Chapter 16
Chapter Sixteen
S ince he was coming off a win, Nate figured he’d asked Faye over ice cream if she wanted him to stay another night at her place.
The couple nights he’d stayed with her had been, well, amazing. Sure, the work he was doing on his place had stopped, but Parker and his crew had updated the plumbing where needed and fixed a few electrical issues.
“So,” he said, brushing her hand lightly with his fingers, “any chance you want me to stay another night?” He’d missed her in bed when she’d spent the night at her mother’s place in Portland.
Faye looked up from her half-eaten ice cream, the corners of her lips tugging into a soft smile. “You just want to sleep on a real mattress again instead of an inflatable one.”
“Guilty,” he admitted, grinning. “But also, maybe I just like waking up next to you.”
That earned him a look—sweet and amused and maybe a little vulnerable. “Then yes,” she said. “Stay.” She took another bite of her ice cream.
They made it back to the house just before dusk. The wind had picked up slightly, carrying the scent of the ocean with it, and the sky was starting to melt into pinks and purples.
“Take a walk with me on the beach?” she asked as they got out of their cars.
He didn’t even hesitate. “Of course.”
They kicked off their shoes at the top of the stairs and headed down to the beach. The tide was pulling out, leaving glossy streaks of water across the sand. It shimmered like glass under the sunset.
For a while, they didn’t talk, just walked, toes dipping into the cool surf, shoulders brushing as they moved in step.
“This place doesn’t feel real sometimes,” she said eventually, her voice low, carried off a little by the wind. “Everything that has happened since I’ve been here seems like a dream.”
“It’s a good dream I hope,” he asked.
“The best.” She laughed.
He smiled and then pulled her into his arms and kissed her until they were both breathless.
She held onto him as they stood together watching the last sliver of sunlight disappear beyond the waves.
Later, as they got ready for bed, he realized how easy of a rhythm they fell into around one another. They had decided to sleep downstairs in the guest room on the main floor since he was sure that she was creeped out about the passage door being opened the other day.
She was wearing one of his old T-shirts to bed, and for some reason that made his heart thump in his chest.
It was the simple things he was enjoying with her. Like when they crawled into the queen-sized bed together and she easily moved over while he pulled her into his arms.
He made the mistake of kissing her, which turned into him covering her body with his own and pinning her down as the passion built between them.
He stripped his T-shirt from her along with those sexy boy-short underwear that she was wearing.
“These drive me crazier than the silk and lace,” he admitted against her skin, letting his mouth trail down her ribs and past her belly button.
Then he spread her legs wide and lapped her up as her nails scraped against his skin, driving him to move faster.
His need tripled when she let out a soft moan as he dipped his fingers inside her slowly.
Her back arched as her legs slid around his shoulders.
When would he feel sated from her?
“I need…” he said, taking her in like she was a drug. He needed more of her until he felt her vibrating under him.
She was sweet and silky against him.
He was in heaven.
When the last threads of his control broke, he slid up her body and took her as he covered her mouth to inhale her soft moans.
He’d never felt so much power, so much desire before in his life. She was everything.
He would move heaven and earth if it pleased her.
When they both broke into a million pieces in unison, they lay there in complete silence, wrapped around one another as their bodies cooled.
His chest desperately wanted to expel the words his heart was screaming, but he knew it was too soon for her. He knew that she didn’t need another scare. Besides, they had plenty of time.
Thankfully, he had opened the bay windows just enough to let in the rhythmic sound of the waves and to allow the cool breeze to float into the room, and within minutes, Faye was asleep beside him—curled in, peaceful.
Nate, however, lay awake longer. Listening. Thinking. Feeling something deep settle in his chest. It felt like contentment. Like possibility.
Then a sound startled him.
Sharp. Distant.
He blinked in the dark, heart already ticking faster. He turned his head—Faye was still asleep, wrapped around him, her breathing soft and steady.
Then he saw movement across the room.
A shadow—just a flicker—by the bedroom doorway. He blinked a few times.
Then he sat up.
Was that…?
He strained to listen. Nothing. No floor boards creaking outside the door. No door hinges whining with the strain of being opened or closed. Just the wind outside. A distant creak of the old house settling somewhere deeper inside the building.
But something in his gut told him to move. To go check it out.
Slipping carefully away from Faye without disturbing her, he slid out of bed and stepped quietly into the hallway. His bare feet made almost no sound on the wooden floor.
At the base of the stairs—there.
Another shadow. Dark. Still.
Watching?
His breath caught.
At the base of the stairs stood a blonde woman in a long cream-colored gown. Her hair was half pinned up, half flowing around her shoulders. Was there wind in here?
She looked at him with blue eyes that were so sad that he felt her pain in his chest almost instantly.
When their eyes locked, she turned slightly and motioned to the far wall.
“My heart.” A whisper on the wind.
He took one step toward her, toward the wall, heart hammering against his ribs.
Then—
He jolted awake and sat up in the bed beside Faye, dislodging the blankets from her.
Blinking a few times, he scanned the room. The bedroom door was solidly shut. The wind blew softly through the windows.
The house was completely silent except for the steady beat of the waves outside.
He allowed time for his heart to settle before quietly lying back down beside Faye and pulling her gently next to him.
Just a dream, he told himself as he drifted back to sleep.
Morning light streaming through the windows, warm and bright, woke him the next morning. The scent of coffee drifted in from the kitchen and the bed beside him was empty and cold.
When he made his way into the kitchen, he avoided glancing at the spot where the woman and had been and the wall she had pointed at in his dream.
Faye was standing at the kitchen counter in those sexy shorts and his T-shirt.
Her long hair was braided to one side, and she had a sleepy smile on her face as she held out a mug to him.
Her eyes ran over him quickly and a slight frown formed on her lips.
“Are you okay?” she asked, handing him the mug.
“Yeah,” he said, rubbing his eyes. “I just had a weird dream.”
He didn’t mention the shadow he’d seen or the woman. Still, all morning long as they ate and got ready for their day, the woman’s voice echoed in his head.
He drove them into town in his truck, Faye’s fingers tapping against her thigh in rhythm with the music playing low from the radio.
“Big day at Brew-Ha-Ha?” he teased.
“Always,” she said. “Everyone’s been wearing red, white, and blue all weekend.” She motioned to her red shirt. “Thankfully, Jessie texted me this morning reminding me.”
“I guess it’s a good thing I didn’t implement a dress code,” he joked. “Clover and Lea get way into holidays. Every year for Halloween, they dress up all month long.”
“Really?”
He laughed as he pulled into the parking lot. “Actually, it was my mother who started that tradition. My uncle Nate—who I was named after—loved Halloween,” he said, glancing over at her. He leaned across to kiss her gently. “If you need anything, let me know.”
She nodded and laid her hand on his cheek. “I’m fine,” she said, and he wondered if it was more for her benefit than his own.
“Any pain?” he asked quickly.
She narrowed her eyes as if thinking about it. “Just a little, but the worst part is that my hearing is still muffled. I may not work the register today and stock shelves instead.”
“Good idea.”
She tilted her head. “What happened with the woman?”
His heart skipped a beat as he thought about the blue-eyed woman that had been dressed in the long flowing dress in his dream. “What woman?”
“The one who was complaining about her coffee when I passed out last week,” she said, and he instantly relaxed.
“Oh, Lena said that after you passed out, she laughed as she videoed you and then skipped out on her bill.”
“That bitch,” Faye said softly.
He nodded. “Don’t worry, when everyone in town heard about that, they sort of went on a witch hunt.
Matt Stevens found her eating dinner with her son at the Golden Oar, so he called in Nick, who showed up in full uniform and threatened to charge her for skipping out on her bill.
She was forced to pay, and she got a ticket for parking her car in a handicap spot. ”
“I hope she learned a lesson.”
He agreed and kissed her again. “I’ll pick you up after work. Don’t let anyone else treat you like that. Call me if they try.”
“Deal. What are you working on today?”
“I’m going to try to finish the kitchen. The granite countertop company is coming over after lunch to take measurements.”
“Try not to have too much fun without me,” she said with a slight sigh.
“No promises.” He laughed. “I’ll send you photos of the granite samples so we can pick something out together.”
“I look forward to seeing them.” She kissed him again and then climbed out of the truck.
He watched her head inside and waited until the door closed behind her before pulling away—already planning what he wanted to get done that day.
But even as the day began, that image from his dream still clung to the corners of his mind:
The woman. Her whisper.