Baewatch - Xavier Neal Page 0,28
herself to go through my phone while I was in the shower discovering the little secret on her own, and my best friends, Bodhi, E, and Fynn. Bodhi and E know not to ever talk about the shit in mixed company, and Fynn is welcomed to run his mouth all he wants since he doesn’t live here.”
“Different state?”
“Different country.”
“Damn.”
Ax gives me a crooked grin. “You could say the ocean keeps us connected.”
“Cheesy.”
“Which is how I like my crab dip.”
The potential segue has me smiling.
“Any chance you wanna join me for lunch later and share some?”
Hesitation to agree is instant and by his expression, expected.
“Look, Brooklyn, I can understand your feelings of being hurt and feeling lied to. But I didn’t lie to you. Shoreside Treasure Chest is what I do for a living. That’s what pays my bills. That’s what brings me joy. That and being out in the water are what I wake up for every morning. Ax is who I am. And at the end of the year, Scott Maxwell, Attorney at Law, will no longer even be a subject I have to consider discussing.” He leans his forearms onto my desk and folds his hands firmly together. “I told you on our first date I was open, and I meant it. You can ask me anything, and I’ll answer. It’s just the waters of my name, my family, and my forced occupation are basically rip currents.” His blue eyes bore into mine even deeper. “And, I’m not looking to let anyone drown. Especially not you.”
Swooning shouldn’t be the chosen response, yet it is.
Do I appreciate not being told more of this shit up front?
No.
Did I enjoy how I found out?
Absolutely not.
But at least I now know. At least, he didn’t make a million excuses as to why. He gave me the gritty, unabashed truth, complete with the pain it’s clearly caused him. I’m fortunate enough to come from a supportive, loving, non-reputation obsessed family. I know not everyone else is. And, if I didn’t before, hearing the tale of a father who twisted his son’s arm into being someone he never wanted to be, would make that point crystal clear for me.
“No dip sharing for lunch,” I casually decline, hating the hurt it creates in his gaze, “but you can accompany me to The Pineapple Party tonight.”
His grin grows to reach his ears.
“Normally, I’ve always gone with my grandparents, but due to my grandfather’s fairly recent hip surgery and my grandmother not being able to walk as fast she used to, they’ve decided to skip it this year. I wanna go and bring them something back so they still kind of feel like they got to participate in it since it’s always been a big deal for us.”
“I’ve honestly never been.”
“You’ve never been to The Pineapple Party?!”
“Always seemed like too much pineapple.”
“We don’t talk like that in this office,” I playfully scold.
Ax lightly chortles and surrenders his hands. “My sincerest apologies, Pineapple Queen.”
I snicker at the statement, but I don’t deny it.
“It would be an honor to accompany you to The Pineapple Party this evening.” He allows another wide grin to appear. “Just tell me when to meet you and what to wear.”
A crooked, almost sinister smile slips onto my face as a fun idea begins to brew.
He challenged me to try a couple things outside of my comfort zone. Let’s see what happens when the tide is reversed…
Ax grumbles to himself for the fifth time in obvious disgruntlement. A loud, heavy huff is dispersed at the same time he banishes his carving tool to the side. “How the hell does mine still look like a lumpy banana?”
“You mean a deformed dick?” I tease while continuing to trim up the wings of my creation.
His hearty chuckle is immediately followed by him leaning forward onto his palms and a headshake. “It’s more…banana-like than pure phallic-shaped.”
My eyes cut the disaster a glance and then him. “Were you going for sickly banana? Because I could see terminally ill banana, no question. Like you nailed it.”
Ax laughs again, this time a little louder, prompting me to do the same.
I can’t help it.
I’ve tried.
There’s just something…almost magical about the sound. It’s sweet and soothing and irresistible. I’ve heard hundreds of people laugh in my small lifetime yet not one that has ever brought me so many different emotions. How one person’s chuckle can bring tranquility one second and sexual desire the next is a deep ocean mystery.
That shit isn’t normal.
Or, at least