Twist of Fate Read online

  She hisses an exhale, shaking her head. “I don’t have eight-fifty today.”

  “What?” He leans back in his chair giving her an exasperated look. “When will you have it, then?”

  “I’ll charge it to the renovation account—until I’m sure I don’t want to keep it for myself.”

  He slaps his knees and stands, shaking his head in annoyance. She shakes her head the same way, stomping after him, and I suppress a grin at their similar manner.

  Following them into the showroom, I watch Daisy’s cute little ass sway in those cutoffs. She left that enormous cardigan in the truck, and she’s got a sweet little body, curves in all the right places, narrow waist, round ass, small but perky little tits.

  Last night, I pretty much swore her off when my brother suggested it. Then I got to thinking, she’s not going to be here for long either. What’s wrong with having a little fun? Judging by our dance and the way the pink flooded her cheeks every time I teased her, she might be into it, too.

  “This is a Victorian Era wingback from the turn of the twentieth century.” Her dad is scolding. “Don’t sit in it when you’re wet or sweaty—”

  “I know, Dad, I found it.” Daisy curls up in the bright yellow chair, sliding her cheek along the scalloped cushions.

  She’s surrounded by plush velvet and carved wood, and if she wasn’t in cutoffs, I could imagine her stretching out and pointing a bare toe. Kind of like an old-school New Orleans sex kitten. Her dark eyes meet mine, and my stomach tightens.

  “Do you think you can lift it?” She’s on her feet, bouncing over to me. “It’s heavier than I thought with all this wood. But I can help.”

  “Is that a challenge?” I cut her a grin, wondering what it would be like to have her sit on my lap in this chair. Slide my hands under that tee and cup her breasts.

  I’d better cut that line of thinking before I get a boner in front of her dad.

  “Good,” the man gripes. “Then you’ll be on your way. I’m closing up early today.”

  Daisy’s brow furrows, and she walks over to him, touching his arm lightly. “What’s wrong, Dad? Are you feeling bad?”

  His chin pulls back, and he scowls. “Of course not. I’m healthy as a horse. I have business to attend to. That’s all.”

  “Oh.” Her voice is quiet, and she seems sad.

  An unexpected surge of protectiveness stings in my chest. I can’t imagine she sees her dad very often, and it seems like now she was hoping for more. I wish I knew what to say, but instead, I stand silent as a pack mule.

  “I guess we should get going then.” She gives me the signal, and I bend down to lift the chair by an arm and the back. Feels like it weighs eighty pounds.

  “Who is this?” It’s like her dad sees me for the first time.

  “Scout Dunne. He’s from Fireside. Scout, this is my dad, Doug Sales.”

  “How do you do, Mr. Sales?” I lower the chair again and extend my hand to shake.

  He shakes it, running dark, suspicious eyes over me, head to toe. “Are you dating my daughter?”

  “Ah… No, sir.”

  Daisy jumps in. “Scout is a friend of mine. He came to help me load and unload the chair.”

  “You listen to me, son.” He leans closer, his eyes laser-focused on mine. “I was young once. I know young men. They like to have… adventures.”

  Okay…

  “Have your adventure with someone else’s daughter. You got that?”

  “DAD!” Daisy’s shriek is so loud, I think she might shatter one of these old mirrors. “That’s it. Thanks for not selling my favorite chair. Bye.”

  She hops over and kisses his cheek, then heads for the door. I scoop up the chair with a grunt and follow her. So much for anybody giving me a hand.

  We’re back on the road with me behind the wheel this time, and Daisy’s looking out the window before she speaks again.

  “My mom was always so frustrated with him, and I never understood why.” Her voice is a little thoughtful and a lot annoyed. “Now I think I get it.”

  “I liked him.” Her face snaps in my direction, and I wink before turning to the road again. “He’s focused on his work. It’s kind of cool. Who knew there were so many antiques?”

  “It’s all he does.” She exhales heavily, placing her feet on the dash. It gives me a great view of her legs.

  Daisy is not tall, but she has really nice legs, shapely and muscular.

  I feel her gaze moving from my shoulder up my cheek and around my face. “Tell me, Scout Dunne, what are you afraid of?”

  I like how she says my name all bossy like that. It’s cute. Staring down the highway, I think about her question. “Not insects. Or reptiles or animals.”

  “I didn’t ask you what you weren’t afraid of.” Sassy pants.

  I want to give her cute little ass a pinch. I want to slide my fingertip down the wrinkles in her nose. “Being wrong.”

  “Like failing a test?”

  “No. Like… Making the wrong choice, wasting a lot of time, and missing the point.”

  “The point of what?”

  “You know, life. The whole point I’m here.” My throat is tight. Like I said, I’ve never even told J.R. this stuff.

  “Well, shit.” She looks out the window. “Isn’t everybody afraid of that?”

  “I don’t know.” I think about people I went to school with, people I graduated with, my brother. They never seem to think about it. “I guess I’m taking a crazy leap of faith moving to LA. Sometimes I feel like it could be a big mistake.”

  “I disagree! It’s not crazy to take a leap of faith. It’s something you have to do.” Her expression is so earnest. I remember now why I trusted her with this so long ago.

  “It feels crazy.”

  “But if you never do it, you’ll never know what might have happened. You have to try.”

  Now I remember why I kissed her that night after the dance.

  The night she says I broke the rules.

  “Looks like I’m going to.”

  The yellow chair fits perfectly with the style of her aunt’s old house. It would work in any room, but she makes me carry the damn thing from the living room to the conservatory. Who says conservatory anymore?

  Her hands clasp in front of her lips like she’s holding her breath, and her eyes meet mine. “I’d really like to have it in my bedroom.”

  “Where is that?” I’m afraid I already know.

  “Upstairs?” She moves her hands over her eyes, and when she peeps through her fingers, I shake my head.

  “Lead the way.”

  Her bedroom is navy blue with bright gold accents. The wallpaper matches the bedspread which matches the pillows, almost like they were all drawn together on one sheet of paper. A dark wood table is by the window, and a big white vase holding pale pink flowers like snowballs is on top.

  It’s where she wants the chair, and when I put it down, it’s like it was made to go here.

  “Did you do all this?” I motion around the room.

  “I did.” She grins like she’s waiting for my verdict.

  “It’s really nice. I mean, really nice.”

  “Really?” She bounces, clapping her hands.

  “I can’t believe something this nice is in Fireside.”

  With a little squeal, she throws her arms around my neck. “Thank you!”

  It’s so unexpected. Her body pressed against mine tightly, her cheek against my jaw. My hands span her waist, sliding lower. Soft lips touch my cheek, and I catch her chin, stopping her movement and covering her mouth with mine.

  She doesn’t pull away. In fact, her hands fist in my shirt, and I’m pretty sure she pulls me closer. Her mouth opens, and my tongue invades, sliding along hers, touching, tasting.

  Our kiss grows faster, and she exhales a sigh. Her body presses closer, and she feels so good in my arms.

  This is what I want. This is what I’ve been craving for so long, her taste, her scent, her touch. It’
s been four years, since our first kiss, when she pushed me away and said No.

  Now she’s soft and willing. She smells like salty caramel and sweet magnolia blossoms. Moving my lips to her jaw, sliding my tongue along her neck, she tastes like the ocean…

  Her breasts are pressed against my chest, and I can feel her tight nipples through the thin fabric of our shirts. I want to devour her. My dick is so hard.

  Lifting my head, I meet her eyes, and hers are stormy, hungry. She’s breathing fast, but so am I.

  “Yes?” I have to know she’s with me.

  Her forehead crinkles, and her eyes wince. In that moment of hesitation, looking into her deep brown eyes, a flash of something crosses my brain, a different path.

  I see us standing under an arch in this very pose. I see us walking down the aisle, waving to my brother across a crowd of people we’ve known all our lives.

  I see the two of us living in this house, opening my eyes in the morning as the sun shines golden through the windows. Going to bed at night, with the moonlight and stars, with her in my arms. A baby. A lifetime of rituals and family…

  Shit.

  Denying the boner in my pants, I step back. “We should stop.”

  “Oh, my God.” Her fists relax on my shirt, and she tries to smooth the wrinkles.

  A knot is in my throat, and I feel like I need to find a bucket of ice water to dump over my head. It’s the most excruciating kind of frustration, but holy hell. I saw my whole future in a flash just now.

  With her.

  I’ve got to get out of here.

  “I’m sorry…” she starts.

  “Don’t apologize.”

  “Still…” Her voice is pained, almost like she’s feeling the same physical frustration as me. Do girls get blue balls?

  Her hands go to her cheeks and she shakes her head, blonde curls bouncing around her ears. “You’re right. It would be a terrible idea… for both of us.”

  My forehead is tense, and I scrub it hard. “If you’re all set here, I’m taking off.”

  “I shouldn’t have kissed you like that. Please don’t be mad.”

  “Not mad.” Holding up a hand, I can’t look at her pretty face.

  If I see her lips swollen and pink from my kisses, her messy hair, her small breasts rising and falling under that thin, white tee… I’ll never get this fucking boner to go away.

  “I’ll check in tomorrow.”

  “You will? Why?”

  I don’t stop to answer that. I don’t even know the answer. Instead, I take off down the stairs and out the back door.

  Gran’s house is only a few blocks away. This morning, I got up from the breakfast table and walked over to Daisy’s place. This evening, I’m running. I run past Gran’s house, all the way out to the bridge leading to Oceanside Village, the sleepy little town just before you get out to the more touristy part. I don’t stop until I reach the tiny stretch of private beach across the road.

  It’s undeveloped and hidden in the trees. It’s just what I need. I need to get my head clear. I’ve got to focus on my goals and think about the future. I’m going to Hollywood to pursue the dream, long shot that it is.

  Daisy wants to leave here as well, it’s all she ever talks about—traveling, buying antiques, or whatever.

  I don’t know what happened back there when she kissed me. I’ve never had that experience in my life. My stomach is churning, and tightness is in my chest. I take several deep breaths and put it all into perspective. Daisy is a cute girl, she’s easy to talk to, and she’s got a very encouraging, bright personality.

  We’ve known each other a long time… granted it was always as friends, but still. It’s easy to explain whatever happened back there away. We got a little ahead of ourselves—probably because we’re both healthy, active people in our twenties. Hormones happen.

  I’ve made a plan, and I’m sticking with it. No reason to do otherwise.

  Five

  Daisy

  I want to die.

  Lying on my bed, I stare at the ceiling and replay what just happened in my head. I kissed his cheek, then it was like everything went off the rails. His mouth covered mine, and I tried to climb him like a tree.

  “Oh, God!” I cover my flaming face with my hands.

  My hands were fisted in his shirt—in his shirt! And I was pulling… I was literally trying to rip his clothes off. And ohhh, that kiss.

  I can still feel it hot and hungry and possessive, his tongue curling with mine, invading my senses like a hurricane.

  He erased my mind. All logic, reason… Gone.

  I wanted to lick him all over from top to bottom. I wanted to bite him. I wanted to kiss his sexy stomach, lower… I wanted to kiss his sexy cock. Heat flares in my core as I think about it. I was on the verge of going total wanton sex goddess on him.

  And he stopped it.

  At the start, it seemed like he was right there with me. Hell, I could feel his dick hard and ready on my stomach, but just as fast, he looked into my eyes. I looked into his, and it was like instant regret.

  He realized what he was about to do, and he practically ran away.

  “Oh, God!” I roll onto my side, moaning louder.

  Shame flashes so hard in my chest, my knees rise. I curl into a ball, wrapping my arms around them and pulling them tight to me.

  Anybody will tell you I’m nowhere near his league. What in the world took over me? I was a fool letting myself fantasize about him. Of course, he stopped it. He’s going to Hollywood, for God’s sake.

  My lips tighten, and my nose gets hot. I squeeze my eyes shut. No! I will not cry. Crying over Scout Dunne is the worst thing I could do.

  It’s pointless.

  He is every woman’s wet dream, probably even some men’s, and I’m not going to cry because he kept us from doing something majorly stupid. I’m going to be a realist and remember that I have my own dreams and plans.

  I’m going to get back to reality and stop being distracted.

  Banging from downstairs pulls me out of a fitful sleep. Sitting up groggily, I look down to see I’m still wearing what I had on yesterday. I didn’t even take a shower. I didn’t have dinner. My stomach growls, and I realize I’m starving.

  Clinking noises greet my ears, and I wonder what the hell is going on down there.

  Dull thumping on the stairs precedes the sound of my cousin’s voice. “Daisy! Are you planning to sleep all day?”

  “Sly?” I throw back the covers and jump out of bed, running down the stairs.

  “Hey, Daisy Kate!”

  “Sly!” My voice goes high, and we throw our arms around each other, jumping up and down as we hug and laugh.

  “What are you doing here?”

  “Just stopping by before I head to Mom’s. She said you were fixing this place up, but damn girl!” Her arm is around my shoulder as she looks around the kitchen. “This is amazing! Are you expecting Harry and Meghan? It’s like a royal country house.”

  “You think?”

  “This cute little teapot, and… Is that a giant metal rooster? Where did you find that?”

  “Owen’s junkyard… I got the teapot off eBay and this amazing chair from Dad’s…”

  Her navy eyes widen. “If you found any of this in Owen Pepper’s junkyard, I need to get back over there.”

  “How are you doing? Are you all done with school?”

  “I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t.” She puts her hands on her hips, smiling proudly. “I’m a certified massage therapist, specializing in sports therapy, reflexology, and aromatherapy.”

  “Aromatherapy!”

  “I couldn’t let my flowers go.”

  “Well, congratulations! We need to celebrate.”

  I’m so happy to see her. Sly is tall, but curvy with pale skin and auburn hair that hangs to her waist. I’ve always wanted to be more like her. She’s smart and fearless, and she’s always been more like a sister to me than a first cousin.

  That strange
clinking noise draws my attention, and I realize we’re not alone. A little boy is standing in the corner by the door watching us with giant blue eyes. He’s holding a set of keys, which I assume are my cousin’s, and he looks about four.

  “Who is this?” I smile and walk over to squat beside him. “Hi, little fella.”

  “Daisy, meet Oliver.” The little boy looks at me, not smiling.

  “Hi, Oliver!” I pat his little shoulder. He holds out the keys to me, and I smile, taking them. “Did you drive Sly’s car from Charleston?”

  He only shakes his little blond head, not speaking. “Well, you’re a cutie.”

  I give his hair a gentle muss before going to where my cousin waits, smiling fondly at the little boy. “Who’s Oliver?”

  “One of the girls in my class, Courtney? She had some… business… to take care of.” My cousin gives me a look, and I know I’ll have to get the rest of the story when we’re alone. “I offered to keep him for the weekend.”

  “Is everything okay?”

  She inhales slowly, shaking her head. “I hope so. I’m just being a friend.” Walking to where Oliver is waiting, she claps her hands, and he holds up his arms, jumping as she lifts him onto her hip like it’s the most natural thing in the world. “That’s why I’ve got to get over to Mom’s. This little guy needs breakfast, and we need to get unpacked. You coming over later?”

  “I wasn’t planning to, but I will now. I can’t wait to hear all about everything. Are you planning to stay here in Fireside?”

  “Haven’t decided. It’ll depend on the market. You know.”

  I follow her out and wait at the top step as she unlocks her minivan.

  “A minivan?” I can’t help teasing her. “How many kids are you planning to have?”

  “Have to be able to get my table around and all my crap.”

  “Oh, right.” I wave as she straps the little boy in his booster chair. “See you guys.”

  Walking back into the house, I put water in the kettle and prep the coffee. I have a Keurig for when we have guests, but when it’s just me, I use the pour-over.

  Scout said he’d stop by today, and my insides are all shaky and nervous. I hate it. We’ve always had more of an easy, laid-back relationship… with me crushing on him from afar. Now after last night’s unexpected moment, I can’t help thinking everything has changed.