Chapter 6 #2
The more time she spent with him, the more she liked him and the more he challenged the rules she’d set for herself a long time ago. No romantic entanglements. She’d been hurt enough in her life as it was. The last thing she needed was more hurt, but Riley seemed so different.
He had at first, too. He was so nice and sweet and charming, until you said no to him and he took what he wanted anyway.
The thoughts and the memories that came with them made her shiver.
“Are you cold?” Riley asked, tuned in to her the way no one else had ever been, or so it seemed.
“A little, but I’m fine.” She was scared senseless, but she couldn’t tell him that. He’d been so sweet and so kind. Not to mention, he was incredibly handsome and sexy. That’d been the first thing she’d noticed about him the day he came to the house to see about the leaking roof.
His dark hair, blue eyes, chiseled face and muscular body made her want to forget all about her stupid rules. Add his physical attributes to the warm, engaging personality, and she was nearly powerless to resist his alluring charm.
Riley McCarthy posed the first serious threat to a heart she kept well-guarded after it’d been shattered twice in the past—once by her father and again by a man who’d pretended to care about her when in fact he’d been after something she hadn’t wanted to give him.
Anxiety, her constant companion for years now, had her mind racing, her stomach churning and her body feeling as if it was under attack.
Fight-or-flight mode, she referred to it.
Medication helped to keep it under control, but every so often, it would rear its ugly head and take her hostage the way it had for years before a doctor suggested the medication that had given her back her life.
Spending time with a handsome, sexy, charming man who was clearly interested in her brought back the anxiety she’d worked so hard to escape.
Nikki had to remind herself that Riley wasn’t the problem.
He hadn’t done anything to cause the unrest that churned within her, and it wouldn’t be fair to assign any blame to him.
At the Beachcomber, he again ushered her in ahead of him with a hand on her lower back that he immediately removed when they were inside.
Nikki wanted him to leave it there, a thought that set off a new wave of tingles down her spine and more churning in her stomach.
She swallowed the tight knot that formed in her throat and took a deep breath, reminding herself that not all guys who seemed sweet at the outset were charming you into a false sense of security.
Most of them were exactly as they appeared, and, according to her grandmother, Riley’s family was highly regarded on the island.
They were people who could be trusted, which was why she’d let him into her house when he appeared out of the darkness last night.
It was why she’d welcomed him back and agreed to have dinner with him.
And it was why she was walking into the Beachcomber bar, where she would likely meet his father and possibly his brother, too.
Deep breaths.
Riley smiled at her as he snuck up on a man sitting at the bar. “Hey, old man, what’s up?”
Smiling, the man said, “Who you calling old?”
“There’s nothing old about him,” the pretty blonde bartender said with a welcoming grin for Riley.
“Spare me the gory details,” Riley said, bringing Nikki in with his arm around her shoulders, as if it was no big deal for him to put his arm around her.
“Dad, Chelsea, this is Nikki Stokes. Nikki, this old guy is my dad, Kevin McCarthy, and his fiancée, Chelsea Rose. She’s way out of his league, but she doesn’t seem to realize that. ”
Kevin stood to shake Nikki’s hand. “Pleasure to meet you, Nikki, and I agree completely that my lovely Chelsea is way out of my league.”
“Nice to meet you, too, Dr. McCarthy.” Handsome men definitely run in the McCarthy family, Nikki thought.
“Call me Kevin, please.”
Nikki shook hands with Chelsea across the bar. “Nice to meet you.”
“You, too. What’re you drinking?”
“Pinot grigio?”
“Coming right up. Usual for you, Riley?”
“Yes, please. Thanks, Chelsea.”
“No problem.”
“Have a seat, guys,” Kevin said.
Riley helped Nikki onto the stool between him and his father.
“Are you guys coming from dinner?”
“Yep,” Riley said. “Domenic’s was awesome as always.”
“Love it there. I’d eat there every night if Chelsea didn’t have to work.”
“Are you saying it’s better than the chowder and burgers we have here?” Chelsea asked, her brow raised.
“Nothing can beat the atmosphere here,” he said, winking at her.
Chelsea laughed. “Watch out, Nikki. These McCarthy men are smooth-talking charmers.”
“I’m beginning to realize that,” Nikki said.
“We come by it naturally,” Riley said. “It’s in the DNA.”
“Has she met Mac yet?” Kevin asked.
“Just now at Domenic’s. He and Maddie were on a date night.”
“He’s the smoothest-talking one of us all,” Kevin said.
“No way,” Riley said. “That honor goes to his dad, Big Mac. Wait until you meet him.”
“You’re right,” Kevin said. “My older brother is in a class all his own.”
“There seem to be a lot of you around here,” Nikki said.
“The whole family has gravitated to the island in the last few years,” Kevin said. “My brother Mac has six children, who are all here, and my brother Frank has two, and they’re both here as well.”
“Every member of the family went in on the purchase of the Wayfarer at the end of last year,” Riley said. “And now we’re renovating it to hopefully open for the summer.”
“That’s really something that the entire family is involved,” Nikki said. She couldn’t imagine what it would be like to be part of a family that did something like that together.
“Another of my brother Mac’s big ideas,” Kevin said. “He’s full of them.”
“This was a good one,” Riley said. “The Wayfarer was a gold mine back in the day before it fell into disrepair. We’re excited to bring it back to life.”
She could see his passion for his work in the way his eyes sparkled when he talked about it. “Do you like working with your cousins?”
“I love it,” Riley said bluntly. “I’ve learned a ton from Mac and Shane and Mac’s business partner, Luke Harris, who is a master carpenter and woodworker. In his spare time, he restores old wooden boats.”
“Oh wow. That’s amazing. I’d love to see his work sometime.”
“Big Mac owns a couple of the boats Luke restored,” Kevin said. “They’re at the marina in the summer.”
“Nikki has an interest in renovation and restoration,” Riley said.
She felt her face heat with embarrassment. “If you can call an obsession with HGTV an interest.”
“Right there with you, sister,” Chelsea said. “I could watch that network twenty-four hours a day and never get tired of it. I’ve convinced myself I could do everything they do because I’ve watched so much of it.”
“Me, too!” Nikki said, thrilled to have found a kindred spirit. “I told Riley that I want to renovate my grandmother’s house, and he’s got me thinking I could do it.”
“I’ll help,” Chelsea said. “I’d love to. I wield a mean paintbrush.”
“Thank you,” Nikki said. “It’s so nice of you to offer. I’ll take all the help I can get. I have no idea what I’m doing, but I know just enough to be dangerous.”
Riley laughed. “She’s got a PhD in HGTV.”
“Exactly,” Nikki said.
“What does your grandmother think about your plan to renovate?” Kevin asked.
“I’m going to talk to her about it tomorrow and see if she’s okay with it. I’m sure she will be. Jordan and I are her only grandchildren, so she always tells my sister and me that the house belongs to us. We don’t like to think about the day when we’ll officially own it, you know?”
Riley nodded with understanding. “I totally get that. You want her around for many more years to come.”
“I’d rather have her than the house any day,” Nikki said bluntly. Other than Jordan, Evelyn Hopper was the most important person in her life. She’d been their touchstone during a difficult and chaotic childhood.
Chelsea quizzed Nikki about what she wanted to do to the house while the guys listened patiently, interjecting suggestions and comments.
An hour went by before Nikki came up for air, surprised to realize she already felt like she’d known Kevin and Chelsea for far longer than an hour.
Like Riley, his dad was easygoing and charming, not to mention extremely handsome.
He was funny and interested in what she had to say, and Nikki liked him a lot.
“Should we share our news?” Chelsea asked him when they finally had a lull in the conversation.
“I was going to ask him and his brother to lunch tomorrow, but I suppose we can tell Riley now.” To his son, he added, “But don’t tell Finn yet. I want to tell him myself.”
“You’ve got my attention,” Riley said. “What’s up?”
“Chelsea’s pregnant,” Kevin said, smiling warmly at his fiancée.
The obvious love between them filled Nikki with an odd feeling of envy. What would it be like, she wondered, to have such a bond with a man?
“Wow,” Riley said. “Congrats. That’s awesome.”
“We’re glad you think so,” Chelsea said, seeming relieved by Riley’s support.
“Congratulations,” Nikki said.
“We’re going to get married at the end of the month,” Kevin said, reaching for Chelsea’s hand across the bar. “Uncle Mac and Aunt Linda agreed to let us borrow their hotel for a mid-winter wedding.” He glanced at his son. “I’ll want you and your brother to be my best men, if you’re willing.”
“Of course we’re willing,” Riley said. “I’m happy for you guys.”
“Thanks, bud,” Kevin said. “That means everything to both of us.”
Nikki wondered what Riley was really thinking. If he was upset by his father’s news, he was doing a great job of hiding it.