25. Wyatt
WYATT
I knew it was a setup the minute Duke texted me, asking to go out for a night on the town at the Grudge Holder. Duke hated the bar scene, especially during the height of tourist season. Truth was, I wasn’t a big fan of it myself, and I was hoping for some alone time with Lark.
Joey had invited Michael and Kevin to his parents’ house for the weekend, and that meant, for the first time, I was officially responsibility-free.
My plan had been to fuck Lark on every surface of that damn farmhouse until she cried out for more.
Except I still hadn’t heard from her. I shot her a quick text anyway.
Heading out for a beer with Duke. Please give me an excuse to see you.
Lark
Good news. I’m already at the Grudge with Lee and I’m having to practically beat down the wave of women who keep coming up to him to dance. Come save me.
I smiled down at my phone and dialed Duke’s number.
“Yeah.”
“Almost to your place. Are you planning to stay out a while?”
“I was thinking so. Maybe have a dance or two.”
It was then I knew those assholes were up to no good. Duke was never a dancer. “You feeling all right?”
“Shut it. Come pick me up.”
I laughed and set the phone down. Duke lived a stone’s throw away from Tootie’s house down Boogertown Road. He was waiting for me on the porch when I rolled up.
With a tip of his chin, he climbed in.
“Are you wearing cologne?”
Duke grunted, and we made our way up the lonely country road. As we passed Aunt Tootie’s house, it looked even more dilapidated in the low lighting.
I sighed. “We’ve got to do something about that house. It’s not safe.”
Duke shook his head. “I know it. She won’t move out. Won’t sell it. I also talked to Beckett, and I think it’ll work out. He’s moving to the area, so if we can convince Tootie, he’ll do the whole place up.”
“I know you have your hands full with the farm and operations. Lee’s schedule is totally fucked, and I’ll be swamped once the season starts. Are we going to be able to make this work? Especially with Dad?”
“Dad’s in good hands where he’s at. Lee talked to Katie. She’s coming home, man.”
A knot twisted in my gut. Katie had run off to Montana to get away from the drama of Outtatowner.
Start fresh. Somewhere no one called her Catfish Kate .
I laughed a bit to myself at the childhood nickname she had never managed to shake.
A part of me felt bad for being the one to call her that because of her big round eyes.
I never expected my teasing to stick with her so long.
“It’ll be good to see her again.”
Duke nodded. “She might be pissed, though.”
“Because of Declan?”
“That little fucker hasn’t shown his face around here since he broke her heart, but Beckett’s his older brother, and Katie holds a grudge.”
I nodded and turned down Main Street. “That she does, brother. That she does.”
“Beckett’s a good guy. He’ll do solid work on the house and won’t overcharge. She’ll just need to get over it.”
When we pulled up to the Grudge, it was a quiet night. I parked next to Lee’s truck and walked with Duke to the front door.
We went inside and were greeted with friendly faces and waves. Duke walked in first, toward the Sullivan side, and I scanned the room, looking for Lark.
I watched as Duke’s eyes also scanned the entirety of the room, and his frown deepened. It was almost like he was hoping to see someone out tonight and was disappointed the person wasn’t there. When I asked him as much, he only responded with “Fuck off.”
I finally spotted Lark, and my stomach dropped to my shoes. She was so beautiful, sitting at a high table and watching as people danced around the small wooden dance floor. After our eyes met, her big white smile widened, and I struggled to catch my breath.
Lee was chatting with a woman who was swirling the straw in her drink and looking up at him with big, hopeful eyes.
Duke stomped toward the table and nodded a greeting to Lark. Then he turned and tapped Lee on the shoulder. “Let’s go.”
Lee scrunched up his face. “What do you mean, ‘Let’s go’? You literally just got here.”
“Tired. Just drive me home.”
Lee looked at me and I only shrugged. Whatever Duke was hoping to find here wasn’t at the bar, and he was done.
Annoyed, Lee excused himself from the conversation he was having and turned to the table. He looked at Duke, who was growing more and more uncomfortable with every passing second. “Fine, but you owe me.”
We said our goodbyes, and Lee held out his fist to Lark. She bumped it and smiled. “Hell of an accomplice,” Lee said.
Her eyes grew wide and darted to me.
“What does he mean? Accomplice?”
Lee howled with laughter and headed straight out the door.
I turned back to Lark. “Accomplice?”
She lifted her hands. “I had no idea, I swear. I was an involuntary criminal.”
Lark looked so innocent and scared that I laughed and pulled her beer bottle toward me. I put it to my lips and took a deep drink. “Sounds like I’m gonna need a beer for this story.”
* * *
Being out around town with Lark was effortless.
Natural. Just like everything else with her, she brought levity and fun.
With her I didn’t have to worry so much about the upcoming season, whether Pickle and I would have to move, or how the drama of Outtatowner was going to inevitably fuck up my life.
She had been content to watch the people dancing, and after a popular song came on, she lifted her brows at me.
I pretended to resist, but when she pulled me from my stool, I was happy to hold her in my arms while we moved to the music.
I could feel the eyes on us, but I didn’t care if that started a slew of fresh rumors.
As far as I was concerned, Lark was mine and I was hers.
At least for now.
After the dance, we left the Grudge to wander down Main Street.
It was bustling with tourists and townies alike.
The café had string lights illuminating their outdoor patio, and the warm glow bounced off Lark’s skin, making it irresistible.
I pulled her under my arm and enjoyed how perfectly she fit as we walked side by side.
“How do you feel about ice cream?” I had already started heading toward the shops that lined the waterfront.
Lark smiled up at me. “I feel good about that.”
We continued our lazy path down the sidewalk and toward the marina.
She looked at boats bobbing in the water and asked questions about the people who owned them.
A lot were from tourists who parked for the weekend or the season, but I pointed out the ones I did know and filled her in on which side of the Sullivan–King feud they landed.
My teeth ground together when we passed a fishing boat with Noble King Fishing Tours freshly painted on the side.
I recognized the sleek lines of the fishing boat my father once owned.
Back when he was himself and operations on the farm had run so smoothly he was branching out into other tourism opportunities.
The boat, and Dad’s dream of hosting guided fishing tours, had flown out the window when he’d gotten his diagnosis, and things had gone to hell fast. It pissed me right the fuck off to see the King name on Dad’s boat .
Russell King wasn’t a businessman like his father, Amos. He was a scavenger. Even after all our families had been through, he was greedy enough to capitalize on our misfortunes. I hated him for it.
I hated that the Kings had the ability to sour my mood without even being there.
I refocused my attention on the gorgeous brunette at my side and how I hoped she was as excited for an evening alone together as I was.
The fact that she had inadvertently helped Lee piss them off was the icing on the cake.
As childish and reckless as it was, I wished I could have been there to help pull off the prank.
We stepped into Sweet Sundae, the old-fashioned creamery shop, and I motioned for Lark to step ahead of me. Her eyes danced with delight as she scanned the menu.
When it was our turn, Lark smiled at the server. “Cherry chocolate chunk in a waffle cone, please!”
The young girl behind the counter looked up at me. “Rum raisin. Sugar cone, please.”
Lark snorted beside me.
“What?”
“You are such an old man.”
I rolled my eyes at her. “Whatever. It’s a classic.”
“I swear if you have a hard candy in your pocket, I’m going to lose it.”
I stared at her as I reached a hand in the front pocket of my jeans. I held my hand in front of her and slowly opened it, revealing a Werther’s Original Penny had asked me to hold on to earlier in the day.
Her laughter settled over me, settling between my ribs, and I moved to stand behind her. My arms wrapped around Lark’s shoulders, and I pulled her close to me as we waited. Her cinnamon-and-citrus scent swirled with the sticky-sweet aroma of the ice cream shop.
Happy memories of getting ice cream with Mom and Dad and walking down the pier flooded my mind. I nuzzled into her neck and felt her hum at my affection.
This will be another good memory to add to that.
The young server handed us our ice cream, and I paid. “Hey, let’s take these to go.”
I led Lark out of the ice cream parlor and toward the beach.
Families and kids hanging out near the pier walked past us as we enjoyed the warm summer night.
The road ended, and we stepped on the pier.
At the end, the old lighthouse stood tall, its beam of light stretching out over the dark waters of Lake Michigan.
The closer we got to the rocky outcropping at the base of the lighthouse, the fewer people there were to interrupt us. I found a quiet corner and gestured for Lark to sit. Enjoying our ice cream, we sat in comfortable silence, looking out at the waves that disappeared into the horizon.
She leaned into me and held her cone out. “Want a bite?”
I eyed it skeptically, like I wasn’t sure if her choice in ice cream was up to my standards. Lark playfully rolled her eyes at me. I leaned forward and lowered my mouth to her cone.
Then she squished cherry chocolate chunk into my face.
What a shit.
I sighed even as my chest began to shake with laughter.
Her melodic giggle was infectious as she tried to pull herself together. I simply stared at her, doing a shit job at keeping a straight face while melting ice cream dripped from my chin. “Mmm. It’s really good. Can I have a little more?”
A fresh round of laughter burst out of her as I leaned down and aggressively bit off the top half of her ice cream.
“Hey, that’s too much!”
Deep, hearty laughter felt strange in my chest as I wiped at my chin. “That’s what you get.”
She licked one side of her cone to try to straighten it out, but it was hopeless, and I mopped up the mess on my chin with napkins.
“Can I try yours?” She wiggled her eyebrows at me, and I huffed at how fucking cute she was.
I held my cone up, and she leaned in for a bite. I jerked my hand, and when she pulled back, my unrestrained laughter rang out.
“I’m kidding. I won’t.” I narrowed my eyes at her. “Even if you do deserve it.”
In that moment, the full force of Lark’s breathtaking smile was just for me. I wanted to bottle it up, save it, and tuck it away so no one else could have it.
I held my hand steady as she lowered her head. My eyes tracked how her mouth moved. How her lips closed over the creamy ice cream. The hum of her throat as she closed her eyes and savored the bite.
My heart clunked.
A dot of ice cream clung to her lower lip, and I couldn’t resist.
“You missed some.” My voice had dropped, turning thick and gravelly. I leaned forward, and instead of wiping away the drop with my thumb, I swiped my tongue across her full lower lip.
Her soft exhale brushed across my mouth. I moved in again, closing the fraction of space between us as I took her mouth. It was cool, sweet, and delicious. I moaned into her, thinking of all the depraved things I wanted to do with Lark.
I wanted her—needed her—unlike anyone I’d ever met.
And I needed her now .
I was sure I looked crazed when we broke apart, but I pinned her with my glare. “We’re leaving.”