Love at Cape Luella Read online

  As I became aware, I stretched and snuggled into soft warmth. I knew I had to be dreaming. The moment was too perfect. It was exactly the same as several other times I’d dreamed of this moment – the after-sex glow, the best night’s sleep I’d ever had, and the woman I loved in my arms. I couldn’t ask for anything more.

  Pulling the willing female into me, I rocked my morning wood against her ass. She moaned and pushed back against me. Inhaling her sweet scent, I sucked on her neck and placed a hand on one of her perfect breasts. Tweaking a nipple, she gasped and the sound was music to my ears. My mind was a jumble of thoughts as I struggled to pick what I wanted to do to her first.

  Perfect. Fucking. Dream. I thought as she moved her ass against my cock.

  “Naiva Siobhan Aisley!” A woman screeched and I jerked upright in an unfamiliar bed, in an unfamiliar room. “What the hell are you doing?”

  “Mom?” a feminine voice asked groggily from beside me.

  “Mom?” I repeated and looked at the familiar but irate woman standing in the doorway.

  Glancing down, I became almost painfully aware that I was nude and that my cock was standing straight up – as if pointing at the woman. I groaned and reached behind me for a pillow which I quickly covered my hard shaft with.

  Slowly, things began to clear and I realized I wasn’t dreaming. As Naiva sat up beside me with a groan, I winced as I realized where I was and who was in the doorway. Embarrassment burned my cheeks and I moved to the edge of the bed as I looked down on the floor in search of my clothes.

  “Liam,” the woman bellowed out into the hallway.

  Liam Aisley was Naiva’s dad. No way did I want to greet her father with my cock wagging. Hell, I didn’t want to meet her father right now at all. Even if I dressed, he’d still know what I’d done to his little girl.

  “Fuck,” I cursed.

  “Jack?” Naiva’s soft, uncertain voice gasped beside me.

  Jumping from the bed, I held the pillow against me and rushed to find my clothes.

  Finally finding my pants, I glanced at the rest of my clothes, deciding I didn’t have time to worry about them, I rushed to Naiva, pressed a firm kiss to her lips as I dropped the pillow and stuffed a leg into my pants.

  “You and I need to talk... But not now and not here. Meet me at the shack on the beach at… um… in three hours.” Kissing her fiercely one last time, I held up my pants with one hand and rushed to the door. “Three hours, Naiva. At the shack.”

  “Nora?” A deep voice called out from the stairs.

  “Turn left… take the back stairs,” Naiva offered from the bed.

  “Thanks.” I threw a grin over my shoulder in gratitude and turned back only to run into Mrs. Aisley.

  Her arms were crossed and her mouth was pursed in disapproval.

  On impulse, and probably due to a whole hell of a lot of endorphins, I laid a swift kiss on Naiva’s mother’s lips.

  “I love your daughter, Mrs. Aisley,” I announced and ran down the hall to the left.

  Walking down the beach as the sky turned vibrant shades of orange, yellow, and peach, I sorted out my brain. Memories from the night before filled me and my cock refused to relax. It wanted to claim Naiva again. But I needed to claim her heart first.

  I wanted to kick my own ass as I realized that I allowed years of repressed attraction to take control. We should have talked. I should have announced my intentions. At least, I should have asked her out on a date and did things properly. I could only be thankful that I hadn’t taken her out on the beach as I’d almost done.

  “Fuck,” I cursed and rubbed at my face as I approached my parents’ summer home. “Please God… don’t have let me messed this up.”

  Naiva Aisley was the only woman I wanted. The fact was cemented inside of my soul now that we’d slept together. The only problem was... how did I convince her of my feelings?

  “Harrison, where have you been? And why are you walking on the beach in only a pair of slacks?” Mother stood on the patio and stared down at me.

  What the hell? Did our mothers have a six sense?

  “Good morning, Mother.” I plastered a smile on my face and walked up the steps.

  “Harrison,” my mother’s voice held the tone of a woman not willing to be brushed off.

  I sighed and leaned on the railing a few feet from her. Focusing on the ocean, I wondered how much I’d have to tell her to get her to leave me alone. I didn’t want to tell her about Naiva yet. Truth was, I wasn’t sure how she’d react. I didn’t care how much money or status someone had, but my mother… my mother lived on it.

  “Oh, Harrison,” Mother sighed and I turned to find her smiling dreamily at me.

  “Mother?” Worry seeped into me as she moved closer and placed a hand on my arm.

  “Which one was it?” she asked.

  “Which one?” Confusion filled me and I stared at her hand on my arm. My mother was never soft or warm… she loved me, I knew that but it was a proper mother’s love – kisses on the cheek and pats on my hand as she manipulated me into doing what she wanted.

  “Yes, dear. Which of the young ladies did you sneak off with last night?” Her smile broadened. “I’m so glad my party was a success.”

  “Sneak… party…” My thoughts were still clouded by Naiva, it was the only explanation for how slow it was working out my mother’s words.

  “Harrison, you don’t have to play coy with me. I know how these things work. I might be your mother but I’m not ancient,” she huffed.

  “Things work?” A light bulb finally lit me up and I gasped at her. “No. I mean…” My cheeks heated. No way did I want to discuss this with my mother.

  “I love you, Harrison. But I want you married sooner rather than later. That was the point of last night's party. So, tell me the girl’s name so I can begin the preparations with her family,” she demanded.

  “Mother,” I groaned. “I didn’t leave with a girl from the party.”

  “Then, where were you?” she huffed and dropped her hand from my arm. Her eyes narrowed in on me. “Where were you?”

  Stabbing my fingers into my hair, I tugged at it in frustration.

  “With Naiva Aisley,” I admitted reluctantly.

  “From the B&B?” Mother asked – there was no indication of a reaction as she waited for me to reply.

  “Yes,” I admitted.

  “You’ve always had a crush on that girl,” she sighed. “But, Harrison, you know she is too good for you, right?”

  I chuckled, “Yes, Mother, she is totally too good for a computer geek like me.”

  My mother shrugged and patted my arm – “Well, let’s go talk to her parents before she realizes it.”

  “What!” I gaped at my mother.

  “It may be difficult to believe but all I want is for you to be happy, Harrison. And, from the dopey look on your face when you walked up to the house this morning, Miss Aisley makes you happy.”

  “She really does,” I sighed and dropped my hands. “But… I need to do this on my own.”

  “Okay, I understand.” Mother smiled at me. “But don’t take too long or I’ll take over.”

  She chuckled and turned to walk inside.

  Oh crap, I was going to have to convince Naiva to be my wife. Forget dating and taking my time as I had begun to think I would need to do. The only way to get Mother off of my back and to keep her from ruining things with the only woman I wanted was to convince the shy woman to marry me… and quickly.

  Time for a shower and to begin working on a plan. I had a little over two hours to make it happen.

  “Was that the Noch boy?” Mom asked as she pressed her hand against her mouth and looked down the hall in the direction Jack had run.

  I’d heard his parting words. He’d said he loved me. If I wasn’t sitting in bed naked with the sound of my dad approaching… Oh, hell, my dad.

  Jumping from my bed, I ran for the bathroom. Slamming the door behind me, I quickly flipped the lock. My
heart was thumping so loud that it sounded like someone was knocking.

  Then it dawned on me, someone was knocking.

  “Naiva… please open the door,” Mom called through the door.

  Remaining silent I waited and hoped she’d grow tired and leave.

  “I only came to talk to her about the B&B, Liam. I didn’t expect to find…”

  “Nora, you should have knocked. She’s a grown woman. That’s why we decided to sell in the first place.”

  “I know we wanted to allow her to have a life of her own, Liam, but –”

  “No, buts, Nora. You should have knocked,” Dad’s voice was firm.

  “I did!” I swear it sounded like Mom stomped her foot and was probably pouting.

  What did they mean they were selling because of me? Letting the thoughts run through my mom I washed up and took care of the basic morning necessities. Luckily, I had a robe in my bathroom which I slipped on before slowly cracking the door and looking into my room.

  A groan escaped as I saw my dad sitting in the chair in the corner of my room.

  “Can we chat a bit, baby girl?” he asked and gave me a grin as he motioned to my bed.

  “Dad, I’d really rather not talk about –” My stomach felt queasy as I looked at my messed-up sheets and then flicked my gaze to my dad.

  “Naiva, sit,” Dad ordered, no longer trying to sweet-talk me.

  Automatically I walked over and dropped to the bed with a huff. I was fully willing to admit that I was being petulant. But seriously, I had a good reason. Not only was my dad most likely going to give me the talk but he was going to discuss the selling of the B&B by what I heard him and my mom say to each other. I didn’t want to discuss either subject.

  “Sweetheart,” Dad sighed. “Selling this place wasn’t an easy decision. Your mom and I have discussed it on more than one occasion over the years.”

  “Really?” I asked, surprised by his admission. “I didn’t know you were unhappy here?”

  “It’s not that, Naiva. It’s more…” Dad waved his hand in the air as he searched for the right words. “All of us have given everything to this place. When your mom and I took over, your great-grandmother and grandparents were still alive and they all helped out. Things were different back then as well. Life was simpler. It was easy to make ends meet.”

  Dad’s gaze grew distant and I could tell he was thinking of something fondly.

  “But, Naiva… you could run this place if you have a staff but you can’t make it and pay them. Does that make sense? Your mother and I have noticed how much you’ve given up to be here and help us. But we want you to have a life of your own, sweetheart. We want you to be able to follow your dreams.”

  “And what if my dream is to run this place?” I sulked.

  “I’m not blind, sweetheart, I can tell you don’t enjoy the hotel side of things. Now the kitchen… now that you enjoy.” Dad grinned at me as if to let me know it was okay — that it didn’t bother him that I didn’t like running the hotel part of our family business.

  It was true. The cafe was my life. It gave me joy.

  “Baby girl, your mom and I are going to give you a nest egg. We want you to use it to follow your dreams. If that means you go back to school, travel, or start your own cafe somewhere else, then we will be happy for you. But we want it to be something you decide. Not something you do out of duty.” Dad patted my leg and we sat in silence for a while.

  “What are you and mom going to do?” I finally asked.

  A grin crossed his lips and dad turned to me – “We’re going to travel Europe first and then we’re thinking of settling in Hawaii.”

  “Oh, Dad. That sounds amazing.” My heart lightened as I took in his excitement.

  “Yeah, for once we’ll be the ones being taken care of,” he laughed.

  “Well, you deserve it,” I assured him.

  “Now, what about this boy?” He sobered and looked at me closely.

  My cheeks flared with heat and I was positive they were bright with my embarrassment.

  “Can we not discuss this, Dad?” I pleaded.

  “Naiva, you know those boys like him only want one thing,” Dad reprimanded.

  “Jack’s different, Dad,” I whispered and dad huffed.

  “Men are all the same and none of them are good enough for my baby girl.” Dad crossed his arms over his chest and stared at the wall.

  “Dad…” I wasn’t sure what to say, I could understand how this situation could be difficult for my dad. We’d always been close and Jack along with the upcoming changes at home… well, we wouldn’t be able to be so close anymore.

  “You sure he’s different?” Dad’s gruff voice betrayed his emotion.

  “Yes. He told mom he loved me before he ran down the hall.” A smile curved up my lips and I heard Dad chuckle.

  “Yeah, I watched his bare ass hightail it around the corner at the end of the hall.” Dad and I both laughed for a few moments. “Do you love him, Naiva?”

  “I think I always have,” I rasped as tears sprung up in my eyes.

  “Then that’s all that matters.” Dad patted my leg. “Nice talk. Don’t worry about the B&B today. We’ve closed the cafe and your mom is cooking meals old school today. She’s missed the buffets and the sit-down dinners we used to have.”

  “Alright,” I replied as he exited my room.

  I sighed in relief when the door closed behind him and let myself fall back on my bed. Now, what the hell am I going to do with my life? I wondered as I debated about what to wear to go see Jack in a few hours.

  Nerves had me pacing my room, I debated on my clothes, my hair, and whether or not to wear makeup to go see Jack at the small boathouse down the beach. Unfortunately, the majority of my clothes were work clothes. Khaki knee-pants, slacks, and shorts along with the B&B polo shirts and t-shirts I always wore. I’d never seen a need to have much else once I’d begun working here full time.

  Knowing that the few dresses and skirts were too much for the beach, I settled on a pair of cutoff shorts and one of my B&B t-shirts. I didn’t see any reason to dress up. I wore my hair down for a change and swiped on some of my glitter gloss – I didn’t own makeup.

  Laughing out loud as I looked into the mirror, I shrugged and headed for the door. I figured I had at least an hour before heading to the shack to meet Jack. So, I headed for the kitchen to help Mom in order to keep my mind occupied.

  As I walked down the hallway, I couldn’t help but smile and I greeted everyone with a lot more ease than I ever have before. Funny how being in love could change your perspective.

  When I entered the kitchen, Mom looked up and gave me a smile filled with relief.

  “It’s a lot more work than you remember, isn’t it?” I asked with a laugh as I grabbed an apron and approached her.

  “Oh my, yes. I ended up having to open the cafe. I didn’t realize how many regulars you had. They were lined up when I came down to start breakfast. It’s been non-stop.” Mom rambled off and pointed towards the cafe. “Go… take care of your people.”

  I laughed and went out to find a group of customers waiting to place their orders.

  “Naiva!” Leslie greeted with a huge smile. “Thank goodness. I need my usual and your mom has no idea what’s in it.”

  Laughing, I grabbed a paper cup and began preparing Leslie’s double-shot caramel mocha latte. About thirty minutes later, I’d cleared the cafe of the morning rush and was straightening up when a tourist entered.

  “Please tell me you have real coffee here?” Her face was painted on and her hair was bleached bone white. Her outfit was skin tight and she wore heels. None of her outfit was practical for a day at the beach.

  “What would you like?” I asked instead of addressing her comment.

  “I need a double shot espresso made with two Splenda and a dash of coconut milk,” she rattled off.

  Turning to the machine I started it up and soon had it ready to go.

  “Four dollar
s, please?” I asked as I placed it on the counter in front of her.

  She threw a five-dollar bill on the counter and lifted the cup to her lips. A quick sip and she scrunched up her face but kept sipping.

  “Have you decided on something, Amber?” I noticed a shorter and better dressed young woman leaned over and looking into the bakery case.

  “Maybe…” The woman, Amber, replied absently.

  “If you have any questions, I’d be happy to answer them for you,” I offered as I moved to stand behind the bakery case.

  “Thank you. It just all looks so good,” she murmured.

  “Really, Amber, I don’t understand how you eat that stuff. You really should eat less. You’re never going to catch the eye of someone like Harrison looking the way you do.” The beauty queen wanna-be rambled off.

  I noticed that Amber didn’t seem to be listening to her.

  “Amber,” she whined.

  “Lisa, how many times do I have to tell you that I’m not looking for a man? I was only at the Noch’s party last night to make my parents happy.”

  “Seriously, Amber. I don’t understand you. Harrison Noch is sexy and rich to boot. How could you not be interested in someone like him? My mom said that his mom told her she had been very selective in who she invited last night. Didn’t you notice that there weren’t any other young men?”

  Amber sighed wearily and gave me a small smile.

  “Doesn’t matter anyhow, I snagged him for myself,” Beauty queen sighed happily. Mom was going to go and talk to Mrs. Noch this morning.

  At that point, my brain turned off and I wandered into the kitchen. I didn’t stop until I’d entered the walk-in refrigerator. Dropping down to the floor, I allowed the tears to fall. I’d always known I wasn’t good enough for someone like Harrison Jackson Noch III.

  For the first time since I left for college, I didn’t worry about computer code or the next big project. There was no urge to check email or to call Clark and check on the state of things at the company. Instead, I was focused on finding the perfect engagement ring for Naiva.