Melissa's Mates (3 page)

The air left her lungs as an arm reached behind her and nearly gave her whiplash from the instant stop. Anger coursed through her blood as she looked into the most gorgeous face she’d ever seen. It was enough to give her pause, but her mouth had a mind of its own.

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing? Couldn’t you see me walking?”

The light blue eyes grew wide, and she froze. She knew those eyes. Tom had eyes just like his. Just the thought of the man who tried to kidnap her best friend made the rage worse. True, he wasn’t Tom, but anything associated with that evil man didn’t sit well with her.

“I was here first. Didn’t you see me? Plus, I believe I saved you from falling.”

He smiled down charmingly at her, but she quickly removed herself from his arms. “No, you almost broke my neck. I think falling wouldn’t have hurt so much. Jules, let’s go.”

“Wait. I’m sorry if I hurt you. It wasn’t intentional, I promise.” His voice quickly rushed in. “Can I ask you a question?”

Melissa spun around and looked back at the man. Once again, she looked into his eyes, and this time she felt something different. The feeling of getting sucked in pulled her closer to him. Taking a step forward, thoughts of seducing this man burst into her mind. He was beautiful, charming, and…Melissa blinked and ripped her gaze away.

“What did you want?”

“Your name.” He smiled as if surprised by something.

“Her name is Melissa Taylor. She’ll be at the Martini Bar in Corpus tonight if you’re interested. Now, we have to leave because I don’t think I can stand too much longer.”

Melissa glared at Julie. For some reason, she wasn’t sure if she wanted this man to know her name. There was something about him that left her anxious, yet appealed to her. Her mind kept telling her to run for the hills, but her body wanted to wrap itself around him.

“Nice to meet you, Melissa. I’m Channing.”

She nodded wearily and eased back to her friend. Julie sat propped against a palm tree, her hair catching in the bark. The poor girl was absolutely wasted. For four in the afternoon, that wasn’t a good sign.

“Let me call us a cab, Jules. We’ll be out of here in no time.”

“Allow me to drive you wherever it is you ladies need to go.”

Melissa took in the business suit and Channing’s jet black hair. Pulling her vision to the parking lot, she looked at the vehicles filling the space. There was only one she could imagine him driving—the only other Mercedes in the lot.

“No thanks, we’ll call a cab.”

“Mel, come on. I don’t want to have to wait. Aren’t you sober enough to drive my car?”

Even though she was sure she could make it the three blocks, she wasn’t willing to bet anyone’s life on it. There were too many pedestrians that walked this island. A lot of them happened to be high school kids.

“No. The cab shouldn’t take long.”

Julie let out a groan and sunk to the ground in her business skirt.

“Please, let me help you. I’m sorry for whatever I did to make you angry at me.”

“We don’t need your help. You were going in to eat. Please, go enjoy your meal.”

Distance. She needed so much more separation from this man. What was it about him that made her want to flee? He was beyond gorgeous. Yet something, an energy about him, definitely pushed her away. The moment he took a step forward, she took a step back. The pain that washed over his face was the only reason she didn’t continue.

“As you wish. I’m sorry.”

Hesitantly, she watched him walk inside. Torn, she felt the need to go apologize. She’d been rude, something she hated. Instead, she pulled out her phone and called a cab company. It didn’t take them long to arrive. Helping Julie in the back seat was nothing short of her friend falling inside. It wasn’t two blocks of passing houses and palm trees before she saw Jules sway to the side. After a few seconds Julie’s hand reached forward.

“I think I’m going to be sick.”

Melissa looked over, alarmed. Even the driver of the cab tensed as he made the turn to her house. Their speed increased, and he stopped abruptly. Julie opened the door and became ill right there outside her house.

“Well, thanks for not doing that on the stairs.” Melissa paid the driver and helped her friend into her house. By the time she got Julie showered, dressed in some of her pajamas, and into bed, the clock read fifteen till seven. So much for going out tonight. She guessed it didn’t matter. There would always be tomorrow, but still, she’d been excited to go and release some steam, especially after the disaster of last weekend.

Walking to look out the glass on her door, Melissa watched the sunset from her view of the beach. No one was around, leaving the large expanse of beach deserted. Just the thought of walking along the water caused her to head to her room. She grabbed her black bikini and a pair of shorts. Feeling a sense of urgency, she put them on and was running for the ocean like her life depended on it.

Something drove her faster until fire raced down her lungs. Pulling the clip out of her hair, she let her red curls cascade into the wind that whipped past her. Melissa didn’t stop until her toes connected with the rush of water. The slight coolness soothed her racing heart, and suddenly she didn’t want to stop. Walking deeper, she stared captivated at the setting sun.

Waves crashed against her chest while she ventured even farther. The soft sand beneath her toes urged her until the water rested even with her chest, and she had to fight to stand against the waves. Random thoughts poured through Melissa’s mind. She couldn’t help but think of her conversation with her friends earlier. Babies. They were going to become mothers. The revelation brought a new batch of tears to her eyes.

Where had time gone? Here she was right at thirty, and even though motherhood crossed her mind on occasion, she couldn’t actually picture it. First you needed a man, and then came the rest. She didn’t trust men.. She’d yet to meet one that didn’t hit, cheat, or drink himself into oblivion every night. The day that one of the “good guys” came along, she’d probably just say something to ruin it anyway.

Darkness begun to close in around her, and still Melissa didn’t move. Without thought, she took a breath and emerged herself under the water. The weightless current carried her out further, and she let it. She wasn’t afraid of being taken out too far. She’d been a certified lifeguard and knew the conditions didn’t pose any threat.

Keeping her eyes tightly shut, she drew her body out straight and could feel herself float towards the surface. She felt so free, so light. This was how she wanted to be, always. No worries, just her, the ocean, and peace.

Pressure gripping her arm caused her to scream out. Flailing wildly, she choked on the salty water. Someone dragged her toward the shore, but with her hair matted across her face, she couldn’t see anything.

“Are you trying to kill yourself? What in the hell do you think you’re doing!”

Gagging and halfway submerged under the water, Melissa tried to catch her breath. Fire raced through her eyes. Rubbing her arm, she stood and glared at the man. Immediately, she noticed his height and how the water rested just at his hip bones. He was completely nude.

“Answer me! What in the hell were you doing? Do you know how much you frightened me?”

Confused, anger sparked inside of her at his tone. “I was…what the hell does it matter what I was doing? What in the hell are you doing, scaring me like that?”

He remained quiet as he stared at her. She looked into his hazel eyes, barely catching their color in the darkness. The moon gave enough light for her to notice his features. Strong cheekbones rested above full lips. His jaw squared off at his chin. He didn’t look a day over his mid-twenties. Something tugged in her chest, and she stepped away from him.

“I should be going. Next time you decide to save someone, make sure they need to be rescued before you dive in.”

Melissa began walking back toward the beach, leaving the stranger in the moonlight of the water. The sound of his angry splashing made her turn in his direction as he distanced himself a good ten feet, parallel to her.

“If you wouldn’t have disappeared and stayed under the water so long then maybe I wouldn’t have needed to
rescue
you.” The words were spat in her direction, and her lips parted.

“No one told you to, so why did you waste your time? What, are you telling me a person can’t swim at the beach anymore?”

He stomped in her direction, until mere inches separated them.
 
Heat inflamed her body as his nude form grew closer. With as far as they made it, the water only reached to his knees, it was thigh level on her. Alarmed, she scanned the area, but it was still deserted.

“Listen, lady, I was trying to help you. I’m sorry if I scared you, but you scared me. What am I supposed to think? You come tearing down the beach, running at the speed of light. Then, after countless minutes, you’re like a zombie staring straight ahead, only to disappear under the water and not resurface. I panicked, okay? I wasn’t sure what was going on.”

Melissa could feel her breath quicken. The rise and fall of her breasts nearly closed their distance. Just thinking about their skin touching caused her nipples to tighten painfully.

“I couldn’t think,” she whispered.

His features softened as he continued to look down at her. “Well, I can’t think right now.”

The hoarseness of his voice caressed places deep inside of her. Suddenly, she didn’t feel angry or afraid of this man anymore. He was so close. If she just lifted her hand, or took a step closer, she could unite their two bodies.

Watching his hand rise, the air left her completely. The moment his palm cupped her cheek, a growing hunger took over. Their eyes locked, and she could have sworn time literally stood still. Everything turned into slow motion as he stared. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t break their gaze. Hazel, that was all she could see, and oddly, she never wanted to leave their presence.

Kiss me, please! God, I think he’s going to do it. He’s getting closer!

“Melissa, is that you!”

Startled, she jumped, and her head spun towards the shore. The glow of the white pajama’s rested there, motionless. Julie stood with her hands on her hips, watching them.

“Are we going out or not? I feel better.”

The sound traveled loudly over the calming water. Even the wind seemed to have died the moment Melissa’s universe had tilted. Fuzzily, her head wouldn’t focus with what had just occurred.

“I should go.”

She pulled back and took another look at him before she ran for the shore. The shakiness coursing through her body nearly made her legs collapse out from under her on repeated occasions. She turned back noticing he had moved into deeper water. Remembering the fact that he was nude, she was glad. For some strange reason, she didn’t want her friend to see him like that.

Taking in Julie’s messy appearance, she sighed. “Are you sure you’re up for going out tonight? You’ve only slept maybe an hour. You still have to be pretty drunk.”

“I’m good. Let’s go figure out what we’re going to wear. I feel like dancing.”

Melissa looked back to the silhouetted figure as they made their way back towards her house. The large sand dunes separating the beach soon made him disappear completely. An ache raced through her heart. She hadn’t even gotten his name. Would she ever see him again? As much as she wanted to, she wasn’t sure if she ever would.

Chapter 4

The lyrics to the song playing in the crowded bar were being yelled in Melissa’s ear. She looked over laughing at the still intoxicated Julie. “Come on, girlie, sing with me. This song fucking rocks.” Her friend went back to singing as Natalie and a new girl walked up.