Favorite Coffee, page 25
"I'm your brother. Don't lie."
"Fine." A light music came from the house. Michael must be doing something. She turned her head, stared at the beach and lowered her eyes. Michael didn't need to hear her as she placed her hand on her heart. "I promise not to fall in love and want to marry Michael Marshall."
"Good."
Her heart beat faster. Love was in the cards for all of them, if they wanted. Calliope, Brandon, Michael, and everyone deserved a happily-ever-after. In her last moments of life, she too wanted to say 'I love you' to her husband. Brandon must want that too one day. She twirled and stared through the open glass to see inside as she said, "Brandon?"
"Yeah?"
Happy-ever-after must start with finding the people would make her life happy. The same would be true for her brother. "Take it easy. I know producing movies was the hobby that brought you joy, but lately you've been unhappy."
"I'm bored, sis. There is a difference. Look, are you sure I can't convince you to return to Miami with me? I promise Chris won't bother you."
Chris. Her body stiffened as she waited for a more visceral response from the sound of his name. Nothing came. She was quiet. Brandon and his future mattered far more at the moment. She narrowed her eyes. "Why, what did you do?"
"Nothing that any other brother wouldn't do."
No answer on what he’d done to Chris. As long as he hadn't ruined his own future over her stupid mistakes, then they were fine. She stilled. "Evading my question."
"Absolutely just as you are with me."
True. Michael's deep voice echoed in the house. Who would he talk to here? She adjusted her robe tie. "I'll be fine. I'm booking myself a massage and I want to walk the beach."
"Fine, just remember you are not alone in the world. You have me."
"Likewise, Brandon." The Campbell family might be small in number, but they were still strong. "Good luck with finding the actress you need."
She hung up the phone. At least her brother wasn't going to show up and do anything. Life was peaceful here. As she stepped into the air-conditioned house, goosebumps grew on her arms. She followed the light flow of music that wafted down the hall and turned into the open kitchen next to the small living area. She leaned against a white post and stared at the plates of eggs, hashed browns, toast, cheese, walnuts, orange juice and coffee cups on the table. Her eyebrows widened. "What are you doing?"
"Making us breakfast." He picked up a coffee press and brought it to the table.
He stood in cotton pajama bottoms. She tugged her robe around her chest and then took a step closer to the breakfast nook. "Where did you get the eggs?"
Then she caught site of the white trays on the counter.
"Caught." He placed his hand on her spine and led her to breakfast. Embers of desire from last night rose in her though she didn't say anything. She listened to her heart as he said, "Room service just stopped with breakfast and a few clothes for myself."
That explained the pants. She blinked. "Right. You never had a bag yesterday."
He shrugged as he pulled out her chair for her to sit. Once she did, he settled her in and took the seat beside her. "I can get whatever I need delivered."
Before he had the chance, she reached out and took the coffee press to pour them glasses. "Who will get your things you left on the ship?"
As he took the glass from her hands, he said, "My sister or the cruise will hand over my belongings to a charity somewhere. Doesn't matter really."
"That seems wasteful." Her face flushed and she looked away. Chris would have spent hours on the phone with the cruise line for his bags, not that it should matter anymore. She should no longer be expected to agree with Chris on anything, and they were Michael's bags.
He shrugged as he scooped the jam onto his bread. "Many would say that is my entire life."
"Doubtful." Michael Marshall added walnuts on top of his bread. He dug in and the joy in his eyes from that bite wasn't hidden. She buttered her slice but somehow didn't believe that she'd be half as excited about toast as he was. She ignored the thought and focused. "Aren't you running your father's company and making more money than he ever did at it?”
He stopped moving with his bread and arm near his face. "How do you..."
Good. She crossed her legs and stirred her coffee. He took another bite of his breakfast. Then she answered with her eyelashes lowered. "I read up on you. They are calling you, Michael Marshall, the new Whiz of Wall Street."
He finished his toast and folded his hands in front of his face. "I've always been good at poker and reading people."
This, she believed. She finished her plain toast and wondered what life would be like if she lived more like Michael, and took whatever she wanted. "What do you read in me then?"
He refilled his coffee cup. "Callie, you're far more dangerous than you realize."
"Why?" She batted her eyes and stared at him. If either of them were dangerous, she'd bet money it was him.
"You're on course to recklessness, when we both know it's the last thing you truly want."
“I’m never anything other than dependable.” True, but she hadn't expected Michael, who’d had any girl he ever wanted, to even care. Her own attraction to him had helped her sleep at night, but she knew better than to put stock in reality. Last night was for her, more about proving that she wasn't going to sit around and wait for her ex to ever come back. It was time to move on, but she'd never exactly been a wild child either. She sipped her coffee and wondered why it mattered what Michael said. Then she put the cup down and asked, "Why do you say that?"
"If Chris knocked on our door and told you that everything was a mistake, that Roxanne wasn't pregnant with his child, how fast would you marry him?"
Her heart felt like it stopped as her eyes widened. She never imagined that possible. The last time they had broken up, he had sworn he loved only her and realized it while dating others, but this time she couldn’t believe it, not again. This time, even if he returned, she'd be stupid to go back, again. Slowly she felt the heat of her skin radiate and lowered her head with a blush. She'd not leave Michael again. "I don't want that."
"You changed your mind in a day?"
"No," she said fast. For someone who never cared about anyone, Michael clearly knew how to aim his questions. She re-tied her robe as she thought that she had left his side once and perhaps that had hurt him, though she doubted it. "It's been coming for a while now. I didn't want to say yes. It was like a whirlwind that brought me to Mexico and now that I'm out, I'm thinking more clearly than I have in months. Last night, with you, I became free."
"Sex doesn't make you free."
“You’re free and you’ve had at least four women in your bed since New Year’s.”
“Four?”
“Eva, Brenda your Valentine date, Maria, who you took to the Heat game, and Amelie, who I met with you on South Beach.”
“I didn’t have sex with all of them. It was just Eva. The rest hadn’t interested me.”
“They were all beautiful.” Her eyebrows arched as she rested her hand under her chin. "You've had lots of it in the past and I would say you're free to do whatever you want in your life."
"When you have my reputation and past, you're never free. People assume the worst."
"No." Michael had slept with half the cheerleading squad. In college, he'd gone from cheerleaders to sorority girls all over the campus. And every morning, he’d had breakfast with her. She had longed to be his though she had Chris. Michael had always seemed shocked that his own bravado had earned him that many women, but she had been ‘just a friend.’ Then his father had died two years ago and now Michael dealt with how his father’s schemes destroyed trust, everyday, but still he picked up the remnants of the financial system his father had helped ruin and Michael faced daily distrust because of what his father had done. None of this made Michael the worst of the worst though. What happened to him was more sad than anything else. She scooted her chair closer and placed her hand on his arm. "Even my brother thought you were redeemable, Michael. He'd have never sent me off with you if he thought the worst."
"Or he was too happy to get rid of a man not worthy of you that he figured you'd take care of yourself. That's not exactly trust."
Not worthy? Her brother would never say that. He'd simply called Chris a multitude of names, but those words were Michael's. He had to know that he was better than he made himself sound. "It's not distrust." He shook his head. "I don't care about your brother's opinion of me. I only care about yours."
He leaned closer.
She could recall those dimples of his in her deepest sleep. She closed her eyes and remembered how she’d burned last night as she’d cupped those sexy indentations on his face. She swallowed. "Then I'm happy we're friends."
He became silent and withdrew. Was it possible that he saw her as more than just a one night stand? Probably not, but her pulse quickened. Right now she shouldn’t ask. One day she might be ready for more with Michael, but for right now all she needed was friendship and good sex. Anything else would confuse her and besides, this was all Michael had to offer her.
51
The way Michael stared at her made her sense he'd like to rip her robe off her and take her again. Her inner core was warm just imagining the scenario, right here on the kitchen table. It was better if they did something besides make out. She swallowed and asked in a rushed tone. "Want to go to the beach? Did room service pack you a bathing suit as well?"
He winked at her and her skin felt energized. Right now she needed to breathe. She tightened her robe and wished she had gotten dressed. How she acted near Michael was completely out of character for her. Until yesterday, she’d always done what was expected of her. It was ingrained in her bones to simply agree, but she’d become a different person overnight. It could be the aftereffects of her botched wedding or it was Michael. She couldn’t think on it too long right now. "We can stay here and just use our pool. Then we can swim naked."
Her face felt flushed. The last thing she needed was to think about last night. She sat straight to create some distance. "So all you bought were those pajamas?"
"No. A few other pieces and more condoms."
Wow. Right now she had no idea. Michael Marshall confused her. She had lied to herself, as usual, but also to him on what he wanted, which is that they were friends with benefits, but in her mind's eye, when she didn’t blink it away she imagined a road trip in a convertible with the top down as Michael drove them near the ocean on some crazy adventure. She spent years dreaming about how they might live happy-ever-after, but that was impossible. She stood and glanced at him. "I need a few hours to relax and close my eyes. Last night, you were…demanding."
He stayed in his seat but winked at her. "I bought shorts that can be used to go into the ocean. Rest is fine for this morning and makes this afternoon much more appetizing."
Confusion rang as she took one more gaze at his strong shoulders and then walked to her room. The few minutes alone chilled her and she cleaned up fast and went to her bag to get her clothes. In her suitcase, she shuffled through her new clothes she’d bought for her honeymoon and stopped to ponder the yellow bikini or her usual black one-piece swimsuit. The bikini was to show Chris that she was willing to try new things. With Michael, she'd wear it just to see the gleam of approval in his eyes. She dropped her old one-piece and told herself honestly this was still a new beginning, but with Michael.
No. The thought made her stop, but then she heard Michael close a door in the kitchen area. She finished dressing as she told herself her new beginning was for her to be alone.
She found her cover-up and flip-flops. Once she was done she popped her head into the living area and saw Michael in cotton shorts and a white tee shirt, sitting as he stared at a laptop. "What are you doing? Where did you get the MacBook?"
"It's a good hotel and they had one available."
"So you trust the hotel with your financial information, but you don't risk your heart ever."
"It's not a risk when I can sign out."
She came closer and saw how he stared at her curves. "So you don't care about hackers. Got it."
"No, I just wanted to check some emails and check in on a few investments. Are you ready?"
The entire past year might have been so much fun if she’d told Chris to go and hadn’t walked away from Michael. She touched his arm and he stood to go. She glanced around the white room with small portraits of local life. This wasn't just a small room with a bed. If she’d spent this year with Michael and they were a real couple, she’d have lived in places like this. She massaged her neck. "This is much nicer than the hotel room I was supposed to be in for the week. If I had stayed on our 'date' last year, would it have ended up in a place like this?"
"Or in waiting for you, it made me realize I needed to pull out all the stops."
Her body lurched like she wanted to kiss him, but she held still. He knew exactly what to say, but then that was always his reputation. It was better not to put stock in her feelings now, so she walked briskly to the door. She went to the door and they ended up outside on the sunny day. It was better to ensure they were on the same page. "What stops? We're just friends, with benefits these days, like you and Eva Bishop were until recently."
"You are nothing like Eva."
"How so?"
They walked toward the beach and took advantage of their private access as no one else was on the white sands or near the blue umbrella with white beach chairs that she aimed for. “I don’t want to discuss.”
“We’re both your long-time friends.”
He peeled off his white tee shirt and threw it on the chair next to where she placed her bag. "Eva and I were both looking to forget our lives, and we're both adults about exploring what we wanted from each other."
No, no, no. Her body ached for Michael and so did her heart. The lifetime of denial seemed stupid. She lowered her gaze to not look at his chiseled abdomen that reminded her of how hot last night was. "I know not to get attached to you, Michael. You don't believe in getting tied down."
"Who told you that?"
Now she looked at him and took off her cover-up. It was time to go into the ocean. "You did."
"When was that?" He followed her toward the ocean's edge.
She dipped a toe in the water and felt it was warm. In Miami the ocean was lukewarm, but here, the ocean was like warm soup. She never even looked over her shoulder. "In college, one day when we had lunch in the university center."
"You were always the exception to the rule."
"Doubtful." She walked deep enough and took a dive into the water. As she surfaced, she said, "You sounded sincere."
"I was talking about other women. Of course I was sincere." He dove.
She watched the water for his return. Then she circled. It was longer than she expected. Where was he? She was about to call his name, but she felt a hand on her leg. He surfaced as their bodies briefly touched and she peeked into his blue eyes. "Is this how you get women to fall in love with you? ’Cause I have to say I'm flattered."
He leaned closer and put his mouth next to her ear. Her pulse quickened as he said, "I don't ever say this to other women."
She splashed him, mostly to make space between them. Then she swam but he followed. The ocean water must be affecting her brain cells. She stopped swimming and turned toward him. Part of her hoped he'd want to spend every second of his life with her. "Okay, I'll play. What makes me an exception?"
"Calliope, besides the fact I have known you all your life and remember you in pigtails as you dodged water from the sprinkler on my front yard, you always spoke to me like you listened. Most people never bother to see past the obvious."
The last part made no sense. "What obvious?"
"That I'm rich and good-looking."
She splashed him. "That's absolutely vain."
He splashed her in return but then winked. "You get to say that because you have a trust fund."
Money in the bank wasn't a family and life insurance with trust funds for her and her brother had never made her feel better when the moon was in the sky and she was alone. "I'd rather have my parents."
"That's where we differ. My parents were always searching for the bottom line and Sandra and I never mattered as much."
Her parents had been in love. His father would have gone to jail if not for his own suicide. She stepped closer to him and he stopped splashing. Even as children, she remembered vague moments like his father yelling at Michael on the front lawn when he wanted to play. The memory faded. "Your father was horrible to you, but your mom was nice."
"I stopped remembering her."
Cancer had taken his mother when he was ten. Her own mother had hugged her tight when she asked about death that night. No one must have hugged Michael. She placed her hand on his shoulder and leaned close. "You shouldn't. She loved you."
"I don't want to talk about my mother. Now that you're free, what was it about Chris that held you to him all this time? You were faithful when no one else would be."
Hard questions. She let him go. She wasn't ready to answer questions about herself. She turned toward the ocean and stared into the blue that went on forever. "He was sweet when we were younger."
"He acted like he was the one with the trust fund."
No. Chris had loved her at some point in their life, he must have. She wasn't stupid, though Michael chipped at the same point that Brandon had been telling for the past year. She turned to face Michael again. "No. He was always telling me to be conservative and not spend."
"The Chris you knew and the Chris I saw were two different people. Don't let anyone else ever control your money, Calliope."
All of this was too much. She wanted to not think about anything anymore, especially her bad choices. "Fair enough. Now will you kiss me, Michael?"
He followed her command. His hand traced her body, and she felt her nipples pucker as his body came closer to her. As his lips descended, he said, "Calliope, it's time for you to admit you want a you and me."
