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“
That’s good.” He tried to remove the guy’s arm from his shoulders, only to have the man grab him again. “I’m buying you a drink.” He shook him and turned back to the bar. “What are you having?”
 

Cole sighed and shook his head at Wendy. It was hard to stay mad at a guy that was this drunk, especially when he was a fan.

The next hour was a blur of drinks. Every chance he got, he would look Wendy’s way. She seemed very busy and looked like she was loving it.

Finally, after the large crowd of people left, he could talk to her. There were still plenty of orders for her to fill, but in between, she would stop off and lean on the counter.

“
So, how did the shoot go?”
 

He shrugged his shoulders. “Okay. I have a box of new shorts to wear.” He smiled.

She laughed. “Good, maybe now you’ll throw away those ugly green ones.”

He shook his head. “Those have taken me through everything. I wouldn’t have won my first Junior ISA award without them.”

She shook her head and sighed. “Seriously?”

“
Speaking of which, I’ve got this thing next week and was wondering if you wanted to go with me.” He leaned closer to her and reached out to
take her hand in his.
 

“
What thing and where?” She glanced down at their hands and smiled.
 

“
It’s the Ku Ikaika Challenge in Hawaii.”
 

He watched her chin drop a little. “Hawaii?” She blinked a few times.

“
Yeah, why not?” He ran his thumb over the inside of her wrist and felt her heart skip a beat.
 

“
I… I’ve never been anywhere.”
 

He chuckled. “Honey, you are somewhere. We all are.”

She shook her head. “I’ve never really been outside of… well, here.” She glanced around.

“
Isn’t it about time then?” He tugged on her hand until her eyes focused on him. “I’ll talk to my sister and see if she can clear your schedule.” He started to get up, only to have her tug him back.
 

“
Hold on.” She frowned at him. “I can deal with my own schedule and I haven’t said yes yet.”
 

He chuckled and nodded. “Okay, fine. Say yes.”

He watched her bite her bottom lip and glance around the almost empty bar. “Okay,” she smiled and he could see the excitement rush into her eyes.

He nodded. “Great, we leave on Tuesday.”

She frowned. “But that’s the day after the Fourth.”

He nodded. “Yeah?”

She sighed and closed her eyes. “I’m pulling a double the day before.”

“
You work on the Fourth?” He frowned and sat back down as she nodded.
 

“
But I thought you were going to go hang with my family. Julie invited you.”
 

She nodded. “I forgot that I’d requested it earlier. Besides, I could use the money to pay off the shopping spree I went on last weekend.”

He sighed. “Is it too late to change it?”

She nodded.

“
Okay.” He glanced around. “But get the following four days off. We’re hitting the islands.”
 

She nodded and smiled.

F
ourth of July came and Wendy was pumped. She had her bags packed already as she headed out for the early shift. When she arrived, she was shocked to see Cole leaning against the railing of the boardwalk. He had a bag and a holder with three coffee cups in his hands.
 

“
Morning.” He smiled.
 

She glanced down at her watch and smiled. “Yes, it is.”

“
Here, this one is for you.” He handed her the cup of coffee. “Caramel Macchiato.”
 

She smiled and took a sip. The richness sank into her. “Who’s that for?”

Cole looked down at the remaining cup. “Double-chocolate-chip Frappuccino for Cass. And these”—he wiggled the bag he held—“are donuts. I didn’t know what kind you like, so I grabbed a few different kinds.”

She smiled. “Anything with chocolate on it.”

He nodded and then started walking towards the main doors as she followed. “What are you doing here? Besides being a delivery boy?” She held open the door for him.

“
Helping out.”
 

“
What?” She jogged to catch up to him as she took another sip of the rich drink.
 

“
When Cassey told me that she was short staffed, I figured I’d help out.” He smiled. “Meet your new busboy for the day.”
 

She laughed. “The last time you bused, you ended up breaking half the dishes.”

He frowned and nodded. “That’s because Marcus was working alongside me that day. He kept tripping me.”

She chuckled and shook her head. “I just bet.”

His eyebrows shot up. “Do you?” He set the coffee and donuts down and pulled her closer to him. “What will you give me if I don’t break a dish all day?” He leaned down and kissed her once.

She smiled, liking the game. “How about, if you don’t break a dish, any dish, all day long, I’ll let you see what I bought last weekend at Victoria’s Secret.”

She felt him stiffen a little and couldn’t stop her smile from growing.

“
And if I lose?”
 

She thought about it. “You have to model for me in those new ‘shorts’ you have.”

He smiled and nodded. “Deal.”

When she heard the first glass drop, she smiled. By the third, she was laughing so hard, she almost dropped a glass herself. With each new shattered piece of dishware, she could just imagine his silent curses.

Around four o’clock that afternoon, Cole’s whole family, minus Roman, walked in the door. Cassey had reserved the back booth a few minutes earlier, so the family walked over and sat down in their usual spot. Cole walked over to them and then came to her.

“
Do you have a break?” He leaned over and touched her hand.
 

“
Sure.” She smiled. After making sure Alan and Steven had the bar area covered, she walked over to the table and sat with his family.
 

“
It’s a shame Roman had to work.” Julie frowned a little and looked towards Cole.
 

“
He should be home soon enough,” Marcus put in, then quickly changed the subject to how his and Shelly’s house was almost done, and how their
wedding plans were moving along as well. That kept everyone busy talking for the next forty minutes until their dinner arrived.
 

After the food arrived, the conversation moved on to their trip to Hawaii the next day. Then it was time for her to get back to work. As she stood up, Cole stood up to.

“
Well, back to work.” He tugged on her arm, just as his dad started asking about Roman again. “Whew, that was close,” he whispered to her as he walked towards the bar.
 

She chuckled, then glanced over her shoulder and saw Marcus glaring at the back of Cole’s head. “Your brother is shooting daggers at your back.”

He chuckled. “He’ll get over it. Besides, he owes me after all the hard work I did on his place.”

She smiled when he pulled her into his arms. “Only a few more hours to go until we are free for five days.”

“
Five?” She frowned. “I thought you said four?”
 

“
Uh, yeah, about that.”
 

“
I only took four days off.”
 

He chuckled. “Why do you think I’m working today? I had to promise Cassey I’d help out so you could have an extra day off, with pay.”

“
With pay?” She glanced over at the booth and was shocked to see the entire table watching them,
smiling. Cassey winked at her and then turned back to her husband.
 

“
I have the best boss in the world.” She sighed.
 

After that, the music turned loud and the crowd flowed in until just before closing time. There was a slight lull when the fireworks were being set off, but shortly after, everyone flocked back in.

When Cassie finally locked the front doors, Wendy sat down in a chair with a cold beer and propped her feet up.

“
You made it through the day.” She smiled over at Cole, who was doing the same thing, except he had a Bushwhacker instead of a beer.
 

“
Was there every any doubt?” Then he frowned. “I can explain the dishes.”
 

She chuckled and shook her head. “Don’t be a sore loser.”

He smiled. “Who says I am? Just—” Her laughing interrupted him. “Fine.” He crossed his arms over his chest, but he was smiling.

“
Cole never could stand to lose.” Cassey joined them at the table. “Remember the time I bet you at basketball?”
 

A burst of laughter escaped from Wendy. She looked over at Cole and smiled. “Sorry.”

He frowned at her. “It wasn’t like that. I had a broken arm.”

Cassey laughed. “
The summer before. He kept complaining
that it was still hurting him, but before I showed up, he’d whooped both Roman’s and Marcus’s butts.”
 

Wendy couldn’t help it, she smiled. “Sore loser.”

He frowned and set his empty glass down. “Come on, we’d better get some sleep if we expect to catch our plane tomorrow morning.” He tugged on her hands, pulling her up as she smiled over at Cassey.

“
Have a great trip.”
 

She nodded and then tugged on his arm until he stopped. “Thanks for the extra day.”

Cassey stood and hugged her. “Don’t worry about it. I’m glad you’re finally taking a real vacation.” Wendy smiled as Cole continued to tug on her arm until they were outside.

“
What’s the big hurry?” she asked as he walked quickly towards her place.
 

He glanced over at her and smiled. “I’m tired.”

“
Right.” She chuckled. “You don’t look tired. Are you eager to do a little modeling for me?”
 

He smiled again. “No, maybe I just want to get horizontal.” He pulled her close as they walked.

“
Oh?” She felt her knees almost give out.
 

Before she knew it, they were at her front door and he was taking the keys from her to open the locks. Then he pulled her through her door and pushed her up against the other side. Cole’s mouth covered hers as she sighed and wrapped her arms around his shoulders.

“
I couldn’t keep my eyes off you all night,” he moaned against her skin. “I kept thinking about getting my hands on you.” He ran his hands up and down her sides and then started tugging her shirt over her head. “Oh, god,” he said when her bright pink bra was exposed.
 

“
You like?” she whispered, her eyes on his. She smiled when he just nodded, his eyes glued to her chest.
 

“
Is this what you bought?” He ran a finger down the strap.
 

She nodded. “Not the one I was going to show you… had you not broken almost a dozen dishes tonight.”

She smiled as he groaned. “Damn.” He leaned close and placed his lips on the curve of her shoulder.

She leaned her head back against the door and enjoyed his mouth traveling over her skin, heating it up. He hiked her skirt up until he could grip her naked hips and he leaned closer. She could feel how hard and excited he was. When she quickly pulled his shorts off his hips, he chuckled and then sighed as she gripped him firmly.

He pushed her farther against the door, spreading her legs as he moved between them. His fingers went between them, gliding below her matching pink panties. He pulled them aside quickly.

When he dipped a finger into her, she cried out and dug her nails into his shoulders.

“
Yes, that’s it.” He breathed next to her ear. “Enjoy.”
 

She nodded, not able to do anything but enjoy the feeling of him next to her, holding her up as he pleasured her.

Finally, when she didn’t think she could stand it any longer, she felt him slide into her quickly. She wrapped her leg around his hip and pulled him closer. He pounded into her as his mouth took hers. When she cried out, he was right there with her and groaned her name into her hair.

Then he shocked her by carrying her into the bedroom and slowly removing the rest of her clothes. He threw the covers over them and pulled her closer to his side with his arms wrapped around her.

“
Night,” he said, kissing her forehead.
 

She lay there awake for almost an hour. Her mind refused to shut down. She was excited about the trip they were taking in just a few short hours and had so many emotions welling up inside her from hearing Cole lightly snore next to her and feeling his arms wrapped around her tightly.

She’d never experienced such want before. Such need. The few boyfriends she’d had in the past had never treated her like this. Like she was fragile or something to be treasured.

***

Cole laughed when Wendy’s chin dropped as she sat down next to him on the plane.

“
First class?” She frowned a little and looked around the cabin.

“
Yeah, why not? After all, you did say this was your first flight.” He smiled and moved as close to her as the big chairs would allow.

“
Yes, but…” She shook her head in disbelief.

“
Sit back, relax.” He took her hand and she leaned back, her eyes traveling everywhere. “We’ll have some wine after we take off.”

She shook her head and smiled. “Still can’t believe it. I’m going to Hawaii.”

He smiled and pulled her hand up to his lips. “We’re going.”