Page 7 of Come to Me

At the appointed time, he returned to the lodge for dinner with his hosts. The dinner itself reminded him of when he ate with Mitch and Sydney. The Kincaids were a family that cared for each other. It was a stark contrast to his upbringing. His family ate together because his mother, a psychologist, read a study that said families that ate together had smarter, higher achieving kids. She missed the part about the meal being a time to connect with the kids. She read reports while his dad tapped away on his tablet. Julia was on her phone, and Patrick usually had a book. No wonder they’re family was so disconnected.

After dinner, the moon lit the way on the path as Patrick returned to his cabin. He pulled his phone from his pocket to check his messages. Seeing the dock, he kicked off his shoes and sat with his feet in the water as he opened his email app.

“Aren’t you supposed to be relaxing?” Michaela’s voice came from behind him.

He turned. “Just checking in.”

She shook her head. “I think that’s against the rules.” She set something by his door, and then walked out on the dock and sat next to him.

“What rules?”

“The ones that say you’re supposed to be having peace and quiet.” She grabbed his phone.

“Hey.” He reached for it, but she held it away from him.

“What’s so important that you can’t take a moment to watch the fish jump and the lightnin’ bugs light up the night?”

“It’s not your business.” He reached across her, annoyed at her immature behavior.

She leaned way from him, losing her balance, and falling back. He continued to reach for his phone, losing his balance as well, falling over her.

Her body was soft and warm under his. The snap crackle pop in the air wasn’t from lightening bugs. It zapped between them, and Patrick sucked in a breath at the headiness of it. Her blue eyes glinted with mischief. Her scent, a mixture of honey and vanilla, filled his senses. He was mesmerized, until decorum had him realizing he was laying on top of her.

“Oh God.” He jerked up, scooting away from her. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay.” She sat up, her brow furrowed as if she was surprised by his reaction. “I did take your phone.” She handed it back to him.

“It was inappropriate.”

“I didn’t feel like you were trying to take advantage. If anything, I was being the aggressor.”

He put his phone in his pocket. “As long as I didn’t offend you.”

“Not at all. I appreciate that you’re aware of such things. So many men aren’t.”

He stood and held out his hand to help her up. “I should go in.”

She gave him a weak smile as she took his hand and stood. “You’re not going to work, are you?”

“I’m going to let my mother know I’m okay, but other than that I’m going to…well I don’t know what I’m going to do.” It wasn’t that Patrick had never felt uncertain, but he’d never felt so out of his element.

“How about read? I brought down some books because I heard you like to read.” She went to where she’d set her items down. “I think there’s a little bit of everything in this stack. Mystery. Intrigue. Passion.” She handed him the stack.

“Thank you.”

“Have a good evening, Patrick.”

“You too, Michaela.”

She tilted her head, and then smiled. There was something alluring about her that had him nearly inviting her in. He was saved from his impulsive thoughts when she turned and headed back to the main building.

CHAPTER 3

Micki lay in bed and played Patrick’s words over and over in her head. “You too, Michaela.” No one called her Michaela unless they didn’t know her. And once she said they could call her Micki they did. But not him. Was it because his breeding said he had to call people by their given name? Afterall, he went by Patrick, not Pat or Paddy. But he did call Sydney Syd.

The man was an enigma. The poor guy looked like he’d been set on a planet in outer space. She wondered if it was the location that had him so off kilter or the fact that he was here to find himself? How did one do that anyway? If anyone knew how, it would be a shrink, but he appeared lost, like he didn’t know what to do with himself.

She had the sense that checking his phone was a comforting habit, which was why she took it. He couldn’t find himself if he was staying connected to the problems holding him back.

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