Chapter 4
CHAPTER FOUR
A aron
My alarm goes off to my favorite song. I groan. What the hell am I doing? I’m chasing Briar like a dog in heat. It’s so unlike me. She is gorgeous and her sassy mouth has my balls in a twist. Maybe that’s what it is. . . I blink the sleep away from my eyes. No, it’s more than that. When I see her, there’s this feeling in my chest I haven’t felt before and it’s drawing me to her. That and her little confession on the plane. I’m a guy who likes a challenge. I can’t deny it. I get out of bed and head to the bathroom. I take a shower and think about Briar in that sexy black bikini she was wearing. I think of the way she was dancing, the way her hips were moving. The tanned color of her skin. My cock grows hard. It’s not like I haven’t been with plenty of pretty girls before, so this isn’t making sense to me. I get myself off but only because I don’t want to be thinking of sex when I take her out. There is something about Briar that intrigues me. She’s driven and always focused on getting ahead. Not too many people our age are like that. Not that it matters. I’m only interested in seeing Briar smile, checking a couple items off her bucket list, and moving on.
I quickly get dressed and put on some deodorant. I slip into my slides and grab my wallet and key card. I also take a sheet off my bed so we can sit on it on the beach.
Briar is outside waiting for me. “You’re one minute late.”
“You sound like my coach,” I mutter. I walk over to her and throw my arm over her shoulders. She’s wearing a pair of cutoff jean shorts and an oversized hoodie. Her hair is in a bun on top of her head and she’s makeup free and beautiful. Even though she was pretty with makeup on last night too. Shit! What is happening to me? My friends would be worried.
“What are you doing?” She removes my arm.
I smirk. “Usually, girls like when I give them attention. But you seem repulsed by me.”
“Not repulsed. You seem like a nice guy, Aaron. I just don’t understand your attention,” she replies.
“What is there to understand? You must know you’re hot. But you don’t need to worry because I’m not a relationship guy.”
“I’m not a relationship girl,” she says, but her words don’t carry the same conviction as mine.
I laugh and shake my head.
We head to the elevator. “So why have you never watched a sunrise?” I ask.
“It’s not that I haven’t seen the sun rise,” she replies. “I’ve woken up for practice before sunrise, but my life is always rushed. I never take time to just take it all in.”
“I can identify with that. Between school, the team, and my family, my plate is full,” I say.
The elevator arrives and we get on.
“Why aren’t you spending the holiday with your family?” she asks. “Sorry, you don’t have to answer that.”
“Nah, it’s fine. My mom was diagnosed with ALS a year ago. It’s a disease that is degenerative. My dad is taking her on a trip around the world before she can’t,” I explain, feeling the words like grains of sand in my mouth. When Mom was first diagnosed, it felt like the world was ending. But Mom has superpowers. She’s kept us strong. She’s taking medications that have prolonged her life and kept her symptoms at bay, but there isn’t a timeline when all that will end.
“I’m sorry, Aaron.” She ducks her head.
“You don’t need to feel sorry for me or something,” I say to her. “My mother is doing okay, considering. My dad is doing everything to make her comfortable and happy. They are so in love I don’t know what he’s going to do when she goes.” Why am I saying this to her? Why am I pouring out my soul to a girl I barely know?
I’ve never been away from my parents over the holiday before. We’re a tight-knit family. Being away from them over Christmas is harder than I thought. I thought taking the trip would be a good distraction, but I’m carrying the pain everywhere I go.
“That must be so tough. I can’t imagine how hard this is for you. My parents are divorced. My dad spends the holiday with his new family and so does my mom. At least you got to experience something so great.” It seems that my overshare has opened her up. I’m not complaining, I clearly needed to talk this out with someone.
“I’ve never thought about it that way. I am grateful to have such loving and supportive parents,” I say.
Briar’s light-blue eyes bore into mine. The elevator arrives in the lobby and we get off.
“Is that why you planned to work at Black Jack’s over the holidays? Because your parents are busy?” I ask, figuring it’s fair game.
“My parents divorced when I was ten. Dad had an affair with his student teacher. Now they are married and have their own family. My mom got remarried too and has kids with the new hubby. Her husband doesn’t really like having me around, so I prefer to stay away.” She shrugs like it’s no big deal, but it is. I can read the sadness in her eyes, even if she’s trying to mask it.
“Damn, that’s not easy,” I say.
“Yeah, well, it is what it is. I got used to being on my own. I like it now,” she says. “I have my friends, gymnastics, and work. It’s all I need,” she says with a smile that doesn’t touch her eyes.
I nod, bouncing my head.
“Yeah, I get that. I’m all about hockey, school, and friends. See, we have more in common than you probably thought.”
She laughs, rolling her eyes. “We better hurry or we’re missing that sunrise.”
“Should we grab coffee before heading out?” I ask as we pass the coffee shop.
“Definitely,” she says, and she seems less guarded.
“How do you take your coffee?” I offer, needing space from her because I don’t know what is happening.
“One sugar and one cream, please.”
I walk off to get the coffees.
I return. “Here you go,” my voice cracks.
“Thanks.” She takes the paper cup.
We head out to the back of the hotel and walk past the pool to the beach. It’s still dark outside so we haven’t missed anything, which is a relief. Why is it so important for me to help her check off items from her bucket list? Soon I’ll be offering to take her to Bora Bora.
I blink to clear my mind as we reach the sand. “Should we sit close to the water?”
“Sounds perfect.”
“Can you hold my coffee for a second? I just want to lay down the sheet.”
I pass her my cup and get to work settling my sheet on the sand.
“All good,” I tell her. I take a seat on the sheet. She sits beside me.
“Thanks for waking me up, Aaron. This was thoughtful. I feel the need to apologize. I’ve been a bitch because I thought. . .”
Oh oh.
“You thought what?” I swallow hard.
“That you were some brainless jock, who just wanted to get in my pants.” She smiles and even with the moonlight hitting the water I can see that she’s blushing.
“Half that sentence is true. I’m still thinking of the first item on your bucket list,” I confess. I’ve never been shy to say what I want and, at this point, it’s clear I want her in my bed.
“You just don’t hold back.” She giggles nervously.
“Don’t worry, Briar, it’s something my friends appreciate from me. Brutal honesty,” I wink. “Now we have about five minutes.”
She sips her coffee and looks out to the ocean. I take in the fresh ocean air. Having this quiet time with her is nice. I don’t feel compelled to carry on conversation. We’re just chilling and enjoying the moment. Having Mom get sick has made me realize how fleeting life can be. Dad is taking Mom to fill her own bucket list, but I feel like maybe I need to make one too. Because we never know what tomorrow will hold. Mom is slowly deteriorating, even though we are getting her top-notch medical treatment. We can slow down the illness but not stop it. I take a deep breath and focus on the flow of waves brushing against the sand. There is something so promising about watching the sun rise. For the first time in a while, it doesn’t feel like everything in my life feels cryptic and filled with doom. As we watch the rise of a new day, a feeling of peace coats my insides. It’s something I haven’t felt since Mom was diagnosed. I like that Briar is also absorbed in the moment. She’s quiet, looking out to the soft waves rolling in. When the sun makes an appearance, I turn to look at her. A sweet smile spreads her plump lips. The silence feels like a warm blanket between us. I turn back to the view, watching the sun slowly rising above the water. The sky turns different hues of peach, yellow, and purple. It’s something I will never forget. When it’s over, and the sun has risen above the water, Briar looks at me and says, “Thanks for waking me up.”
“Anytime,” I reply. “Truth is, I never took the time to watch the sunrise. It was worth waking up at the ass crack of dawn.”
She laughs. “It definitely was.”
We fall silent again and about ten minutes later Briar asks, “Would you like to grab breakfast?”
The fact that she’s initiating something between us sparks hope inside me. That can’t be right though.
“I’m starved. Lead the way.”
We both stand and I grab the sheet off the sand and shake it out.
We head back toward the hotel. My head is spinning. Her asking to share a meal with me means she is beginning to trust me. She’s been so apprehensive around me that I take it as a win. I want to take her to bed, but I know she isn’t going to go for that. So I stay satisfied with having her company for breakfast. Because what I am learning is that sometimes you just need to accept the small wins in life. And for some reason spending more time with Briar feels like a win.