13. Reid
I’m not a jealous man.
I don’t get possessive over women because I never stay in one place long enough for it to matter. People come and go and I never get hung up for too long.
I’m not obsessive.
At least, not until now.
The Founder’s Day party is held at the inn and everyone files either into the gardens or the restaurant to dance, talk, and eat. Coincidentally, everyone wants a chance to talk to Nova.
She’s across the room, chatting about something with Tara and the sound of her laugh carries to where I sit at the bar. I’m proud that she was able to pull today off without a hitch. I’m also a little pissed off she hasn’t even glanced my way in the last half-hour.
She’s angry. Jealous. Normally, such things would annoy me. I don’t care for territorial women because I don’t do relationships.
Seeing Nova pissed because Sophie was hitting on me, though? I’ve been rock-fucking-hard since.
I want her.
She’s been avoiding me for the last two days. I’ve tried to warn her away from me, but every time she comes at me with her fire, I want nothing more than to put it out and have her softening under my fingers. I just can’t stay away, even if I have to.
As if she can feel me watching her, Nova’s eyes meet mine. She pauses for a moment, attempting to appear cold, but she’s anything but. Slowly, a smirk forms on her face that has me questioning everything right now.
She knows exactly what she’s doing.
I chuckle, tipping back my beer and finishing it. It’s not the frilly blueberry or peach shit Nova likes. Just the same old beer you can get anywhere, only made at the brewery down the road. I have to say, though, it’s a bit better than you’d find on the shelves of your local grocery store.
“Women.” Manto steps up beside me, following my gaze across the room to where Tara and Nova are.
“Trouble in paradise?”
“Always,” he grumbles.
“Your fault for proposing.”
He pauses for a moment, following me line of sight. “You good, bud?”
“Fine,” I murmur, eyes still locked on Nova, who’s in the middle of a conversation with Mayor Copley. She looks so damned pretty tonight. Hair a tangled mess of curls from the long, hard day’s work. Shorts that make it damn near impossible to not look at her ass and a tank top that shows off her tanned shoulders.
She’s everything—sweet, smart, sexy. Beautiful and weird in her own way. And mine.
I shake myself, clutching the beer bottle in my hands. No. Not mine, I remind myself. She can never be mine.
Fuck me.
“You should ask her to dance,” Manto interjects into my thoughts and I grip the bottle in my hands tighter. He takes a step back at the look I shoot him. Good thing, too because I’m already on edge from the hoard of men that surround Nova.
“Look, Nova’s a tough cookie to crack. I’m just saying, I know she wants to. You just have to ask.”
“Manto, who is Jack?”
Silence fills the void between us and I almost think I’ve said some unforgivable curse when he doesn’t move. I’ve heard the name a few times, but every time, Nova shuts it down as quick as it starts.
Finally, he sucks down half his beer and shakes his head.
“That’s for her to tell you, mate.”
“Is she married?”
Manto just chuckles darkly. “All I’ll say is he ain’t coming back.”
If that’s not ominous, I don’t know what the fuck is.
“Go ask her to dance.”
“I don’t dance.”
“Well, don’t be pissed off, then.”
“Why?” I grit, taking a long swig of my beer. On second thought, it’s starting to taste like I need a shot of something stronger.
Manto nods to the other side of the room. “Because he does.”
Some punk kid, probably no more than twenty or so, takes her hand, leading her out onto the dance floor while she smiles brightly. He’s polite, keeping space between them as he starts to move her around with the other couples, but it’s still too fucking close.
Across the room, I spot Tara and Katelyn whispering and watching me. When I meet their gazes, they look away giggling like schoolgirls. Jesus Christ.
Loverboy coaches Nova through the dance, his cheeks burning red as I doubt he’s ever come this close to a real woman before, much less a girl like Nova.
When his hand slides a hair lower, just over the curve of her ass, I grip my bottle so hard I know it’s on the verge of breaking. Poor kid doesn’t even realize his life is in danger.
I’ll break his fucking fingers.
Without a word, I shove my beer into Manto’s hand, who just takes it with a snicker, and stomp across the room. I don’t ask her to dance. I take it. Practically shoving the kid out of the way, I replace his hand with mine on her hip and twine my fingers through her smaller, much more delicate ones. The kid thanks Miss Nova for the dance and struts off to find his friends to recount what will probably be the best thirty seconds of his life.
“That was mean,” Nova says quietly, though there’s a smile in her gaze I’m not used to seeing aimed at me. “I thought you didn’t dance.”
I pull her closer, leading her like a man leads and she follows me easily. I look down at her big multi-colored eyes and I wonder what the fuck is wrong with me.
“I don’t.”
Apprehension fills her face as the first song ends and the second begins. It’s one of those new age songs. Bluegrass filled with sadness and longing, but I don’t release her.
We haven’t spoken since this afternoon when we argued, and she’s become an itch I can’t scratch. The need to be near her, smell her, feel her is too strong to ignore anymore.
“You don’t have to dance with me if you don’t want to, Reid.”
I don’t reply, tugging her closer until her front is pressed against mine and moving her around the other couples. I can’t ignore the press of her body against me any more than she can, as evidenced by the way her breathing grows shallower and the hazy look in her eyes.
I can feel people watching us. I know what Manto said, but right now, I don’t fucking care. Not when I’ve got Nova in my arms and, at least for now, I don’t have to pretend I don’t give a shit. Anyone can see that ship has long-fucking-sailed.
Nova smiles slightly, something sparking in those eyes that sets something unsettling in my core.
She likes this. Tell me why I fucking love it.
It’s not that I don’t know how to dance. I just don’t like to. Too much expectation. Too many promises between two people, even if they’re unspoken.
With Nova, though, it feels . . . easy. Natural.
It stirs something in my chest. I don’t like it.
I feel the moment she gives into me, relaxing and just letting me take the lead. It’s fucking addicting. When the song picks up, I take her hand, extending my arm and spinning her back while she laughs. It’s the sexiest fucking thing I’ve ever heard and when I tug her back to my chest, her lips are inches from mine.
Time stops for those few split seconds and everything between us hangs in the balance.
So this is what it feels like to earn one of her smiles? Like coming home after a long, hard-fought battle.
She tilts her head, her breath heavy on my lips and tasting like blueberries. They hover over mine for just a moment, as if she’s trying to decide if she should kiss me.
I’ve never been so engrained in a kiss. I’m not a sentimental man, nor am I a romantic. In those couple seconds, though, she’s got me by a chokehold that sends my world toppling on its ass.
This isn’t normal.
Not for me.
Cheers sound in the room, and I realize the song’s ended. I don’t release Nova and she doesn’t move for a moment.
“The song’s over,” she says quietly, eyes wide like she’s just seen a ghost. I can’t blame her. I feel the same way with the ache in my chest and the tightness in my shoulders.
Both of us stand there, staring at the other as we come to some conclusion that this has gone too far and now neither of us is sure we can get out.
Fuck, do I even want to?
“Good evening, everyone.”
Looking over Nova’s shoulder, Mayor Copley takes the stage, amidst claps from the room full of people.
Nova steps back, her skin flushed. She listens for only a second before she turns back to me, her hand on my chest and presses her lips to my ear.
“Want to go for a walk?” she asks, pulling back and biting her lip. I want to tug that lip from her teeth with my own. Just maybe not in front of Pap across the room.
“Always.”
“The water’s pretty tonight,” Nova says quietly, looking out over the waves as they wash against the beach for high tide.
I don’t say it because I’m not trying to scare her off, but she’s the prettiest fucking thing on this beach tonight. The moon shines on her hair, making it a wild mess of glowing curls. Her skin is flushed, under what’s left of the dim lighting from the town and those damned purple painted toenails in the sand make my cock twitch in my jeans like a teenager.
Fuck, I feel like a teenager, again.
I keep my manners, putting space between us, so we’re not touching, but she keeps inching closer, so her arm brushes mine and sends heat through my blood. Like her own form of torture.
“It’ll rain soon,” I murmur, looking up at the clouds in the sky. Off in the distance, I can see lightning striking the ocean. It’s far off, but in Port Nova, that doesn’t mean anything.
We walk along the sand, away from the party until we can just barely hear the sounds of the music start back up after the mayor’s speech.
“I hate public speaking,” Nova says out of nowhere. “Mine. And other peoples.”
“You were a teacher,” I point out. “Wasn’t that your entire job?”
She shrugs. “Kids are easy. They judge you out loud. Adults are the ones you need to look out for.”
“You aren’t wrong. I guess I’ve just never cared what anyone else thought of me.”
She looks at me, searching my face like she wants to say something, but it falls and the only sound is the water and the rumble of a storm coming.
“The party was a big hit. You did good.”
She smiles softly, wincing when another roll of thunder sounds.
“Couldn’t have done it without you. And Manto and Tara and Katelyn.”
“And Sophie,” I volunteer and she shoots me a look. I chuckle, bumping into her with my arm and she shoves me back. “Want to tell me the real reason why don’t you like her?”
Nova shakes her head.
“I never said that.”
“No, but I can see it all over your face.”
I step in front of her, walking backwards and she stops, giving a light stomp of her foot in the sand.
“Fine. She is my half-sister. Are you happy?”
That puts things into perspective. Finally, my little bird is opening up.
“I thought your parents are together?”
“They are,” she grumbles, crossing her arms over her chest. “My father had an affair around the time Mom got pregnant with me. Sophie was the product of that.”
“And your mom stayed with him?”
“Not everyone can leave,” she murmurs and I don’t like the double-ended sword of that statement.
“Sure, not everyone can leave, but not everyone is willing, either.”
She stares at me for a moment, calculating.
“Some people don’t know they’re being abused. Some abuse isn’t just fists.”
“True. Was your mother abused?”
“No. I don’t believe so. Though, wouldn’t you argue that cheating on your pregnant wife is a form of emotional abuse?”
“You aren’t wrong. That doesn’t mean it’s Sophie’s fault. You don’t place blame idly, Nova.”
“You know me so well,” she grumbles, pushing past me to continue walking down the beach.
“I’ve spent the last two weeks studying you, little bird,” I admit, walking beside her. “I know you better than you think.”
“Well,” she snaps, stammering over her words. “I never said that was the only reason.”
“Okay, so what else is there?”
“She just . . . I don’t know. She’s always had to be the center of attention. Birthdays. Christmas. It’s like she wants to replace me in my own life. She’s always wanted everything I have.”
“You have me.” It’s out of my mouth and into the air before I can think about what the fuck I’m saying.
Nova pauses, peeking up at me through her lashes and my chest clenches.
Fuck . . . what am I doing?
She opens her mouth to speak, but the moment she does, a few rain drops hit her cheek.
“Uh oh,” she whispers, as if the storm can sense her fear.
Then, as we’re both looking up at the sky, the heavens open up and the storm lets loose. Nova gasps as the rain drenches us, the torrential downpour stinging and chilly on our skin.
“Shit,” I grumble. We’ve walked pretty far from the inn. We’re out of the village’s sight now and it’s just us, the beach, and the Atlantic storm that threatens to sweep us away.
“This way.” Nova tugs my hand and I go with her, both of us stumbling in the dim lighting provided by the battery powered lantern she brought. She leads me up a steep hill to the grassy ledge above the beach and through the tall field of flowers and weeds to an ominous building that stands, abandoned on a cliff and overlooking the ocean.
“Where are we?” I ask, over the sound of the rain. Nova pulls me onto the front porch of the old house. It might as well be a mansion in Port Nova and I’m surprised it sits here empty. And in such good shape.
“We used to come here and goof off when we were kids,” she says, leading me around the wraparound porch to the front door. “Now, I just like to come here to think.”
So this is where she disappears to when no one can find her.
It’s pitch black inside, save for the light streaming from the lantern. I move to spin, stumbling into an old piece of furniture.
“Fuck,” I curse under my breath as my shin erupts in a dull pain and Nova laughs loudly, hands grasping for me in the dark. I don’t know if it’s because it’s nearly pitch black or because her laugh settles something heavy in my chest, but I reach for her, lifting her up and into my arms. She wraps her arms around my neck, her legs straddling my waist and suddenly, she’s very, very quiet. “Are you making fun of me?” My grip under her knees tightens and she squirms in my arms.
“Perhaps,” she chuckles when I set her down on an old table. I have no fucking idea what room we’re in and it smells like dust and mold, but still, my cock hardens in my jeans when her hand lingers on the planes of my stomach.
That’s new.
“Nova.”
She regards me for a moment and the only sound is the harsh beat of my heart and the drip of her hair on the table behind her.
“Why did you push that other guy out when I was dancing with him?”
Tension, thick and heavy settles in the air between us and for a single breath, I think about backing out. A better man would.
But, fuck, I warned her I’m a monster, just like the rest of them.
And I’ve never been good at following the rules.
Carefully, I set the lantern on the ground at our feet, and it doesn’t do much but showcase a massive spider in the top corner of the room.
“You know why.”
She swallows, the swell of her breasts shaking when she does and my eyes follow the movement. She doesn’t speak. She doesn’t move when I step closer to her. We remain, eyes locked and our breathing growing shallow as both of us try to decide what the fuck we’re doing.
Then, carefully, she moves her legs apart, allowing me to step in between them.
“Little bird.” I need to make sure we’re on the same page. “I kiss you, I won’t want to stop.”
She’s quiet, biting her lip between her teeth. Carefully, I reach up, tugging it free with my finger. My hand moves to her cheek, my thumb caressing the soft skin there and her breath catches.
“You don’t hate me?”
“No. And believe me . . . I tried.”
“Why?” she asks carefully, big eyes shrouded in shadows.
Fuck. Because you’re the thing I see in my dreams? Because something about you terrifies the shit out of me?
Because you’re mine, even if you can’t be?
“Because on September first, I will be on a plane to Alaska. And I won’t be back.”
“Why do you like me so much, Reid?” she breathes, barely above a whisper.
I start to give her some generic answer, because honestly, I can’t let her peek inside my head. She’d run the moment she found out just how fucked up I really am. I don’t get the chance, though, because she cuts me off, jumping forward and pressing her lips against mine.
She pauses, pulling back just an inch to look at me. In the darkness, I can’t tell what she’s thinking. All I know is I’m not playing these games anymore. I want her.
Even if only until September.
“Reid . . .” Nova says quietly and something unspoken passes between us.
“Nova . . .” I repeat, taking in the smell of the ocean and her fucking perfume that makes it feel like I’m constantly being prepped to shoot a porno.
Nova and the ocean. Two things that can’t stand each other and two things I can’t get over.
What fucking irony.
Like she’s afraid I might wake up, she sits forward, pressing her lips to mine again and this time . . . I kiss her back.
A groan leaves my throat and before I know it, I’m giving into every dark and twisted thought that’s been playing in my head since I made her come at the cottage a week ago. My hand slides up her back, twisting in her hair so I can tug her head back to feast on her mouth. She tastes like blueberries and sweetness and everything dirty that makes my cock press painfully against the zipper of my jeans.
Now that I finally have her, it’s rough, harsh, and demanding, but she gives me exactly what I ask for, like she’s been just as starved for me as I have her.
Nova’s hands slip up the front of my stomach, over my abs, and up to my chest where she wraps her arms around my neck, a quiet whimper leaving her throat that has me ready to risk fucking everything to hear her make that sound again.
When I break the kiss, slipping down and trailing a line toward the side of her neck, a moan escapes her and my self-control turns into a time bomb. Especially when my hand meets her thigh pressed around my hip, feeling the smooth, bare skin there and I know it wouldn’t take much, if anything, for me to give in after fighting it all week.
Fuck, I want to feel her.
I shake myself, breaking the kiss, but Nova pulls me back in with a quiet “No.” I fight back a smile, giving her what she wants and kissing her roughly while I try not to focus on the battle of wills between my dick and my head.
I want her. Hard and rough and needy for me.
But . . . she’s not ready. Not right now. She’ll regret it the moment it’s over. She’s said so herself. I want her begging for me when I sink inside her the first time.
She deserves better than this.
“Reid,” she pants when I break the kiss, pressing my lips to her cheek, jaw, anywhere I can reach because I don’t want to step back yet. “Please.”
When I thought about all the possible outcomes of staying on this island until my boat was ready to go, I forgot to factor in how that one little word, please, would likely become my undoing. Hearing Nova beg for me unlocks something deep inside me that has me craving more.
“Fuck, little bird,” I rasp, reaching back to grip her hip where she’s attempting to roll into me. My cock’s begging me for more. Just to slip inside her and feel her around me, but I know if we do, it’ll ruin everything. There’s no way I fuck Nova and she doesn’t freak out like last time. “We can’t. Not tonight.”
“Why not?” she asks, her lips falling and I suck in a deep breath, brushing the hair back from her face haphazardly.
“Because you’re not ready.”
“I am,” she argues, attempting to kiss me again, but I take her face in my hands, holding her still to look at me.
“No, you aren’t.” I press a kiss to her forehead, leaning back and pulling her up to sit in front of me. Our breathing is heavy and it’s taking everything I have not to just give in. I press my lips to her ear, nibbling at her skin.
She smirks, her fingers flexing in the back of my t-shirt and her blunt nails lightly raking the skin of the back of my neck. I grit my teeth, forcing the sudden growing agitation in my stomach back down.
Whoever this Jack guy is, he fucked a lot of shit up before he left. Wherever he is, I hope he’s damned miserable because leaving a girl like Nova . . . how stupid do you have to be?
Just as stupid as you,my head chimes and the cold realization sets on me.
This girl deserves better than me.
Forcing myself to step back, I pull away from her.
“I . . .”
“I know, Nova.”
She pauses, her gaze studying my face and trying to pick apart my sudden change in mood.
She wasn’t meant for me.
I hold a hand out for her, to help her back down from the table.
“Come on,” I murmur. The rain has stopped outside and with the storm’s passing, the reality of the situation sets in, leaving a pit in my stomach and a sadness in her eyes.
Nova can never be mine.
“I’ll walk you home.”