More pieces of the Cait Weatherby puzzle were falling into place.
Someone called his name, and he saw Aiden waving him over to the portable wooden table where he’d been sitting when he’d first met Abby. They’d set the table up for the two of them on the nights Abby worked late. Aiden had been a workaholic and on the island for a forced vacation set up by his sister when he’d met Abby. He was adjusting well to island life, and Brant had never seen Abby look happier. He made his way over to Aiden.
“Having dinner with Abby tonight?”
Aiden closed his laptop and stood to shake Brant’s hand. “At some point. I was just catching up on a few investment reports while I waited. Have a seat.” He gave Scrappy a quick pet and said, “I hear you’re going to teach Cait to swim.”
“Yeah. She scared the bejesus out of me the other day. I think she’ll catch on quickly.”
Aiden arched a brow. “I also heard she stayed at your place last night.”
“I wondered if you’d heard about that.” Brant had texted with Cait earlier, but he hadn’t asked if she’d talked with Abby about her past. He was careful not to breach her confidence or let Aiden think they’d hooked up. “We talked for most of the night and fell asleep on the couch.”
“Cait told Abby and Dee what she’s been through.” He shook his head with a pained expression. “I can’t imagine growing up with such a monster and turning out as great as Cait is.” Aiden knew about heartache. He’d lost his parents when he was in his early twenties and had taken over his father’s business and raised his twelve-years-younger sister, Remi, from that day forward.
“She’s a remarkable woman, and I’m glad she has Abby and Dee. I’d really like to get my hands on her father and everyone else who has ever hurt her.”
“I can understand that, but from what Abby said, Cait just wants to move forward.”
“That’s the plan.” Brant was going along with it, but he worried about her not getting closure to such a traumatic part of her life, and the more he thought about it, the more upset he became. In an effort to distract himself from those harsh feelings, he changed the subject. “In the spirit of moving forward, did Abby tell you we’re double-dating tomorrow night?”
“Yes. We’re looking forward to it.”
Brant looked around at the waitstaff coming and going. “This place is really hopping.”
“The girls have done a great job. It’s hard to believe they’ve been open for just over a month.”
Just over a month might not be a date most people would consider worthy of a celebration. But with all that Cait was going through and how exhausting it must be going back and forth to the Cape, celebrating her and Abby’s success might be exactly what she needed. It would be a great reminder that she’d grabbed hold of her future three months ago and had been doing a spectacular job of moving forward, and Brant knew just how to make it special. “How would you feel about putting together a little surprise for the girls?”
Aiden sat back with a mischievous grin. “What do you have in mind?”
Brant shared his thoughts, getting more excited by the second. Just as Aiden agreed, Cait walked out of the restaurant, and like metal to magnet, her eyes found Brant’s. That lustful look he adored came over her, making his temperature rise. He stood to greet her, dying to sweep her into his arms and kiss her breathless, but doing so in front of everyone at the restaurant would be a mistake. Instead he reached for her hand.
“Hey, beautiful.” He squeezed her hand and sat back down.
She gave Scrappy a quick pet. “I just have to wrap up a few things in the office; then I’ll change and we can go.”
“No worries. My night is yours.”
She turned her attention to Aiden. “Abby said she was sorry, but she’ll be a little longer than expected. Would you like to order something while you wait?”
Aiden shook his head. “No thanks. I’m okay.”
“I would like something,” Brant said. If he couldn’t kiss her, he could at least let her know he wanted to.
She started to pull a menu from her apron, and he touched her hand, stopping her.
“No need for that. I know exactly what I want.” He dragged his eyes down her body. “One raven-haired beauty with a side of snark.”
“Get over yourself,” she said with a laugh. “Think you can behave for a few minutes?”
“Absolutely. But no promises after that.” Brant winked, and she rolled her eyes. He loved that she could still be her sassy self with him. He watched her walk away and said, “She digs me.”
“You’re definitely getting under her skin.” Aiden chuckled. “I think you’re good for her.”
“She’s gotten under my skin, too. But that’s enough about me and Cait. How’s the wedding planning coming? Is Abby still trying to get the details about your honeymoon out of you?” Aiden was keeping their honeymoon a secret to surprise Abby, and she pumped him for information all the time.
Aiden’s face brightened. “She asks about the honeymoon on a daily basis, but I have a built-in excuse not to tell her. I can’t plan a honeymoon without a wedding date. We’re meeting with Daphne and Shelley next week to nail down the date and make the rest of the arrangements.” They were getting married at Top of the Island Vineyard, which was owned by Steve and Shelley Steele, and Daphne was their event planner.
“I guess you’d better come up with a better excuse after that.”
“I’m working on it, but I think the planning will take a while. Abby’s going back and forth about colors, the time of day for the wedding, and everything else you can imagine. She’s hoping to get Dee and the girls to go wedding dress shopping with her sometime soon . . .”
Brant was happy for Aiden and Abby, but as he listened to Aiden talk about their wedding, his thoughts returned to Cait. He remembered his sisters and their friends talking about white weddings and Prince Charmings when they were younger, and he wondered if Cait had ever had those types of dreams, or if her father had ruined that for her, too.
A little while later Cait got off work, and they said goodbye to Aiden and headed to the parking lot.
“Where’s your truck?” she asked.
“I drove my grandfather’s truck.” He motioned to the 1952 red Chevy pickup parked at the far end of the lot.
“Wow. That’s gorgeous. He lets you just borrow it whenever you want?”
“Yeah. The truck’s pretty, but as he says, it’s just a people mover and built to be used.” He opened the passenger door and put Scrappy on the bench, then slid his arms around Cait, tugging her against him. She glanced over her shoulder, and he said, “Don’t worry. I parked far enough away that nobody can see us.” He lowered his lips to hers, kissing her deeply and devouringly, as he’d been longing to do all day, and she was right there with him, putting her arms around him and going up on her toes for more, as if she’d been just as starved for him.
When their lips finally parted, she sighed dreamily. “Your lips are lethal.”
“Wait until you see what my other body parts can do.” He opened the door and patted her ass. “Climb in, babe. We need to make a quick run through town on the way to the cove.”