Chapter Five
Holly flipped her braids over her shoulder toward the back and used a wet towelette with bug spray on it to wipe her chest and arms. A warm ocean breeze teased the few strands of hair that had escaped the braids and blew them across her face.
She tucked them behind her ear and studied the sunset in the water’s reflection.
Twice the beauty as one just sinking down over the trees or the Houston landscape.
A few small birds ran to the edge of the water when the surf receded to peck at what she figured was tiny fish of some kind.
Then they ran back when the tide threatened to wash them out to sea.
Everything was so natural, so serene and peaceful, that she wished she could sit on the quilt forever.
Was this the feeling of a happily-ever-after that romance books talked about? If so, she wanted it to be her story.
“Daring little devils, aren’t they?” Bubba said.
“What?” She came out of her moment of bliss and locked eyes with him.
“Those birds,” he answered. “Would you run toward danger to get supper?”
“Depends on how hungry I was,” she answered. “Sometimes it requires a risk to get what you want.”
This was the perfect opportunity to tell Bubba exactly who she was, but she couldn’t do it. The millions of twinkling stars in the sky, the soothing sound of the surf, the warm sand on her feet—all of it made for a perfect evening that she could not ruin by spilling the truth.
Bubba scooted off the edge of the quilt and started building a sandcastle. “How far would you go out of your comfort zone to get what made you happy?”
She moved over and began to help him. “That would depend on how big the prize was.”
Their hands got tangled together while they worked on patting the pile of sand into a mound.
The chemistry between them caused so much heat that she thought the sand might turn to glass, but Bubba seemed as cool as the old proverbial cucumber.
He didn’t even flinch when his bare arm brushed against her shoulder as he reached around her to grab a red plastic cup.
“Got to have something to make round turrets with,” he said, and kept working like he was building something permanent.
“See, this is where the evil stepmother puts the princess Lula Ann in the attic for wanting to go out with a common old hired hand. But she’s smart and figures out a way to climb out the window.
” He fashioned a narrow walkway with his big hands.
“And she inches her way over to this tree.” He stuck a piece of driftwood into the sand.
“And she crawls down it, and they ride off. The wicked stepmother never finds them, and they live happily ever after.” Holly giggled. “Do you really think I’m a princess?”
“Of course, and I’m the cowboy-in-shining-boots-and-hat who rides in on his buckskin horse to save you from growing old all alone in that horrible, cold turret room.”
The surf would wash all their work away by morning, just like in a couple of days all that would remain of their time together would be a painful memory for what could not be. In time it would fade—hopefully.
“What are you thinking about?” Bubba asked. “Are you sorry that you gave your heart to someone who was nothing more than a hired hand, who could only offer you his undying love?”
She threw the back of her hand over her forehead in a dramatic gesture. “Never! Not in a gazillion years. I’m just sorry that my vacation has to end.”
“Me, too.” He stopped packing sand into the cup and leaned over the top of the start of the sandcastle to kiss her—passionately, steamily, and long. One kiss led to another and another until they were both panting, then he broke away.
“Wow!” she muttered, and waved a hand in front of her face in an attempt to cool herself.
She had had a few short-lived relationships, but nothing had ever affected her like that string of kisses. But not even an artist with a can of paint could change a leopard’s spots.
“I agree,” Bubba whispered. “I knew that kissing you would be amazing, but …”
She shook her head. “That was so good that it doesn’t get a but.”
Bubba grinned and nodded. “Amen, but we only live half an hour away from each other. Vacation ending doesn’t mean we have to be over, does it? I’d like to continue seeing you.”
“I’m away a lot of the time,” she said. “Sometimes for two weeks at a stretch.”
“Where to?” he asked.
“About every state that might have oil in the United States, but mainly right here in good old Texas,” she answered.
“You do come home after each job, right?” he asked.
“Yes, I do, for at least a week to go over my reports and …” She stopped before she went into too much detail.
“Then we’ll make time while you are home.” He smiled. “But since tomorrow night is our last night for a while—other than texts and phone calls—I’d like to take you somewhere very special.”
“What could be better than this right here?” she asked, and went back to building the sandcastle, primarily to keep her hands off his broad chest, which had just the right amount of soft dark hair under his shirt, which was flapping open.
“The ranch where I work. I’ve only got one horse right now, but we could take out a couple of four-wheelers, and you could meet my dog, Turbo, and the foreman, Elijah,” he answered.
“I would love to see where you work,” she answered. “Give me the directions and a time to meet you there.”
“I will come and get you. Maybe seven so we can sit by the little creek that runs through the property and watch a sunset from that angle?” he asked.
“I’ll be ready,” she said, and then pointed up to the sky. “Hurry, there’s a falling star. If you see it …”
He jerked his head up. “I saw it just before it burned out. Now we can both make a wish.”
Holly closed her eyes tightly and wished for a second chance with Bubba when he found out who she really was. She didn’t even care if her folks thought she had lost her mind for falling in love with a ranch hand—not anymore.
Her eyes popped open so fast that the stars blurred for a moment before she got control and could focus again.
She could not be in love with Bubba. No way.
She had met him on Saturday night. This was Thursday.
True love took time. This had to be nothing more than a flash in the pan, so to speak.
Holly did not believe in love at first sight.
“I like you, Lula Ann,” Bubba said. “Even after you go back to work, I would like to spend more time with you. That’s what I wished for.”
“You are, by your own words, a bit of a playboy. What makes you think I could hold your attention when other women couldn’t?” she asked.
He moved closer to her and cupped her face in his hands. “Maybe I want to change.”
“Maybe after a while you will regret being tied down to one woman.”
The touch of his hands on her cheeks sent waves of scorching hot heat through her whole body.
She’d never had sex on the beach because the very thought of getting sand in a place where it did not belong made her shiver.
But she could very easily change her mind.
His lips lowered, and she splayed her hands out on his chest. She forgot all about where they were, what was on the quilt, and got ready for what she figured would be the hottest sex she’d ever known right there under the stars in front of the little birds and even God Himself.
But then he pulled away, stood up, and held out his hand. “This is not the place, Lula Ann. When we make love for the first time, I want it to be in a special place, not on a sandy beach.”
She put her hand in his. Her breath came out in short gasps, and her body was on fire. At the same time, she thought about how sweet it was for him to be planning their first time to be in a more comfortable and special place.
“We need to cool down,” he whispered, and pulled her toward the water.
“I’m … not …” She was still trying to catch her breath when she was waist deep in the water. “I didn’t … plan … on swimming.”
“Me, either. But I need to cool off.” Bubba grinned.
Holly stepped out a little farther and let the next wave soak her all the way to her braids. “That should do it for me.”
“I love …” Bubba said with a twinkle in his eyes, “this night and all the time I’ve spent with you this week. I’m glad I came to the speed-dating event.”
“I’ve got to admit that I didn’t want to go without my friend Darlene, but I’m glad I did, too,” she said as she tugged at his hand to get him started walking back to the beach.
He pulled her toward him and kissed her again, this time with wet lips that tasted faintly like salt water.
The waves crashed around her, and she leaned into him for support.
When the kiss ended, he scooped her up in his arms like a new bride and carried her back to the quilt.
“I’m starving now. What’s in that paper sack that you brought? ”
“That’s just like a man,” she teased. “Hunger after making out like a couple of teenagers.”
“Takes a lot of energy to work up that kind of internal heat.”
“I can agree with that,” she said as she took out containers and set them on the quilt.
“Is that fried chicken?” Bubba groaned.
She removed the lids to reveal chicken in one, potato salad in another, and baked beans in the third.
Then she pulled a stack of disposable plates, napkins, and plastic cutlery from the bag.
Finally, she brought out a square container with six fried pies.
“Three cherry and three coconut,” she told him with a smile.
“You remembered,” he whispered, and leaned over to brush a soft kiss across her lips.
“That’s all I get when I slaved over a hot stove all day?” she asked as she wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him a real kiss. “Now,” she said when she moved back, “eat, because I expect a proper goodnight kiss when you take me home. One that will knock my socks off.”
“I will do my dead level best.” He chuckled again and handed her a plate.