Chapter Three
Davin took another sip of his whiskey. He needed a moment to catch up with himself. Less than half an hour ago, he’d entered the gym thinking that he might get a quick workout before going back to Clay’s guest house – even after living there for a few years, he still didn’t feel comfortable calling it home, but it wasn’t just his place of work either. Now, he was sitting here, not just with, but next to, the woman from the grocery store parking lot.
She was a breath of fresh air. She came across as incredibly self-assured. She’d asked him if he wanted to come to The Boathouse with her. He couldn’t help but compare the way she behaved with Zoe. Zoe had made him do all the running. It might just be that she hadn’t been all that into him – although she’d been into him in a big way during their nights together. He slid a sideways glance at Alma. He didn’t even know if she was into him. It wasn’t as though she was coming on strong. She was just being herself – and he liked it, a lot.
He could have done without Kenzie embarrassing him the way she had. It was one thing to tell Alma that she thought some woman should have snapped him up by now, but had she really needed to bring Zoe into it?
He realized that he was sitting here in silence, sipping his whiskey. Alma was reading the menu though, so he had a minute before he needed to get his act together. He tried to piece together what he knew about her. She was a friend of Cal’s. She used to work with him, and from the way she’d relaxed and talked about the band of brothers earlier, he’d guessed, and she’d confirmed that she’d worked in the intelligence community. She’d just said that she’d moved here, and she’d also said that she had a lot on her mind. He wondered what had prompted the move but wasn’t sure that he should ask.
She set her menu down with a smile. “Do you know what you’re having?”
“Yeah. I like the meatloaf. It reminds me of my childhood.”
She frowned.
“I feel like I said something wrong.”
She met his gaze and pursed her lips. “Sorry. I just … If you’re about to share fond memories of how your mommy used to take care of you …”
He laughed. “Nope. That wasn’t where I was going. My mom died when I was eleven. I have two younger brothers, so I had to step up. My dad worked two jobs, and I took on the mom role in the family. I used to make meatloaf once a week because they all loved it. I don’t cook much anymore – I live on-site with my job and …” He shrugged, wondering why he was sharing so much. “I only eat meatloaf when I come in here.”
“I’m sorry.”
“What for?”
“For jumping down your throat, and more than that, I’m sorry that you lost your mum at such a young age. That must have been difficult.”
“It was, and this might sound bad, but I’m grateful for the experience it forced on me. It shaped who I am.”
She nodded slowly. “That doesn’t sound bad; not to me. It sounds like a very healthy outlook. I think that a lot of people might let that experience define them in a different way – that it might set them on the path of victimhood.”
“Maybe so. Mind if I ask you something?”
She gave him a rueful smile. “I don’t feel like I can say no – I owe you that much.”
“You don’t owe me anything. Feel free to say no or to not answer the question if you don’t want to.”
“Okay.”
“Why did it bother you so much when you thought that meatloaf made me long for my mom?”
She made a face.
“Like I said, don’t answer if you don’t want to.”
“I don’t mind. If we’re going to be friends – and it’s looking like we are – then, you should know why I’m here and what’s going on with me. I just left a bad relationship. I … he was a little needy. Actually, he was a lot needy, and clingy, and …” She shuddered in the same way that she had a couple of times on the walk over here. “I ended up feeling more like his mother than his partner. He wanted me to do for him – to take care of him, and that … it’s not my nature. I’m too used to working with people I respect – people who pull their weight and make their own contribution to the team.”
He had to smile. “You thought I was the same?”
“No! I didn’t stop to think. I reacted too hastily – and I apologize.”
“There’s no need. I can understand why you wouldn’t want another clinger trying to latch on to you. You have no worries about that with me.”
She raised her eyebrows. “About you being clingy or about you wanting to latch on?”
He sat back. “I’m not the clingy kind.”
She chuckled. “Nicely dodged.”
He shrugged. He could see himself wanting to get to know her better – maybe even becoming something more than friends, but latching on? That term sounded a lot like clinging to him.
“Anyway, since I’ve just given you the bare bones of my tale of woe, do you want to share yours so that we’re even?”
He almost asked what she meant but he knew, and it didn’t seem right to feign ignorance. He must have hesitated for too long.
“Or not. You can tell me about what it’s like to work for Clay McAdam, if you prefer.”
He smiled. “Fair’s fair. Mine isn’t exactly a tale of woe, though. It’s just the natural conclusion to something that was never going anywhere.”
“Zoe?”
He nodded. “We’d been seeing each other for a little while. Although, seeing each other is too strong a term for it. She used to come up for the weekend now and then to visit a friend who lives here. She spent most of her time with Cassie and we only …” Did he really want to tell her that Zoe had only wanted to spend the night with him?
She smiled. “She was only using you for your body?”
He rolled his eyes. “I wouldn’t exactly put it that way, but when I asked her if she wanted to come and spend a weekend with me, she called it quits.”
Alma chuckled. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t laugh, but she was only using you for your body, then?”
“I guess.”
She gave him an appraising look. “You don’t strike me as being heartbroken. Did your ego take a hit?”
He chuckled. “It’s not that. I just … Things wouldn’t have worked out between us anyway. She’s a lot younger than I am. She’s at a different place in life.” He narrowed his eyes at her. “Laugh at me if you like, but Kenzie’s right. All the other guys who’ve moved up here have met their person and settled down with them. They’re all embarking on a new chapter in their lives, and I guess that a part of me envies them that.” He shrugged. “I’m not desperate or anything, but I’d like to experience that, too. That’s why I pushed for more with Zoe. Even though I knew that she wasn’t my person.”
He felt dumb when he stopped talking, and he felt even worse when he saw the way that Alma was looking at him.
He gave a self-conscious little laugh. “I made myself sound like a clinger, didn’t I?”
“No. If you want to know the truth, you made a lot of sense. I get it. I don’t relish the prospect of growing old alone.” She sat up a little straighter. “Since we’re being honest here, I don’t think I would have gone on even one date with Gordon when I was younger. But just because we’re getting older, it doesn’t mean we have to settle for what’s in front of us. Life isn’t about trying to make silk purses from pig’s ears. It’s not about trying to piece together something decent out of the available options. To me, it’s about seeking to create the absolute best that I can. I think I’d forgotten that and tried to settle for what was in front of me. But life shouldn’t be about settling. Life should be beautiful or at least be a quest to make it so.” She stopped abruptly, looking a little embarrassed. “Ignore me and my rambling.”
He smiled and held up his glass. “No. I don’t want to. I totally agree. In fact, so much so, that I think we should drink to it.”
He nodded at her glass, and she picked it up and clinked it against his with a puzzled smile.
He grinned. “Life should be beautiful.”
She met his gaze and nodded. “It really should.”
~ ~ ~
As she set her glass back down, Alma couldn’t help feeling a little bitter. It wasn’t Davin’s fault, it was just the way the world worked, but she couldn’t help resenting the differences between the relationships that they had each just ended. She’d fled from a man who wanted her to step up and fulfill an old school traditional gender role in his life and take care of him in the domestic sense – although he’d also angled for her to take care of him financially as well whenever he could. It felt like, as an older woman, that was where her worth lay.
Davin, on the other hand, had been pursued by a younger woman – it sounded as though his value to Zoe had been in his looks and his physical attributes. She shivered – she couldn’t blame Zoe for that. He was an attractive man – and the thought of discovering more about his physical attributes, and how he might use them, made tingles race over her skin.
He cocked an eyebrow. “That’s different.”
“What is?” she asked, feeling guilty that he might somehow know what she’d been thinking.
“I noticed you shudder a couple of times earlier, and from what I’ve gathered, it was when you were thinking about Gordon. Just now? That was more of a shiver – what does that mean?”
She chuckled. “You may prove to be too insightful for my liking. Can we leave it at you’re right that it was a shiver, but I’d rather not explain?”
“Sure. Sorry.”
“No need. I’d rather not explain, that’s all.”
When she finished eating, Alma pushed her plate away and leaned back. “That was really good. And to think, I almost stayed home and made do with wine and pretzels.”
Davin’s eyes widened. “Wine and pretzels?”
“Yes. Why do you look so shocked?”
He laughed. “I don’t know. You just took me by surprise, I suppose.”
“Let me guess, your body is a temple, and you would never disrespect it by feeding it such rubbish?”
He laughed again. “You couldn’t be further from the mark on that. After I saw you at the grocery store, I picked up beer and nuts and was thinking that would be my dinner.”
She laughed with him. “Well, I have to tell you, I’m glad that things worked out this way. I’ve enjoyed this a lot. Would you like to do it again sometime soon?”
He grinned. “I would. I’ve enjoyed this, too.” He checked his watch. “Did you walk over here? Can I give you a ride home?”
“That’d be great thanks.” She hadn’t meant to bring the evening to a close, but he was right. It was getting late.
“I’ll just get the check and then …”
She frowned. “I didn’t mean for you to buy me dinner – I invited you, remember?”
He frowned right back – and for some reason, she loved that he did. “Only because you beat me to it. I was going to ask you. You got there first on the asking, but I got there first on the paying. Unless it’s a problem?”
“No. No problem.” She smiled. “As long as I can pay next time.”
The way he smiled back made her heart rate pick up a little. “Okay, but only because that tells me that there’ll be a next time.”
“I’d like for there to be.”
“Me too.” He called for the check before turning back to her. “I just need to run to the restroom. Can I trust you not to sneak pay while I’m gone?”
She laughed. “You can. I am a woman of my word.”
“Thanks. I’ll be back in a minute.”
She couldn’t help smiling as she watched him walk away. He was hot! That wasn’t a word that she used very often, not to describe a man, anyway, but there was no other word for him. Sexy didn’t quite do him justice. Her gaze landed on his ass, and she nodded to herself. Hot!
She felt a little guilty when Kenzie caught her gaze and grinned as she came to the table. “I know I said I’d leave you guys in peace, but I’ve been good, and I figured you wouldn’t mind if I brought the check over. Would I be right if I guessed from the look on your face as you watched him walk away that even if this wasn’t a date, there will be one soon? More than one is my guess.”
“I can’t say for sure, but I hope so.” She didn’t see any reason to be coy about it.
“Awesome! He’s a great guy. I was a little worried that Zoe might turn his head around. She was nice enough, but she wasn’t … enough for him. You …” She looked Alma over and nodded. “I reckon you might just be more than enough, but he’ll step up.”
Alma smiled. She didn’t know what might happen between her and Davin – they might become nothing more than friends, and that would be fine by her, but she was absolutely open to the possibility of more.
“Only time will tell.” Her smile faded when something at the bar caught her attention. A man was standing there, leaning forward as he talked to the guy who was serving. From the back, he looked like … It couldn’t be! He turned, and her heart sank. It was! What the hell was Gordon doing here? She’d told him where she was going, but only because she’d thought that the effort he’d have to make to follow her all the way across the country would be enough to put him off!
“What’s wrong?” Kenzie asked.
She scooted down in her seat and positioned herself so that Kenzie was blocking her from Gordon’s view.
Kenzie looked back over her shoulder. “The guy at the bar? What’s his deal? Davin will see him off for you, if you …”
“I don’t want to have to deal with him – will you distract him?”
“Sure. But Davin …”
“Davin went to the restroom. I’ll go and wait for him there and we can leave. I’ll deal with it – I’m not hiding anything from Davin. I just don’t want to have to face my ex tonight. Okay?”
Kenzie held her gaze for a moment, then nodded. “Okay. But if you jerk Davin around, you’ll have me to answer to, you hear me?”
She grinned at that. “Cal was right – you’re my kind of people. You have my word.”
Kenzie nodded and went back to the bar. When Alma saw that she was talking to Gordon and had positioned herself so that he had his back to her, she eased out of the booth and ran at a crouch toward the bathrooms.
Just as she reached the doors, Davin came out and spotted her. To his credit, he didn’t ask any questions. He just gave her a puzzled look and beckoned for her to come to him. When she reached him, he positioned himself between her and the restaurant – if anyone was following her, they’d have to get past him first.
He peeked out around the corner then pulled his head back and turned to her with raised eyebrows. He still hadn’t uttered a sound.
She had to chuckle. “I worked with a few Delta teams over the years. I would have enjoyed working with you. This is nothing dangerous. It’s Gordon. I genuinely believed that he wouldn’t follow me all the way out here, but he’s at the bar.”
Davin frowned. “Do you want me to tell him to leave – and to leave you alone?”
“No. Thank you, but no. I can do that myself. I just don’t want to do it tonight. I don’t want to spoil …”
Davin held up a finger then popped his head around the corner again. “If he’s the guy who was talking to Kenzie, he’s headed this way.”
“Is there an exit back here?”
“No.”
“Shit!” She quickly assessed her options, then grabbed his hand and led him into the men’s room.
His eyebrows shot up so high that they almost disappeared under his hairline, but he allowed her to lead him.
She went to one of the stalls and put the lid down. “Sit! Shit. I’m sorry – would you …?” She realized that she shouldn’t be giving him orders, but he’d already obliged.
She tensed at the sound of footsteps approaching. They stopped, and Gordon called, “I know you’re in there, Alexis. Come on out. We need to talk.”
She guessed that he was standing at the entrance to the ladies’ room but there was nothing for it. She closed and locked the stall door, then sat on Davin’s lap. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she lifted her feet off the floor and braced them against the partition. If Gordon came into the men’s room and peered under the door, all he would see were Davin’s feet.
Davin’s arms wrapped around her and held her steady – against his chest! She hung on to him tighter and looked into his eyes. He’d probably think that she was crazy – and he might be right. She didn’t know what had possessed her to run rather than face Gordon and have it out with him. Whatever the reason, this wasn’t working out too badly. She hadn’t imagined that she’d end up in Davin’s arms before the night was over, but here she was. The situation was hardly ideal, but the feel of his hard body under hers – wait; yes, his arms were muscular, his chest and abs were solid muscle, but the hard part … that was pressing into her thigh!
She looked into his eyes and raised her eyebrows. A small smile played on his lips as he shrugged and tightened his arms around her.
They were laughing silently when Gordon shouted again, and the sound of his footsteps came closer.
“I know I saw you in the restaurant, Alexis. Are you hiding in here?” He banged on the stall door. “Come out!”
Davin scowled, and his arms tightened around her. “What the fuck, man! I don’t know who this Alexis is, but I’m telling you now – you don’t want me coming out there.”
She could picture the look on Gordon’s face as he apologized. “Sorry! I didn’t … have you seen a woman in here?”
Davin winked at her. “In the men’s room? Why do you think a woman would hide from you in here? What’ve you done to her that she needs to hide from you?”
“I haven’t done anything. I …”
“Then why would this woman hide from you? Is she afraid of you? Sounds to me like you’ve got some explaining to do. As soon as I get out of here …”
“I’m going. It’s nothing like that. I haven’t …”
“You hold it right there.”
Alma covered her mouth with her hand to hold in a laugh at the sound of Gordon’s footsteps beating a hasty retreat.
“I’ll find you when I get out of here!” Davin yelled.
When silence descended again, she smiled at him. “Thanks. I think you’ve ensured that he won’t be hanging around waiting.”
Davin grinned. “Hopefully, but I’ll text Kenzie to make sure.”
She clung tighter to him to balance herself while he dug in his pocket for his phone.
He kept a tight hold on her with one arm while he texted with one thumb.
She smiled as she watched. “That’s impressive.”
He chuckled. “It’s a skill I picked up a few years ago – it comes in handy sometimes.”
He looked down at his phone. “She says that he left in a hurry.”
“I’m not surprised.”
Davin’s smile faded. “I get the impression that you can take care of yourself, but I have to ask, he didn’t …?”
“No! He never hurt me, never hit me – or I should probably say that he never attempted to hit me. You’re right. I do know how to take care of myself. I wouldn’t have allowed him to hurt me, but he doesn’t have it in him. He’s not violent or even aggressive, he’s just …” She shrugged. “Needy.”
She blew out a sigh. Even though she was enjoying the feel of Davin’s arms around her, there was no need for them to stay here. She set her feet on the floor.
“Thanks.”
He gave her a quick squeeze before letting go of her so that she could stand. “You’re welcome.” He chuckled. “As you noticed, it was my pleasure.”
She had to laugh. “I wasn’t going to mention that, but since you did, would it be fair for me to guess that the next time we have dinner, you’d be okay with calling it a date?”
“I’d be more than okay with that.”
She opened the door, and they walked out of the stall to find Kenzie standing in the entrance with her hands on her hips.
She laughed. “I have so many questions, but they can wait.” She looked more serious as she turned to Alma. “You’re not going to jerk him around. Are you?”
“No. I give you my word.”
“Okay then. You should be fine to get out of here. I asked Kellan to see where your ex went. Apparently, he’s staying here at the resort, and he went back up to his room – in a hurry.”
Alma laughed at that – she couldn’t blame him.
To her surprise. Davin took hold of her hand as he said, “Then we’ll make our exit while we can. My truck’s just out in the square.”