“Baby, let’s talk this through.”
Jesus, why did he look sad? I was so confused, but I couldn’t deal with my feelings or him right now.
“I want you to leave, Leo. I have stuff to do today.” I wasn’t lying. My flight left in four hours. I needed to get on the road to the airport. Traffic might be crazy.
“Come on, Red, why are you doing this?”
My stomach was tight as I opened the door. “Because it was a one-time thing.”
“Bullshit. It was so much more.”
“Really? Now I think you’re screwing with me. I’m not sure why and I don’t want to know. Please leave.” I pushed him out the door.
“I’m not giving up on you. I’ll leave, but I’ll be back tonight. We will talk about us.”
I snorted. “Leo, there isn’t an us. It was a one-night stand.” I slammed the door and locked it.
“Like fuck it was!” He hit the door. “I’ll see you tonight, Red.”
No he wouldn’t because I’d be in Montana for the next nine days. The timing couldn’t be more perfect. What I needed was to be around my family. They’d help me find my resolve with what happened with Leo. They’d help to get my head on straight.
I hoped they’d also helped me to forget Lifeguard Leo.
8
Leo
ALL DAY I couldn’t get Red off my mind. I watched the clock like it was a ticking timebomb. I was anxious to get out of here, go home to shower, then head back to Red’s place. We were so talking aboutus. The fact I thought of us as a couple after one night with her made me question my sanity.
That girl just did something to me. I wasn’t sure what I wanted with her. Love and relationships scared the hell out of me. Maybe we could just hang together and see what happened.
“So what gives?”
I turned toward my best friend, Chris. We worked a few days a week together. Lifeguarding was only a part-time gig for him, a chance to get some sun after being holed up in his home office. He was a freelance web developer; it was his bread and butter.
“It’s a woman.” No sense in lying to him. Chris knew me about as well as coding websites, which meant very well. He was in-demand for his talents.
“Well, obviously. You look like a miserable fuck today. The last time I saw you like this was… well, never. So what happened?”
Chris and I had been best friends since we met at UCLA. We dicked around together when we were in classes. He was also an only child, came from money, and his parents were divorced too. Neither of us ever wanted to get married and have a family, figuring it was better to break the failed-marriage cycle.
“She’s different. I spent the night with her and—”
“Hold the fuck up. Dude, rule number one, the most important rule—you don’t spend the night. I thought you understood the rules of hooking up.” He leaned against the rail on our tower.
“I didn’t intend on staying with her.” Okay, that was a lie. I could have run out after popping her cherry, but I’d wanted to cuddle with her and take a nap. But I wasn’t stupid. I knew I’d fall asleep. It was glorious waking up to her beautiful face. “But she’s different.”
“You said that already. What’s so extraordinary about her?”
“Everything.”
“I don’t see the problem other than after one night you’re pussy-whipped.”
I rolled my eyes and peered through my binoculars to scan the area. “She’s sweet. Beautiful. She has long red hair”—I leveled my gaze at him—“and it’s her natural color. Her green eyes are mesmerizing. She makes me feel shit.”
“She sounds like a goddess.”
“She is.”