The Fearless Groom (Texas Titan Romances) Page 8

  “You did it! Seriously, you rocked it. Do you want to try again or maybe try wakeboarding? It’s not much harder.”

  “I’m feeling pretty good for now,” she said. “Why don’t you go?”

  He reached out, and she lifted the board to him. Then she laid back and let her hair float in the water for a few seconds before swimming to the platform and pulling herself out. Her hair was going to be a frizzy mess in seconds, but who cared. This was a great reprieve from her normal life, and she loved sharing it with Xavier. He was definitely not what she’d planned on from their interactions Thursday night or even this morning. He was slowly becoming his real self with her, and she realized she liked him.

  Unzipping the life jacket, she caught him staring at her again and gave a saucy flip of her hair. “Really? You going to drool next?” she asked.

  “I just might.” He gave her a sexy smolder, and her stomach erupted in butterflies.

  Xavier took a step closer, and her eyes skimmed over the way his neoprene shirt clung to his muscular chest and arms. Luckily, he hadn’t taken his shirt off or she’d be the one drooling.

  He slowly walked toward her, and her breath caught in her throat. She had to say something quick or she’d be kissing him again, and she couldn’t be moving this fast. “You’re going to teach me how to drive then?”

  He stopped and arched an eyebrow. “You’re ready to drive?”

  She looked pointedly around at the empty boat save the two of them. Her heart was still pounding from him almost kissing her again. She wanted him too much, and this date was confusing and making her lose all her inhibitions. She needed to get a grip and quick. “If I don’t learn, you won’t get to surf. Who usually drives you?”

  “One of my buddies from the team, or I have this awesome family that lives next door with three teenage boys, the Jensens, and they love to come out with me. Their dad travels internationally for work, so he misses out.”

  “I bet they love coming with you.”

  “They’re great kids.”

  She liked that he seemed to genuinely care about children. The interaction with the redheaded boy outside the restaurant, and the way he’d treated all the young adults they’d played paintball with this morning, demonstrated that. He was a standup guy.

  He lifted the board back into place and walked toward the driver’s seat. “Okay. You ready for your driving lesson?”

  Izzy set the life jacket on a bench seat and walked to him, tucking her hair behind her ear. The water on her skin was evaporating quickly in the heat. Xavier sat on the driver’s seat and gestured her closer. Izzy didn’t know where to stand, so she came to his side and watched.

  “This is the throttle. Just push it forward to go and back for reverse. There’s no brake, so I just go into reverse for a second if I need to stop quickly, or you can just idle slowly.”

  “I’m going to wreck your boat,” she said, tucking her hair back again.

  Xavier laughed. “No, you won’t.” He gestured around. “There’s a lot of water out here, and my lesson will teach you all you need to know.”

  She laughed. “But if, by some small chance, your lesson isn’t magnificent?”

  “Won’t happen.” He smiled softly as if he guessed her worries. “You only need to drive if you want to.”

  “But if I don’t drive, you can’t surf.”

  He smirked. “I’d rather wakeboard, but it’s fine if I don’t today. I get lots of chances.”

  “Okay.” She rubbed her hands together, trying to act confident. “Let me at it.”

  “C’mere.” He beckoned her closer, and Izzy gulped as she realized he wasn’t going to move out of her way.

  She got brave and scooted closer. Xavier took her waist between his large palms, and she gasped. His look said he knew exactly how it affected her to be so close to him. He pulled her between him and the wheel. She was facing him as he sat in the padded driver’s seat, and there wasn’t a lot of room. She couldn’t handle him looking at her like that anymore so she spun to face the wheel, but then she realized she’d just put her rear in plain view and spun back. Xavier was grinning broadly.

  “It’s okay. I’m not going to bite.”

  She swallowed and looked out at the dark blue water and a sailboat skimming past. Xavier reached up and touched her cheek gently. She glanced back at him.

  “I’m sorry if I’m making you uncomfortable,” he said.

  Izzy pressed her lips together then admitted, “I don’t have a lot of experience with men.”

  He reared back, shock crossing his handsome features. “Why not?”

  She didn’t want to get into this, but for some reason, she trusted that he wouldn’t downplay her fears. “My father.” A tear crested her eyelashes and rolled down her cheek, and Izzy wanted to die with embarrassment. What was this man doing to her—kissing her before she knew him well and bringing out emotions she’d sealed and buried in an embossed coffin a long time ago?

  Xavier suddenly stood, his large frame towering over her. She was eyelevel with his chin and leaned back to look up at him. She wondered if he was going to try to kiss her again. Though she wanted to kiss him, the moment wasn’t right at all for her.

  Instead, Xavier took her hand and led her over to the padded bench running along the side of the boat. They sat, and he held onto her hand and focused on her face. “My dad overdosed when I was three, and my mama never talks about him, so I understand not having the best example of a good father.”

  Izzy’s breath popped out of her. She clung to his hand and then simply leaned her head against his broad shoulder, staring out at the gently rolling waves lapping against their boat and the other boats zooming by. The sun was bright, and there were only a few puffy clouds, but the boat’s shade kept them from being too sticky hot.

  She opened her mouth, and the thing she never told anybody quickly spilled out. “My mom got stage four breast cancer when I was seven.”

  Xavier’s hand tightened around hers, and the muscles in his arm and shoulder tensed.

  “Then while she was fighting through chemotherapy and radiation for over three years, my father cheated on her with the woman who is now my stepmother.” She could still see them in the kitchen, hugging. Then her father had looked into Dolly’s eyes like Izzy had only seen on the movies and bent his head to kiss her. Izzy had run and hid in her bedroom. Her mom died not long after and her dad completely withdrew from her, not that she minded.

  “Oh, Izzy.” Xavier released her hand and wrapped his arm around her. She buried her head in the soft fabric of his neoprene shirt, finding safety in the muscles there. She felt like this man could protect her from hurt in so many forms if she could allow him to. “You’ve gone through so much, and yet, you’re this incredible, talented, and hard-working woman.”

  “Thank you for seeing me like that. Sometimes, I feel like a little girl who still wants her daddy back.” She could not believe she’d just admitted that to him. Even her sister and stepmom didn’t know how she longed for her daddy. Dolly and Hailey were both so friendly and warm, but after a lot of failed attempts, neither of them tried anymore to delve into her issues with her father.

  He rubbed his hand along her bare arm. “I think we all feel like that sometimes.” He chuckled. “Little boys and girls.”

  “I’m glad you have your mama. She seems amazing.” She looked up at him.

  He nodded. “She is. Do you have anyone?”

  What a tough question to ask. Did she? Not really that she could talk to, but she did have love, no matter how many times she’d tried to reject it. “My stepmom, Dolly, loves me unconditionally, even when I was the brattiest teenager you’d ever meet and after I cut myself off from them at eighteen. She and my sister, Hailey, would have none of that.” She smiled, remembering how Dolly had shown up at her dorm and told her in no uncertain terms that she wasn’t losing her.

  Xavier looked surprised. “So the woman your dad cheated with? The blonde who’s always at
the games with him?”

  “Yeah. Weird that I can forgive her but not him, right? But if you met her …” She wished she could explain the happiness Dolly and Hailey brought to her life. “The woman is just pure sunshine and such a blonde bombshell. She works hard to look like Dolly Parton. It cracks me up, but I don’t think anyone could help but love her or my sister.” Izzy had tried but failed. The issues with her dad were deeper. Not only had she seen him that time with Dolly in their kitchen when her mom was sick but after her mom died he turned away from Izzy and she had to mourn alone. Only when Dolly and Hailey became a permanent part of her life a few years later, and forced her to let them love her, had she known familial love again.

  “I’ve met your sister. She’s a trainer for the team.”

  “Yeah. She’s great. Her and my father get along really well, which is so weird to me, but to each their own, right?”

  “So you cut yourself off, but your sister embraced your father’s team?” he asked.

  “Hopefully not literally.”

  “No, she’s really professional, even though I know a lot of the guys wished she wasn’t.”

  “I bet. Don’t you think she’s the most beautiful woman you’ve ever seen? With her blonde hair and perfect body and skin and her big blue eyes, but that little cleft in her chin gives her something different—what?” He was staring at her, and it derailed her thought process.

  “No, I don’t think she’s the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen. Not even close.” He turned her toward him and raised his other hand and trailed it down her cheek. “No one could be as beautiful as you, Izzy.” He slowly lowered his head toward hers, and Izzy’s breath caught in her throat. He couldn’t be sincere with his compliment. He shelled compliments like that out to different women every day. And yet, somehow, it felt authentic. It felt wonderful.

  He was so close she could feel his breath on her lips. He smelled amazing—that mix of musk, lime, and salt. Izzy wanted to be strong and not become another one of his numbers, but he was proving almost impossible to resist. Every nerve in her body was on high alert as he trailed his fingers along the bare skin on her back.

  She lifted herself closer to him, and then a wall of water smacked them both in the side of the head. Izzy was knocked away from him and blinked to clear her eyes. The right side of her face felt like it had been sandblasted.

  She heard a cackling and whirled to see a blue boat speeding away with a young skier looking back at them and laughing. The teenage boy raised a hand in triumph. “I got you, X!”

  Xavier shook his head. “Of all the rotten timing.” He stood and opened a compartment next to the passenger seat and handed her a blue beach towel.

  She pressed the dry towel against her face. If she had any makeup on after her first attempt at surfing it was gone now. Xavier had basically said she was the most beautiful woman to him. It had to be a line he gave all of his women. She did not want to be just another one, but she was like silly putty that he could mold into whatever he wanted.

  “Who was that?” she asked.

  “My neighbors, the Jensens, I was telling you about. Looks like their dad’s home today and taking them skiing. That was the eighteen-year-old, Brody. See if I ever take him skiing again.”

  Izzy couldn’t help but laugh. It was pretty funny that the kid interrupted their kiss by spraying them with gallons of lake water. It had cooled her off in more ways than one. Ready to not discuss anything serious, and promising herself she wouldn’t go for another kiss until she knew for certain Xavier wasn’t just toying with her, she walked to the driver’s seat. “Okay. I’m ready to try driving.”

  “Good girl. After I show you my tricks on the wakeboard, I’ll ski and swamp Brody’s entire boat.”

  It was after dark when they made it back to Izzy’s condo after driving through Golden Chick and each getting fried chicken with fries. She was a frizzy, dirty mess from lake water, but it had been the best day she could remember. It had taken her half an hour to get confident enough to drive the boat, but then she’d done all right. Xavier had impressed her with flips and three-sixties on the wakeboard. When he skied, she’d gotten brave enough to get close to the bright blue Tige boat, and Xavier had indeed doused the teenage boys and their dad.

  They stopped outside her door, and she preempted whatever he was going to say with “That was the best date I’ve ever been on.”

  Xavier grinned, and the porch light picked up his dimples. Oh, mercy. “Me too. I wish I could take you out tomorrow.”

  She put a hand on her hip. “Well, why can’t you?” She was partially teasing, but there was also an underlying worry that he was the player the media made him to be and he probably had another date lined up. This could very well be a one and done experience for them.

  He laughed. “I’m flying to Monterrey, Mexico in the morning to help my mama in an orphanage there.”

  She stepped back. “Wow. Good for you.” She’d heard how much he helped the children, but here was actual proof.

  “It’s a lot of fun. I get to be with the kiddos and my mama and do all the projects they need a tall guy for. Important stuff like changing the light bulbs or dusting the ceiling fans.”

  “Good to be invaluable like that.”

  “For sure.” He took a step closer. “I’ll be back Friday night. Could I plan another date for us?”

  She edged closer until they were only inches apart. Yes, he wasn’t going to write her off. “I’d like that.”

  Xavier’s arms came around her, and his dark eyes were hyper-focused on hers. She had no clue how she’d stay strong. How was she supposed to guarantee he wasn’t a player anyway? Maybe she needed to live life and not worry so much, but the worry ate at her insides as he brushed her hair behind her shoulder, his warm fingers doing a number on the sensitive skin on her neck. He leaned even closer, and his phone started buzzing in his pocket.

  He startled and shook his head, pulling it out and pushing a button to stop the buzzing. “My mama.” He held it up for her to see. The display said, “Best Mama Ever.” “I can call her back.”

  “It’s fine. You should get it.” This was the break she needed. She bit at the inside of her cheek to try to compose herself and tucked her hair behind her ear.

  “Okay.” He pushed out a breath and slid his finger across the screen to accept the call, striding a few paces away. Izzy watched him, feeling awkward observing his personal conversation, but very interested in how he interacted with his mama.

  “Hello, Mama.” Xavier had wanted to sample those rosebud lips again, badly, but his entire life his mama had come first. He really appreciated Izzy understanding and encouraging him to take the call. He’d had a lot of dates who’d been peeved that he put his mama first.

  “Well, she has gone and messed up everything now!” Mama roared in his ear.

  “Who?”

  “The nurse, Holly or something Christmassy like that. I don’t know. I’m trying to block her from my memory. She wouldn’t know the Christmas spirit if it dumped a lump of coal on her head. Ooh, that would serve her right. I’ll be praying for that one from Santie this year. You can bet your butt on it.”

  Xavier smiled, his heart rate almost back to normal from the thrill of the near-kiss with Izzy. Those two kisses this morning weren’t near enough, and he kept getting interrupted. He smiled remembering Brody hitting them with the wave of water. Funny kid but his timing stunk. “What happened?”

  “She backed out of the trip a few minutes ago. Last minute, like a little selfish coward! I need someone who can administer the immunizations and give the little ones a checkup. You know how the medical care is down there. Half the time, we show up and one of my sweeties will have a broken arm nobody has set.”

  Xavier made a noise of assent. Mama never needed much to keep talking, especially when she was upset like this. He glanced over at Izzy. Her dark hair frizzed around her beautiful face. He doubted she had any makeup left after boating, and he thought she
was more beautiful than ever as she smiled tentatively back at him. Was she pulling away? At moments, he felt like she was into him. Then her eyes would cloud, or she wouldn’t rise to the bait when he flirted with her. He wanted her like he’d never wanted any woman, and he had to convince her he wasn’t anything like her father.

  “Little brat,” Mama continued, “thinks she’s got a life that’s more important than helping the children she committed to help six months ago. I’ll show her a life. And then—you won’t believe this baloney—she had the nerve to say to me, ‘If you can guarantee that your big handsome stud of a son will come on the trip, I can move some things around and make it work.’ Little conniving monster. How dare she? That’s why I never tell anybody you’re coming. If you ever date a selfish witch like that, I’ll make you work!”

  “Calm down, Mama. Just calm down.” It was the line he always gave her when she got like this. When they were together, he would open his arms, and she’d immediately stop ranting.

  She grunted out a laugh. “I wish you were here to hug me as you said that.”

  “Me too, Mama.” He glanced up at Izzy, wishing he could hug her, but his Mama obviously needed him. “What can I do to help?”

  “You coming will be help enough, sweet boy. I’ll figure it out.” She barked out an annoyed laugh. “Unless your girl of the day happens to be a qualified RN instead of a supermodel.”

  “How about an over-qualified one?” He glanced at Izzy, who looked quizzically back at him. His heart started beating hard and fast. Would she do it? He wanted to get to know her better and spend more time with her. Flying to Mexico and spending a week with the children would show exactly who anybody was on the inside, and it might give him the chance to convince her he wasn’t a player.