40. Caleb
Chapter forty
I held out for as long as sanity would allow me.
Apparently, Dylan is a night owl, so Lex couldn’t call me on Christmas night.
I had to settle for back-and-forth text messages until we said goodnight.
I woke up just after five this morning to catch her on a video call when she made it to the beach for her morning yoga.
I spent Christmas Day with my family and went out on Mason’s boat for the morning, but now I’m taking the Corvette for a long-distance drive to Killara Bay.
I managed to book the last hotel room available in Lex’s hometown, a three-bedroom deluxe suite, but I refuse to spend another night away from my Siren. I just can’t do it. I’m going out of my mind.
I know we’ll have to sneak around while we’re there, since her brother doesn’t know about us yet.
And that’s fine. I just need to see her.
Have her in my arms. I figured I could come on the pretence that I wanted to see the tavern in person.
And with both the Morgan siblings there together, it made sense that now was the perfect time.
Lex doesn’t know I’m coming, though. I don’t want her to worry about how Dylan might perceive us.
But I also want to surprise her. She left my bed so early on Christmas morning that I forgot to give her my gift.
I was too busy getting my fill of her lips, knowing I would have to go without for a few days.
Turns out, I’m a needy man who can’t even last a full forty-eight hours.
It’s just hitting late afternoon by the time I’ve checked into the hotel and made my way over to Jedidiah’s Tavern. I know Lex is there now with her brother since they’re open. I’m looking forward to seeing what she’s like in her own space, not at Hallucinogens.
The pub is in a good location, close enough to the town centre that you could easily walk from your holiday accommodation. It’s also a stone’s throw away from the beach, making it the perfect spot to break for lunch or dinner after hours in the sun.
When I walk through the open doors, I take in the space.
It’s clean but dated. Three of the walls are floor-to-ceiling windows that make the space bright and airy.
You can see the beach in the distance, and there’s a nice, grassed area on one side with children running around a playground shaped like a pirate ship.
Considering it’s a public holiday, the tavern looks almost full. Waitstaff are navigating the tables with plates of food and trays of drinks. There’s easy rock playing over the speakers, and when my eyes finally land on the bar, I spot Lex and her brother.
They’re standing side by side, laughing as they pour drinks from the beer taps.
Lex has her red hair tied up in a high ponytail, with a white scarf wrapped around it.
She and her brother both wear black shirts.
When Dylan turns around to reach for a bottle on the shelf, I see the logo for Jedidiah’s taking up the whole back of the shirt.
A white anchor with Jedidiah’s written in rope font.
I stroll over, delighted when a bar stool opens up right in front of Lex. I have to quickly remind myself that her brother doesn’t know about us. I can’t do the usual flirting I do with her when she’s behind a bar. Definitely not the usual flirting I do with her when we’re behind closed doors.
“I hope there’s no slacking off happening back there.” I smile as I drop onto the seat .
Lex’s grey eyes fly up to mine, her immediate reaction is to smile, which she quickly drops as she realises where we are.
“Mr Heart,” she coughs out. “What are you doing here?”
I click my tongue. “None of that, Lex. Please call me Caleb.” I cross my arms over the bar top and lean toward her. Fuck, I’m going to be as obvious as a neon sign on Broadway. With the effort of a toddler resisting candy, I pivot my attention to her brother.
“Did I forget something on my schedule? I wasn’t expecting you.” Dylan is as friendly as he is confused.
“Not at all. The visit was an impulse. Work was slow, and I hadn’t made it here yet to see the place in person. I figured this would be a good time for a getaway.”
“So, are you just up for the afternoon?” Dylan asks.
“I was able to score the last deluxe suite at The Driftwood Hotel. I’ll head back to Heart City the day after tomorrow.”
“That’s how long Guppy’s up for, too.”
“Guppy?” I grin, taking in Lex as her cheeks blush.
“That’s the nickname Dyl’s always used for me.”
Fuck, I love learning things about her. Especially when it comes to her family. It’s such an important part of my life, and I know her brother means a lot to her too. I like that we have that in common. Family is everything.
“Can I get you something to drink?” Lex asks.
“I wouldn’t mind some Legacy Malt. How about Voyage on the rocks?”
“Lex sampled our newest one last night if you want to try that. It’s the one I was telling you about a few weeks ago.”
“I would love to.”
Lex nods and takes off down the bar, disappearing through a blacked-out door.
Once my eyes lose sight of her, I look back at the bar only to be met with calculated attention from her brother.
My foot bounces with nerves on the rung of the stool, waiting for the moment he’ll call me out.
Jesus, the one thing Lex asked for was keeping this from her brother, just for the time being, and I’ve already stuffed it up.
I shouldn’t have come down here. I was selfish in my need to see her.
I should have just let her have this time with Dylan.
I really didn’t think I’d be so obvious.
Dylan doesn’t say anything in the time Lex is gone. Just keeps flicking his eyes to me as he pours drinks.
“Still on the rocks?” Lex asks when she comes back, and I nod as she uncaps a bottle with gold ink scribbled across the glass. Maiden.
“Voyage, Captain and Maiden. I don’t know if Isabelle has asked you this yet, but will you keep the branding the same for each recipe?”
“I like the idea of mixing it up,” Lex says as she pours me a glass. “Having an icon for each blend rather than just the font, but I don’t want to get to the point where we run out of new things to do.” She looks at her brother, who agrees as he shakes up a cocktail of some sort.
“Not possible when you’re working with Isabelle. Trust me.”
“We already have an anchor on the Jed’s logo and a trident for Legacy Malt, but a helm would be great for Voyage, and I thought a tricorn hat would be good for Captain,” Lex says.
“What about Maiden?” Dylan asks.
I take a sip of the whiskey. There’s a sweetness to it, like caramel or toffee. It feels creamy and full-bodied on my tongue. Perfect, just as it is.
“A siren,” I say, my eyes closed as I savour the faint traces of cinnamon.
Dylan nods his head in contemplation. “Make it look like those old school figureheads on a ship. That’d look pretty cool.” He taps Lex’s shoulder with the back of his hand. “You should email Isabelle.”
“Yeah, I’ll send her something tonight. Did you want to order something from the kitchen, Caleb?”
“I might walk around the property first, and then I’ll come and grab something. ”
“Lex can take you around,” Dylan says, and it almost feels like a dare.
“I don’t want to steal her if you’re busy.”
“Nah, we can manage for a bit.” His voice is light, as if he’s teasing me, testing my reaction. “She’s all yours.”
I smile, trying to keep my features casual when really, I’m bursting with excitement to have Lex alone. I just can’t let her brother know that yet, though he may be a little smarter than I give him credit for. Or I’m a little more obvious than I want to admit.
“If you don’t mind, Lex. I’d love that.”
***
“What are you doing here?” Lex says once we are well out of sight from the tavern.
I rub my hands along her shoulders. “I’m sorry, Siren. I know you wanted to keep this from your brother for a bit. I didn’t realise it would be so obvious.”
“You’re the obvious one.” She laughs.
“Sorry,” I whisper.
“It’s okay. I won’t say anything unless he asks first.” She licks her bottom lip in contemplation. “I did miss you, though.”
I cup her cheeks and bring her lips to mine. “I missed you, too. I’ve never been so pathetic in my life.”
“Hey.” She smacks my chest playfully. “Are you calling me pathetic, too?”
I snatch her hand before she smacks me again, pressing a kiss to her palm, then laying it over my heart. “Not at all. I bet you would have survived the whole four days apart.”
She runs her nails up and down my forearm, tickling against the exposed skin. Every time she touches me, no matter how deep or minute, I feel it in my soul .
“Besides, it’s our first Christmas together, and you left before I could give you my gift.”
“Caleb!” she shrieks.
“What?”
“We’ve been together for like a week! You got me a gift?”
“Of course.”
“I didn’t get you anything.” Her pretty grey eyes droop like a puppy, and I hate that she feels bad about not buying me something. There’s nothing I could possibly want that compares to calling Lex my girl.
“Next to you, any gift would be insignificant,” I tell her, and her eyes gloss over.
I shake her hands, trying to cheer her up, injecting my next words with exaggerated excitement.
“Next year, if you could just wrap yourself up in a bow and lie under the tree, that would be amazing. Literally all I’ll ask for.
Pretty please”—I peck her lips—“with a cherry on top,” and the tip of her nose.
She jumps up against me, burying her face into my neck while her arms wrap around me.
I press a kiss to her forehead. “Is that a yes?”
“Yes.” She laughs.
“Good. Now let me give you your present.” I squat down so I can lift her legs and wrap them around me while I walk around the back of the tavern to my car.
“Ahh, you brought the Batmobile,” she says when she spots the Corvette.
I open the passenger-side door and lower Lex’s feet to the ground so I can sit in the seat. With my legs open and hanging over the side, I tug her back down to sit on my lap and open the glovebox, pulling out a white, square box with a big black ribbon.
She looks at me before accepting the box and pulling at the tails of the bow.
“Caleb,” she gasps .
I take the box from her hand and pull out the white gold bracelet. Dropping the box to the footwell, I unclasp the chain and bring it around her wrist, twisting to make sure the three pearls are sitting on top. Treasures from the sea, for my treasure here on Earth.
“This is beautiful.” She admires the bracelet as it sparkles under the overhead lights in the car. “Thank you, Honey.”
My heart thumps at the nickname. She’s never called me that before.
“Merry Christmas, baby.”