Sandra Panting - About Last Summer

Thanks Dad

Chapter One

The last time Chase Malone had seen Natalie Campbell she had been naked in his bed, and when he awoke she was gone. That was over a year ago. He’d never asked why she left and, given the statute of limitations had no doubt expired on such a question, it was unlikely he ever would. Besides, asking those kinds of questions wasn’t his style.

From his secluded position, he watched as she stood on a small wooden pier, while an expanse of the Mississippi River held her gaze. Somewhere in the distance guests had gathered to celebrate her brother’s birthday, and it wasn’t like Natalie to not join in. But Chase hadn’t followed her to discuss her brother’s birthday. Actually, he wasn’t certain why he had followed her, but for some reason he couldn’t stay away.

Deciding he’d had enough of loitering in the shadows, he pushed away from the tree he’d been lounging against. The soles of his shoes clumped slightly as he strode across the wooden planking.

“You know that’s not allowed.” He crossed his arms on top of the railing, the polished plank adequately wide enough to rest his arms.

“What’s not allowed?” Natalie’s eyes remained focused on the dark surface of the river. If she was surprised to see him, she hid her reaction well.

“A long face at a party.” His gaze followed hers across the river to the houses dotting the shore. The view was the same as he remembered, the little of it he could see in the muted moonlight. “Care to talk about it?”

Instead of answering, she asked, “Are you sure you want to risk being seen talking to me?”

Chase didn’t need a road map to follow that remark, although he couldn’t tell whether she was asking out of spite or curiosity.

Going out on a limb, he chose the latter. “Well, considering your brother is wrapped up in his fiancée, I think I can risk it.” With a subtle shrug, he added, “Besides, Patrick knows we’re friends. Your parents may have an issue with us talking, but I doubt Patrick will have a problem with it.”

A soft June breeze carrying the scent of the river tousled Natalie’s shoulder-length hair. She’d cut it since the last time he’d seen her, although he hadn’t decided if he liked it or not.

“Is that what we are, Chase? Friends?”

That casual question struck a bit below the belt rendering him somewhat speechless. He could admit their former relationship lacked most of the usual boundaries, but he’d been under the impression she wasn’t interested in labeling it any more than he was.

Or had that been wishful thinking on his part?

Deciding to risk making eye contact, his gaze fell on her profile. “I’m not sure I understand what you’re asking.”

A moment ticked by as she tucked a strand of sandy-colored hair behind one ear. The subtle gesture registered as deliberate, suggesting his nearness made her nervous, although her lack of expression left him baffled. Some sixth sense warned her attitude had something to do with him, although he had no idea why. He hadn’t seen her in almost a year.

As the moment ticked by, she waved a hand in a dismissive gesture. “Don’t worry about it,” she said. “It’s been a really long day, and I’m in kind of a weird mood. You’d probably be better served to ignore me.” She tossed him what he assumed was supposed to be a blithe smile before pushing away from the railing.

“Wait a minute.” Motivated to stop her before she walked away he touched her arm, halting her forward movement. His male nature enjoyed the excuse to touch her, and taking further advantage he stepped closer. He didn’t know what was going on, but he’d never seen her like this, and he didn’t like it. “Maybe you should just tell me what this is about.”

His nearness must have triggered a self-defense mechanism as her expression again grew guarded, but finally her eyes lifted. The scar on her chin she’d gotten from falling out of a tree when she was eight was barely visible in the dim lighting. “Are you aware that for the next few weeks you and I are going to be staying in the same house?”

He hesitated, their gazes mingling. Being so close to her after nearly a year apart felt a bit strange especially given how their relationship ended. No arguments. No tearful goodbyes. He woke up one morning and she was gone. He often told himself they were better off this way, but sometimes he wondered.

Pushing aside past memories, he asked, “How can that be? I’m staying with Patrick until after the wedding.”

“I know.” She leaned against the railing, the cut of her summery green sundress offering Chase a tantalizing view of her cleavage. “Patrick and Erica are buying a new house, and I’m buying Patrick’s. Before I knew he’d invited you to stay, I moved in.”

Erica Sullivan, Patrick’s fiancée, was also a good friend of Natalie’s. Patrick and Erica had hired Natalie to be their wedding planner. Patrick had invited Chase to stay until after the wedding given Chase was the Best Man, and Patrick and Chase hadn’t spent much time together since Chase moved to New York eight years ago. Chase agreed as spending extended amounts of time with his family generally wasn’t the best way to go about maintaining his sanity. Last year Chase’s father had been involved in a near-fatal car crash and between traveling back and forth to New York and Chase’s bickering family, Chase didn’t know how he would have coped if it hadn’t been for Natalie.

“So you’re living here?” He inclined his head in the direction of the house and Natalie nodded, moonlight glittering off her dark hair.

Now that could be a problem. He and Natalie under the same roof as her brother, combined with the seductive memories of how good they’d always been together, did not spell happy conclusion.

Apparently having interpreted his silence, she said with a rueful smile, “I see you’ve grasped the problem.”

Oh, he grasped the problem all right.

Trying out his voice of reason, he said, “So we have two choices, either one of us can stay elsewhere, or we can pretend nothing happened.”

“I would say those are our options,” she said. “Although if one of us leaves, Patrick is going to want to know why.”

He exhaled a tense breath. “Oh, boy.”

“Yeah, I’d say that about covers it.”

Silence stretched as their gazes continued to mingle. Their positions were reminiscent of days past, back when he was free to touch her, to kiss her, to make love to her. He didn’t want to remember those days but he did. And each day the memories tugged at him a bit more.

“I probably shouldn’t say this, but I didn’t want things to end.” Subtle regret tinged his voice as he revealed that piece of information, but what the hell, it was the truth.

“Neither did I,” she said, her admission delivered with the same hint of regret he heard in his own tone.

Sexual awareness pulled at him. Damn, he hadn’t wanted to go down this road with her again. Her parents made no bones about the fact they thought he was bad news, an opinion that had been reinforced by his divorce over two years ago. Not to mention Patrick had made it clear he didn’t want Chase getting involved with Natalie. The two men may have been friends since the third grade, but the Malone men didn’t have the best reputation with women, and Patrick didn’t want his sister getting mixed up with the Malone family drama.

But sex with Natalie was like alcohol to an alcoholic or chocolate cake to an obese dieter. No matter how many times he told himself he shouldn’t touch her, the chemistry between them combined with blissful memories of hot, lusty sex grabbed him and wouldn’t let go. And a year later the memories were still there.

Without conscious thought he stepped closer, his arm sliding around her waist. Natalie’s greenish-blue eyes remained locked with his, her elbows on the dock railing.