“Well, I am an excellent cook, so we have options and won’t starve,” he joked back. “Let’s stop for groceries. We’ve had a full day, and that way we can settle in and avoid the outside world. I’ll pack a bag and meet you at your place?”
“Sounds good. I need to check in with Eddie and Gabe to make sure they can watch Felix. See you in a bit.” She closed her car door and headed straight to Eddie’s side of the duplex while Fin walked toward the garage apartment.
By the time they arrived at Gary’s beach house, the sun had set. Stopping at the grocery store had been both enlightening and surreal. Alex’s method of grocery shopping was to grab what you needed and get out. Fin, however, liked to browse the selection for inspiration on what to cook. She assumed that was the difference between someone who rarely cooked and someone who enjoyed doing so. She’d blushed when Fin boldly strolled down the birth control aisle and picked up a large box of condoms. At the checkout counter, they’d briefly argued over who would pay, but Fin insisted that since she had arranged the accommodations, he would handle meals.
Her navigation system led them to a bright blue and white cottage, where Alex pulled into the driveway and shut off the car. The cottage, like all houses in this section, was up on stilts and had storm shutters over the windows and doors.
She found the key where Gary told her it would be, then helped Fin unload the car and carry everything upstairs. Alex took their overnight bags to the master bedroom while Fin unpacked the groceries.
“You ought to feel right at home here with this beach motif,” she observed as she took in the combination living and kitchen area.
“Ha. You’re a funny woman. I could hear the ocean when we got out of the car. It sounds close.”
“Yeah, from what Gary sent me, the beach is a short walk from here. I packed a flashlight if you want to check it out after we eat.” After unpacking their groceries, he started on their meal and she set the table. After the late afternoon nachos, they had agreed to a light supper of Caesar salad with pre-cooked chicken, since they weren’t sure about the grilling situation at the cottage.
As they sat down to eat, Alex told Fin what she knew about Galveston’s history. “There’s a museum downtown we can check out tomorrow. In 1900, a massive hurricane came through and wiped out the entire island. The storm destroyed almost everything, and thousands died. They rebuilt and added the seawall to protect the island from future storms. The museum has tons of information on it.”
“Have you been through a hurricane?”
“Oh, sure… Downtown Houston is about fifty miles from the coast and we get storms every year. Some small, some large. Mostly we see the edge of a storm that has landed somewhere else along the Gulf Coast. But sometimes we suffer a direct hit. You constantly hear stories about the bad ones. Tropical Storm Allison in 2001 caused a crazy amount of flooding around town. Hurricane Ike in 2008 was only a category-two storm, but it spun off tornados around Houston causing a great deal of damage. And I was here for Hurricane Harvey in 2017. That was a nightmare.”
She had been lucky and hadn’t flooded, but two of her friends had gone through hell, losing their houses and rendered homeless for a while. Eddie and Gabe had come through for a few of their mutual acquaintances by setting up temporary campers around their yard and the parking area behind the duplexes. Alex had volunteered at the shelters, handing out water and supplies.
“Why continue to live here with that kind of danger?” he asked.
Alex shrugged and took a swig of her drink. “Tornados in the Midwest, wildfires in California, earthquakes along the West Coast… I mean, it can be dangerous anywhere you live. Why not live somewhere you love and deal with nature the best you can?”
“Fair enough,” he said.
They finished eating and cleaned up. With a flashlight in hand, they headed down to the beach where they walked hand-in-hand, spotting crabs and talking about other beaches they had visited. After Alex yawned for the third time, Fin insisted on returning to the beach house.
The cottage had two bathrooms, so they each took one to shower off and get ready for bed. Alex fidgeted with her hair and adjusted the straps on her tank top for the fifth time.Stop being nervous, she told herself.He’s seen you naked before.She closed her eyes and slowly inhaled, then exhaled. She repeated this mantra two times before she annoyed herself, switched off the light, and walked into the bedroom.
Fin sat in the chair by the window, looking at a book on seashells. Alex stopped in her tracks and inhaled sharply. He wore thin cotton pants and no shirt. She always joked with her friends that she “was a chest man herself,” but the reality was, she wasn’t kidding. Fin’s chest made her want to rub her hands all over him. His body was well-defined from his regular workouts, with a thin sprinkling of hair to cover his muscles. She watched those muscles ripple as he turned the pages.
He looked up at her and grinned. “Some of these shells are stunning. Look at this one.” He held the book up and showed her the picture of a large conch shell with iridescent coloring on the inside. His damp hair curling around the back of his neck combined with his enthusiasm reminded Alex of an excited little boy. She sat on the bed and watched him pore excitedly over the pictures.
“Which side of the bed do you want?” she asked.
Fin put the book aside and moved toward her. “It doesn’t matter to me. I don’t have a side.”
She yawned again and pulled back the covers. “Me neither. I wind up sleeping around Felix and typically end up in the middle.” Alex slid under the covers and sighed. The bed was surprisingly comfortable.
Fin turned off the light and climbed in next to her. He pulled her close to him and wrapped his body around her, tucking her in tight. “Sweet dreams, lass,” he whispered.
Alex wanted to stay awake. She wanted to make love to this beautiful man, but exhaustion from the day’s events pulled her into a weightless, drifting place. The warmth of the man behind her induced such a feeling of safety and security that she sank into slumber without another thought.
Fin listenedas Alex’s breathing deepened, amazed at how fast she’d fallen asleep. She must have been exhausted. He winced, thinking the walk on the beach might have been too much. He should have realized the emotional toll of the day would wear on her.
He had been intrigued when she’d called that morning, wanting to punch things. Alex was already fit and had taken to boxing naturally. He’d enjoyed sparring with her. Initially, he’d been impressed at how physically strong she was. Even now, he wasn’t sure how much of the strength came from her anger and how much was natural. And she had been howling angry. He didn’t blame her. He regretted that her interaction with him had caused the conflict with her boss.
Fin sighed and pushed the thought aside. The day had been perfect, exactly what he’d imagined a break from the showbiz world would be, and the woman beside him was a part of that. The more time he spent with Alex, the more he realized how complex she was. She often masked her keen intelligence with light-hearted banter. Her friends from volleyball seemed to paint her as emotionally distant, but she’d been uninhibited with him. From everything he’d learned about her this past week, she seemed conservative in her personal relationships, but she hadn’t hesitated to get physical with him or take the lead when the chemistry between them had ignited. He tightened his arms around her and kissed the back of her head. And he liked this woman. He rarely let people in, but she had quickly found a spot in his inner circle. He expected them to remain friends and keep in touch even after he left Houston.
Fin’s thoughts became sluggish, and he drifted off to sleep in a state of contentment.
Fin slowly awokefrom the most incredible dream. He’d dreamt a gorgeous woman was making slow, sweet love to him. As he came more fully awake, he discovered the source of his subconscious’ motivation as Alex’s hands wandered leisurely over his chest and arms.
The night was still dark, but enough moonlight filtered in through the windows that he could see her face. Her eyes locked on his and she moved her hands upward, tracing along his jawline and finally up into his hair.
