Make Me Forget (3 page)

“I did. I needed a little vacation. Do you surf?”

Paige shook her head. Her answer was partially true. She had never been the adventurous type. She was a bookworm—always had been, always would be. Being an author was the perfect occupation for her. She locked herself in her office and was perfectly content with her computer and her characters.

“I would love to teach you,” Tyler offered.

Paige stood up. “I don’t think so, but thanks for the offer.” She started gathering her stuff. “I need to head back to the condo and try to get some writing done.”

Tyler helped her shake the sand out of her blanket. He folded it and leaned toward her as he handed it to her. “See you later for dinner,” he whispered and kissed her cheek. He grabbed his surfboard and jogged toward his friends, who were already down the beach a way.

Paige just stood there, shaking her head, amazed by the way Tyler had once again left her speechless. Part of her was still annoyed by him since he was interrupting her quiet plans for the weekend. Part of her was intrigued. She still knew almost nothing about him. However, she would admit she was slightly attracted to him—just a little.

She started back to the condo. She tried to keep her head high, almost forcing herself to believe she was going to be okay, but her mind was racing. She thought about the characters in her book and attempted to visualize the next scene. Instead, her mind was immediately consumed with visions of her ex. It had to be the hurt and sexual drought she was going through. Even before she’d left Justin and New York City, it had been months since she and Justin had made love—or had sex. After finding the cheating bastard with his assistant—his
married
assistant—Paige had wondered if they’d ever actually
made love
. She thought she’d loved him, but doubt had always crept into her thoughts. The way Justin treated her when they were making social appearances made her skin crawl. For so long, she’d contributed it to their personality differences. As a talent agent, he’d always been mingling with the rich and famous. Paige had hated being dragged along. When she’d first made the bestseller’s list, he had bragged to everyone. But when people had turned their attention away from him, wanting to ask her about her books, he’d quickly changed the subject. Justin had thrived off being the center of attention. Paige, on the other hand, was more of a loner and completely fine with it.

Paige took a deep breath and dabbed at her eyes. She did not want to shed another tear because of Justin
or
her writer’s block. She opened the door to the condo and welcomed the blast of cool air against her sun-warmed skin. She set down her bags on the white-tiled kitchen table then grabbed a glass of ice water before looking around the kitchen and living room areas. She thought about what had happened this morning—and her naked intruder. A smile found her lips, and she snickered at the ridiculousness of how the entire event had unfolded. It was definitely a funny story that would be worth telling for years to come.

Paige settled at the kitchen table and started up her laptop. She began rereading her book from chapter one.

Chapter Three

It had been a great day on the water—the waves had been perfect for surfing. Tyler smiled as Matt drove him back to the condo. He was hoping his evening would give him even more to smile about.

“You have a big grin on your face, mate,” Matt noticed. “Plans tonight with that lady?”

“I’m taking her out to dinner,” Tyler answered with excitement.

“She’s quite the looker.”

Tyler glared at Matt.

“Sorry, I was only making an observation.” Matt chuckled at his friend’s possessiveness.

“I know. She is freaking beautiful. I really want to get to know her better, but she seems pretty quiet and closed off, other than her screaming at me and threatening me with a knife.”

“What do you expect? She found you naked this morning while she was making coffee. The poor girl probably wasn’t even awake yet, let alone prepared to see all that.” He gestured to Tyler’s body.

Tyler laughed. Matt made a good point. Hopefully, the initial shock of the intrusion was behind them and they could simply enjoy each other’s company for the next few days.

Tyler walked through the door and saw Paige sitting at the kitchen table with her laptop open. She was lying on her arm, sound asleep. He quietly walked over to her and watched her napping. Even though watching her again made him feel kind of creepy, he couldn’t help it. Her beauty was enticing. He noticed the cute trail of drool trickling out of the corner of her mouth and down her arm, and he smiled. The fact he found her drool cute made him laugh. Her body flinched, and her elbow hit her computer mouse, bringing her laptop out of sleep mode. Tyler watched her closely to make sure she was still napping.

I know I shouldn’t look, but curiosity is killing me.

Tyler began skimming the book Paige was working on. After reading everything on the screen, he carefully reached for the mouse and continued. The story was good, really good. He wanted to finish it, which surprised the hell out of him since it was a romance novel. Her use of imagery was impeccable. The way she described the characters and scenery drew him into the story, especially the chemistry between the man and woman. He continued to scroll down. It ended abruptly right when the two main characters were locking lips.

Tyler carefully tiptoed away to the bathroom. Reading Paige’s book had created a deeper desire for her inside him. The way she used her words to paint a picture was mindboggling. She was definitely a talented, passionate writer. Not only did he want her company, he wanted to know more about her—what made her tick, what she liked and didn’t like. He wanted to know about her love for writing.

He stepped into the shower and began washing away a day’s worth of sweat, sand and salt water. Visions of Paige ran through his head as he wrapped his hand around his cock and began stroking himself. The way she looked when they first met… He wanted to hold on tight to her ass as he took her against the door. The way her breasts looked in that damn bikini she’d been wearing at the beach today… He wanted to suck on her nipples until they formed hard peaks.

Tyler had had to sit down beside her at the beach earlier, wet or not. He’d sported a major hard-on as soon as he’d noticed her. Board shorts had done nothing to keep him concealed.

His hand moved over his cock faster. He put his other hand against the tiled shower wall, needing the stability. He pictured her under him, naked, crying out for him as he thrust into her. Her name escaped his lips as he finished masturbating. He leaned his head against the cold tile as the warm water rushed over him. He wanted to blow her mind, starting tonight.

* * * *

Paige woke up at the sound of a child yelling outside. She grunted as she wiped the drool away from her face…and her arm.
Do I always have to drool when I sleep?
It grossed her out and had always annoyed her ex, but she was a mouth breather. It was almost inevitable.

She was still unable to write a single word. Instead of feeling frustrated about it this time, she accepted it.
The words will come
.
I won’t be lost at sea forever. Soon I will hit my destination.
She turned off her computer and noticed a note left beside her laptop.

Dinner @ 6:00. Wear something nice. —Tyler

Her lips curved up after reading the note. Paige certainly wasn’t getting any writing done at this point. She might as well have some fun.

She hopped in the shower and got ready for the evening. She put on the red dress she’d bought in New London the night before. It was a simple, somewhat formfitting, sleeveless dress. Paige loved the way the fabric felt against her skin, and she was all about comfort. She also put on the earrings she’d purchased at one of those fair trade stores. They were coiled silver embellished with a red glass bead at the top, beautifully handcrafted in Kenya. She was happy she had thrown in a pair of wedge heels. She didn’t own many pairs of heels, but the wedges were the most comfortable to her. She kept her hair down and applied some mascara and lip gloss. With a puff of her favorite body spray, she took one last look in the mirror. She felt confident in the outfit she wore despite the butterflies in her stomach. Was it her nerves? Excitement? Anticipation? Perhaps a little of everything. She took a deep breath. Tonight, she was ready to relax and have some fun, just like she’d promised herself she would.

Paige walked out of her room and stopped as soon as she saw Tyler sitting on the cream-colored leather couch. Her breath hitched. Her heart began to race. Her body started to ache. To hell with fighting the attraction she felt for him, the man was gorgeous.

Tyler looked up, saw her and gave her a bright smile that shined in his eyes. Paige couldn’t seem to pull her gaze away from him. She had seen him naked, in a swimming suit and now he was all dressed up. He was wearing black pants and a dark blue, button–down collar shirt. The shirt made his ocean blue eyes stand out even more. Paige’s mouth watered. He was looking yummier than ever.
How is that possible?
Wow!

“You look beautiful,” he said, walking over to her. When he reached her, he gently kissed her cheek, letting his lips linger.

Paige closed her eyes briefly at his touch. She swore the temperature in the room increased by at least twenty degrees, and she couldn’t blame it on the sun. She couldn’t remember the last time a gorgeous man had complimented her. “Thank you. You look very handsome too.”

Tyler smiled, but it was a different kind of smile this time. It was a smile that would make panties drop. The naughty part of her, buried away, wanted it to be her panties.

“Ready?”

She nodded as he led her out of the door with his hand at the small of her back.

They headed to a restaurant right on the water. It was open and airy to the gentle harbor breeze, but the white linen tablecloths and napkins showed a level of class. The host seated them by the outdoor dining area, giving them the perfect view to watch the boats come in.

“Last time I was here, I ate out on the deck and a seagull snatched up my container of tartar sauce. It did a fly by and took it right off my plate. I couldn’t believe it! I turned my head for one second, just one single second, and boom! It was gone. Those birds can be nasty sometimes,” Tyler admitted, causing Paige to giggle.

“Well, I think this is the perfect table for us then. Sheltered a bit from the seagulls, but still with a beautiful view.” She gently smiled at him then began looking at the dinner specials.

They placed their dinner orders, both ordering seafood dishes. Tyler decided on the swordfish, and Paige ordered the seafood stuffed jumbo shrimp. The waiter brought back their drinks—a glass of wine for Paige and a beer for Tyler.

“So, Tyler Barrow, tell me about yourself,” she began then sipped her wine.

“What do you want to know?”

“Start with where you are from. I detect a slight accent.” She smiled.

Tyler chuckled. “Yes, just a slight one. I’m originally from the Chicago area, but my father’s job transferred us to Australia when I was in high school.”

“That’s a big move. Now what do you do in Australia?”

Tyler’s forehead wrinkled a bit. He took another drink of his beer rather than answering her question right away. “I’m a high school math teacher, and I coach the boys’ soccer team. Exciting, huh?”

Paige sipped of her wine and kept his gaze. “It is exciting. Tell me more,” she said with a bit of seduction in her tone. She urged him to continue talking about his work. She was actually a little shocked to find out he was a teacher. He seemed more of a…. Well, she wasn’t quite sure. Maybe he had some type of suit-wearing career? He seemed forward, making it pretty clear what he wanted and leaving her speechless twice in one day. She could definitely see him in sales or as an attorney, but never would have guessed he taught. The fact he did fascinated her.

Tyler told her about his students and how much he enjoyed his work. He taught ninth through twelfth grade, mostly advanced classes. She could tell by the way he talked that it was indeed his passion. She could only imagine the crushes the girls had on him. Paige had never had any good-looking male instructors. The more he talked about teaching and coaching, the more turned on she got. Perhaps it was the compassionate side of him, or the way his eyes lit up while he was talking about his career.

The glasses of wine were just the icing on the cake.

The small talk continued, and they shared some good laughs. Despite some differences in their choice of hobbies, they had a lot in common when it came to their favorite things. They both loved classic rock, Journey being their favorite band. They both loved funny movies, seafood and pizza. The more Tyler talked about Australia, the more Paige wanted to take a vacation there. It would also be a nice location to do some book signings. It sounded amazing.

Paige then told him about her place in Hartford and some of her favorite spots to shop and eat.

“Your home sounds wonderful,” he said.

Home?
Technically, it was her home, although she still didn’t think of it that way. She loved it, but it just didn’t feel like
home
to her. She hadn’t felt like that since she’d moved from her childhood house when she’d left for college.

“So tell me about what you do.”

“You already know. I’m an author.”

“And?” he asked with a crooked smile.

“And that’s my career. I have been writing for as long as I can remember. I started with poetry and young adult novels. Three years ago, I began writing under a pen name and wrote my first romance novel. I’m currently working on number ten.”

“Wow! That’s great! I’ve never met an author before. Any bestsellers?”

Paige nodded and swallowed her bite of food. “The last five.”

Tyler’s mouth dropped open. “
Five?
So, you’re like famous or something?”