Hidden Depths (6 page)

Suddenly Gia felt guilty for giving Josh so much grief.
"I always knew he had a life plan. I just never realized it wasn't his
plan. I don't know too much about family pressure, but I can't imagine it's
much fun." With a glance over at Josh and Deb talking quietly on the
beach, she let out a deep sigh. "You'd think after eight years he might've
at least mentioned it. Maybe I should just leave him alone."

She glanced over at Kelly who just shrugged silently.
Glanced quickly at the rest of the people standing with them. Apparently they
were all in agreement. "Okay, okay. I'll be nice to him. Even when he's
being a stuffed prick."

Kelly laughed, "Yeah, I think that's easier said than
done for you, Gia. But good luck with that."

They all kind of laughed before Dev, who had made his way
back up to the sand while they talked, came back with a blow up beach ball. As
they all spread out, tossing the ball back and forth, even Deb and Josh came
out and joined them. After awhile, the beach ball gave way to chicken fights.
All in all, laughter was the pervading mood.

As the sun set, the group, now thoroughly waterlogged and
much cooler, headed back up to the sand. They started a small fire in one of
the rock circles someone had built, pulling out marshmallows and old wire
hangers. S'mores and a few glasses of wine started to mellow everyone out. The
two couples sat framing Gia and Shannon leaving the girls together in a kind of
cluster around the fire. As the wine started to flow more freely, giggles
erupted between Shannon and Kelly.

Wanting to be in on the joke, Gia elbowed Shannon gently.
"What's so funny? I'm always up for a good laugh."

"Not funny, not really. Just sort of..." Shannon
trailed off into another giggle.

"Okay, now I have to know. It's not often that you
giggle. What are you two talking about?"

Finally Kelly crawled around Shannon to whisper into Gia's
ear. "She was just telling me that she wished she had the nerve to get
nipple rings like you have."

Gia looked at Shannon. Even in the firelight you could tell
her cheeks were beet red. Whether it was the wine or embarrassment, Gia had no
idea. "Come on by my shop anytime and I'll take care of that for
you."

"Oh no. I could never do that. That's the point. I just
wish I could." She waited just a pause before asking quite loudly,
"Didn't it hurt?"

The question and Gia's answering laugh was enough to
persuade Josh that he wanted in on the conversation. The others must have
agreed because before he could ask, Blake popped up with, "Didn't what
hurt?"

Kelly, who wasn't particularly shy to begin with, was just
buzzed enough to blurt, "Gia's nipple rings."

"Damn, Kell, find your filter!" Gia shouted.

Of their own accord Josh's eyes glued themselves to Gia's
breasts. Everyone else was laughing, but he was staring, trying to see through
the triangles of her bikini top. He heard the conversation going on around him,
yet he couldn't drag his eyes away.

"You really have nipple rings?" Dev asked. Gia
must have nodded or something because he continued, "That is hot as
hell."

"So, did it hurt?" Shannon asked. At least, he
thought it was Shannon, although he didn't look up to verify.

"Well, yeah, at first. Just like any piercing."
Gia answered.

Was it his imagination or did her voice sound a little
breathier?

"So, then why'd you do it?" This was definitely
from Blake.

When Gia didn't answer right away Kelly blurted again.
"She says it feels amazing. You know, after it heals."

Were her nipples getting harder? Josh swore he could see
them starting to push against her top. Without lifting his eyes he asked,
"Is that true, Gia?"

Everyone got quiet, waiting for her answer. Now he knew her
nipples were tightening up. He could just see the outline of little rings
starting to take shape under her top. Finally he lifted his head, meeting her
eyes across the fire. "Well, is it?"

Finally she answered. "With the right partner, yes, it
can definitely enhance stimulation." It was a stock answer, one he was
sure she'd given to both women and men considering the piercing for themselves.
But now he was certain he wasn't imagining the change in her voice. It was
deeper, rougher than normal. Gia was aroused.

Luckily Blake spoke up. "Okay, too much stimulation for
me. I've been single too long, so unless you all want this to get embarrassing
we need to change the subject."

A low laugh rumbled through the group, giving Josh the incentive
he needed to break eye contact with Gia. He looked over at Deb, saw her
watching him with a quiet, contemplative expression. He tried briefly to
picture her with nipple rings. The image was almost comical, but the humor
worked to help deflate the hard on he'd been sporting. He leaned in, kissing
Deb gently on the lips. When he tried to pull the kiss deeper, to ignite just a
spark of passion, she pulled away. No surprise there. She didn't like PDA's.

"Josh," she whispered, "not in front of
everyone."

He smiled softly, kissed her nose, then leaned back to
participate in the conversation flowing around him. Deb was predictable.
Comfortable. So why was that damn tight feeling back in his skin?

Chapter 7

A few days later, Josh was down in his basement working off
some excess energy when he heard a shout from his front door.

"Yo, Josh. You here, man?"

"Yeah, Blake. Basement," he yelled back.

He unwrapped his gloves, tossing them on the weight bench
and grabbed a towel. He wiped his face and was just reaching for a bottle of
water from the little fridge when Blake made it downstairs. After guzzling
about half the bottle, he nodded his head in greeting.

"What's up? Want some water or a beer or
anything?"

Blake walked past Josh, grabbed a beer from the fridge and
tossed one to Josh as well.

"So, what the hell is going on with you and Gia?"
Blake asked.

Josh choked on his water, damn near spraying it out his
nose. When he managed to catch his breath again he only managed one word.
"What?"

Blake sighed. "Look, I think I'm the only one that
noticed, although maybe Deb did, I'm not sure. You couldn't take your eyes off
her. And I don't just mean the nipple rings, that's almost understandable
really, but even before that. I saw you looking at her all day. So... what's
going on with you and Gia?"

"Nothing, Blake, I swear." Josh debated for about
a second and a half before blurting out the truth. "Not really. I kissed
her the night she did my tattoo. She said no and pushed me away. That's it. So,
nothing's going on."

"You kissed her?"

Josh ran his hand over his face, shoving it through his
sweaty hair in a gesture of frustration. "Yeah. Stupid, but nothing else
happened. I didn't even know about the nipple rings until the lake the other
night. Proof that it was a kiss and nothing more."

"And she pushed you away?"

Josh nodded.

"Huh. That's not the vibe I was getting. It felt like
there was something more... mutual there."

Josh couldn't stop the tightening in his gut at that
thought.

"Josh, I hate to state the obvious, but you're engaged.
To someone else. Why are you kissing her? I mean, even once is too much. Was
this some latent curiosity or something? Even I can admit to wondering what
kind of fire was under there a time or two myself."

At the thought of Blake kissing Gia his stomach churned. He
wanted to beat the living shit out of his best friend. That was not a good
sign.

"Hell, Blake." Josh shook his head deciding to
just dump it all on Blake. Maybe talking it out would help him make sense of
the mess he had inside him. "It's not just curiosity. Not even fucking
close. I have wanted her since about the minute I met her, despite the
differences between us. She's just never been interested in me. Then, a few
weeks ago, I'd had a crappy week at work, trying to open a new location in
Australia, permits, paperwork and my dad watching every move I make. I left
early Tuesday afternoon, came home and got my car, drove like a madman for
awhile and ended up right back in the Village staring at the front of
Adriana's. I pulled the car around the corner and started walking. Everything
felt wrong, like it was just squeezing too tight, ya know. I ended up in her
shop asking for a tattoo."

"I get that. You always did have your ways of breaking
loose. But, that still doesn't explain the kissing. The tattoo wasn't
enough?"

"No, it wasn't like that. Just being there I felt
better. Her shop is just like she is. A crazy riot of color everywhere,
chaotic. It should make you dizzy but it doesn't. It's just comfortable. As
soon as the needle hit my skin I felt... great. We talked. She's amazingly
'unsarcastic' when she's working. Unlike the rest of the time. The quiet, the
sound of the gun, the easy chat. It was incredible. Then, when it was done, I
was checking the tat in the mirror, then I turned around and there she was. She
was watching me with this crazy look on her face. I'd never seen it before. I
felt like I had to kiss her if I was going to keep breathing."

Josh took a deep breath, realizing just how sappy and stupid
he sounded, even to his own ears. "So, I did. And she pushed me away. End
of story."

"And that's it. One measly kiss, one you mistakenly
thought she wanted, and now you stare at her anytime you think you can get away
with it?"

Josh nodded. "Yeah, that's about the size of it."

"I don't buy it Josh. Not unless it was a record
breaking, gut tearing, ball busting kiss. You've kissed lots of women, so have
I for that matter. There had to be more to it."

"Well, it was definitely a record breaking, gut
tearing, ball busting kiss. So damn much that I can't get her out of my mind.
She even makes a nightly appearance in my dreams." At Blake's shocked
expression, Josh laughed. "Guess you didn't expect that, did you?"

"Nightly appearance?"

"Yep, every fucking night. I haven't had Deb stay over
for fear of her hearing something, or worse."

"Damn. Okay... so what now?"

"What do you mean 'what now'?"

"What are you going to do about it?"

"I'm going to see a damn shrink and figure out a way to
get her out of my head. Or at least out of my dreams."

"Okay, that's one way. Here's another idea. Kiss her
again."

"What? I'm engaged as you so kindly reminded me. I'm
not kissing her again. What the hell are you talking about?"

"Hear me out. Look, I love Deb, you know I think the
world of her. She deserves better than this, better than you drooling after
another woman, let alone one of her friends. You said this was an amazing kiss,
better than any you've had. Well, that means one of two things. In my
experience, a great kiss, let alone a ball busting kiss, is felt by both
people. So, either you imagined this reaction and it wasn't really as good as
you think it was. Maybe heightened sensation from the adrenaline rush of the
tat or something. Or, it really was that good. Which means she felt it too.
Which also means, you have no business marrying Deborah."

Josh thought about what Blake said. It sounded insane, but
it actually made sense. In a twisted, ‘I'm dying for any excuse to kiss her
again’, kind of way. Had he imagined his response? Was it due to adrenaline? He
didn't think so. But, he also didn't think that Gia had felt the same thing.
She had pushed him away after all. Then promised to forget it, like it was no
big deal. Yet the other night at the beach, he knew she'd been aroused. Was it
just from talking about those tantalizing nipple rings or was it because she
knew he'd been staring? Was he nuts for even considering this? Undoubtedly. Yet
he was considering it.

"Do you honestly think I should kiss her again? Blake,
I don't want to hurt Deb. She really does deserve better."

"Yes, I really think you should. Better isn't always
safer, Josh. For once, don't play it safe. Break away from that damn life plan
you have and do something not on the agenda. You and Deb have always seemed
like a perfect couple. If you are, then you should have no feelings for Gia or
anyone else. So, kiss her. See if it was real or imagined."

Josh pondered this for another minute, though it was really
more for show. He had already decided. He'd probably decided the instant Blake
mentioned it, maybe before. Apparently he was just waiting for permission from
someone.

Pissed at his own weakness, his own need for approval, Josh
growled at Blake. "Fine, you're right. I'll kiss her. Now, get out. I need
to beat up this heavy bag a little while longer."

Without looking to see if he left, Josh wrapped his hands
back up and swung his fist at the bag hanging there. It was at least another
hour before he made it back upstairs to shower. His body was so tired and sore
he thought maybe, just maybe, he could sleep without the erotic dreams.

He thought wrong.

Chapter 8

Monday afternoon Gia was sitting in her shop, tucked into
the back room doing some necessary paperwork. She had to balance the credit
card sales, calculate tips and figure out what to pay each of her employees.
She also had to pay the bills so they would have power in the shop next week.

Uugghh! She hated doing bills. She knew it was necessary and
always paid everything on time, she just dreaded it. She had a tendency to put
it off until the absolute last minute.

Lost in thought, she almost jumped out of her skin when she
heard a knock on the front door of the shop. Wondering how anyone could
possibly know she was even in here, she about lost her footing when she saw
Josh. What the hell is he doing here?

As she opened the door, he answered at least one of her
questions without her having to ask.