Summer Fling by Serenity Woods

when she gave him the cash, and she could have kicked
herself afterward. He fooled us all though. I mean, I didn’t like him, but I
never thought he’d do anything like that. I thought he loved her.”
    Garth frowned. Now he understood her
defensiveness and her reluctance to get involved with anyone again. And why
she’d looked sad when she walked into the bar.
    “So,” Mat said. “Are you coming to the party?
Stella’s going to talk Chloe into coming.”
    Garth just drank his lager.
    “You could have cut the sexual tension
between you two with a hacksaw.”
    “She’s not—”
    Mat cut him off with an impatient wave of
his hand. “Bro’, sometimes you shouldn’t take no for an answer. She likes you.
You’ve got to push a little.”
    “I don’t—”
    “Garth.” Mat’s voice was firm. “When do I
ever ask you for anything?”
    “All the time.”
    “Bollocks. I tease you about it, but I
never push you to do anything you don’t want to do. I know what you’ve been
through. But it’s been a long time since Jess, and you need to move on. Trust
me. Come to the party.”
    Garth hesitated. He hadn’t told Mat about
his plans for Stewart. He wasn’t sure why. Perhaps because of fear that Mat
would disapprove. But maybe he should trust his friend. He hadn’t had a date
for so long. Perhaps the time had come for him to dip his toe in the water.
    He thought of Chloe. Of her soft mouth, and
the spark that had appeared in her eyes before she thought better of it and
covered it up. He couldn’t stop his lips from curving.
    Mat grinned. “Good.”
    “I might not stay over,” Garth cautioned.
    “I’ll shove a couple of tents in the back
anyway.”
    “I don’t do tents.” He couldn’t bear the
enclosed space.
    Pity flickered on Mat’s face. “Oh yeah, I
forgot. Well, you can always sleep on the sand.”
    “If I hate it, I’m not going to stay.”
    “Fair enough. Just give it a go.”
    Garth nodded. If he got there and Stella
hadn’t been able to persuade Chloe to go, he’d probably turn around and go
straight home. But if she was there…
    A long evening, wine flowing, good music,
and a pretty woman in his arms. It used to be his idea of entertainment. Maybe
if Chloe was that pretty woman, he might actually enjoy himself again. Would he
be able to convince her he was worth relaxing her guard for?
    She’d been so soft pressed against him on
the plane. With the taste of chocolate on her lips.
    He’d certainly give it a try.

Chapter Nine
    Chloe and Stella walked home slowly.
    “Nice surprise,” Stella said.
    “Yeah.”
    Stella nudged her, and Chloe stuck her
tongue out.
    “You went to pieces when you saw him,”
Stella remarked.
    “Did not.”
    “Did too, you dropped your purse.”
    “That’s just me being clumsy.”
    Stella raised an eyebrow.
    Chloe sighed. “Yeah, all right. He’s nice.
I like him. Even though he’s a raving lunatic.”
    “He jumps out of planes. That doesn’t mean
he’s mentally challenged.”
    “He’s certainly not sane. But I take your
point.”
    “He was right, you know. Life is a
risky business. You can’t plan for everything. Sometimes things just happen.”
    “Yeah, I know. But there’s accepting that
life’s dicey, and then there’s deliberately going out and courting danger. With
his sort of job, it’s like he’s tempting Fate. ‘Come and have a go if you think
you’re hard enough.’ Almost as if he wants something terrible to
happen.”
    Stella shrugged. “Maybe he does. Like I
said, I get the feeling there’s something Mat hasn’t told us about him.”
    “And that’s just what I need—a guy with
secrets.”
    “He’s not Ethan, honey. Ethan duped you.
That’s not the same as wanting to keep yourself to yourself. I mean, you
haven’t told Garth about Ethan taking your money, right? And I could see you
didn’t want to talk about Cocoa Heaven.”
    “It’s none of his business.”
    “That’s what I’m saying. Presumably he’s
the