Pieces of Rhys (10 page)

"He is being a jackass," I agreed. "But what gives you the impression I'm the flavor of the month? Could be anyone."

She looked at me like I was dumb. Maybe I was. We did both call out and it was no secret that we were on very friendly terms. I was struck by how hurt Nicole's eyes looked under her irritation, and I realized that at any moment I could have eyes just as hurt. However, I didn't like being referred to as the flavor of the month. I felt I was a little more than that, like the flavor of the summer, at least.

"You can't go around saying shit like that just because you're hurt and mad," Rhys admonished her.

"Heaven forbid anyone believe her," I said coolly and crossed my arms.

"I didn't mean it like that," he snapped.

"Okay, you can fix this without me," I said, tossing the pen I borrowed back onto his desk. "I'm done."

"Lindsey! Get your ass back here!"

Typically I would have melted and slithered back across the floor and waited at his feet like a lovesick puppy, but I was embarrassed by being a flavor and pissed off at Rhys's rudeness. I went to my office and slammed the door.

At lunch time, there was a soft knock at my door and Rhys walked in. I was standing at a filing cabinet across the room, rooting for a lost file. I glanced at him but otherwise didn't acknowledge him. He didn't say anything, but within seconds I felt his arms snake around my waist and he rested his chin on my shoulder.

"I'm really sorry," he whispered. "I was upset and I shouldn't have taken it out on you."

I'm a sucker for a hot guy that I've stalked and recently acquired his love.

"It's okay," I said, my anger gone. I turned around so that I could see his face and he continued to hold me close, despite the fact that we were standing right in front of a wall of glass in plain view.

"It's not okay. It's never okay to verbally abuse a woman."

I pulled back a little, surprised by his tone. He was angry, but it was directed inward at himself.

"You didn't verbally abuse me, Rhys. It was an argument - not even an argument. It was nothing."

"It wasn't
nothing
, Lindsey," he said.

"It
was
nothing. If you feel so bad about it, make it up to me." I smiled and wrapped my arms around his neck.

He rested his forehead on mine and even though the moment was serious I was stupid giddy inside.

"It's unacceptable," he whispered.

"Did Nicole get such a heartfelt apology?" I couldn't help but to ask.

His lips curved up. "No, but I did apologize."

"So, can we just put this behind us?"

He sighed. My heart swelled to fifty times its size. Something down deep in this man was disturbing him and I hated not knowing what it was, and I especially hated that it had such a tight grip on such a normally collected and stable person.

"Yeah," he said finally, and then pulled away. I thought the worst for about a half a second, but then a smile I was more familiar with appeared. "Why don't you come with me this weekend?"

"To the shore?" I raised my eyebrows. It was common fact that long weekends at the shore usually meant Rhys hooking up with someone or more than one someone.

"Yes, to the shore."

"I wasn't invited."

"I just invited you," he moved in close again. "You don't want to spend the weekend with me?"

His fingers lightly trailed across my jaw to my lips. He ran his thumb across my bottom lip. Even after all of the erotic things we did the day before, my reaction to his touch was unaltered. I was tempted to suck on his thumb and then maybe another part of his anatomy, but then he replaced his fingers with his mouth. He pressed me against the filing cabinet and kissed me deeply. I held onto his tie, holding him to me.

Yum. Kissing Rhys was like eating the most delectable chocolate in the universe while having Bradley Cooper suck on my toes and the guy from Thor give me a back rub.

A loud knock on the glass beside us snapped us back to reality. Phil stood on the other side grinning, and behind him several stunned workers looked on.

"Oh my," I said, releasing him.

I thought Rhys would back away. Despite his other conquests that seemed to be common knowledge, Rhys always tried to be discrete. He didn't discuss those girls, and he was never seen participating in any form of public displays of affection. Even when he was with Nicole, he was careful to keep a polite distance.

But Rhys didn't back away. He did something so marvelous I almost cried. He laughed, waved to everyone, and gave me a very quick kiss on the lips.

"Come on, baby, let's go to lunch." He took my hand and led me away.

I'm sure I left a trail of moistness on the floor behind me like a dog in heat.

Chapter Seventeen

Rhys's brother Jake rents a house near the beach every year during the week leading up to Labor Day. Phil has been friends with the brothers since grade school, so he had a standing invite. The other house guests included Freddy and her phone, Jake's girlfriend Veronica and her friend Tina.

My first impression of Jake was that he wasn't quite like his younger brother. He was polite and seemed fun, but I sensed a hardness that Rhys didn't have. Veronica and Tina seemed very surprised to see me with Rhys, and did nothing to hide it. That didn't bother me, because I was well aware of Rhys's past and semi-present, but what stirred me a little was the way Tina's eyes raked over him. And they had this banter, like they were very familiar with each other.

It's not the first time that I've encountered any of Rhys's girls, obviously, but Tina's behavior was unsettling and I couldn't figure out why. She was very nice to me and immediately tried to fold me into the group, but something felt off.

"You want to go down to the beach?" Rhys asked me after we carried our bags into our room.

I shifted uncomfortably in the rocking chair I was sitting in.

Here's the thing...I know that at the beach people do things like swim and lounge on the beach and do other beachy things. I knew when I accepted the invite that I may be subjected to these things, but I had hopes that Rhys would have wanted to avoid the sand and water all together. Silly, right?

I'm not usually very uncomfortable with my body. I rock what I have and my insecurities are minimal, but me in a swimsuit...frightening. I managed to avoid being in one for the most part of the summer.

"What's wrong?" Rhys asked when I didn't answer. He sat down on the bed across from me.

"I look like the hippo from
Fantasia
when I wear a swimsuit," I said quickly, embarrassed.

"You do not. That's all in your head."

"You're calling me crazy?"

"Yeah, I am," he smiled and leaned over and kissed me. "Besides, it's only my opinion that counts, and I think you're beautiful in anything."

Aww darn. How could I resist that?

I tried to let my trepidation about Tina go as she went out of her way to make me feel like I was one of them. She took my arm and led me to the water where she and the other girls stood in a small circle talking.

I was surprised to see Muriel without her phone, but she didn't look all that interested in anything we were talking about. I vaguely wondered why she came, until Phil came over and she watched him with apt attention, even though he wasn't saying anything important, or even interesting.

Huh. Who woulda thunk it.

I glanced back at Rhys, who was talking animatedly with his brother, as only brothers can do. He was naked from the waist up, showing the world his beautiful, lickable, bitable, yummable chest, and the thin line of hair that disappeared below his trunks.

I started thinking about all of the dirty things we could do in the sand, but Tina suddenly appeared in front of Rhys, a literal cock block. I whipped my head back to where she had been standing only moments ago. How did she move over there without me seeing? I turned back just as she was bending over in front of him, taking a painstaking amount of time to get something out of her bag.

Both Rhys and his brother turned their gaze on her, took a good look and then tried to refocus elsewhere, but they couldn't help but to keep turning back to Tina. I knew for a fact when she bent over, her boobs were nearly falling out of her skimpy bikini top.

Finally, after what seemed like forever, the bitch stood up and pounced away. Rhys's eyes met mine, I guess. We were both wearing sunglasses. He flashed me a small smile, but I simply looked away.

Stupid big boobed floozy.

I shouldn't have been concerned. Men can't help but to notice a pretty girl with nice knockers. Other straight women couldn't help but to take note of a pretty girl with nice knockers. And maybe Tina didn't realize that she was having major nipple slippage. She seemed frantic about searching through her bag. Maybe she had her period and needed a tampon.

Or maybe she's just a whore,
an inner voice yelled at me. Yes, inner creepy voice, maybe she is.

Tina reappeared a few minutes later. When Phil and Freddy wandered off together, she said "I freakin' hate having my period at the beach!"

Okay, maybe not a whore.

As the day wore on and I found Tina easier to tolerate and converse with, I figured I'd give her the benefit of doubt. So what if she occasionally flirted with Rhys or stole glances at him when she thought no one was watching. He's
hot
and
sexy
and
mmm mmm
. There were a lot of women and gay guys checking him out.

I put away my negative theories about Tina and enjoyed the day, and enjoyed Rhys, because I didn't know how long this would last.

The majority ruled that we were going to go out to a local bar for dinner, drinks, and dancing. I was glad that Kit had told me to pack for it, just in case. I put on a knee length blue dress that fully exposed one shoulder and part of my upper arm. I put on a pair of high heeled strappy sandals and pinned my hair up so it was off of my neck.

I thought I looked pretty good, and so did Rhys since he immediately tried to get me out of the dress. I shut him down, but with a ton of will power, because I was all too willing to have him, too.

The bar had more of a club atmosphere. Bodies
moved provocatively
on a dance floor, a DJ was set up in a corner, and the bar was full of people drinking and waiting for drinks. It was crowded and warm. I was surprised we found a booth big enough for all of us. After some food and drinks and boisterous conversation, we took to the dance floor. Some of Tina's acquaintances who were in town for the weekend joined us, and everyone seemed really nice. I was having a great time, especially whenever Rhys held me close and whispered naughty things into my ear.

After a couple of hours of dancing and drinking, I felt that I needed some fresh air. Tina and a couple of other girls had gone out a back door to smoke. Even though standing in a cloud of smoke wouldn't be
fresh
air, it was marginally better than remaining inside the hot building with sweaty, smelly, intoxicated bodies.

I stumbled down a dim hallway, past the restrooms and other closed doors towards a door that was open to an alley. I was almost at the threshold, but stopped when I heard my name. I didn't exactly hear in what context it was used, but alarms went off in my head since it was Tina talking. I shrank back into shadow, unable to see her or her friends, but I could hear them clearly.

"I just can't believe that Rhys chose
that
over
me
," Tina said vehemently. "He knew I was going to be here this weekend. Last time I talked to him he said he wanted to hook up again, and then he shows up with that megaton cow."

"Tina!" Someone laughed. "She's not that bad. She's kind of pretty."