Shaken Not Stirred (Mixology) (4 page)

“You don’t have to walk me up.”

He closed my door. “I want to.”

I accepted the hand he offered, and we
strolled up. We stopped outside the door.

“I’ll call you.” He kissed my cheek. The
gesture was sweet, but I expected more.

I smiled. “I look forward to it.” I walked
in, closing the door behind me. If he had such a great time and
wanted to see me again, why wouldn’t he really kiss me?

The condo was empty, saving me from having to
replay the entire date to my roommates. For guys, they were so nosy
about my life. It was three-thirty, and I didn’t have to be in to
work until six. I decided to change into a bikini and lay out on
the deck. I didn’t even bother to bring a book with me. I was
having trouble getting into a good book since graduation. I closed
my eyes and decided to enjoy a rare nap. I woke up with a start
when I heard the balcony door open.

I didn’t need to open my eyes to know that
Brody had walked out.

“I didn’t know you were home.”

“I was at the gym.”

I forced my eyes open. “Oh, cool. You’re
working tonight, right?”

“Why? You want a ride?”

“Nope, I just wondered.”

“So how was your big date?” He slumped down
on the chair next to me, stretching out his long, lean frame.

“It was nice.”

“Nice? Does that mean boring?”

“No, it was great. I agreed to another.”

“But something happened. What made it just
nice?”

I adjusted my chair so I was sitting up. “He
kissed me on the cheek.”

“Was that moving too fast for you?” He tossed
me a bottle of water.

I took a long sip. “Very funny.”

“He asked you out again. Don’t read into
it.”

“Why wouldn’t he have kissed me for
real?”

“Maybe he’s trying to be a gentleman, to let
you know he doesn’t just want to sleep with you. He is really
Southern.”

“Just because a guy has a Southern accent
doesn’t mean he’s a gentleman.”

“Do you not want to date a gentleman? You
want to date a guy who just wants sex?”

“No…”

“Is that why you like Lyle? You think he’s a
bad boy?” Brody grinned, and I knew his ribbing was going to get
worse.

“Not all musicians are bad boys.”

“If today’s theme is prove all stereotypes
wrong, I want to see how you break the ‘smart girls don’t have fun’
saying.”

“Smart girls have fun.”

“Too bad you’re not smart.” He grabbed the
water back from me.

“Hey, I wasn’t done with that.”

“Tough. I finished mine.” He gulped down the
rest. I guess he wasn’t worried about germs.

“So you want me to prove I can have fun?”

“Yes.”

“Okay. When we get off tonight let’s do
something fun.”

“You really up for it, Maddy?”

“Absolutely.”

“All right, we’ll see about that.”

“Hey, sexy.” Macon waited for me while I
finished up at work and grabbed my stuff. I’d worked the outdoor
bar again, and it had been even more crowded than usual. All I
really wanted to do was sleep, but I knew better than to back out
on a challenge with my roommates. A few hours of being tired far
outweighed a month worth of taunting. I wondered if Brody would
have naturally teased me, or if he picked it up from Macon.

“Sexy?” I didn’t bother to hide my annoyance.
Macon knew what tree he was barking up.

“Yes? Is there a problem with me calling you
that?”

“A big one. Use my name.” I walked out from
behind the bar. “I’m going to go change.”

“Changing? Oh, this is going to be good.”

“Do you have to have an annoying response to
everything I say?”

“Wow. Grouchy much?”

“I’m not grouchy.” I put a hand on my hip.
“Just tired.”

“I thought you told Brody you wanted to have
fun.”

“I do.”

“Then snap out of it. See you in five.” Macon
started toward the front of the restaurant.

The only info I got about our plans was to
wear a swimsuit. You know you trust your roommates when you put on
a bikini with no idea where you’ll be swimming. I adjusted the
triangles on my blue floral bikini top. I didn’t have tons to
cover, but that didn’t mean I wanted to take a chance of flashing
Macon or Brody—or anyone else we’d be swimming with. I put my black
work shirt and skirt over it.

I pulled my hair down, but quickly changed my
mind. The humidity at the beach made my already somewhat frizzy
hair out of control. Thankfully, some good products and a hair tie
solved most of the problem. Macon and Brody were waiting for me out
front when I finished

Macon whistled. “Okay, now I really have to
call you sexy.”

“I’m wearing exactly what I was wearing two
minutes ago.”

“It’s different when I know you’re wearing a
bikini underneath.”

“How do you know that? It could be a full
piece. Besides, you’ve seen me in a bikini a million and one
times.”

“First, do you even own a full piece? Second,
a million and one? A million isn’t sufficient?” He held open the
passenger door of his Accord for me. Brody was in the back.

“No, but I could have one.”

“Stop arguing.”

“Hey, Brody. You didn’t have to give up the
front.”

“Yeah, I did.”

I laughed. “If this is more of the gentleman
argument, I get your point.”

“I’m just being polite.”

I let it go. “Where are we going?” I buckled
my seatbelt as Macon pulled out of the lot.

“You’ll see.” Macon smiled at Brody in the
rearview mirror.

We didn’t get far. We got stuck in a line of
traffic trying to turn into a parking lot. The whole group must
have been together or lost. There wasn’t much to do in that
shopping center late at night. I didn’t dare voice my question out
loud. Macon would nag me about whether I wanted to join their
orgy.

Macon honked the horn, and I slunk down in my
seat slightly. Tourists didn’t usually take well to his “I’m always
in a rush” attitude.

Thankfully, the cars finished turning and we
sped back up to forty-five.

We pulled into the marina, and I got
suspicious. “We aren’t taking out the boat, are we?”

“You make it sound like that would be a bad
thing.”

“It is if you lose your job. I doubt you’re
supposed to touch it at night if you don’t have a scheduled dive.”
Macon was a dive master. There weren’t too many scuba stores out as
far as Corolla, but Macon managed to find one to work at. The job
was temporary, just a break before he went back to school for his
MBA. On the outside, Macon didn’t appear driven, but he’d planned
to take over his uncle’s business for as long as I could
remember.

“It’s fine. It’s a whole different experience
to go out at night.”

“Go out at night? You don’t mean dive at
night, do you?”

Brody opened my door for me since I hadn’t
moved from my seat. “Yeah. We figured it was time you tried
one.”

“I only got scuba certified last month. It’s
not like I’ve been putting it off for years. Besides, shouldn’t we
do it when you already have a night dive scheduled?”

“Then it wouldn’t be bonding.”

“Oh. I didn’t realize this was a roommate
bonding experience.” I stupidly followed Brody and Macon to the
boat. “Does this constitute stealing? If so, it’s a felony offense,
and I’m not going to jail.” A voice in the back of my head nagged
me that it would keep me out of med school if I reapplied. Hearing
that voice made me more determined to follow through with the
plan.

“You can say we forced you.” Macon grinned.
Noticing I wasn’t smiling in return, he continued. “Even if we did
get caught, which we won’t, my boss wouldn’t press charges.”

“You say that now.”

Macon stopped walking and took my face in his
hands. “We are not going to jail. This is going to be fun.”

I nodded, and that must have been enough for
him because he continued onto the boat.

Macon barely waited for us to sit before
starting the engine. My stomach did flip-flops. I liked scuba
diving, but doing it at night seemed different. I kept picturing
all the sea creatures that were scary enough when I could see
them.

Macon stopped the boat and put down an anchor
with a line. “You can even hold on to the line on the way
down.”

“Gee, that makes it so much better.”

Macon tossed me a wetsuit before stripping
down to his swim trunks and stepping into his own suit. “Just get
changed.”

Despite my reservations, I couldn’t turn down
the challenge. I pulled off my t-shirt, hesitating with my skirt
once I noticed the two sets of eyes on me. “Umm, is there a reason
you’re both staring at me?”

“Do we really have to answer that?” Brody
grinned.

“I’m one hundred percent certain you’ve both
seen girls in bikinis before—including me.” I stepped out of my
skirt and started to put on my wetsuit. At some point if I kept
diving, I needed to get my own. It always felt gross wearing
something close to my body that I knew lots of other people had
worn.

“It’s different watching you take off your
clothes.” Macon started pulling out more gear.

I sat back down and sorted through the
equipment he gave me. “You’re going to double-check I do this
correctly.”

“Of course. You’re in good hands.”

I waited as Macon checked my regulator and
gauges. He helped me into my BC and defogged my mask. Although the
scuba gear worked great in the water, the equipment felt cumbersome
on the surface.

Completely outfitted, I stood by the railing.
“How are we going to find the boat? What if it moves?”

“It’s not moving. I won’t let you out of my
sight, and I promise you’ll be safe.” Macon was done making fun of
me. Maybe he realized I was nervous.

“How are we going to see?”

“With this.” He handed me a tiny
flashlight.

“This? Aren’t the lights supposed to be
bigger?”

“This is plenty considering how bright the
moon is.” He glanced up at the full moon illuminating the sky.

“Want me to go first?” Brody asked Macon.

“Sure. I’ll make sure Maddy gets in
okay.”

Ordinarily, I might have complained about the
insinuation that I couldn’t jump into the water myself, but
considering how nervous I was, I didn’t mind.

Brody jumped in, and I followed. Macon came
behind me.

Under the water I realized what Macon meant
about the light. The moon lit up the water with an eerie glow. I
stayed close to the guys and marveled at how different everything
looked. There was something surreal about spending time under the
water, and it was only enhanced by the night.

I shuddered as something brushed against me.
I turned and came face-to-face with a giant set of teeth. I started
to panic, ready to head back up to the surface when Macon put his
hand on my arm. His touch calmed me down enough to really look. It
was grouper. A goliath grouper.

After my near freak-out, I spent a few more
minutes enjoying the reef before moving back up to the surface
after a brief safety stop.

Back on the boat, the adrenaline hit me.
“That was awesome!”

Macon laughed. “I told you it would be. And
the grouper didn’t eat you.”

I hit him on the arm. “That thing was
scary.”

“I know. You did really well.”

“Thanks.” I beamed at the compliment. “I
would totally do that again.”

Brody gasped. “You’d risk the felony?”

“Maybe next time we’ll do it with
permission.” I stripped off my wetsuit and grabbed a towel.

Both Macon and Brody smiled.

“What?”

“Did you really think I stole the boat?”

“Wait? Did you ask in advance?”

Macon cracked up. “Of course. I’m not a
complete idiot.”

“Then why did you let me think you didn’t?” I
took a seat as Macon pulled up the anchor.

“It enhanced the bonding experience. You
thought you were breaking the law with us.”

“You’re lucky I’m still on an adrenaline
high.”

“Oh yeah? What would you have done to
me?”

“You don’t want to know.”

They both laughed.

Macon started the engine, and we headed back
to the marina. I wrapped the towel tighter around me as the wind
picked up. “What’s the off-season like? Is it going to be
different?”

“It’s quiet…kind of boring, but then again,
you don’t have to deal with tourists.” Macon gazed up at the clear
sky.

“Max said he’ll give me some shifts, but it’s
not going to be as many.” I wasn’t sure how I felt about that. Free
time wasn’t exactly something I needed, and less money didn’t sound
appealing.

“If you’re worried about rent, don’t.”

“Thanks, but I should make it.”

“I’m just saying I don’t care.”

“Oh yeah? I don’t have to pay rent anymore?”
I looked out at the water.

“You have to pay rent if you can. I’m not
going to throw you out though.”

“Good to know I won’t have to turn to the
streets.” I bit back a smile.

“I’m glad you’re sticking around.” Brody
patted my arm.

“Yeah? Me too. I don’t know what I’d do
otherwise.”

“When are you going to tell your parents?”
Macon leaned back.

“And you had to go and ruin the bonding.” I
sighed dramatically. I had no desire to talk to my parents, let
alone to tell them I was extending my time at the beach. All they’d
do was nag me about reapplying to med school.

“You have to tell them eventually.”

“Eventually is later. Not tonight.” I’d been
saying that same thing for weeks, every time I let their calls go
to voicemail. I couldn’t deal with them.

“Yes. There’s always room for later.” Macon
maneuvered the boat back into its spot. I couldn’t believe I was
gullible enough to fall for their stolen boat trick, but I had to
admit it was a pretty good joke.