28. This Feels Like Trespassing
Tatum
True to my word, I take us to Lucky Cluck, and we get chicken sandwiches before stopping at my place. I’ve been trying to play it cool with Skye, but it honestly feels like Christmas came early and Santa brought me exactly what I wanted. My one and only dream girl.
“What kind of locations are we going to look for?” Skye asks, putting away the cold groceries. “Like, how many realistic venue choices are there for getting married anyway?”
“Off the top of my head, a church or the beach,” I drawl, stealing one of her curly fries. “Having a beach wedding is super Florida-coded.”
“Yeah, but I don’t feel like we’re beach wedding people. When was the last time we even went to the beach?”
“Valid point.” I eat another one of her fries. “We should act like it’s an option though. Beach pictures are an easy sell.”
“Stop eating my fries!” she scolds me, closing the freezer door. “You wanted the cheese bites, remember?”
I give her my best puppy-dog look. “I thought we were going to share our sides.”
“Don’t make that face.” She points a finger at me. “You can’t make that face. It’s not fair.”
“Why not?”
I shove my bottom lip out even more, and Skye proceeds to curse. “Because now I’m thinking about kissing you again.”
My puppy-dog look fades into a smirk. “Girl, you say that like it’s a bad thing.”
“Well, it kind of is when we haven’t discussed what we’re going to do about us,” she huffs, tossing a hand up. “I mean, how is this supposed to work, Tatum?”
I take two steps forward until I’m standing right in front of her, so I can cup the sides of her face. “What if I tell you what I have in mind for us, and then you can tell me if it sounds like a good plan or not?”
She relaxes a little under my touch and nods. “Okay, tell me.”
“I want to spend as much time together as possible,” I say, moving my hands to rest at her waist. “Whether it’s running errands or having dinner with my parents. Watching TV or trying out something new. Getting donuts or babysitting the twins. I want to do all of it with you.”
Her eyebrows crease in obvious confusion. “But we already do that stuff.”
“Exactly.” I give her a gentle squeeze. “Just because I want to date you doesn’t mean I want to lose you as my best friend, Skye. Everything can stay the same between us. Except, ya know, we’d also get to do what couples do.”
A playful smile dances across her lips. “Like kissing ?”
“Soooo much kissing.”
“Hmm,” she hums, letting her hands slide up my chest, “that does sound pretty tempting…”
“We can make this work, Pink Stuff.” My voice is low but firm as I stare into her eyes. “I know we can. Trust me.”
I’m a little unprepared for the way she grabs the back of my neck and claims my mouth with hers, but I immediately get it together and reciprocate the kiss, then I tug her closer as heat spreads through my veins.
Our lips move in a steady rhythm with each caress, and I completely lose myself to this woman. To my best friend. I don’t even know where I end and where she begins. Being like this with Skye is the greatest kind of high. It’s invigorating, and I can’t get enough of the sensation.
I walk her backward until she’s pressed against the refrigerator door, and then her body arches into me, causing everything to get fuzzy. We’re both panting as we continue to exchange frantic kisses, and my grip tightens on her waist when she starts to explore my mouth even more.
A rough groan escapes the back of my throat as her fingers dig into my shoulder blades, and impulse is telling me to pick her up. The urge to have those long legs of hers wrapped around me is practically unbearable…but I also know we should probably stop before things go too far.
Skye must be having similar thoughts, because her lips separate from mine with a shaky gasp as she releases me. “Tatum, maybe—”
“Yeah,” I murmur, taking a step back to put some distance between us, “I was thinking the same thing.”
“That was incredible though.” She tucks her hands behind her back, still leaning against the refrigerator door. “Who knew a kitchen could be such a good make-out spot, right?”
And now I’m wondering what it would be like for us to make out in a kitchen again , but with her sitting on one of the counters instead while I’m standing in between her knees—
“Tate, you good?”
“For sure,” I manage to say, despite my whole body feeling tense and hot. “So, do you have any other venue ideas?”
If we don’t talk about something else, I’ll only be able to think about when I can kiss her next, and that’s just not going to work.
“Uh…” she trails off, tilting her head to the side. “What about some kind of country club? Or maybe a hotel?”
I take a few gulps of my soda, hoping to cool myself down. “Didn’t you mention before that Anna’s brother manages a local B&B? That could be picturesque.”
“Ooh, yeah!” She pulls her phone out and starts tapping away. “I’ll ask Anna for the info. Which location do you want to hit up first?”
“This feels like trespassing!” I hiss as I follow Skye through the parking lot. “Maybe we should’ve called first.”
“It said online that they’re closed on Saturdays,” Skye says, glancing back at me, “so calling first wouldn’t have worked. And besides, there aren’t any no trespassing signs posted.”
“Yeah, but—”
“Tatum, using a church as a venue option was your suggestion, remember? We’re just going to take a few pictures of the building and then we’ll leave.”
I fidget with the strap of my camera bag. “What if someone sees us?”
“We’ll pretend to be tourists! Are you going to take the pictures or not, Jacobs?” She holds her phone out and gives it a little shake. “Because I can just take the pictures with—”
“Put that thing away,” I cut her short as I pull my camera out. “You’re insulting me. I’ll take the pictures. Do you want to be in any of them, or nah?”
She shrugs before stepping aside. “I don’t need to be in them.”
I adjust some of the settings on my camera, then decide on the best possible angle. “So, if we end up needing to act like tourists, where are we going to be visiting from?”
“Hmm,” she hums as I begin taking pictures of the church building, “how about England? Your fake British accent is fairly good.”
“True…but yours?” I cringe. “Maybe we should just stick to somewhere in America.”
She scoffs at me. “Hater!”
“Well, I’d rather be a hater than a liar.” I turn my camera toward her. “Smile, baby.”
“Tatum! I said I didn’t need to be in the pictures!”
“Yeah, but look at you,” I drawl, taking a couple of steps back, “how can I not photograph my favorite model?”
Skye smiles with the cutest little nose wrinkle, and I’m quick to snap multiple shots until she puts her hand out to stop me. “Okay, that should be plenty. I thought you were worried about getting in trouble for trespassing?”
She gives me a saucy look, which I also take a picture of, and then I turn off my camera before carefully putting it away. “I mean, there’s a first time for everything, right?”
“You’re so full of it.” She rolls her eyes and slips her hand into mine. “Let’s go, Tatester. We still have more stops to make.”
After we leave the church parking lot, Skye finds a country club that’s nearby, and that’s where we go next. Except, guess what?
“It’s a GATED country club?” Skye scowls at the gated entrance. “Seriously? Are they worried about us stealing their golf clubs?”
“Golf clubs are pretty expensive, so probably. You should’ve calleddddd first.”
“What if you tell the security guard that one of us desperately needs to use the bathroom?” she suggests, shaking my arm. “Like it could be really bad if we don’t make it to the bathroom in time and—”
“Skye, no.”
“Maybe he’ll let us inside!”
“We both know that’s not going to happen,” I deadpan, driving away from the club before she decides to get out of the car and feign a ridiculous bathroom emergency. “Are there any other country clubs close to this one? Check online to see if—”
“Ugh, forget about country clubs,” she interrupts, waving off the idea. “Anna texted me the B&B address. We can just head over there instead.”
Fifteen minutes later, we’re turning down Sunshine Lane, and a relatively large two-story house surrounded by palm trees and a few elm trees comes into view. The B&B is a pale yellow color with a white gingerbread trim, making it the poster child for a Florida getaway location, and I could see it being a good wedding venue option too.
Skye lets out a low whistle. “Dang, it’s even got a balcony and one of those rooftop lookout thingies!”
“I guess I should just park here?” I ask, pulling my car next to the other cars that are parked in front of the white picket fence surrounding the huge yard. “Did Anna tell her brother about us coming?”
“I don’t know, she didn’t say,” Skye replies, unbuckling her seatbelt. “She was too busy asking me if we made out in the pasta aisle or not.”
I laugh as I turn the car off and unbuckle my seatbelt as well. “What did you tell her?”
“I told her we made out in your car instead, and then in your kitchen too.”
My jaw drops. “You told her that?”
“Of course not! Are you crazy?” She looks at me in disbelief. “Anna doesn’t need anymore ammo. All I said was that we definitely did not make out in the pasta aisle. I know I’ll have to eventually tell her about us…dating? We are dating now, right?”
“Well, I need to take you on a real official date at some point, but—”
“A real official date?” she echoes, her voice laced with curiosity. “Like what?”
“Like you’ll just have to wait and see, Pink Stuff.” I lean over and kiss her cheek. “Come on, let’s check this place out.”
Once we’re both out of the car, I make sure it’s locked, and then I slip my arm around Skye’s waist as we walk up the cobblestone pathway leading to the long front porch that’s encased with a white wooden railing.
“Is this the doorbell?” Skye asks, pointing to the gold-plated alligator that’s mounted beside the turquoise front door. “How is it so tacky that it’s actually kind of cute?”
I don’t know if “cute” is the word I would use…
Skye jabs her finger against the alligator’s back, causing it to chime, and a few moments later the door opens. I’ve never seen or met Asher before, but I’d bet money the guy standing in front of us now is Anna’s older brother. He’s definitely taller than her, but otherwise, the resemblance between them is obvious.
“Hey, Skye,” he says, giving her a quick hug. “It’s good to see you again!”
“You too,” Skye replies with a smile, “I wasn’t sure if Anna told you we were coming or not.”
“Yeah, she didn’t really say why though. Just something about pictures?” Asher offers a shrug before turning his attention to me. “Hey, man, you must be Tatum. How’s it going?”
“It’s going good.” We shake hands and I nod toward my camera bag. “I’m the one taking pictures.”
“Sweet, so like, what are the pictures for?” he asks with creased eyebrows. “A scavenger hunt or something?”
Skye proceeds to cringe. “It’s a really long story, but we basically need a couple of pictures to showcase this place as a possible wedding venue location. Would that be okay?”
“Yeah, for sure! I owed Anna a favor, so you guys can take as many pictures as you want.” He motions for us to come inside, which we do, and then he closes the front door. “The bedrooms and guests are off-limits though. I don’t want any complaints about their privacy being disturbed.”
“We’ll be totally respectful,” Skye assures him. “No worries.”
“Perfect, let me show you guys around then.”