No Vacancy Read online

  I ambled back into the dining area to dig my buzzing phone out of my pocket.

  Caterina: Can I ask where we’re going?

  Joe: Nope.

  Caterina: Seriously? Can I at least get a hint so I know how to dress?

  Joe: Nope.

  Caterina: Okay, but when I embarrass you for being dressed inappropriately, remember, it’s your fault.

  Joe: In a potato sack, you’d be the most beautiful woman in the room. In ANY room. So relax, and enjoy the surprise.

  Joe: Wait, relax. You may not know what that means, let me think how to explain…

  Caterina: Very funny. Is there food involved? I’m starving.

  Joe: Nice try for a hint. See you at eight.

  Caterina: Grr. Fine.

  Joe: Did you just growl at me? That’s fucking hot.

  Joe: Still not telling you.

  “I’m not used to you smiling this much.” Dom laughed as he regarded me through thinned eyes. “You had us all worried you’d be married to this place for the rest of your life.”

  “I am married to this place. It’s still my first priority, but, like you said, time to get the stick out of my ass and have a little fun.”

  “You packed enough for more than just fun. You like this girl. I’m glad, but are you guys on the same page? I mean, she still lives in New York City, right?” He leaned against the wall next to the bar with his arms crossed.

  “Brooklyn, yes. She told me this morning she wants to give whatever it is between us a chance. Honestly, I have no clue what’s going to happen. But, I need to see where it goes, anyway. I know it makes no sense—”

  “Nothing has to make sense. Just go with it.” He slapped my shoulder. “I’ll open tomorrow. That way, there’s no excuse to cut the night short. Get out of here. I got this all handled.”

  “You always do. And thanks.”

  “Running this place with you is my job. No need to thank me.” He slapped my arm.

  “I mean, thanks for being a ball-breaker who forces me to see things I don’t want to, sometimes.”

  A tiny smile played on his lips. “You’d do the same for me. You did. By letting me come out here with you in the first place.”

  I nodded, turning to go back into the kitchen and collect everything I’d prepped for tonight. It still felt like our time was running out, but, at least, she was willing to give us a chance. For right now, that was enough for me.

  I parked outside of the address Caterina had texted and climbed the front stairs. I’d only been to the rentals in Ocean Cove a handful of times but always left in awe. Some of the houses were mini-mansions, but Caterina’s rental was on a street with the more modest houses. Before I could ring the bell, one of her friends appeared in the doorway and almost made me jump out of my skin.

  “Hi, Joe. I’m Claire. Very nice to meet you.” She held out her hand for me to shake as she shut the door behind her.

  “Nice to meet you, too.” I took her hand. Claire held it for a long beat as she studied my gaze.

  She beamed at me before she gave me another once-over. “You are just what she needs, I can already tell. I love that you didn’t tell her where you were going. She’s a planner, and she’s been going nuts.”

  “I had a feeling she would.” I chuckled and shook my head. “I hope I didn’t make her that crazy.”

  “Nah. She needs it. She never lets herself have fun. Well, she didn’t until this week.”

  Her eyes met mine and darted away. I sucked in my bottom lip to hide my smile, realizing Caterina probably spilled about that first night we met.

  “Show her a good time and don’t hurt her and you and I will be good.” She leveled her eyes at me in warning.

  “Understood.” I held my hands up in surrender. Claire was tall and slim, but I could tell she would have no problem trying to kick my ass. “The last thing I’d ever do is hurt her; I promise you that.”

  At least, not on purpose. I already knew one night with her wouldn’t be enough, and things would get messy when we got closer.

  When, not if, because I already hated the thought of letting her go.

  “All right.” Caterina’s exaggerated sigh made it outside before she did. She strutted up to me in a short denim skirt and an off-the-shoulder top, twirling around before her hands fell to her sides. I gave her body a shameless perusal, my mouth watering to taste the silky olive skin right above her collarbone. She said I dripped sex, but this woman basked in it, and she had no clue.

  “If I have to change, tell me now.”

  She met my gaze with a scowl until I pulled her flush to me and looped my arm around her waist.

  “Don’t you dare. You’re perfect.” I planted a kiss right behind her ear. Her body stiffened then slumped against me.

  “Hi,” she whispered and kissed my cheek.

  “Hi, yourself.”

  She giggled and lifted her head. “You look pretty perfect, too. But when don’t you, right?”

  We both turned toward Claire clearing her throat behind us.

  “You kids have fun. Don’t bring her back until sunrise.” Her brows shot up before she stepped back in the house and shut the door.

  “Okay, so I won’t embarrass you. Ready?”

  “I told you, you’re beautiful. And we’ll be all alone, so no one gets to look at you but me. And yes, I’m very ready.”

  Caterina cupped my neck and pulled me in for a kiss. It wasn’t as frenzied as it had been Thursday night when all that bottled-up passion spilled out and blinded us both. My tongue glided along the seam of her lips until they parted for me. This kiss was slow, the yearning and need boiling over but not rushing us like before. I swallowed her sweet whimpers as our tongues explored rather than attacked, becoming reacquainted with the taste and savoring it this time. I’d savor her for as long as she’d let me.

  “We need to get going,” I panted after pulling away. A sexy blush crept up her cheeks as her dark eyes searched mine.

  “Sorry, I get lost in you.” She let out a breathless chuckle.

  “I’ve been lost in you since Thursday.” I let my thumb fall over her lips. “Let’s get lost together.”

  17

  Caterina

  What was it about Joe that made me lose every inhibition I had? From the time I met him, I just couldn’t help myself. I had to kiss him, or something inside me would implode. Had I ever been this ravenous for anyone else?

  Nope. Never.

  Whatever I had with Joe was a very unexpected first, and I had no idea how to hold myself back. My attempt to stay away from him had lasted all of forty-eight hours until I couldn’t take it anymore, and I was only in walking distance. What would happen when I left him for real? Clenching my eyes shut, I tried to push the thought out of my head.

  “Hey,” Joe whispered and reached over the console to squeeze my knee. “You look about a thousand miles away.” My gaze flicked toward his raised brow, and I cursed the heat drifting down my leg from his touch. I almost pushed my knee into his palm to invite his hand to go higher.

  “I’m good. Excited. Annoyed, I still don’t know where we’re going, other than the fact we needed to bring our own food.” I shot him a glare. Between the amazing smells of whatever Joe packed wafting from the back of the cab, his dark T-shirt and worn jeans, exactly what he wore the night we met, my head spun. The last time he cooked for me and dressed like that, my panties had fallen off so quickly, I almost tripped over them.

  He grabbed my hand and brought it to his lips. My skin tingled from the wet warmth of his lips and the tickle of his stubble. Even that first night we’d met, his touches meant something, said something.

  “That’s better,” he said, still keeping hold of my hand as he pulled the truck into park. “We have tonight. I know you’re a planner and all, but, just this once, maybe live in the moment a bit, and enjoy it.” He grinned and laced our fingers together.

  “I’ve been living in the moment since Thursday. I’m just not used to it.
” I choked out a laugh. “But, yes. I’ll take tonight and whatever else we can get.” His smile grew wider, and, hell, I wanted to kiss him again. I turned to climb out of the passenger seat before I leapt over the console for another Joe fix. There would be time for that later, I hoped. I supposed living in the moment meant not rushing it, and although it would be tough, I’d try my best. For more time with him, I’d try anything.

  “Where are we?” Joe had taken us to a small, deserted beach. “Can we even be here?”

  “It’s public property. Not many come here since it’s so tiny, but I stop by sometimes to think. It’s quiet and has the best view of the lighthouse. Do you mind carrying this? I have two big, heavy bags to unpack for us.” A grin lifted his cheeks before he handed me two folded blankets.

  “Sure. Big blankets for such little sand, no?” I asked as I followed Joe onto the beach. Once I let the tension go, excitement stirred in its place.

  “We need a place to set the feast I brought us.” He flashed a grin over his shoulder.

  “A feast?” My flat sandals filled with sand as I set down the blankets. “It’s really sweet of you to go to all that trouble.” The night was warm but breezy and made it easy to spread out the soft fabric over the sand.

  “I own a restaurant, in case you forgot.” He set the baskets on the corners of each blanket to weigh them down. “Besides…” His adorable, shy smile was the sexiest thing I’d ever seen. “I like cooking for you.”

  “And I like to eat, so we’re a match made in heaven.” I kicked off my sandals and reached for the top of one of the baskets. Joe pushed my hand away and shook his head.

  “Nope. I serve you. I like doing that, too.” He pointed to the blanket and motioned for me to sit down.

  “Okay, if you want to cook for me and feed me, I won’t argue.” I plopped down on the blanket and crossed my legs under me. “Did you leave any for your customers tonight?”

  “Some.” Joe handed me a fork and knife. “I grabbed a few of the entree specials. I tried to pick closest to what you got the most excited about at the festival. I have shrimp, stuffed clams, and…” His eyes brightened before he handed me a foil covered container.

  I peeled the top off and found mozzarella sticks and a tiny cup of marinara sauce. He’d thought of everything, even paying attention to what I liked as we strolled around the festival, despite me pushing him away both right before and right after. I already had trouble believing this guy was real. Any words I wanted to say in gratitude were stuck behind the lump in my throat.

  “Joe, I—” I gulped in an attempt to will away the tears flooding my eyes. No man had ever made me cry tears of happiness before. I was touched, overwhelmed, and shocked that he’d gone to all this trouble for me with only a day’s notice. “I know it’s ridiculous to get this flustered over fish and mozzarella sticks, but no one has ever paid attention like this…” I set my plate on my lap as my nose burned. “I hoped just this one night, I wouldn’t make an idiot of myself in front of you. No such luck, I guess.” I cupped my forehead as if that would somehow push out a coherent sentence, but I was too choked up to be articulate.

  As much as I attempted to write off what Joe and I had as lust and chemistry, what he’d done for me tonight transcended that. I still had a lot to learn about Joe, but he’d showed me the most important parts, and I was already hooked.

  He looped an arm around my waist, yanking me into his side. “You’re doing fine. And for the record, you’ve never made an idiot of yourself in front of me. You’re brave and beautiful. And, since the second I met you, I couldn’t get enough. I’m glad we’re not fighting it anymore.” He leaned forward and brushed my lips. They parted on a soft sigh when he grazed my bottom lip with his tongue. This man could kiss. It had taken me over twenty years to have a cinematic-worthy, toe-curling kiss.

  It was as if my teenage years had been reset, and I was in one of those coming-of-age tales of self-discovery. Only I was closer to middle age, and the first kiss came at the beginning of the story, quickly followed by very dirty sex with the promise of more.

  I sifted my fingers into his hair and laid back, pulling him down with me. Joe broke the kiss and shook his head.

  “Dinner first, and dessert, then we see about extra dessert.” He sat up and kissed the tip of my nose.

  “You even brought dessert?” My mouth fell open. Joe was turning out to be my every fantasy come true. If there was chocolate cake in one of those baskets, my clothes would fly off of their own accord.

  “If you’re a good girl.” His scorching smile and the husky way “good girl” rolled off his tongue made my silly heart trip over itself. “Now, eat.”

  “Can I ask you something?” I leaned back on my elbows, already stuffed after only two plates.

  “Sure.” He rested his elbows on his knees. “Ask away.”

  “We spoke about my less-than-stellar relationship history, but you said you didn’t see women that much. Were you ever serious with anyone?”

  He shrugged. “I wouldn’t call anything serious. Like I told you, I tried to not start anything with someone out of town, and the women I dated around here got fed up pretty fast. The long hours I work and constant changing of plans had anyone I attempted to date pretty short on patience. And they were right. I never made time for anything other than the restaurant. I was always either brainstorming a new menu or obsessing over the financials. I honestly never wanted to make time for anything or anyone else. Until now.”

  My cheeks heated, matching the warmth flooding my chest. “It doesn’t feel like we just met at all, does it?”

  He laughed before slowly shaking his head. “No. No, it does not.”

  “I even missed you a little.”

  His jaw went slack before he pressed a dramatic hand to his chest. “You did?”

  I held up my hand and pinched the air between my index finger and thumb. “A little.”

  “Only a little, huh?” He moved closer, mirth dancing in his blue eyes.

  “Maybe slightly more than a little.”

  “You’re only saying that because I fed you again.” He dropped his hand on my knee, causing a swarm of goose bumps up my thigh.

  “Maybe.” I shrugged, almost afraid to meet his gaze. Joe’s smile was a lethal weapon, charming and paralyzing me at once.

  “This was really incredible. Thank you for tonight.”

  “Hey, it’s not over yet.”

  “Was I a good girl? Do I get dessert?”

  “Yes, I think you were.” Joe reached for a white paper bag. “And they stayed warm.” He unfolded the top of the bag and handed it to me.

  “You found zeppoles?” My eyes bulged before I dove into the bag and grabbed one. The powdered sugar melted into a glaze on my fingertips.

  The first bite made my eyes roll back. “My God, Joe,” I moaned, already going in for a second. “So damn good.”

  “Again, with the sex noises.” He arched a brow. “You’re making it hard to stay a gentleman tonight.”

  “Who said you had to do that?” I licked the grease and sugar off of my fingers slowly once I spied the heat in his gaze.

  “Put the bag down,” he growled, moving toward me on the blanket with a wicked gleam in his eyes.

  A snicker escaped me before I shook my head. “Okay. I’ll stop with the sex—”

  “I said, put. The. Bag. Down.” It was dark other than the lantern Joe had planted in the sand, but I couldn’t miss the feral look in his eyes as they zeroed in on my lips. Heat ricocheted all over my body and pooled between my legs.

  He dragged his finger along my top lip. “You have some sugar right here.”

  I ran my tongue over the trail of his touch. “Then take it off for me.”

  His hooded gaze locked with mine before our mouths crashed together in a hungry, desperate kiss. I pulled him on top of me, tugging at the back of his shirt as our teeth scraped and tongues battled.

  He muttered a curse before he dipped his head and tra
iled hot, open-mouthed kisses across my collarbone, pulling down the neckline of my shirt and sucking my nipple through my bra. I grabbed his head to pull him closer, writhing beneath him as I chased the friction my aching body craved so badly.

  “I think about you,” I admitted as Joe made his way down my neck with his lips. I felt him smile against my sensitive skin.

  “Yeah?” He fisted the hem of my skirt and pushed it higher until it was a twisted denim belt low on my hips. My body quivered with a crazy want I’d never felt before, not even that first time. My limbs were liquid against the sand and about to give out any second.

  “Good, because I think about you, too. No matter how I tried, I couldn’t stop.” His fingers dipped into the neckline of my blouse before tugging it down along with my bra. My breasts spilled out of the cups and into his greedy hands. I mewled as his thumb traced around my rigid nipples. “What do you think about?”

  His hand delved into my panties, and he groaned when his fingers found me soaked and swollen.

  “You, between my legs, like the night I met you.” Coherent sentences weren’t possible when his mouth and hands were all over my body.

  He lifted his head, the singeing embers in his eyes stealing more of my breath. “I did a lot between your legs that night. Tell me what you think about. Coming on my tongue or on my cock?”

  God, his mouth could get filthy, and I loved it.

  “When,” I gulped, so turned on my brain was about to short circuit. “When you made me come in your mouth. All I think about is you doing it again.” I barely recognized the hoarse whisper falling from my lips.