Page 15 of Collide (Collide 1)

The small group - including Gavin - hooted out in hysterical laughter. With her smile beaming ear to ear, Emily quickly yanked the three-hundred-dollar bills off the table and tucked them into her shorts. Right there in that moment, the tension in both Gavin and Emily's shoulders - from the way their worlds collided - deflated and vanished like a ghost.

Eventually, Chris, Joe, and Dillon made their way back outside. Gavin took a few minutes to fill Dillon in on his devastating loss. Dillon laughed and shot Emily a proud smile. The group helped Gavin clean up, and everyone decided it was best to call it a night. Before the droves of guests arrived, the guys usually indulged in a very early morning fishing trip on Gavin's boat, so sleep was definitely needed. Everyone said goodnight to one another before heading into their designated rooms.

It was well after one in the morning when Emily crawled out of bed. Dillon's liquor-enhanced snoring was keeping her awake. Attempting to go back to sleep, she nudged him, flipped on the television, and even placed a pillow over his face in hopes of stifling the noise.

None of it worked.

Deciding that a good dose of fresh air might help bring on sleep, she quietly opened the bedroom's French doors that led out to a balcony.

Immediately, it was as if the ocean called to her. She walked over to the edge and peered out to the distant waves tumbling onto the sand dunes. As her senses were just starting to absorb the sounds, smells and sights engulfing her, Gavin's voice saying "hello" made her jump.

She whirled around, a curl of hair catching on her lips, and found him sitting in an Adirondack chair. "Jesus!" she let out louder than anticipated.

"No, it's Gavin. Gavin Blake," he deadpanned, reaching for a beer from a six-pack on the floor. "Although, in certain private one-on-one situations, I've been referred to as God," he laughed.

With an unladylike snort, Emily laughed with him. "You're too much. "

"Aren't I though?"

"Yes, very," she replied and then turned back to the door. "I didn't realize this was a connecting balcony. I'll let you have your privacy. "

"By all means, stay and have a beer with me. "

With the mildest of trepidations, she made her way over to him. He popped a beer open for her. "Thank you," she replied, accepting it and sinking into a chair beside him.

"You're very welcome. So what brings you out on the balcony in the wee hours of the night?"

"You can't hear that?"

Gavin's brows knitted in confusion as he looked around. "Uh, I hear the waves. "

"Then you're lucky," she sighed. "Cause I can still hear Dillon snoring. "

"Ah, I see," he laughed, propping his feet on a small outdoor ottoman. "Us men do know how to knock it out of the ballpark when it comes to that. "

Emily shook her head and took a sip of her beer. "I've tried everything short of smothering him to death to get him to stop. "

Quirking a brow, Gavin smiled. "Hmm, not a bad idea. You'd be available then. "

"Be nice," she laughed.

"Yes, ma'am," he clipped, and Emily shook her head.

A few minutes went by as they listened to the waves rolling in the distance. The sky was clear with a magnificent view of the stars as a cool, summer breeze skirted its way across the balcony.

"So I didn't see you go down to the water today," Gavin remarked, reaching for another beer. He popped the top off and tossed it into a terracotta pot that held quite a few bottle caps. "Do you not like the beach?"

"Actually, I love the beach. " She drew in a deep breath as her gaze slid from his out to the water. "Some of my best memories of my mom come from endless days spent on the beach with her. "

Heaviness settled in Gavin's chest. He knew her mother passed away. When they were at the club, he wanted to say something to her but felt it was inappropriate to do so unless she brought it up. He continued to stare at her, struggling to find the right words.

He shifted his body to face hers. "I'm very sorry about what you had to go through, losing her," he finally stated softly.

Drawing her knees up under her chin, she looked to him. "Thank you. "

His voice was low and cautious as he gazed into her eyes. "If you don't mind, I'd love to hear about the memories you have of her on the beach. "

A faint smile tugged at her lips. "Really?"

He nodded and smiled back. "I'd be honored. "

She took a minute to compose her thoughts. "Well, when I was a kid, she'd save all year long, so we could visit Santa Cruz, California. She'd rent a little condo right on the beach, and we'd literally spend the entire day outside. We'd fly kites for hours on end and ride our bikes on the boardwalk. " She paused and smiled. "She used to love making sand angels, like the ones you make in the snow when you lie on your back. " She let out a light laugh at the memory and wiped a tear from her eye.

"Emily, I. . . " Gavin whispered. She looked at him. "My intentions weren't meant to upset you. Please. . . I apologize. "

"They're. . . good tears, Gavin. I haven't talked about her in a while. Really, you didn't upset me. "

Her words left Gavin awestruck. He searched her eyes and found traces of happiness mixed with incalculable loss. It melted his heart. He longed to run his fingers through her hair and console her; he wanted to hold her in his arms and rid her of the pain. "They sound like wonderful memories," he whispered.

"Yeah, they are," she replied, staring straight ahead. "It was hard seeing her sick for so many months, but to tell you the truth, when she took her last breath, a wave of relief washed over me. She was finally at peace. " Wiping another tear away from her eye, Emily looked at him and then averted her gaze out to the ocean. "There was a

point I'd actually hoped that I would wake up and find out she was gone and not in pain. It still makes me feel guilty that I'd felt that way, but I couldn't bear watching her suffer anymore. "

With her last few words, Gavin's emotions soared to a place he hadn't dared to revisit in a while. Again, he found himself struggling for the right thing to say. His voice was but a whisper. "I know we may seem worlds apart to you, but we share something in common. " He hesitated, not knowing if he should bring it up. Emily looked at him confused. "My family almost lost my mother to breast cancer when I was twelve. "

Emily breathed out, not having a clue what to say. His statement shook her from her own self-pity.

Gavin then did something impetuous. He simply felt the need to touch her, so he leaned over and wiped the tears from her cheek. Emily didn't move. "I remember what it felt like seeing her sick and in pain. The fear of not knowing what life would be like without her is something I'll never forget, but I know one day I'll have to face it. I also remember feeling exactly the way you said you had felt. I wanted it to end - for her to either just die so she could be at peace or get better. I wasn't able to see her like that anymore. I used to actually crucify myself for feeling like that. Emily, just know that what you felt - what we felt - is very real and a very normal human reaction. "

Sniffling, she glanced up to him, noticing the sensual perfection of his face now touched with grief. Behind those blue eyes was the soul of a man that had gone through his own share of pain, and Emily couldn't decipher what was worse - her losing her mother to cancer or him living in fear that his mother's cancer could come back.

With concern in his eyes, Gavin leaned forward and studied her face. A weak smile crept over his lips. With his voice low, he said, "Now that I've managed to fuck up a pretty decent evening by making you cry, why don't we play a game to lighten the mood?"

Emily let out a gut-belly laugh due to the wide range of emotions flying through her head. "You didn't fuck up the evening. " She then rose to her feet, wiped the last few tears from her eyes, and stretched her arms over her head. "I needed that, believe me. "

He stood up with her and smiled. "Okay, good. So you'll play a game with me then?"

She smirked, eyeing him suspiciously. "What type of game would Gavin Blake suggest we play? And no wisecracks either. "

"Mmm, that's a tough request. "

He flashed an impish grin, and without saying another word, he slid the bottle-cap-filled terracotta pot to the middle of the balcony. He then playfully commanded her to sit Indian style on the floor ten feet away from it. With her expression showing her curiosity, she did as he instructed. He opened the doors to his bedroom and disappeared briefly. Emily sat for a few moments, wondering what he was doing. When he reappeared, he had a sweatshirt in his hand and a freezer bag holding additional bottle caps.

Walking over, he tossed the sweatshirt on top of her head and laughed, "You look cold; put that on. "

He sat Indian style on the floor next to her with their knees barely touching.

Smiling, she yanked the sweatshirt off her head and slipped it on. For a brief second, she tried to burn the smell of it into her memory. It reminded her of when they were in the elevator. She couldn't quite pin what the smell was - a mixture of cologne, body wash, and aftershave came to mind.

"So what's the name of this game we're about to play?"

Gavin looked into her green eyes. Under the light of the moon, they looked angelic. "It's kind of hard to pronounce," he slowly replied, staring at her lips as he tried to shake the fascination he had of her from his body.

"Try me. "

He dropped his voice to a whisper and purposely hesitated between each word. "It's. . . called. . . toss. . . the. . . bottle. . . cap. . . into. . . the. . . pot. . . right. . . there. . . . " He pointed to the pot.

Trying to ignore how sexy his voice sounded when he whispered, Emily playfully nudged his arm. "Wow, you're truly a wiseass, huh?"

"Yes, in every possible way," he laughed and handed her a couple of caps. "You go first. "

Barely being able to see, Emily crinkled her nose as she tried to focus on the pot. She tossed the first one and missed by at least five feet. They both laughed. When it was Gavin's turn, he closed his eyes and sank it right in.

"I'm just assuming here, so I apologize if I'm wrong, but I'm thinking you've played this game more than once," she remarked.

"Why, I've only played it twice, of course," he laughed.

Emily threw another and missed by only a foot this time. "Twice, my ass. There has to be five-hundred bottle caps in that thing. "

Gavin shot her a wry smile. "Close but no cigar. It's actually over a thousand. "

"Drink much?"

"Many summers, many parties, many friends equals a huge bottle-cap collection, Miss. "

She shook her head and laughed. "Speaking of collections, I noticed the many vehicles you have parked in your driveway. " She took a swig of her beer. "A motorcycle, a BMW, a Bentley, and I don't know the name of the other. "

He smiled. "It's a Nissan GT-R. "

"Yes, a Nissan GT-R," she laughed. "Boys and their many toys. "

Rubbing at his chin, he gazed deep into her eyes for a second. "Don't we all have to fill voids in our lives with something?"

Taken aback, Emily searched his face, not knowing how to answer.

He flashed a smile and casually tossed another cap into the pot.

She could tell there was more behind his question than she could possibly understand. The first thing that popped into her mind was an onion. Gavin Blake had many layers to him that needed to be peeled. Some that were there were true to their form, but others were simply a cast-iron veneer she felt he wore around himself.

After several hit and missed thrown caps and much-needed laughter, Gavin looked at his watch and noticed it was past three in the morning. Standing up, he offered Emily his hand, and she accepted.

His voice slid through the air like the finest cashmere. "Even though our evening started off a little. . . sad, I had a great time with you, Emily," he stated softly, focusing his intense eyes on hers.

She could feel the stroke of his heated gaze on her, warming her inside and out. She slowly pulled her hand from his and cupped the back of her neck as she stared up into his eyes. "I did, too, Gavin. "

He smiled, walked away, and opened the French doors that led to his bedroom, but not before he turned to look at her one last time.

Nervously biting her lip, she followed suit and made her way into the room where Dillon lay sleeping.

Still snoring.

As she closed the doors behind her, Emily leaned herself against them, panicky and once again breathless. Sliding her fingers down her neck, she tried to rationalize the visceral pull that Gavin had over her, but she was too tired at that point to even begin to understand it.

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