Into the Night (22 page)

The second man stepped forward. A bit older than the rest of the group, he was extremely good-looking with dark brown hair, hazel eyes, and chiseled features. There was a natural air of authority about him, yet his charismatic smile also put her at ease.

“Caleb Roux,” he said. “I’m glad you came today.”

To Nicole, the name said it all. “Thank you for the invitation.”

She hadn’t been sure what to expect of Caleb and worried that he might resent her interference in Nathan’s case. He was a difficult man to read, but she didn’t detect any hostility or annoyance in his reception.

“And the big guy who looks intimidating as hell but is sweet as a pussycat is Kane Briggs,” Skye said as she waved a hand toward the man who definitely had the dark and brooding look down pat.

According to Nathan, Kane was a Navy SEAL turned surveillance specialist. He was a big guy, from his broad shoulders to his large feet, and his ink-black hair, intense green eyes, and hard, muscular body only reinforced the notion that he was someone who could pose a very real threat if you crossed him.

“I’d rather not be compared to a dumb beast, if you don’t mind,” Kane said to Skye before exchanging a warm, courteous handshake with Nicole. “Unless it’s something a lot tougher than a damn cat.”

Nicole laughed, though the image of a sleek, black panther emerged in her mind, which was more his style. “I’ll be sure to remember that.”

Nathan joined the group, a bottle of root beer clutched between his fingers just as Skye plucked one of the plastic darts from Caleb’s hand. She glanced up at him, a crafty yet vixen-like look sweeping over her features.

“So, Caleb,” she said in a soft, sensual drawl. “Want to make a bet that I’ll hit the target with this dart in one throw?”

He raised a casual brow at her direct challenge, but there was no mistaking the brief spark of heat in his gaze. “You’re not
that
good.”

Skye lightly bounced the dart in her palm. “Are you willing to put your money where your mouth is, Roux?”

“Have you not learned your lesson where Skye is concerned?” Lucas piped in, his voice filled with humor. “When she bats those lashes of hers like that, it means proceed with caution, man.”

Kane chuckled, the amused sound at odds with his hulk-like appearance.

“Maybe it’s time for Caleb to be a little reckless for once,” Skye suggested, smiling at the man she was teasing so mercilessly. “Unless, of course, you’re afraid you’ll have to pay up when I make the shot.”

“You’re on, Skye,” Caleb said without further hesitation.

She smiled her satisfaction. “What are you willing to bet?”

“You name it.” Caleb crossed his arms over his chest and waited while she considered her prize.

“A real date,” she said without missing a beat. “Drinks. Dinner. Dancing. Maybe something a little more if you’re lucky.”

“And if you miss the mark?” he asked with mild curiosity.

Skye shrugged. “Then you’re off the hook. For
now
.”

He rubbed his fingers along his jaw thoughtfully. “Not a whole lot in it for me if you lose, now is there?”

“There is if I
win
.” She didn’t even try to hide the insinuation in her statement.

Nicole found the lively banter between the two of them fascinating. They seemed to enjoy playing cat and mouse with their attraction, with Skye taking on the role of the feisty feline trifling with an enticing toy she couldn’t wait to pounce on and enjoy, while Caleb played the proverbial hard-to-get prey.

“Back up, boys,” Skye said as she stood behind a stick that had been laid on the grass to mark the starting line. “I need my space.”

Everyone gave her the room she asked for, and with equal parts concentration and determination she eyed her shot, then tossed the brightly colored dart through the air and toward the plastic ring a good fifty feet away. She gasped as the dart landed, less than an inch outside the ring. Then she cursed beneath her breath.

“Bummer,” Caleb said. “Better luck next time, sweetheart.”

Nicole couldn’t tell if he was relieved, disappointed, or a little of both. With laughter erupting from the other guys, the men resumed their game, and Skye once again looped her arm through Nicole’s and guided them toward the covered island area.

“Caleb drives me absolutely crazy,” Skye grumbled.

“How so?” Nicole was curious to learn more about the history between Skye and Caleb.

“Can I be any more obvious that I want him?” Skye asked, her voice laced with frustration.

Nicole smiled. “From what I can see, the feeling is mutual.”

“Oh, I
know
that Caleb is hot for me, except he has this stupid code-of-honor thing when it comes to getting involved with an employee. But one of these days, I’m going to break through all that misguided chivalry of his.”

Nicole didn’t doubt it. There was obviously more to Skye and Caleb than their surface attraction, but Nicole didn’t feel it was her place to pry for details.

They came to a stop at the bar, and the man standing behind the counter greeted them with a devastatingly seductive grin no woman could resist. Coupled with his pitch-black hair and bright blue eyes, along with his gorgeous, masculine features, even Nicole found him extremely attractive.

“Good afternoon, pretty ladies,” he said, a lyrical Irish lilt to his voice that was as engaging as his delivery.

Skye rolled her eyes at his attempt to charm. “This is Sean O’Brien, our resident Irish bartender and all-around heartbreaker.”

“Hi, Sean,” she said, easily believing that this man was a player. “I’m Nicole.”

Instead of shaking the hand she offered, he pressed his warm lips to the back of it, lingering longer than was necessary. “What are you doing with a schlep like Nathan?” he teased, the Irish accent no longer present. “Come and run away with me.”

Amused by his flirting, Nicole gently pulled her hand back and laughed.

“Better watch yourself, Casanova,” Skye cut in wryly. “Nathan is eyeing every move you make and he doesn’t look happy that you’re already poaching on his territory.”

Unfazed by Skye’s warning, Sean braced his arms on the surface of the bar and leaned across the counter, a mischievous twinkle in his eyes. “Good. I’ll be sure to keep him on his toes this afternoon.” He winked at Nicole, confirming his reputation as a rogue.

“I could use a drink,” Skye said with a sigh. “What are the specials today?”

“I’ve got mojitos, blended fuzzy navels, and my special melon martini,” he said, showing off by tossing a full bottle of vodka into the air and catching it in his hand as easily as if he were juggling a plastic ball. “Or there’s beer.”

“Not strong enough,” Skye said. “I’ll take a melon martini. How about you, Nicole?”

She was more in the mood for something frothy and froufrou, rather than hard-hitting liquor. “A fuzzy navel sounds good.”

“Make that two,” a female voice said from behind them.

Nicole glanced over her shoulder as a pretty woman approached the bar. Her long brown hair, streaked with gold, fell into soft waves halfway down her back, and her inquisitive brown eyes regarded Nicole with interest.

Skye introduced the woman as Valerie Downing, the casino host at The Onyx. As Valerie grasped Nicole’s hand in hers and looked into her eyes, Nicole felt an inexplicable shiver skip down her spine.

“It’s very nice to meet you,” Nicole finally said, and shook off the strange sensation.

“You, too.” Nodding as if she’d satisfied some internal curiosity, Valerie released her hand, and the peculiar awareness between them dissipated.

Sean set two blended fuzzy navels on the counter, and Skye handed one to Nicole and the other to Valerie. “It’s about time Nathan got himself a girlfriend, don’t you think?”

Nicole shook her head adamantly as she sipped her delicious peach drink. “Really, we’re just
friends
.” With sexual benefits, yes, but that didn’t constitute the kind of relationship Skye kept alluding to.

“Which means I’ve still got a shot, right?” Sean asked with a grin as he mixed Skye’s cocktail and poured it into a martini glass rimmed in sugar.

Skye laughed. “Not unless you want that pretty face of yours rearranged by Nathan’s fist.”

Sean considered the risk for only a fraction of a second. “Nicole just might be worth it.”

“Flattery will get you nowhere with this one,” Valerie said, sounding certain of that fact.

Sean’s shoulders lifted in an unrepentant shrug. “You can’t blame a guy for trying.”

“You are trouble with a capital
T,
O’Brien,” Valerie said, laughing indulgently.

Skye glanced at Nicole and Valerie as she licked sugar off her bottom lip and raised her glass in a toast. “I say we slip into our swimsuits, enjoy our drinks by the pool, and gossip about the boys.”

“Count me in,” Nicole agreed, eager to learn more about this intriguing group of people Nathan worked with.

“Me, too,” Valerie added as the three of them clinked their glasses together.

They headed inside the house to change, and met back on the patio ten minutes later with Valerie in a modest one-piece with a sarong tied around her waist, Skye in a jaw-dropping two-piece that showcased her amazing curves, and Nicole in a pink-and-white bikini that fell between the two extremes.

From behind the bar, Sean whistled a sexy catcall, drawing the attention of the other guys still playing lawn darts across the yard. The only gaze Nicole noticed was Nathan’s, whose stare held a fascinating combination of heat and pure male possession that made her heart beat a little faster beneath her breast.

Sean leaned across the bar. “If any of you ladies need help rubbing suntan lotion on your backs, or anywhere else for that matter, just let me know.”

Nicole laughed, and Valerie just lifted her eyes heavenward.

Skye, however, didn’t hesitate to put him in his place. “Dream on, O’Brien. Because that’s about as close as you’re going to get to any of us.”

Sean placed a hand over his heart and feigned a wounded look. “You slay me, Skye.”

“Someone has to keep you in check,” she replied, then turned toward Nicole and Valerie and handed them their drinks again. “Come on, girls. Let’s go and enjoy the rest of the afternoon.”

The three of them settled on lounge chairs by the pool, and the chatter began in earnest. Skye dominated the conversation with her lively, animated personality. They talked, laughed, and had a great time together, and it didn’t take long for Nicole to feel as though she fit right in and had made two new friends.

“So, how did you and Nathan meet?” Valerie finally asked when she was able to get a word in.

Nicole wasn’t sure how to answer, considering how unconventional their first encounter had been. “We met at a speed-dating event.”

Valerie’s brows rose in surprise as she placed her hand on Nicole’s arm, as if touching her was necessary at the moment. Then the corner of her mouth lifted in a slow, subtle smile, and those insightful eyes of hers gleamed perceptively.

“Ahhh, so you’re
the one,
” she said, and finally pulled her hand away.

There was something about Valerie that made Nicole feel as though the other woman could see much deeper than Nicole was comfortable with. “What do you mean,
the one
?”

“Nathan attended the event as a favor to me,” Valerie told her, looking very pleased with herself. “When I asked him how the night went, he told me that he’d met someone, but that it hadn’t worked out.
You’re
the woman he was talking about.”

Nicole’s face warmed in embarrassment. “Umm, yeah. That was me. We kind of reconnected.” A nice, safe word that didn’t give away any details of how they’d
accidentally
run into each other again that night at the art gallery.

“Fate is funny that way, isn’t it?” Valerie asked. “Some things are just unavoidable, and I’m glad Nathan found a woman like you. You’re exactly what he needs in his life.”

Nicole wasn’t sure how to respond to that comment, and it appeared that Valerie didn’t expect her to. The other woman slipped on a pair of sunglasses and reclined back in her chair. Nicole pondered the odd exchange until Skye launched into a discussion about how some men were able to play hard-to-get better than women … referring, of course, to Caleb’s ability to resist their very obvious attraction.

The rest of the day passed quickly. What with gabbing with the girls, a game of volleyball in the pool with the guys, and dining on grilled hamburgers, Nicole couldn’t remember the last time she’d had such a fun, relaxing day. Friendly ribbing and joking ensued among the boys, with Sean doing his best to deliberately provoke Nathan by playing the part of a philandering ladies’ man with Nicole.

There was so much laughter and such positive, cheerful energy flowing, it was a welcome mental and emotional break from all the darkness she’d witnessed at Sloane’s club the night before.

And for today, she let herself indulge and revel in the festive environment.