Seagrove Secrets Page 16

  “Of course not,” Shayla said, swallowing down her lie. “I’ve got to be here anyway.”

  “No you don’t,” Bo said, appearing beside Maya, arm wrapping around her. “I told you to go home.”

  “I’ve got an airport pickup,” Shayla said, slowly and deliberately.

  “All right. I’ll stay out of your business. But I’m not keeping you here.”

  “Have I ever said you were?” she asked.

  Bo took Maya’s hand. “All right. We’re headed out to lunch, but I’ll be back.”

  “I’ll have Friday reports ready when you are.”

  “Oh, don’t worry about those this week.”

  She gave him a look. “They’re almost done.”

  He shook his head. “Sorry. Just, crazy week. I should have said something earlier.”

  “Go to lunch,” she said, and then sat down.

  Not long after Bo was out the door, Tracey appeared at her office door. “Shayla, I have a visitor here for you.”

  Shayla stood, her heartbeat picking up as Scott rounded the corner. The smile that spread across his lips at the sight of her made her stomach curl into knots. All this time, she’d been hoping that when she finally saw him, there’d be a connection she’d missed before that had been clouded by all the mess with Brian. But he was still just Scott, her friend who helped her get out of the worst situation of her life.

  She smiled back and hugged him to her chest. She didn’t want to let go, just wanted to stay right there all weekend where she didn’t have to face Chase and meet Felicity and act as if everything in her world was just rosy.

  He pulled away from her. “What’s wrong?”

  God, was she that transparent? “Nothing.”

  “Shayla,” he said.

  She shook her head. “It’s fine. Everything’s fine. Just stressed out trying to get everything done before the wedding. I’m hosting the bachelorette party tonight.”

  “Oh yeah. How’s that going?”

  “It’s fine. Just details, you know?”

  “Okay,” he said.

  Bo reappeared at his office, grabbing something off his desk. He stopped and eyed Scott. “Hey,” he said, brow furrowed.

  “Bo, this is my friend Scott from Nashville. He came down for the wedding.”

  “Oh, yeah.” This information seemed to make Bo happy. He held out his hand. “Thanks so much for coming. We’re happy to have you.”

  Scott smiled, looking relieved at Bo’s approval. “Thanks, I’m happy to be here.”

  “Cool,” Bo said, looking between Shayla and Scott like he was fitting together a puzzle. “You coming to the rehearsal dinner?”

  Scott looked at Shayla.

  “Yeah, I R.S.V.P.’d for us both.”

  Bo waved her off. “Of course. Not my department. Are you going with them afterward?” He pointed at Shayla. Scott looked back at her again.

  “For the bachelorette,” Shayla said. “It’s mostly girls, but Sebastian and Ashe will be there if you want to come with us.”

  “Come with us,” Bo said. “We’re going on a craft beer hop, whatever the fuck that is. Anyway, it’s guys, so you won’t have to deal with all that bachelorette crap if you come with us.”

  “I’m not doing any of that, Bo,” Shayla said, emphasizing his name.

  “Come with us,” Bo said, and it was decided.

  “Okay, thanks,” Scott said.

  Bo clapped him on the shoulder. “All right. I’ll see you tonight.” And he was off.

  Scott turned back to Shayla. “He was really cool.”

  “Yeah, if you’re not family,” Shayla said with a smile.

  Scott inspected his hand. “So, that was sort of strange last night.”

  “Yeah, I’m so sorry about that,” Shayla said.

  Scott turned his head to the side. “Sorry that he asked me to stay at his house or…”

  “No, it was just all weird. He’s got someone coming to stay with him, and when she found out you were coming, she wanted to know why you weren’t staying with us, too, and—”

  “Us?”

  Shayla’s defenses went up. “Chase,” she said. “At Chase’s house.”

  Scott narrowed his gaze at her. “If the two of you are an us, you just need to tell me, Shayla. You’ve made clear where we stand, so it’s not about that. But I need to know what he knows and what I’m walking into this weekend.”

  She exhaled. “That’s fair enough. He knows very little, not nearly as much as you know, but he knows Brian…” She nodded slowly, having a really hard time saying it.

  “Mmm hmm,” Scott said, letting her off the hook.

  “He just knows there was some violence, no specifics, and he knows you helped me. He’s grateful for that, I think.”

  “You think.”

  “I don’t talk about it with him. I’ve never talked to anyone but you about this.”

  He smiled and put his hand on her back. “Thank you for trusting me.”

  She didn’t like that look Scott was giving her. She knew that look.

  “So, I didn’t actually cancel the hotel,” he said. “I felt a little weird.”

  She smiled. “There’s nothing to be weird about. Email them to cancel, or better yet, let’s go by there now, and you can see in person why you need to cancel. Trust me, you’ll be better off at Chase’s. Sight unseen, his pool is nicer, I can promise that.”

  “Okay, boss. How long do you need to be here?”

  “I actually need to stay in PCB for a while. I need to pick up Chase’s other houseguest from the airport at three-thirty. But I’ve got a little while before I need to do that. Do you want to get lunch?”

  “Yeah, that’s perfect.”

  She nodded and grabbed her purse.

  Shayla left Scott at a Starbucks to work until she got Felicity from the airport. He hadn’t wanted to go to Chase’s without her, and she didn’t blame him. Chase was probably not even home, which would have been even weirder for all involved. So she was thankful he was okay to wait for her.

  She collapsed in her office chair completely exhausted from her lack of sleep. She’d gotten zero hours. She pulled up her email, but she couldn’t even focus thinking about the mess she made last night. She had no clue what she was thinking. She’d been glazed over the whole time she was watching the finale to Big Love, wondering what Chase was thinking, knowing they needed to talk, but desperately not wanting to, not before the wedding. It was like the wedding was the nucleus, and she was circling around it with her arms flailing. After the wedding, all her problems would still be there, she knew that, but it was like she couldn’t breathe until it was done and Bo was happily married without a hitch.

  She’d have to apologize to Chase, again. She might as well have lifted her leg and peed on him the way she was staking her claim. Mine. Not Felicity’s. She huffed a laugh. Like the sex they had last night was anything close to as good as what he’d likely had with Felicity. Shayla had not even let him touch her, too afraid she would completely lose herself in him. Last night had been about her claiming him for herself, feeling him inside of her on her terms. She was no better than Brian.

  She lay her arms down on her desk, and then rested her forehead on top of them. She was so tired…tired of reassembling her life, tired of doing the wrong thing, tired of…

  Chase walked into the pool shop, his heart pounding against his chest. Why was he so afraid of seeing her? She was his friend, the same girl he’d had dinner in bed with every night for the past two weeks and slept beside, more than once waking up with an arm around her waist, which she’d never seemed to have a problem with.

  A woman stood behind the counter in a Harrison Pool Supply shirt. “Can I help you find something?” she asked.

  “I’m here to see Bo.”

  She smiled and pointed. “Chase O’Neil, right?”

  “Yep,” he said, trying to give her a genuine smile back, but he could feel it wasn’t working.

  “He’s
on the phone, but he’ll be up in just a sec. You’re Shayla’s landlord, right?”

  Landlord. That was all he was. “Yep.”

  “She’s back in her office if you want to say hi to her.” She pointed down the hall. “I think she is, at least. I haven’t heard a peep from her in like an hour.”

  “I’ll go say hi,” he said, and headed that way. Her door was pulled to, but not closed. He peeped inside, and she had her head down on the desk, her face turned toward the door, her eyes closed, her back rising and lowering in a slow, steady, sleep-filled rhythm. He opened the door farther and stood in the doorway.

  She blinked awake, looking up at him. She frowned, wiping her mouth with her arm, and he had to smile.

  She sat up, glancing around her office like she was placing herself into her situation. Her mouth formed an O like she was trying to ask a question.

  “Hey,” he said. “Sorry to wake you up.”

  She looked down at her desk. “I can’t believe I fell asleep.” She met his gaze. “What are you doing here?”

  “I’m meeting Bo. It’s almost three.”

  She pushed her chair back. “I’ve got to get to the airport.”

  “You’ve got a minute. It’s ten till.”

  “I need to go,” she said, standing.

  He walked into the office and closed the door behind him. “We need to talk.”

  She shook her head. “No, not now. Open the door. Bo’s across the hall.”

  “And I’m right here, Shayla. And I’ve got goddamned feelings, in case you didn’t realize that.”

  Her eyes went wide as she recoiled from him. Moving her hair out of her face, she smoothed it down her neck like she was putting it in order. She nodded. “I know. I’m sorry.”

  “I’m not upset with you. I’m just confused. What was that last night?”

  She leaned against her desk. “I don’t know.”

  “You don’t? Well, I’ll tell you what I know. I’ve been sleeping in your bed every night for two weeks, waking up with you in my arms half the time, waiting for you to turn around and see me, kiss me, tell me to fuck off, anything. And then last night, I’m getting ready to get up, and you—”

  “I know what I did. I’m sorry. I just had a moment of lapsed judgment.”

  He huffed a laugh, shaking his head. “Lapsed judgment. That’s what I am to you? Everything we’ve shared this month and I’m lapsed judgment? That’s fucking fantastic.”

  She peered behind him, eyes wide.

  “Just forget it, Shayla. I don’t even know what to say to you.”

  He opened the door and saw Bo standing in his office with his back to the door, phone to his ear, so Chase closed the door again and turned back to her.

  “Actually, I do know what to say. I’ve wanted to make love to you since the first day I met you, but I’ve abided by your wishes and left you the fuck alone, letting you make the call. And then when you finally decide it’s time, I’m not even allowed to be a part of it. That’s bullshit, Shayla. Did it ever occur to you that I wanted to touch you…taste your skin, hold your body against mine, and not through goddamned T-shirts? I wanted to be with you, not get fucked by you and then discarded like an old rag.” He started to walk out then turned back around. “Don’t ever do that to me again. I don’t want you like that. I don’t want you again until you’re ready to be with me, not use me to get off.”

  He opened the door just as Bo was turning off his phone. “Hey, man. What’s up?” Bo asked. He nodded at Shayla’s office with a grin. “Did you see Shayla? She’s out like a light.”

  Chase ran his hand through his hair and plastered on a smile. “Yeah, I woke her up. Told her she slept through the wedding.”

  Bo chuckled. “Blake’s gonna meet us there. You ready?”

  “Yep.”

  He let Bo go first, glancing at Shayla who stood in her office, staring at him, her expression impassive, but a tear rolling down her face. He winced, wanting like hell to go to her but knowing he couldn’t, not without Bo knowing something was up and making everything ten times worse…if that was possible.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Shayla stood at the airport waiting for Felicity, her stomach a wreck. She’d bagged up some clothes to change into along with her makeup bag, but of course, she’d left those things sitting on the bed at home. So here she stood wearing her Harrison Pool Supply polo, khakis, and tennis shoes, ready to meet the woman who fucked Chase senseless multiple times a few months ago.

  A girl with shoulder-length hair, a deep auburn dye job but a good one, walked toward the exit in a pair of high, strappy wedges and a tight skirt with a flowery, flowy top. Shayla’s gut wrenched at the idea of this beautiful, feminine woman staying with Chase steps away from her this weekend. Would they sleep together in the same bed? Was that the plan? Shayla had very particularly not discussed the details of the visit with Chase, not wanting to know.

  Felicity glanced at Shayla and then kept walking, no recognition setting in. They’d texted pictures of themselves to one another, but, admittedly, Shayla hadn’t had a good one to send her. She wasn’t someone who thought to take pictures often, and she hated selfies with a passion.

  Shayla stepped in front of her. “Felicity?”

  She stopped, blinking Shayla into focus, looking her up and down. “Oh my God, Shayla?” Shayla nodded. Felicity put her hand to her chest. “I’m so sorry. I thought you worked here or something.”

  Shayla cursed herself for leaving her change of clothes at home. She raised her eyebrows, forcing a smile. “All set? Nothing in baggage claim?”

  “No, I fit everything in this little guy, if you can believe it. I hope it’s warm. I brought all slutty clothes.” She smiled at Shayla, genuinely, and Shayla’s stomach soured. She really didn’t want to like her.

  “Well, our bridesmaid dresses lean a little more conservative.”

  She rolled her eyes. “I know. I’ve seen. I had to send my measurements. I fibbed a little on them so at least it’d fit tight.”

  She put her hand on her slim waist. Her body was as close to perfect as Shayla could imagine. No big hips, no belly fat, slim, toned legs, perfectly proportioned C-cup. This was not helping matters.

  Felicity stared at Shayla, searching her eyes. “Maya was not exaggerating about you. You may be the most beautiful creature I’ve ever seen.”

  Shayla’s chest sizzled. The word FRAUD might as well be plastered across her forehead. She could not have felt uglier at that moment if she tried, inside and out. She took Felicity’s suitcase from her. “You ready?” she asked, and then headed out the door.

  “So thank you for letting me crash at your place this weekend.”

  Shayla frowned. “It’s not my place.”

  “Oh, sure,” Felicity said. “But, you know.”

  “I just rent the pool house,” Shayla said, wanting to make the boundaries clear, despite marking her territory last night. If Chase wanted Felicity this weekend, he should be free to have her. It was what was best all-around, anyway.

  “Mmm hmm,” Felicity said, sounding like she didn’t believe her. Shayla met her gaze, and Felicity nodded, eyebrows raised, but Shayla knew that tone.

  Shayla stopped walking and faced Felicity, not particularly looking her in the eye though. “Listen, I just want to make it crystal clear that Chase and I are not dating or anything like that. I know you and he have dated or maybe you are dating now, or whatever, and I don’t intend to get in your way at all this weekend. So please, make yourself at home when we get there, and…that’s it.”

  Felicity’s mouth twitched like she was trying to smile.

  Shayla blinked. “Okay?”

  “Oh, yes. Sure. Of course.”

  Shayla put her hand on her hip. “What?” She usually didn’t talk to perfect strangers like that, but this girl was laughing at her.

  “Oh nothing.” She held up her hand. “I’m crystal clear. All set, and ready to eat bon bons on the couch naked.” Shayla gau
ged this girl, trying to figure out if she was joking or jabbing at her. Felicity closed her eyes. “Sorry. You don’t know me yet. I’m kidding. You’ll learn how to read me before the weekend’s over.”

  “Okay,” Shayla said, and then tentatively started walking again. “We have to stop by Starbucks for my friend Scott. He’s been waiting for us there, working.”

  “Working? In Panama City? Why?”

  “He’s just waiting for us. He didn’t want to go to Chase’s alone, I think.”

  “Yeah, I imagine that’d be a little awkward.” Shayla didn’t respond to that. “So he’s just a friend?” Felicity asked.

  “Yeah. We worked together in Nashville. I just moved back home from there about three months ago.”

  “Yes, yes, I know all about your life, Shayla Harrison. Maya’s told me everything. She’s very excited about being your sister-in-law, in case you haven’t already picked up on that.”

  “She seems really kind,” Shayla said.

  Felicity tapped into her phone, and Shayla was happy for the break. They arrived at the truck, and Shayla opened the passenger door, sliding Felicity’s suitcase behind the seat.

  They both got in, and Felicity viewed the dash. “This is a nice truck.”

  Shayla had ditched her car for the weekend, just in case. “It’s Bo’s. Belongs to his company.”

  “So you work for him, right? Running the business while he’s been in Indy?”

  “Yeah,” she said, backing out of the space.

  Felicity shook her head, staring at Shayla. “I bet your parents are gorgeous. Those are some damn good genes running through your family.”

  Shayla put the truck in gear, looking for a subject change, trying to figure out how she was going to make it through this weekend without puking. She glanced over at Felicity’s smooth legs, buttered in some sort of shimmery lotion. This was a girl who took care of herself from her manicured nails, to her flawless skin to her fat-free body. Shayla imagined she was not someone who’d spent her twenties in the sun cleaning pools.

  How could Chase be attracted to both Felicity and her? They couldn’t be more different if they tried. Felicity represented everything feminine and elegant about a woman, and Shayla had never owned a pair of high heels or set foot in a spa. Her idea of a haircut was whichever walk-in place didn’t have a line, if she didn’t cut it herself.