IT on purpose. He wanted to ruffle her feathers when she seemed so composed. Perhaps not his most honourable decision in life, but he’d been honourable enough. When his father had died thirteen years before, he’d stepped up and taken care of his siblings, who’d been eleven, nine and seven years old. He’d only been eighteen at the time—he’d been the result of a teen pregnancy, the cause of a quickie marriage, and his parents had only had his siblings once they were more settled—and he’d been forced into being a guardian and entrepreneur when he’d taken over his father’s business.
So he could afford a little dishonour. Particularly when it came to a woman who intrigued him.
Piper stared at him, those beautiful eyes big and bright and bold against the odd green of her dress. If he’d seen that shade in a store somewhere, he wouldn’t have taken a second look. Or he might have, but only to be offended by it. Now, though, on Piper... It made her skin look as if it had been bronzed. And it flattered a body he’d been trying not to pay attention to since they’d met.
Her breasts were full and out on display, though he was trying not to pay attention to them either. He wasn’t sure if it was because it would get him into trouble if he did, or if he was trying to be polite. But the straps of her dress rested over smooth, strong shoulders, the waist of it clinging to her ribcage then flaring out. The heels he’d teased her about earlier did excellent things to the legs the dress revealed, though there wasn’t much of them to see.
She wore no jewellery, only the lightest of make-up, and the way her hair was tied up accentuated the angles of her face. It made her look innocent, despite her pink lips curving. Despite her high cheekbones, almost demanding her eyes to crinkle even when she wasn’t smiling. When she did and those cheeks lifted, her eyes narrowing... He’d learnt his lesson after the first time. Now, he simply braced for the breath he’d lose.
‘You’re teasing me.’
‘Maybe,’ he answered.
‘Not maybe—yes.’ Her eyes flickered to his face before moving back to the steep path. ‘This is payback for me not being offended by you.’
‘What is?’ he asked innocently. ‘This decline? I don’t control landscape, my dear.’
‘Don’t call me that,’ she said, though her words lacked heat. ‘It’s condescending.’
‘It’s not. “My dear” is a phrase of affection.’
She snorted. ‘Now I know you’re being condescending. You certainly do not feel affection towards me.’
He wasn’t sure how to respond. The truth was there was a slight niggling in his chest that made him feel something for her. He didn’t know if it was affection or if he’d merely suppressed his annoyance.
‘Okay.’
He blinked. ‘What?’
‘Okay, carry me.’ She stepped closer to him, giving him a whiff of a scent that reminded him of wild flowers. ‘You’re still offering, aren’t you?’
‘I—Yes, of course.’ He cleared his throat. Did it again.
She smirked. ‘Something wrong, Caleb?’
In one quick movement he scooped her into his arms. Her hands went around his neck with a quick exhalation, and he caught the smell of mint on her breath. It made his body tingle—though that might have been due to the fact that she fitted in his arms perfectly. He tried not to think about the soft flesh of her thighs against his bottom arm, or his hand on her perfect waist.
While he was at it, he resisted the desire to put his nose in her neck, to get more of that intoxicating perfume she was wearing. Or did she simply smell that way? Could someone’s natural scent be this heady?
Caleb.
He kept himself from groaning now, too. His entire body had gone tense from the control he was exerting. But he thought of all the times he’d had to exercise control in his life. It was interchangeable with responsibility in his family, it seemed. Like during that phase when Tate, his brother, had refused to eat anything besides pizza. Caleb had refrained from buying anything else—including pizza—if Tate didn’t eat at least one nutritional meal a day. There’d been a week where things had been touch and go, but it had worked out.
Then there was that time Jada had consistently got up late for school. No matter what Caleb had done, they’d arrived anywhere from fifteen to thirty minutes late. Jada had got detention and Caleb had received numerous notes about punctuality. Eventually, he’d refused to put the hot water on in the mornings if she didn’t get up by six. He’d stood guard over the switch since it meant the entire house didn’t get warm water. After three days of the Martin siblings going to school without showers, the collective effort of him, Emma and Tate had forced Jada to get up on time.
He smiled at the memory.
‘You’re enjoying this?’
It took the question to realise his trip down memory lane had distracted him from the woman in his arms. Now that she’d spoken, he realised it wouldn’t work again.
‘No.’ He took the first tentative step down the hill. Once he got his grip, he took another. ‘I was thinking about how my sister’s getting married.’
‘No, you weren’t.’ She continued before he got the chance to ask how she knew. ‘What are you feeling about it?’
‘Affectionate. Nostalgia.’
‘That’s it?’
He looked down. ‘What are you feeling?’
‘I don’t know.’ There was silence as he took the next few steps. ‘I’m happy for Liam and Emma. They obviously care about one another. Liam’s changed a lot since they’ve met.’
Caleb tried not to snort at that. Piper narrowed her eyes.
‘See, you’re not only feeling affection and nostalgia. You don’t like my brother?’ she asked after a beat.
‘I do.’ He took a breath, another step. ‘It’s not that I don’t like him. I certainly wouldn’t have allowed him to marry my sister if I didn’t like him.’
Her body stiffened. Even when he looked down at her, saw her face taut, saw her actively try to relax it, he still felt her tight muscles in her arms.
‘What?’ he asked. ‘What did I say wrong?’
Her eyes met his. There was an inexplicable disappointment there. His stomach turned.
‘Nothing,’ she replied. A bald-faced lie. They both knew it. Neither of them addressed it. ‘Are we done?’ she asked quietly a moment later. Caleb turned, saw they were, and lowered her gently.
‘I didn’t mean to upset you,’ he said when she was on the ground again.
‘It’s fine.’
‘It’s not fine, clearly.’
‘It’s not fine,’ she told him, giving him a sad smile. ‘But it doesn’t matter.’
He wanted to tell her it did, but he had no reason to. He locked his jaw. Didn’t bother prying it open when she’d obviously made up her mind. Nothing he could say would make her more receptive to his words. He was sure of it because that stubborn furrow in her brow told him she didn’t only feel sad.
He started walking again, along the narrow path that led to the beach. It was covered with sand, more so the closer they got, but he didn’t turn around to offer assistance. If she wanted to be stubborn, she’d have to deal with the consequences of it.
Again, not his most honourable decision, but something about Piper rubbed him up the wrong way.
Or the right way.
He grunted at the voice in his head. He didn’t need a reminder of the attraction he felt for her. He could still feel her