Текст книги "Touch Me"

Автор книги: Olivia Cunning

сообщить о нарушении

Текущая страница: 7 (всего у книги 12 страниц)

When the song came to an end, several people clapped. Owen released her. “There's only one thing I want right now more than you,” he whispered to Caitlyn.

“Pastrami on rye.”

He chuckled. “You're getting to know me already.” He lifted her hand to his lips and kissed her knuckles. Of all the intimate things he’d done to her that night, that chaste gesture was the only one to make her belly quiver.

Owen helped her find her seat again. Across from them, both drunks smiled a greeting, but he ignored them, still giving Caitlyn his full attention. “You’re still planning on rewarding me for good behavior, aren’t you?” he asked. His hand found her leg beneath the table and slid from the inside of her knee to her upper thigh.

“We did agree on no public displays of affection.” She caught his hand before it found its target.

“Dancing doesn’t count.”

“What about kissing?” she challenged.

“No?” It wasn’t a statement. More a hopeful question.

As if she could tell this man no when he was looking at her like that. But she refused to let him off easily; teasing him was too much fun.

“I have to be honest: that public display felt rather affectionate.”

“Can you please go back to your own table now?” Kellen said to the pair of young women who were still harassing him about going to a bar that would close in less than an hour.

The waitress looked apologetic as she set their food before them. “Should I get the manager to remove them from the premises?” she said quietly, as if the young women wouldn’t be able to hear her.

“That won’t be necessary,” Owen said. “I’ll take care of it.”

The waitress nodded and took her leave again.

“So how are you ladies getting home tonight?” Owen asked them, selecting a potato chip from his plate and munching it.

“Lisa’s car is parked across the street.”

Owen nodded. “I see. How would you like to go for a ride in a limo?”

“What?” the one who wasn’t Lisa said.

“We have a limo parked outside. Want to go for a ride?”

Caitlyn was too busy trying to figure out what Owen was thinking to touch her cheesecake.

“Owen, I don’t think…” Kellen gave the girls pointed looks.

Owen ignored him. “You don’t believe we have a limo, do you?”

“I’d have to see it to believe it.”

“All right, I’ll show you.” Owen slid out of the booth and helped the two wobbly ladies to their feet. He leaned across the table and whispered, “I’ll be right back,” to Caitlyn.

Befuddled, she watched him escort the two women out of the diner.

She exchanged a confused look with Kellen. And then Kellen’s scowl softened. “Wish I’d have thought of that,” he said.

“Thought of what?”

“Hey, hey, hands off the merchandise,” Owen shouted just before the diner door shut behind them.

“Is he leaving with them?”

“When he has you?”

“Then what?”

Before he could answer, Owen was headed back in their direction.

“What was that all about?” Caitlyn asked.

“Neither one of them had any business driving,” Owen said, “so I had the driver take them home. They were too excited about riding in a limo to be upset that they weren’t getting into Kelly’s pants tonight.”

“And how are we supposed to get back to the hotel?” Kellen asked.

“The driver will be back before I finish my sandwich. Their place is only a couple of miles from here. They told me so when they were trying to get me to go with them.”

Caitlyn squeezed his knee under the table. “That was a really nice thing you did.”

“What? Rescuing Kellen from two drunk girls?”

“Making sure they got home safely.”

“Everyone is happy,” he said, and took a huge bite of his sandwich. “Especially me,” he added, talking with his mouth full. “Good stuff.”

Kellen grinned as he used the edge of his fork to cut into his cheesecake and took a bite.

“Better than pie?” Owen asked.

Kellen shook his head. “Too sweet.”

Owen devoured his sandwich while Kellen decided he’d rather steal the chips off Owen’s plate than finish his cheesecake. It was indeed decadent—moist and creamy with cherries in thick, sweet syrup. After only three bites, Caitlyn was full, but there was no way she was going to let something that delicious go to waste.

“How far is it from Houston to Beaumont?” Kellen asked.

“That’s a weird question,” Owen said.

“Less than two hours,” Caitlyn said, “depending on traffic.”

“Why do you care?” Owen asked.

“I was thinking of spending tomorrow night in Galveston and meeting up with the rest of you in Beaumont later.”

“If you take the ferry from Galveston Island to Bolivar Peninsula, you can miss the Houston traffic,” Caitlyn said.

“Thanks for the tip.”

Owen shifted uneasily. “Don’t go. It never makes you feel better.”

Kellen shrugged. “I don’t go there looking to feel better. I just like the ocean.”

Caitlyn was missing something, but she didn’t want to pry. Kellen’s trip to Galveston probably had something to do with the lover Kellen had lost. Everything that caused tension between the two men seemed to have something to do with her.

Both men stared at the table in silence for several long, uncomfortable minutes. Caitlyn tried to think of something that would lighten the mood again.

“So you’re in Owen’s band too, right?” she finally asked.

“Owen’s band?” Kellen lifted an eyebrow at his friend. “Did he tell you it was his band?”

“Where would the band be without me?” Owen said.

“Bassists are a dime a dozen.”

Ouch! Caitlyn glanced at Owen, expecting him to look hurt or offended. He was grinning.

“You’re over-paying, Kelly. I can easily get you a dozen bassists for a nickel.”

“Bargain basement bassist.”

“What instrument do you play?” Caitlyn asked Kellen. And because she’d learned her lesson with Owen, she added, “Or are you the singer?”

“I play guitar,” Kellen said, still not out of his funk.

“You’re so matter-of-fact about it.”

“Why wouldn’t I be?” Kellen said. “It’s a fact.”

“It seems so foreign to someone like me, that you can make a living playing music.”

“Do you work?” Kellen asked.

“Yeah,” she said. “Too much. But I’m doing what I love, so I don’t mind the long hours.”

“She has her own company,” Owen said. “She’s the boss.”

He sounded proud of her.

She snorted on a laugh. “Yep, I’m the boss.”

“What kind of company?” Kellen asked, sipping from his water as he waited for Owen to finish his sandwich.

“Alternative fuel sources. We started with solar panels and wind turbines, but recently started branching out into fuel cells. R and D is finally over, next is production and marketing. My two business partners are in charge of that stuff. I’m the main geek of the triad. So things have slowed down a bit for me while I wait for the next big idea to smack me upside the head. You can have a very fulfilling career discovering new technologies, but it sure won’t make you rich. It’s a good thing I have Peter and Lillian to find my markets.”

Owen paused with his nearly finished sandwich halfway to his mouth. “So you’re not only brilliant, good in bed, and hot, you’re also rich?”

She flushed. “I’m sure I’m not as rich as you are.”

“Your husband must be a complete tool,” Owen said.

“You’re married?” Kellen asked, looking scandalized for the first time that night.

“Divorced.”

“Her husband—”

“Ex-husband,” Caitlyn interrupted.

“Her ex-husband cheated on her.”

“Maybe he was lonely,” Kellen said.

“Kelly,” Owen admonished.

“I’m sure he was,” Caitlyn said. “I’ve been working eighty-hour weeks for several years now. Sometimes we didn’t see each other for days.”

“He could have made an effort,” Owen said.

She leaned against him and squeezed his arm. “Then I wouldn’t have had a reason to hook up with you.”

“Thank God he’s a thoughtless idiot.”

She smiled and couldn’t resist stealing a kiss. His lips tasted salty. They went well with the sweetness still on her tongue. When he licked her upper lip slowly, she moaned and curled her fingers into his shirt to tug him closer.

Kellen cleared his throat uncomfortably. She could have sworn he grunted, “P-D-A.”

Caitlyn drew away regretfully. “We need to get to the hotel,” she said.

Owen tossed the rest of his sandwich on his plate and signaled the waitress for their check.

The car was waiting for them when they left the diner. Kellen made Owen check the back seat for stowaways before he agreed to get in. Caitlyn did nothing to hide her laughter.

“Geez, Kelly, those girls weren’t that bad.”

Caitlyn and Kellen exchanged a look of agreement. Those girls had been pretty bad. Caitlyn wondered if Owen and Kellen had to deal with women like that on a regular basis. She supposed some guys would like that kind of girl; she suspected Owen might be one of them. If she hadn’t been with him, she wondered if he would have gone off to join their party.

This time when they sat in the back of the limo, Kellen made sure to sit between them. “I’m in no mood to watch you two make out,” he explained. “You can attack each other back at the hotel.”

“Whose fault is it that you’re in such a mood?” Owen said. “It’s not our fault you didn’t get laid. Again.”

“I’m sure you could have picked up someone at the club,” Caitlyn said.

Kellen ran a finger under his wrist cuff. “I went in there knowing I wasn’t going to participate.”

“So why do you go to sex clubs if you aren't planning to have sex?” Caitlyn asked. Seemed like a strange place to hang out just for the hell of it.

Kellen stared at her for a solid minute before answering. He had the most hypnotizing eyes she'd ever encountered.

“Because Owen needed someone to accompany him.”

“Whatever, dude,” Owen said. “You don't have to torture yourself for my benefit.”

“Next time you can go alone.”

Owen shifted in his seat. “Yeah, fine, whatever. You’re a drag anyway.” When Kellen didn’t respond to his insult, Owen said, “Gabe will go with me.”

“Gabe has a relationship thing he’s trying right now. He won't go with you.”

“Then Shade…” Owen scowled. “Why did he have to hook up with Amanda anyway?”

“You really wouldn't go by yourself?” Caitlyn asked.

“I could,” Owen said. “But then I wouldn't be able to prove that I scored the hottest woman in the place.”

She chuckled. “You have a competitive streak unlike any I've ever encountered. Why do you care who knows who hooks up with you?”

Owen's smile faded, and he stared at his knees. After a moment, he shrugged. “No reason.”

There had to be a reason. Maybe he didn't want Kellen to know. Or more likely, maybe he didn't want her to know.

“You might as well tell her,” Kellen said. “Why you are the way you are.”

“What way am I, Kelly? You're twice as fucked up as I am.”

“I'm not going to argue that point.”

“You can tell me,” Caitlyn said. “If you want to.”

Owen glanced at her. “I had hoped that we could hook up again at the hotel.”

“Yeah, me too,” she said, still not accustomed to his bluntness.

“He's afraid you'll tell him to take a hike, because he still doesn't get that he's not the same man he used to be on the outside, though he's always been a bit strange on the inside.”

“Don’t tell her, Kelly.”

“You’re the one who brought her out of the club. That means you’re interested in her, right?”

“Maybe, but don’t tell her.”

“Why? Are you afraid she’s as shallow as you are?”

Owen shoved him. “I’m not shallow.”

“You sure pretend to be,” Kellen said. He caught Owen’s wrist just before it connected with his shoulder. “He used to be fat,” Kellen said to Caitlyn.

“I told you not to tell her.”

“In high school they called him Piggie.”

Owen flushed such a bright scarlet, the color was noticeable even in the dim interior of the limo. “You fucking asshole, why’d you tell her?”

Kellen didn’t try to block Owen’s next blow. Maybe because he felt he deserved it.

“That’s cruel,” Caitlyn said. She grabbed Owen’s hand before he used it to punch Kellen again. Kellen pushed back against the seat, looking decidedly uncomfortable to be wedged between them. “Is that why you keep telling me I'm beautiful? Because no one ever made you feel that way?”

Owen scowled. “How the fuck should I know? I just like to make people happy.”

“What about making yourself happy, Owen?” Caitlyn asked. He’d had her fooled into thinking all was right in his world, but now she wasn’t so sure. “Are you happy?”

“Yeah, I have glitter shooting out of my ass, I'm so fucking happy,” he yelled.

“I'm sorry,” Kellen said, “You’re right. I shouldn't have told her.”

“Thank God you did so I can dump him before I start to like him too much,” Caitlyn said. “I would never be interested in a guy who was called Piggie in high school due to a weight problem.” She was joking, but Owen didn't laugh. He seemed to expect her rejection.

“Should we take you back to your friend’s house then?” Owen asked quietly.

Kellen huffed out a breath and shook his head. “Still clueless. She’s kidding, fucktard.”

“Shut up,” Owen said, but some of the tension had eased from his body, and he glanced at her from under his lashes.

This really was his issue. Kellen understood his friend well. So why had he felt the need to share something so personal about Owen? She was missing something here. Something major. Either Kellen was trying to scare her away—which didn’t seem likely—or entice her into staying so he didn’t have to accompany Owen to sex clubs any more. Of course it was possible he had no motivation at all and was just striking up conversation, but she took Kellen for the kind of person who calculated his every move. Why had Kellen risked Owen’s obvious animosity by sharing something that personal about Owen’s past?

At least she understood why Owen was so adamant about making her feel beautiful and why he was so nice to everyone even though he was easily the best-looking man she'd met in person. Though he had to own a mirror, he didn't see himself as mind-bogglingly gorgeous. Did he go to sex clubs because he thought he required a sure bet? She was just speculating, of course, because she didn't live in his skin. She didn't know what the world looked like through his eyes. But she wanted to. She wanted him to feel as good about himself as he made her feel about herself. And lord she was thankful that he was as attractive on the inside as he was on the outside. His personality sparkled even more than the twinkle in his pretty blue eyes.

“I don't want to go back to Jenna's house,” Caitlyn said. “I do wish I'd met you somewhere other than a sex club. I guess I should be glad I met someone like you at all.”

“Someone like me? What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Guys like you don't usually talk to girls like me. Girls like me don't get invited to prom. Guys don’t make fools of themselves for girls like me. Girls like me are ignored. Invisible. But I'm not a girl anymore. I'm a woman. Thanks for reminding me.”

“You are definitely a woman. I like women so much more than I like girls.”

“Uhhh…” Caitlyn wasn’t sure what he meant by that.

“He prefers older women,” Kellen said. “When he first saw you in the club, I thought he was going to eject himself out of his pants and directly onto your lap.”

Caitlyn laughed. “Well, that definitely would have gotten my attention, but I doubt my reaction would have been positive.” She wished Kellen wasn’t sitting between them, because she suddenly wanted to draw Owen into her arms. “So I take it you were hurt by a younger woman.”

“Young women, but they were the same age as I was.”

Kellen released a deep sigh. “Most of it happened in high school and the year following graduation. This really hot girl broke his heart. He asked her out and she agreed. When she stood him up, her excuse was that she liked him as a friend.”

“They all liked me as a friend.”

“What's wrong with that?” Caitlyn asked.

“I didn't want her to like me as a friend. I wanted her to like me as a man. And so after high school, I lost a lot of weight. Got in good shape.”

“I'll say,” Caitlyn said appreciatively.

“And then he became a man whore,” Kellen said with a laugh.

“I'm not a man whore. I don't get paid. Even though Caitlyn seems to think I'd be good at it,” he said under his breath.

“You know I was kidding, right?” she said. “I value you as a person, not just for the hot body under those clothes.”

“It's okay, Caitlyn. He likes to be treated like a piece of meat,” Kellen said. “That's why I'm so surprised he invited you out after getting what he wanted. It’s not his usual pattern. He won’t let anyone get close because he’s so afraid of getting hurt.”

“I figured everyone else is breaking the band's no-relationships-while-we're-on-tour rule, so I might as well give it a shot. And I’m not afraid of getting hurt.”

“You are,” Kellen insisted.

Caitlyn's head was swimming. “Relationship?”

“Are you against that?” Owen asked.

“I don’t think I'm ready for a relationship. The ink is barely dry on my divorce papers.”

Owen laughed. “Good, because as soon as I said it, I got cold feet.”

“So what ever happened to that girl in high school?” Caitlyn said.

Kellen rolled his eyes. “You wouldn't believe it if he told you.”

“Try me.”

“I went out with several of her friends,” Owen said, “slept with them all and made sure I got the job done properly. And then when the girl who broke my heart asked me out, I turned her down. I said I only liked her as a friend.”

“Sweet revenge?” she asked.

He shook his head. “I regret it now. It was an asshole move. The stupid things kids do.”

“Twenty-year-old kids,” Kellen said.

“Yeah, well, I'm immature. Get over it.”

“So now you prowl sex clubs,” Caitlyn said. “What are you looking for, Owen?”

“Nothing but a good time.”

“He's still afraid to open up, so he seeks connections that aren't real,” Kellen said. “He was hurt too many times when he was young. Becca was the first who ripped his heart out, but she wasn’t the last.”

“Yeah, see, I learned my lesson. It's better this way, isn't it? Avoid heartache, but still get your rocks off?”

Kellen touched his wristband and shook his head. “No.”

Owen watched him for a moment and then turned his attention to Caitlyn. “So does it bother you? Knowing I used to be someone you wouldn't have even considered sleeping with?”

“How do you know that? Not everyone is superficial. Though I must admit that I was first attracted to you because you're so easy on the eyes and I thought having you would make my ex-husband seethe with envy.”

“Shit,” Owen said. “You want him back, don’t you?”

“What? Of course not. Why would you think that?”

“Why else would you want to make him jealous?”

Caitlyn absorbed his words. Why did she want to make Charles jealous? It wasn’t because she wanted him back. Maybe she wanted the life they’d once had, but after his betrayal of her trust, even if they’d made amends, their relationship would have never been the same.

“At first I thought I did, but I don’t love him anymore. Not the way I once did. And I wasn’t trying to make him jealous. I wanted him to see that the guy I was banging was better looking than his nineteen-year-old co-ed. Save face, you know?”

Owen laughed. “Well I don't mind being your trophy lover, baby.”

Kellen groaned and sighed, sounding exasperated. “Bullshit, Owen. Will you just stop? Stop acting like this is all a game. Stop pretending you ooze self-confidence. Just stop. She knows, okay? You can drop the pretense and just be yourself, not the guy you present to women, to strangers, to get laid. Be the guy who still sees a miserable fat kid when he looks in the mirror.” Kellen whacked him on the side of the head for good measure. “Be yourself. The person I’m lucky enough to know. She deserves to get to know him too.”

Owen crossed his arms over his chest and glanced at the window. “I have no idea what you're talking about.”

“Of course not.” The car pulled to a stop. Both men silently fumed while they waited for the driver to open the door.

“She’s not the kind of woman who would hurt you for being who you really are,” Kellen said. “She might even love you for it. I’m sick of you always shortchanging yourself and thinking it’s for the best. If I have to look at you for another minute, I’m going to strangle the life out of you.”

Apparently too annoyed to wait for the driver, Kellen flung the door open and climbed out of the car. Caitlyn and Owen sat there in uncomfortable silence, avoiding each other’s gazes.

Had Kellen really just said she might love Owen? And how could Caitlyn possibly hurt a guy she’d only known for a few hours? She glanced at Owen and caught the flash of panic in his eyes. Way to turn an evening of fun into something awkward and frightening, Mr. Kellen Whatever-Your-Last-Name-Is Guitarist Guy.

“I think he’s a little freaked out because I brought you home,” Owen said.

“Oh, is that all?”

Owen shook his head. “Don’t worry about what he said. I just want to enjoy your company for the evening. I’m not going to let you hurt my feelings. I’m not as sensitive as I used to be.”

She wasn’t buying his denial for a minute, but she had no intention of hurting his feelings. So what if he was sensitive? She liked that about him. She scooted up against him and slid a hand over his hard-muscled thigh. He flexed beneath her palm. At least she understood why he did that now. He was still self-conscious about his body.

“Are we allowed to make out in the back of the limo now that Kellen is gone?” she asked.

“I’d say yes,” he said with a grin.

His lips had barely brushed hers when her cellphone began to bleat in her purse.

“Who’s calling you at two in the morning?” he murmured against her lips.

Caitlyn didn’t know who’d call her this late, but it had better be an emergency. She finally had Owen alone again, and she wanted to exploit every second they had together. She fished her phone out of her handbag and saw Jenna’s name on the caller ID.

“Hey, Jenna,” Caitlyn said as she answered the phone. “What’s up?”

“Where are you? You were supposed to call me to pick you up and the club is closed now. I’ve been worried sick.”

“I’m fine. I decided to leave with someone.”

Owen lifted her hand and kissed her fingertips one at a time. Her belly began to quiver on cue.

“You met someone?” Jenna asked. “Is he nice?”

“Naughty and nice.”

Owen apparently liked that description. He was grinning ear to ear.

“So I won’t be home tonight,” she told Jenna.

Owen made a victory fist and Caitlyn smiled at him. She liked the feeling she got when she made him happy.

“Tell me all about him,” Jenna insisted.

“I will when I see you tomorrow,” Caitlyn said. “We were about to get busy when you so rudely interrupted.”

Jenna laughed. “About time you had some fun.”

“How irresponsible of me. But don’t worry, okay? I’m perfectly fine.”

“Okay.”

“She’s safe with me,” Owen said near the phone. “Well, relatively speaking.”

“Oh,” Jenna said, “he sounds cute.”

“On a scale of one to ten, he’s an eleven.” She winked at Owen. “We’ll talk later.”

“Okay, have a good time. Just be careful.”

“Did you forget that you’re talking to Ms. Responsibility?” Caitlyn said.

Jenna laughed. “Yeah, for a second I did forget.”

Caitlyn ended the call and tucked her phone back into her purse.

“Who was that?” Owen asked. “Or is that not any of my business?”

“That was my friend Jenna. I was supposed to call her for a ride. She was worried.”

“I thought maybe it was your ex-husband. He heard you were getting it on with an eleven in the back of a limo and decided he wanted you back.”

“Screw him,” Caitlyn said and wrapped her arms around Owen’s neck.

“No, screw me.”

“An even better idea.”