Page 57 of No One But You

“That’s when I was young.”

“That was last year. You’ve not matured that much in a year.”

“Kai makes me feel more mature.” Our twin cars were parked next to each other as usual. “I’ll meet you at the pub.”

I climbed in and pulled away, leaving Darlene staring. You’re going to have to keep stewing, Dar. I have no clue what I can tell you. He’s a mystery with a spotty past and family life but is surprisingly sweet, affectionate, hot, and we have amazing sex, probably the best of my life. Yeah, until I could figure out exactly what was happening between us, how I felt about him and vice versa, I was better off not saying much of anything.

Darlene and I were meeting a few other teachers for our end-of-the-year celebration at the pub. One perk of being a teacher is the long summer break, and we always celebrated the beginning of the two months of vacation with margaritas and fried goodness. I had a hair and nail appointment at two, but that gave me two hours of celebrating the beginning of summer with my coworkers.

I climbed out of my car just as Darlene pulled in. We entered the pub together, and Bryson had seats saved for us. Darlene sat next to him, and I took the seat across from her. The long table was one-half men, the other half women. Another great thing about a small town was that even though there was an elementary and high school, you worked closely together. The elementary school went through sixth grade, with seventh grade going to the high school.

It was always a great time. Bryson—a history teacher and offensive line coach of the football team, and Lance—the head football coach and PE teacher, led a discussion of the future of the football team. There was lots of laughing, eating, and drinking. I needed a break and got up to refill our margaritas and took a seat at the bar.

“Looks like y’all are ready for summer.” Trevor laid a full pitcher on the counter.

“Of course,” I smiled. “I love my summers.”

“You still planning on going to visit your dad and need me to stay at your place to take care of the animals?”

“Absolutely. Why do you ask?” I had been planning on leaving soon after school was out and spending a couple weeks in Florida. Trevor was always happy to take care of my menagerie.

He shook his head. “Just wondering, with Kai and everything. Speaking of Kai, how did things go last night?”

“He’s good. Thanks for calling me.” I smiled. So much for relaxing at the bar. I picked up the pitcher. “I’ll let you know the dates after the weekend.”

“Sounds good. As long as it’s before July. I’ve got plans, remember.”

“I know. It’ll be soon.” I went back to the table. I had been planning on heading straight to Florida once school was out, but now I didn’t know if I wanted to leave Kai and whatever this was. Maybe I should ask him to go. Seeing him in trunks with no shirt for days in a row at the beach and splashing in the water with him . . .

“What’s that smile for?” Lance asked.

“None of your business.” I didn’t want to discuss this with him, though I was sure he knew more than I’d like. Sometimes the oldest friends are the nosiest. I needed to get focused before people asked too many questions I wouldn’t be able to answer.

“Her mind has been preoccupied lately,” Bryson said.

“That’s right,” Lance said. “I heard you've been spotted all over town with Kai.” A sneaky grin crossed his features.

"Who told you that?"

"I have my sources," he said.

Damn book club gossips. It wouldn't surprise me at all if they told him everything they knew about me and Kai. And honestly, I don't care if the entire town finds out I had amazing, hot sex with him. It wouldn't be the first time I was a part of the gossip channel.

“We’re still trying to figure out what appointment she had early Saturday morning at Shear Perfection. She’s not talking. Maybe Kai gave her painting lessons,” Bryson said.

“Stop.” Darlene slapped Bryson’s arm. “You’ve been messing with Kora too much about her night with Kai. She’s an adult and is entitled to some fun once in a while.”

“Thanks.” I gave her a half smile. “I think?” Luckily, it was one thirty, so I needed to wrap up here and end this discussion. Maybe I did care if they knew my business. Getting to the hair salon early wouldn’t be so bad. I could use a talk with my aunt. “I’ll talk to you later, Dar. I gotta go. I’ve got a meeting with Summer.”

“Well, there she is. We were just talking about you.” Diane welcomed me with a hug.

“What a surprise." I raised a brow and held Diane at arm’s length. “What could I have done now that would have merited y’all’s attention?”

“Oh, nothing serious.”

“Nope, nothing at all serious. Just . . . you know,” Kaye answered.

“You are both up to no good. Oh, Kaye, I saw Lance at Jerry’s. Thanks for talking about me with him.” I sat in Summer’s chair.

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