No Vacancy Read online

  “I’d never let that happen if you worked for me,” Dad told Caterina while he poured my mother another glass of wine. I agreed to let him pay without a struggle, and, after he’d ordered a $300 vintage bottle of Merlot, I wouldn’t have been inclined to fight him that hard this time. “Time for yourself is important. I’ve seen the best employees get burned out because they think the world will end if they take a day off.”

  “Well,” Caterina set down her fork, “I haven’t told Joe this yet, but I’ve actually extended my vacation until Wednesday. I may have to work a little Monday, but…” she turned to me, her eyes bright and a hint of a smile curving her lips. It was all I could do not to leap out of my seat and crash my mouth into hers. I had her until Wednesday. It was only three extra days, but I’d gladly take every second I could get, that we could get.

  A slow smile curved my lips, and I spied her shoulders relax. More time with her was all I wanted, and I was fucking thrilled to get even a little more of it.

  “You can work in my office as much as you need to.”

  “I know, but I don’t want to get in your way.” She nodded a thank you to my father when he refilled her glass. “If you get really busy—”

  “You are never in my way, and I think you should know that.” I grabbed her hand and squeezed, oblivious to the fact we weren’t alone. We were grasping at every second we could get. This pull between us took over everything, including logic. But right now, I got to keep her for longer, and that was all that mattered.

  Sensing my parents’ stare from across the table, when Caterina peeked at her phone screen, I turned to their identical dopey smiles as they looked between us. Their eyes literally twinkled as they regarded me with both elation and relief. My mother and I had the same conversation over and over again about how unhealthy it was to be so focused on my business. She constantly worried I’d gotten too used to being alone. Every phone call ended with my reassurance to her that I was fine, and I didn’t have room in my life for anything other than running the restaurant. To my shock, one week had changed all of that. I was still dedicated to making The Beach Pub a success and keeping it that way, but I wished Caterina could be a real part of all of that, not just someone I’d get to see once a month if I was lucky.

  “I’m so sorry. This is my boss, probably wondering if I’ve been kidnapped since I asked for more time off. Please excuse me.” She rose from the table and rushed to the patio outside.

  When I was sure she was out of earshot, I drew back in my chair and crossed my arms.

  “Go on. I know the both of you are on the verge of exploding, so ask me what you want to ask me.”

  “She’s beautiful and a sweetheart. I’m thrilled for you, Joey.” My mother reached over the table with a watery gaze to squeeze my arm.

  I smiled back, despite myself. “Well, she’s going back to Brooklyn, eventually. I don’t know what’s going to happen after that.” My voice was small as my eyes landed on Caterina, leaning against the patio door outside. Sometimes, the air whooshed right out of my lungs when I looked at her. I wasn’t sure if it was the urge to grab her by the ankles so she wouldn’t leave, or that I couldn’t process how amazing she was, or how great we were together, and would be together if she didn’t have to go back home.

  “I see the way you’re looking at her now and how you’ve looked at her all evening.” Dad’s gaze darted between Caterina and me. “You’re a smart guy. I think you’ll find a way. Have faith, Joey.”

  If only I was smart enough to close the distance between Brooklyn and Ocean Cove.

  “I’m glad to see you doing so well. The restaurant was packed when we stopped by. Is this your busiest summer?” Dad asked, and I braced myself on instinct. The honest question came with a sincere compliment, but, for some reason, I went on auto-defense as usual. Trying to remember what Caterina said about self-awareness, I nodded and willed myself to relax.

  “Actually, yes. I think it is. Customers like sitting on the patio in the back near the beach since we opened it this year. We had a successful event last night and a few more planned this summer and early fall. Caterina has been showing me how to better use social media to my advantage, and it seems to be helping.”

  “That’s great.” Dad beamed before he took a sip of wine. “Maybe I could be an investor, too, one of these days.”

  My stomach dropped as my body stiffened. “What do you mean by investor?”

  He shrugged. “Like Owen is. If you want to keep things going in the fall, more revenue can only help, right?”

  Mom draped her hand over her eyes and shook her head, and it wasn’t hard to figure out why. I was sure Bella finally mentioned Owen’s loan to my parents, and my father couldn’t help digging into why I’d asked.

  “Owen isn’t an investor. Or he wasn’t supposed to be.” My eyes narrowed as I fell into the same awful pattern with my father. The question had no intended malice, but like always once my guard went up, I couldn’t go back. “He gave me a loan early on that he refuses to let me pay back, so he likes to call himself an investor instead. And he was supposed to be a private investor, but, as usual, my sister can’t keep anything quiet when it comes to you.” I drained the wine in my glass with one gulp.

  “And it was easier to go to Owen than to me. Like everything else. Right?” Dad’s icy glare matched my own. We really did appear to be identical twins, but looks and sense of humor were the extent of it. I wasn’t the great Lucas Hunter and never would be. Even though I was happy with who I was, the bratty kid in me always wanted to be more for his sake.

  “Sorry about that.” Caterina breezed back to the table and settled next to me. “Good news, I get to stay until Wednesday with no issues at all!” Her grin faded once her gaze stumbled onto mine. Squeezing her hand, I jerked my head slightly to the other end of the table so she’d know my change in demeanor didn’t have anything to do with her staying and everything to do with my insecurities getting the best of me once again.

  Caterina and I had more in common than I realized. We worked our fingers to the bone in a chase for a perceived unattainable validation that only exhausted us. I’d fought hard for the life and livelihood I had, but lately, all I could focus on was what it cost me in the long run. I had what I thought I wanted, but didn’t realize how miserable I’d be in the end.

  26

  Joe

  The rest of dinner was spent in an uncomfortable silence. Caterina and my mother had hit it off in a big way, but my father and I didn’t utter a word to each other than a tense goodbye in the parking lot. I didn’t even ask how long they were in town for before we parted ways. I was angry—mostly at myself—and ashamed for how I acted.

  My stomach turned at Caterina seeing me at my worst. At least, she hadn’t been there when Dad and I had actual words, but I wasn’t acting like the guy she’d known for the past week.

  I pulled into my spot in the driveway and climbed up the inside steps to my apartment with Caterina following behind me. If not for my childish outburst that ruined what had been a nice night, the both of us would have come back here thrilled and probably naked already. I’d fucked that up, too.

  “Hey,” Caterina whispered as she dropped a hand on my forearm. “Feel like sitting outside for a little while?” She nodded to my tiny patio that I never used since I was rarely home.

  “If you want. Let me grab a couple of towels; those chairs have seen better days.” I trudged over to my hall closet. The lousy feeling in my gut always took a while for me to shake, but I pushed through it for her sake.

  After I draped towels on both chairs and fell into a seat, Caterina planted herself on my lap, gasping at a loud creak.

  “I didn’t break the chair, did I?” She grimaced and drew an unexpected chuckle out of me.

  “No, baby. It’s old but sturdy. Your cute little ass didn’t break it, I promise.” I wrapped my arms around her and drew her closer, burying my neck into her neck. “I’m sorry, Caterina,” I whispered before pressing a
kiss behind her ear.

  “No need to be sorry.” Her hand drifted down my cheek. “I’m sorry you’re upset.”

  “I need to grow the fuck up finally.” I shut my eyes and leaned back on the chair. “I fought hard to live the life I wanted, and I need to own it and not worry about who I disappoint.”

  “But you don’t disappoint. Your parents love you, that’s easy to see. What happened when I left the table?”

  “Someone—most likely, my sister—let it slip to my parents about Owen’s loan. My dad asked how he could become an investor, too, and that set me off. Thing is, I know he was only asking to help, not make me feel like I was failing, but I wanted to do this myself. Be a success without his help.”

  “Well, what would be so bad about him helping you?” She turned to face me. “Would he hold it over your head?”

  “No, but I guess if I asked him, he’d maybe think he had a say in how I do things and point out what I was doing wrong without meaning to if that makes sense. Like, in my head, I know he wouldn’t do it on purpose, but it would feel that way and make me crazy. I sound like a petulant little punk. Are you sure you want to stay with me now?”

  She jabbed my shoulder. “Stop it. You don’t, because I get it. I’m close with my mother, and we have a great relationship, for the most part. She still kinda hovers, for lack of a better word.”

  I laughed at her eyeroll. “When I first moved into my apartment, I asked her for a loan that I swore to her I’d pay back in a couple of months.”

  “But, at least you had the guts to ask.” Sifting a lock of her hair between my fingers, memories of my father and me raced through my head as I tried to pinpoint when things had shifted between us. As hard as I always tried, I could never figure out the exact day he’d gone from my hero to an unattainable ideal I never felt I’d measure up to. “Did she give it to you?”

  “Yes, but she pointed out how important it was to save if I wanted to live on my own, and I should give her part of my paycheck every month. She offered to start a savings account for me and hold it.”

  I nodded. “Always good to have savings—but not what you needed to hear, right?”

  “Exactly.” She pushed her finger into my chest. “I took it as making sure I saved money so I wouldn’t screw up and run out—again. I’m sure she meant well, mostly, but it made me feel small—like a kid who didn’t know what she was doing. I paid her back within a month and haven’t asked her for another dime since.”

  I kissed her cheek and anchored my forehead to hers. “We’re two stubborn idiots, aren’t we?”

  “Maybe. It’s hard to take guidance or what’s meant as friendly advice from your parents when you feel like you already have something to prove. Especially when you put unnecessary pressure on yourself to be perfect. I’m definitely guilty of that, as you may have noticed.” She shifted in my lap before cuddling into me. “Starting a new business isn’t going to be a huge success right away. I think your head knows that.” She tapped on my temple. “But you keep expecting it to be anyway.”

  Why was it that every time I saw my parents, I went home feeling like both a fuck up and a jerk? Something had to give because my father didn’t deserve the way I froze him out every time. I knew that, yet I kept doing it.

  She pushed off my chest and took my face in her hands. It was hard to see with only the soft light from my kitchen filtering out to my dark patio, but I was still trapped by Caterina’s dark eyes and long lashes. Her lipstick had faded since dinner, but it was impossible to miss that mouth: full and lush and so damn soft. I needed to get lost inside her tonight. I wanted her to make me forget all the ways I’d made life impossible for myself and how lonely I’d be without her once Wednesday came. Here, with this beautiful woman draped over me, all the obstacles and silly issues in my life dissipated into the ether. She was all I needed.

  “You’re amazing, Joe. Don’t let your fear of falling short make you ignore all you’ve accomplished. Promise me that.”

  My heart swelled then sank because that sounded a lot like part of a goodbye. I wouldn’t entertain any of that tonight. Tonight, we were together, and she was mine. It didn’t matter if the timing didn’t make sense. We made sense.

  “You’re pretty amazing yourself.” I nipped at her earlobe, smiling at the giggle vibrating against my lips.

  “I wish there was something I could do.”

  “You’re doing it now. You’re here. But there is one thing that could make me forget for a little while.” I grabbed her hips and brought her closer. “Kiss me,” I hissed before she brushed my lips, teasing me as she grazed her bottom lip along mine. A growl erupted from my throat before our lips fused together. I licked inside her mouth and swallowed her sweet whimpers when my tongue stroked hers. As she squirmed on top of me, the chair under us continued to creak as our kiss caught fire. I caressed the sweet curve of her ass and brought my hand lower until I fisted the material at the hem of her dress.

  “Still need me to ride you?” she giggled against my lips.

  “Definitely later, but for right now…” I slid my hand back up her thigh, taking the bottom of her dress along with it. “Right now, I need you to come all over my fingers.” I hissed when I found the lace of her panties. “You can’t scream that loud, but no one will see you but me.” I pushed her panties to the side and ran a finger up and down her slit. She was silky and soaked.

  “There’s my girl. So wet.” I made circles around her swollen clit, slow at first but picking up the pace the harder and wetter she became. “That’s it, beautiful. Drip all over me. Tell me how good I make you feel.” A guttural moan fell from her lips, her legs shaking as they always did when she was close. She clutched my bicep, digging her nails into my arm as her body went rigid on top of me.

  “Tell me, baby.” Need strangled my words as my fingers twisted deep inside her. I ran my thumb over her clit and smiled when she jerked in my arms. “Tell me how good it feels when I make you come.”

  “So good,” she panted, lifting her hooded eyes to mine. “I’ve never felt like this. I don’t want to leave.” Her voice was barely audible as if she didn’t want me to hear.

  “I’ve never felt like this either, baby.” I came back to her lips, our kiss sloppy and desperate. “And I don’t want you to go,” I admitted, my words slipping out like a plea. “But you’re mine right now. All mine and—” Her pussy clenched around my fingers, and all the blood in my body redirected to my dick.

  Her mouth fell open with a silent scream as her whole body shuddered. She rocked against my hand until her orgasm subsided, collapsing on top of me with a tortured groan.

  “How could it be this good?” She met my gaze, her words full of both wonder and dread.

  “It doesn’t matter,” I whispered and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Because it is.”

  27

  Caterina

  “I can’t believe this week is over, and I have to go back to work,” Claire whined as she plopped into one of the patio chairs.

  “All good things must come to an end, I suppose.” I flipped the burgers on the grill, focusing on the sizzle of the meat and smoky aroma of the charcoal, not the sour taste the words left in my mouth. I’d been MIA all week long, and, although my friends understood, I promised them a barbecue on their last night while promising myself to dwell on the wonderful things this getaway brought me instead of dreading the end.

  “You didn’t have to go to all this trouble, Cat,” Megan said, handing me a glass of wine. I put the grilling tongs down and took a long, wonderful sip. Nothing was better than ice cold Pinot Grigio on a hot day, and, while I didn’t want to get drunk, a little numbness from a glass or two would be welcome.

  “Yes, I did.” I closed the hood on the barbecue and settled into a chair next to Claire. “I was an awful friend this week and left you pretty much every single night. Making you guys dinner will relieve my guilty conscience.”

  Claire nudged my ankle with her foot. “There is n
o need to feel guilty. A hot vacation fling was exactly what you needed to cleanse that jackass from your system. I’m thrilled you had a good time.”

  “Right,” I breathed out, my gaze dropping to the ground as I took another sip.

  “I don’t know if I’d call it just a vacation fling.” Megan scooted her chair closer to me. “He asked you to stay with him after we left. And I see how sad you are even though you’re trying to hide it. Have you talked about what happens after you leave?”

  I gave her a slow shake of my head. “Not really, other than we’ll figure it out. Claire may be right. It’s all hot and heavy now, but, in the end, it’ll probably just be a fling. What else could it be after only a week?”

  “Do you really believe that?” Megan arched a brow.

  “I don’t know. I don’t want to believe it.” I rose from my seat and again tried to forget my troubles and focus on my burgers. “When we’re together, it’s as if I’ve known him forever. And it’s good, guys. So, so good,” I lamented as I covered the burgers with slices of cheese.

  “Get away from the grill and talk to us.” Claire patted my now vacant chair and crooked her finger.

  I plopped back on the seat, ready to finally unload to my friends what had been eating away at me all week.

  “I don’t want it to end. It’s crazy to feel this strongly about someone I’ve only known for a week, but it’s never been like this with anyone else. We’re like kindred spirits in a lot of ways. Fighting the same annoying demons. He’s…” I rested my elbows on my knees and dropped my head into my hands. “Wonderful. But how can this continue?” I sat up and looked between them, their faces unreadable other than sympathy. “Like maybe at first we talk all the time, and we try to see each other, then when I can’t make it, and he’s busy here, it just fades. I don’t know if it’s better to not even try and set ourselves up like that. Bad enough prolonging my stay is going to make leaving that much worse.”