hand on the side of her throat. It pulsed against his palm in rhythm with his own.

  “Is that what you want from me? A quickie? Is that it?” He had to know because he knew what wanting a quickie felt like and it sure as hell wasn’t anything he was feeling. “Friends with benefits?”

  Wouldn’t it be easier if she said yes?

  “Two years ago that’s exactly what I wanted.”

  “And now?”

  Abby swallowed hard against his palm. “I don’t know what I want right now either.” She took a deep breath. “But I know that I don’t want to lose you as my friend because you think I can’t handle rejection.”

  “This isn’t rejection,” he promised.

  He leaned down to kiss her cheek and her hand caught the back of his head to keep their flesh touching and whispered in his ear, “I don’t want to scare you away Riley. But I’ve never felt like this about anyone. Ever. I’m terrified.”

  Abby terrified? Why was that hard to believe?

  ***

  RILEY TOOK A hot shower to clear his mind, but the fog only misted more confusion in his head. He needed a distraction to break the wild uncut paths he kept going down: Abby, Cece, the label, Dani and...and...he couldn’t even get that far.

  That wasn’t fair to Abby, who was planning a trip to Oakston and not knowing it was where he lived before Willow Valley. He was scared to tell her. He was scared to face it so soon. So he sure as hell didn’t want to go like she had been hinting at.

  “What are you doing here?” Mrs. C asked, when he slipped on an apron and went to work busying himself with...anything.

  They weren’t shorthanded at the bakery. Mrs. C must have called staff in. He didn’t even need to be here, but he needed to be here.

  “I thought you were taking the day off. That is what you asked me today? Isn’t it?” She paused and crinkled her face at him. “I’m not getting Alzheimer’s already, am I?”

  “Yes. That’s what I asked.” He started gathering the ingredients for apple strudel. After two years, the recipe was ingrained in his head, like most of the recipes and he was unconsciously aware it was Abby’s favorite.

  If you had asked Riley what he envisioned his future career being when he was growing up, a baker wouldn’t have even made the list.

  He should have been upfront and truthful with Abby about his past life before he ever took her to bed. He shouldn’t have taken her to bed. It was that plain and simple and he blamed himself for grabbing her hand in the hallway the night before.

  That woman was lightning and he always wanted to watch the show...and what a show she had been. He wanted to explore things between them, but he’d planned on doing it with time. He needed more time and now they’d slept together and she was going to Oakston and he felt...rushed.

  It was just too damn soon. He was taking small steps back into his life...back into living life in general. That big-foot step with Abby was monstrous and he was stumbling on the ground to catch up.

  It was good she wasn’t expecting a boyfriend right out of the gate because she might not like his past and kick him out on his ass. He didn’t know how to deal with any of it.

  “What are you doing here then?” Mrs. C asked.

  “I thought you would need help.”

  Liar.

  He continued adding ingredients when Mrs. C’s hand touched his, stopping him cold. Mrs. C was what he needed right now, not to bake, not to assist her, he needed her because she was all he had anymore.

  “Riley.” She glanced at the two other employees doing their duties.

  Ellen a young student only working the summer was double-checking an order form while Lola, an older lady with streaked black and grey hair was going through it with her. Neither paid attention to Riley and Mrs. C.

  She looked back at him. “Are you okay?”

  From his heavy breathing and suffocating lungs he was going to go with no, but didn’t say anything and she understood his silence.

  “Let’s step into my office.” Mrs. C let go of Riley’s hands. He looked down to find them trembling. Trembling? Trembling!

  “Lola can you keep an eye on the front and help Chelsea for me.”

  Lola nodded in Mrs. C’s direction acknowledging her, but corrected Ellen’s list before walking into the front, Ellen at her heels.

  Riley collapsed in a chair across from Mrs. C’s desk and raked his hands across his frustrated face. When he opened his eyes, Mrs. C was sitting on the chair beside him.

  “What happened?” He was so glad she asked.

  “Abby’s going to Oakston and I’m freaking out. I feel
rushed into things with her now. I planned on telling her my past. I wasn’t going to keep it a secret, but not today, not tomorrow. I needed time and now it’s like my time is up.” He was surprised the words tumbled out as easily and quickly as they did. It was Abby’s worry and the possibility of their future driving him forward.

  Mrs. C watched him with comforting eyes and a half smile to encourage the words to continue to spill from his mouth, like she did with everyone, and eventually they answered their own turmoil. Riley wasn’t everyone else. He was messed up and no amount of him talking about it was going to resolve it. He needed her to tell him what to do.

  “Mrs. C I don’t know what to do.”

  “What do you want to do?” There it was again, her asking questions without giving her opinion trying to help him to pinpoint what he really wanted to do without having to tell him.

  Riley closed his eyes and took a deep breath to settle himself down before he continued to talk. When he opened them he was hoping not to feel as anxious, but it didn’t help.

  He let the deep breath out in a swish before saying, “I know what you’re doing, trying to let me figure it out on my own and I appreciate your respect for me. But I need your honesty right now. I need you to tell me what you think I should do, because I am so lost. I don’t know where to start, what to do, where to go from here.” He was rambling he knew it, but he couldn’t stop.

  Mrs. C touched his arm. “Why didn’t you tell Abby your past when she mentioned Oakston?”

  “I’m not ready.”

  “Why aren’t you ready?”

  Why wasn’t he ready to tell Abby? He needed to, he was going to, why didn’t he do it and get it over with? Deep down, if he settled down and let the truth come forward instead of hiding behind excuses, he knew.

  “Mrs. C, what if Abby can’t forgive me?”

  There it was, raw, terror.

  “What if she can?”

  “What if I don’t deserve her?” Maybe he shouldn’t tell Abby anything and should sever their future. The thought made him feel sick to his stomach. Now that he’d let his true feelings for her erupt through his body, there was no undoing them and he couldn’t even stand the thought of the rest of his life without her.