From One Night to Forever (17 page)

His words of praise filled her with warmth. She knew she could, but sometimes when she was in the middle of a semester and had to stay up all night on a paper after working all day in the restaurant, she wasn’t sure. More so this semester with the rocky start with her professor. Those times made her wonder if she really wanted to keep at it. He’d seen the inner struggle she tried to hide and called her on it. That was what had really pissed her off before.

“You think so?”

“I know so. You’re kind of a hard-ass.”

Kacey chuckled and shook her head. “And I guess you can be responsible enough to give good advice every once in a while.”

“Responsible in business, but very irresponsible when it comes to relationships.”

“I’m too busy to get involved in a long-term relationship. I can appreciate it when a man is honest about what he wants.”

Aaron’s eyes narrowed. He backed up and waved a finger. “I’m not falling for that.”

“Falling for what?”

He shook his head. “Never mind. I’m being crazy.” He slapped his hands together. “So, are we cool with the cookout idea?”

“Yeah, I guess so.”

“Great. I’ll get on Reggie.” He picked up her Laffy Taffy wrapper. “I love the jokes on these.”

She grinned. “Me too.”

He read the joke silently and chuckled. “That’s pretty funny.”

“I thought so.”

He met her eyes, and his good-natured smile heated her from the inside out. She could fall for a guy like Aaron, if she was ready to fall. He’d make it easy with his smile, personality, and optimism. But she didn’t need to fall in love. Not with a guy in town for a few weeks who even admitted he was irresponsible when it came to relationships.

“I’d better get inside.”

She wanted just a few more minutes. “You didn’t apologize.”

His brows drew together as if he were in deep thought. “I did, remember? I’m throwing you a party.”

Kacey chuckled and rolled her eyes. “There is something seriously wrong with you.”

“Yeah and you like it.” He winked and her insides trembled.

She laughed to herself as she watched him go. A woman could definitely fall in love with a guy like that.

Aaron accepted a beer from Tara, one of several attractive, single women Reggie and Camila had invited to the cookout. Aaron knew Reggie had invited them to try to find out whom Aaron had sex with his first night in town. Aaron didn’t mind the obvious attempts at hooking him up because he was determined to get Kacey out of his mind. Hopefully before she left her dad’s party and showed up here to distract him further.

“Thank you,” he said to Tara and slid over on the cushioned bench set off from the patio in Reggie’s well-landscaped yard.

Tara sat next to him. She flashed a smile that invited him to move closer. Her dimpled cheeks, dark skin, and a bright yellow sundress that perfectly clung to her curvy figure were exactly what he’d normally go for. His lukewarm reaction, on the other hand, was proof his growing interest in Kacey was getting way out of hand.

“You’re very welcome,” Tara said. “So, tell me, how long are you in town?”

Aaron shrugged and sipped the beer. “For at least another week, maybe two.”

“Not enough time to have any fun.” Tara licked her full lips and cocked her head to the side.

His lukewarm interest remained the same; still, he had to try.
Why did trying have to feel so hard?
Flirting was never hard for him.

“I can squeeze in a little fun.”

“Hmm, I bet you can. Tell me, Aaron, what do you like to do for fun?”

She took a slow sip from her beer bottle, letting her tongue linger on the rim before pulling it away.

“Baseball, gaming, meeting new people, and seeing new things.”

“Has anyone shown you around town?” Tara leaned her head to the side and played with the end of her long ponytail, which dangled over her shoulder right above her breasts. The motion drew his eye to that location, but didn’t stoke his fire.

“No.”

Her dark eyes brightened. “Then I can show you around. What are you doing tomorrow evening?”

Aaron thought about the wrestling pay-per-view event coming on the following night. He’d considered asking Kacey if she wanted to watch it with him, but spending more time with Kacey would only have him falling further into her trap. Not one she’d purposely set. She didn’t have to, because women like Kacey
were
the traps. Good-looking, easy to talk to, fun to hang around. He could get comfortable with a woman like her, and if he got comfortable he’d think he was falling in love. Which was no good because he knew what a mess he’d made the last time he’d thought he was in love.

Aaron shook his head. “I’m not doing anything tomorrow night.”

Tara’s grin widened. “Great. Take my number and give me a call. I’ll show you a good time.”

He shook the discomfort that tried to settle in as he put Tara’s number into his cell phone. He and Kacey weren’t together. They wouldn’t be together. They’d shared one night and agreed to move on. Plus, she came with more drama than he needed in a relationship. Being with her meant staying in Resilient. Watching her drive herself into the ground from the responsibility of running the restaurant. Days working with Reggie in an office and nights sitting on the couch with Kacey, watching wrestling before going to bed and making love.

Which on the surface seemed cool. Except one day he’d realize he was just like his dad. Stagnant, boring, and stuck.

Marcus ran over to Aaron and Tara. “Hey, Aaron, will you throw some balls for me?” The kid bounced on his feet.

Aaron chuckled. “Sure, kid.” He looked to Tara. “Excuse me.”

“I’ll watch,” Tara said.

They stood and Tara slipped her arm through his. Aaron led her over to where Marcus and a few other kids were tossing a baseball back and forth. He threw a few balls and gave the kids a few pointers before agreeing to join Reggie in a game of corn hole. Marcus flanked his left and Tara glued herself to his right. Tara asked to be his partner and turned out to be pretty good at aiming the beanbags toward the hole.

Monique kept score, and even though she clearly cheered for her brother and his partner, Julio, she had to concede when Aaron scored the winning shot. Tara jumped up and pumped her fist. “Yes!” Aaron chuckled at her competitive streak. “We did it, Aaron.” She raised her hands for a double high five.

Aaron slapped her palms, then automatically pulled her in for a hug. She pressed her soft curves hard against his body. She slipped her arm around his waist, and they turned to face Reggie. Aaron didn’t pull away.

Aaron lifted a shoulder. “How about a rematch?”

Reggie shook his head. “You’re feeling cocky, I see.”

Tara’s arm around his waist tightened. “Of course we are.”

Kacey walked over and Aaron’s laughter died away. He forgot all about Tara’s soft body the second his gaze landed on Kacey. The light blue dress she wore had a halter top and fell in loose folds to her feet. The thin material clung just enough to her shapely legs to make him imagine them without the material covering them. Her long hair was twisted at the back of her head, accenting the graceful lines of her high cheekbones, her slim chin, her plump lips. He smiled at her, until he met her eyes, which narrowed in on him and Tara. His smile drooped.

Aaron took his arm from around Tara’s shoulders and stepped to the side. Tara gave him a confused look, then glanced at Kacey.

Kacey turned away from Aaron and smiled at her brother. “Sorry I’m late. Things took a little longer than I expected at Cliff’s.”

Reggie shrugged. “No big deal. How was the party?”

Kacey lifted a shoulder. “It was all right.” Her lips tightened and Aaron frowned. She didn’t sound like things had gone
all right.
“How did the game go?” Kacey pointed to the corn hole sets decorated with University of Tennessee orange and white.

“We lost,” Reggie said. “Those two beat the crap out of us.”

Kacey’s cool stare returned to Aaron and Tara. “Really.”

Tara leaned into Aaron’s side. “Yep. We make a pretty good team.”

“Looks that way. Sounds like you need a rematch.”

Tara nodded. “That’s what I said.”

Reggie picked up the beanbags and separated the orange from the white. “Then let’s do this.”

Aaron wasn’t in the mood for a rematch. He wanted to talk to Kacey and find out what had happened at the party to cause the tightness around her eyes.

“You guys have fun,” Kacey said and turned to leave.

“Hey,” Aaron called. She glanced at him. “You okay?”

Her lips spread in an overly bright smile. “I’m perfect.” She turned and walked away.

Perfect, hell. Something had happened. He had an urge to follow her, but he let Tara turn his attention back to the game. Following Kacey would pull him further into her trap. He needed to avoid the trap. But his eyes and brain didn’t want to cooperate, and both strayed to her too much during the course of the next game.

He didn’t even care when Reggie and Julio won. He tried to pretend as if he wasn’t watching Kacey as she sat with her mom and sister Ashlei on the deck. Or when she went to the grill and only ate half of the hamburger on her plate. Or when she sat with one of Reggie’s friends and spent twenty minutes talking and laughing with him. Aaron ignored the need to interrupt, pull her to the side, and get her attention on him.

Kacey meant long term. Kacey meant a relationship. He wasn’t good with relationships, but he damn sure didn’t like the way that guy put his hand on Kacey’s knee.

“You know, we can get out of here,” Tara said from where she sat next to him on the bench.

He looked into Tara’s big, hopeful eyes. “You know I’m only in town for a short time,” he said.

She smirked. “I know, and all I’m interested in is a good time while you’re here.”

All the invitation he needed. The perfect way to ensure Kacey never looked his way again. “That’s good to know.”

Tara cocked her head to the side and toyed with the end of her ponytail again. This time his gaze didn’t follow the movement. Aaron glanced to where Kacey stood getting a canned drink from one of the coolers on the deck. She looked up and their eyes met. For the briefest second, he swore he saw hurt in her expression before she quickly looked away. She slammed the top of the cooler down and rushed into the house.

“So, what do you say? Want to get out of here?” Tara asked.

Aaron frowned and turned back to the woman who could rescue him from the trap. Suddenly leaving with her didn’t feel like a rescue.
I’m not ready to settle down. I’m not the guy Kacey needs.
But he couldn’t walk away without knowing what had her so upset.

“Give me a second, okay?”

“Sure.”

Aaron stood and followed Kacey into the house. The music and conversation from outdoors became a hum in the background of the cool, quiet interior. Camila and some other ladies sat around the kitchen table, and another group of ladies and kids sat in the attached living area. For a moment Aaron second-guessed following Kacey inside. He had no idea what he wanted to say to her, and he definitely couldn’t say much in front of everyone in here.

Camila glanced at him. “You need anything, Aaron?”

Aaron glanced at the gathered people. Kacey wasn’t with any of them. “Yeah, the bathroom.”

Camila pointed toward the hall. “It’s right down the hall.”

He nodded. “Thanks.”

One of the ladies stopped him. “I think someone is in that one. Try the one upstairs.”

Aaron glanced at the closed bathroom door in the hall. Kacey could be there, but asking for her specifically would only have them wondering why he was so interested in Reggie’s sister.

“I will, thanks,” he said. The ladies went back to talking and Aaron went down the hall, hesitating before the bathroom door, but then he kept going. He’d go upstairs for a second then come back down. Take off with Tara and forget about getting further involved with Kacey.

Upstairs he easily found the other bathroom, but since he didn’t have to use it, he decided to check out the upstairs. Not because he wondered if she was up there, but because he hadn’t seen that part of the house yet.

Yeah, tell yourself that.

He peeked into the master bedroom, and the two other bedrooms upstairs, one of which was being converted into a nursery. Aaron grinned at the light blue walls and the crib in the corner. Reggie, married with kids.
He still couldn’t believe it. Seemed like all the guys he knew were settling down, leaving him as the only bachelor left. He wished them all well, and he knew that one day, way in the future, he wouldn’t rule out the same. Just not right now. He was too restless right now to settle down with one woman. Which was why he should just go down and leave with Tara, no matter how much a relationship with Kacey intrigued him.

Aaron grunted and quickly backed out of the nursery. He ran a hand across his face. “Don’t even go there,” he said softly. They lived in two different states. He still had to straighten out the confusion over Liz. Hell, he still talked to half of his off-again, on-again hookups frequently. Not the behavior of a guy ready for a relationship. He would be crazy to give up a single man’s dream. Not to mention it had the potential to ruin this merger if things went bad.

Yet he still checked the last closed door on the second floor. He opened the door to find a washer and dryer and Kacey, sitting on the dryer, sipping from a canned strawberry margarita.

Aaron froze, forgetting all about his off-again, on-again relationships as memories of his night with Kacey heated his blood.

She glared at him. “What are you doing in here?”

She was angry. It couldn’t be because of Tara. She’d spent more time talking to that dude downstairs than paying attention to him and Tara. He came into the laundry room and leaned against the inside of the door frame. “I’m snooping. What are you doing up here?”

“Getting away from the noise.” Her plump lips twisted into a smirk. “Why are you wasting time snooping? I thought you and Tara would have taken off by now.”

Aha…so she had paid attention. “I didn’t want to leave with her just yet.”