Meet Me in Myrtle Beach (Hunt Family Book 1) (15 page)

David came to check on the fire one time not long after Cody and I arrived. He was glad to see that we were there to keep an eye on it, and turned around as soon as he came. Cody and I sat on a log by the fire for at least a couple of hours. We stayed there, talking sometimes, and other times just staring at the smoldering embers.

At first, I was sitting next to him, but I grew more and more desperate for his touch, and after what seemed like an eternity, I moved to sit on the ground in front of him. The idea was to lean my back against his legs for support. A little contact was better than none. I did just as I planned, and Cody went along with it beautifully. He leaned forward, wrapping his arms around mine. I felt like I was a letter getting tucked into an envelope. I turned to the side and rested my face against his chest, smiling even though he couldn't see my expression.

Chapter 19

After a while, Cody and I decided we had enough of sitting by the fire. Well, it wasn't that we had enough so much as we decided it'd be smart to head inside. It was 1AM, and he had to wake up at 5 to go fishing with his dad.

He helped me up since I was sitting on the ground, and he never let go of my hand. I almost pulled my hand from his so I could dust off my bottom, but once I noticed that his intention was to keep a hold of me, I opted for dusting off with one hand.

Holding hands, we walked across the yard, up the stairs, and onto the deck. "Shoot," I said as we passed the ring toss game. "I wanted to make you play this with me earlier and I forgot."

"And now we can't?" he asked.

"It's late. You need to get to bed."

"It's never too late for a little friendly competition," he said. He reached out and grabbed the swinging ring, handing it to me. "The one who rings the most wins. You get ten shots and I get three."

"The thing is, I forgot that trick you showed me," I said.

We both knew I was trying to get him to stand behind me again in that hot way guys did when they were showing you something sports related.

He smiled. "Oh you forgot?" he asked, knowing what I was up to.

"Yes, and I barely even know where to stand." I shrugged with a fake worried expression. "I pretty much remember nothing about what you showed me."

His smile broadened. "It's hard for me to believe you forgot
everything
," he said. He stepped behind me and took a hold of my waist he pulled me back a step, showing me where to stand. He was standing so close, that I turned my head so that my face rested against his chest the same as I had done by the beach. He smelled good, like woodsy cologne mixed with campfire. I could have nuzzled in and stayed there forever.

"First step is looking at the hook," he said.

I put my hand up to meet his and grab the ring, but I waited a few seconds before I bothered facing the hook. "Okay, I'm ready." I said.

He explained again about using finesse and approaching the ring from one side or the other. I barely listened. I was just in it for the feel of his hand on mine.

Cody made two out of three of his shots. He went first, so I knew I had to make at least two, but the advantage wasn't enough. I made one out of ten but laughed about it and threatened that I'd practice while he wasn't watching.

We took turns using the shower when we got upstairs. I went first, and by the time Cody was done with his, I was cuddled into my spot on the couch. The first thing he did was go to the closet and pull out some bedding. I watched curiously as he came over to my couch carrying a couple of blankets. I thought maybe he assumed I was cold and was giving them to me, but he spread them out on the floor right next to my couch.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"I feel like sleeping right here," he said. "Is that okay with you?"

"Well, of course it's okay with me," I said. "But I don’t want you to have to sleep on the floor."

"I'm comfortable," he said. "And I only have a few hours to close my eyes anyway."

"Are you sure you don't want to take one of the couches?" I asked.

"No, but I will if you'd rather me not sleep right here." He slid into the blanket and covered halfway with it as if he knew I'd tell him to stay.

"I love you there," I said. I flopped my head onto the pillow and sighed contentedly.

"Night," he said.

"Night. Cody?"

I reached up and turned off the lamp that was on an end table near the couch. It was mostly dark, but I could still see his outline.

"Yeah," he replied.

"I guess you should probably kiss me goodnight."

He sat up without the slightest hesitation, which made me giggle.

"I thought you would never ask," he said.

He got to his knees and leaned over the couch putting a hand on each side of my face. We smiled at each other. I loved seeing the outlines of his face in the dim lighting.

"Why'd you wait for me to ask?"

"Because I don’t even know where to begin, Paige. You're different, and I'm afraid if I don't get it perfect, I'll lose you—or mess it up somehow."

"Kissing me will
not
mess anything up," I assured him.

He left one hand on my face as he bent to put his mouth near mine. He stopped when he was only an inch or so from making contact, and after waiting a second or two, I got impatient and let out a noise similar to a brief moan.

"I can't make myself do it," he said.

"I can."

I reached up, and in one fluid motion, I wrapped my hand around his head and pulled him into me, leaning forward in the process to make sure we made contact. He opened his mouth to me instantly. Cody wasted no time with teasing kisses. He took advantage of the fact that I had been the one to pull him forward and kissed me deeply, letting his tongue delve into my mouth several times.

He was making a statement with the kiss. There was no misunderstanding his intention. I was his. This was the type of kiss that proved it. He kissed me deeply, daring anything to stand in our way. I opened to him, and let my tongue dance with his, letting him know I was officially a player in this game.

He pulled back, and then let our lips touch again several times before pulling back far enough to stare down at me in the darkness.

"Goodnight, Paige," he said.

"Goodnight," I whispered.

***

When I woke up the following morning, there was no sign that Cody had slept next to me. I wondered if I had dreamed that part. It felt a bit like I had dreamed the whole thing. I squinted at my phone to see that it was 9AM.

I took my time waking up, so it was about fifteen minutes later when I sat up and found the note he left on the nearby table.

Good morning, Paige!

I hope you slept well. I did. I thought I should warn you that I'm throwing out the idea of faking it in front of my family. I just don't think I'll be able to manage that. I'm already thinking about the next time I see you, and I'm relatively sure I won't be able to avoid having you near me and holding your hand. So just get ready for everyone to find out about us. Just thought I'd warn you.

Yours, Cody

I read it twice before smiling at the ceiling with the note clutched to my chest. I felt giddy at the thought of seeing him again, and I wondered what time he would be home.

I went downstairs to find that most everybody was already in the first floor living room. I talked with Christy who said the boys should be back before noon.

Everyone was asking me about the party. I told them I had come home early, and they began speculating at how late Mia, Charlotte, Evan, and Logan had been out and how late they'd sleep. Someone said they thought they heard them come in around 1AM, and I didn't say that could have been Cody and me.

I ate some cereal and poured a cup of coffee before stepping onto the deck. Diane had been out there with David, but he came inside, leaving her alone.

"How was your night?" she asked, smiling at me when I came to stand next to her at the railing of the deck.

"It was great," I said.

She glanced at me again, and I smiled from behind my coffee mug.

"You look happy," she said.

"I am happy."

She shifted and regarded me with a curious expression that morphed into a smile. "How happy are you?" she asked.

I knew her love meter was turned on just by the way she smiled at me. I didn't want her to get her hopes up about Evan, so without even thinking, I said, "I know you hoped Evan and I might, uh… I, uh… I just wanted you to know that Evan and I aren't…"

She smiled patiently as she put her hand on my forearm. "What made you think I had those types of expectations?" she asked.

I thought about beating around the bush, but I decided to come out with the truth. "I might've overheard a conversation you had about it. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hear it."

She was silent for several long seconds, and she let out a long sigh before staring out at the ocean. "I'm sorry you heard that. I'm too old to make deals with God," she said. "I know better than to do that."

"What do you mean?"

"Evan's out doing all sorts of crazy, dangerous stuff to try to save the world, meanwhile, his grandma just wants to see him safe at home. In my opinion, he's just as suited for saving Charlotte."

"I know," I said, "and I get why you'd want to try to make him stay home. I'm sorry I wasn't the girl who could make that happen for you."

"Don't be sorry, sweetheart. I'm really sorry you heard that conversation. I hope you know how wonderful I think you are. I'm so glad you came with us."

We watched the waves roll in for a full minute. I took a sip of my coffee and let the breeze hit my face.

"What'd you mean about making deals with God?" I asked.

She let out a humorless laugh. "Because I had myself convinced that you were the one for my grandson. I thought I'd seen a sign from God Himself."

"What kind of sign?" I asked.

She gave me a self-deprecating smile. "The night before I went into Amy's to get breakfast, I had this experience where I was the only one in the room not staring down at some sort of screen. There were twenty or thirty people in the room, and literally everyone was doing it. Even old women like me and babies were all staring straight down at their devices. I had the thought that I hated cell phones and the way they caused humans not to see what's right in front of them. I thought about it a lot that night. The issue ended up creeping it's way into my reflections and prayer, and somewhere in my thoughts I made a deal with God that I would know my next granddaughter by the way she refrained from staring at her phone."

She paused and smiled at me.

"Silly, I know. I was probably delirious when I had all those thoughts, and I'm sure I would have forgotten all about them, but seeing you without your phone the very next day made me think the whole thing was real."

My heart raced as I listened to her story. I wondered if she'd feel as happy about the possibility of me ending up with a different grandson.

"It could possibly still work out the way you thought," I said, nervously.

She rubbed my arm again, smiling at me like she didn't want me to force anything. "You can't make yourself try to feel something that isn't there," she said, sweetly. "Neither can Evan. That wouldn't be fair to either of you."

"It wouldn't be Evan," I said.

She tilted her head, trying to understand what I was getting at. Andy, Willow, and Ava came out of the house and greeted us before they headed down the stairs toward the beach. We smiled and waved at them, but Diane's expression shifted to serious as soon as they were gone.

"What are you saying?" she asked.

"Cody," I said simply.

Another pause while she registered what I was saying.

"You and Cody?" she asked with a serious, unreadable expression.

I nodded.

"You and Cody?" she repeated slowly.

This time her voice was an octave higher. I could tell she was on the verge of tears.

I nodded again.

Her chin quivered, and tears started welling in her eyes, but she just stared at me like she couldn’t believe it.

"Cody's the one with Ryan," she said, as if I might have no idea.

I nodded again, and smiled a little.

"You love my Cody?" she asked.

My smile grew as I nodded again.

Her face crumpled as she took me into her arms. I nearly spilled my coffee. I set my cup on the rail and turned to hug her. She squeezed me tightly before pulling back with tears streaming down her face.

"Cody and Ryan?" she asked again, just to make sure.

I nodded again, and she regarded me with the sweetest sincere smile I'd ever seen. She stared straight into my eyes and said, "You have no idea how overjoyed I am at this news, Paige."

"I'm so happy to hear that," I said as a silent tear fell onto my cheek. I wiped it away with the back of my arm.

"I can't believe He let me find you for him," she said, blinking away tears as she stared at the ocean. "I'm so thankful that He let me do that."

"I'm thankful too," I said.

Ryan came outside while Diane and I were still standing at the rail. I turned to tell her good morning, feeling all sorts of new love toward her. She ran to us to pass out hugs, and a myriad of emotions hit me when I stooped to greet her. She was beautiful, and I wanted to be her mom more than anything in the world. I never knew I was ready for motherhood, but there was no question in my mind, as I stared at this beautiful baby, that she was mine and I was hers. I was proud of her, and I had nothing to do with the way she was turning out. That was about to change.