I nodded. “It really is. My mom drove us to Sizzle Beach every single weekend, even if it was cold outside. And we just enjoyed the sand and the waves crashing. I fell in love with the beach and the ocean as a little kid, and that love hasn’t dwindled. It’s only increased.”
“That’s kind of . . .” her voice trailed off, “powerful,” she finally settled on.
I grinned and sat on a bench, helping Alex sit next to me so he could finish his ice cream. Tawney sat on the other side of him, and I stretched my arm out over the back, letting my fingertips graze her upper arm. A full-body shiver went through her. I smirked. “Cold?”
She shot me a scowl that just made me laugh.
I loved the effect I had on her.
5
Slater
Isprinkled soul food seasoning over the steamed broccoli and tossed the broccoli, letting the seasoning get on the vegetables really good. Some people liked cheese on their broccoli; I liked soul food seasoning.
Before we left the park, I’d invited Tawney and Alex over for dinner at my place in Sizzle Beach on Friday night. I had two places—one in Savannah and then the place my parents had surprised me with as a college graduation present here in Sizzle Beach. It was a small house—two bedrooms—but it worked for me. It put me close to the beach, and that was all I cared about.
I’d been texting Tawney off and on throughout the week. I surprisingly missed her, and Friday evening hadn’t come fast enough.
A light knock sounded on the front door just as I pulled the steaks off the grill on the back patio. Too eager to contain it, I quickly set the pan down on the kitchen counter and made my way to the front door, pulling it open.
“Oh, man, whatever you cooked smells delicious. I’m hungry,” Alex said, looking up at me.
Have I mentioned how much I love this kid?
I laughed and let him inside. “Go ahead and wash your hands and then take a seat at the table,” I told him. “Bathroom is just down that hall,” I said, pointing. “First door on your right.”
He quickly rushed off, and I smiled at Tawney. She looked mortified. I barked out a laugh and stepped closer to her, drawing her into me. Leaning down, I slanted my lips across hers, kissing her hot and hungrily, unable to help myself. A small moan crawled up her throat as she gripped my ribcage, kissing me back just as needily.
“Gross,” Alex groaned from behind me.
I laughed against Tawney’s sweet lips and slowly released her, but not before I pecked her one more time. Her cheeks were flushed, her pupils slightly blown, lust residing in their depths. My semi-hard cock hardened to steel.
“Come on,” I told her, stepping back so she could walk in. “Dinner is ready.”
She moved past me into the house. Alex was already sitting at the table. I pulled Tawney’s chair out for her and then began to plate the food, setting their respective plates in front of them before I took a seat directly across from Tawney.
“This place is adorable,” she told me.
I smiled, looking around. My mom had decorated—said she refused to let me live in a place that only contained a couch, TV, and microwave. So, my kitchen was done in a beach theme, as were both bathrooms. Even though the beach was only a couple of minutes’ walk from my house, she wanted me to never leave it.
I loved that about my mom.
She always strived to make me the happiest I could be.
“Thanks. My mom decorated the place,” I told her. “It was a college graduation gift.” I shrugged. “She knows how much I love the beach and the ocean, and she’s always done everything she could—within limitations—to make me happy. Hence the beach theme.”
She smiled at me. “Your mom seems amazing.”
I grinned. “She really is—one of the best moms out there.”
“My mom is number one,” Alex said after he swallowed his food. I arched a brow at Tawney, silently praising her for teaching him to not talk when his mouth was full. At that age, I was still spewing food across the table as I talked.
Tawney ran her hand over his hair affectionately. “You’re the sweetest, Alex.”
I stabbed a piece of broccoli. “He’s not wrong, you know,” I told her. Her cheeks warmed. It couldn’t have been easy raising him all by herself, but she was doing it. And since I hadn’t heard her or Alex speak of Alex’s father once, I was assuming he wasn’t in the picture.
After we finished dinner, Alex keeping up most of the conversation with me as he talked about superheroes andWWE, I put in a movie for all of us to watch. Alex curled up in the recliner by himself, leaving me and Tawney to share the couch and my only other throw blanket.