I stop in the hall, determining which door will not lead me to my mother. I choose wrong when I decide on the kitchen slider. Mom’s in the kitchen. I sigh. “Hey, Mom.”
“Hey, baby. What’re you up to?”
“Just gonna lay out and look at colleges for a while.”
She nods, her eyes scanning down what I’m wearing. Shorts. A tank. Flip-flops. I see her frown as soon as she looks at my feet. More specifically, my toes. Mom sighs.
“Darling, you painted your toes.”
“I did. You paint yours.”
“Of course, I do, baby. But I’m a woman.”
I nod without comment and head for the slider. “I’ll be outside.”
“Do you have a drink, Lie?”
I hold up my water bottle. “I just filled it a few minutes ago.”
“Okay, baby. Stay hydrated.”
“I will, Mom.” I shut the slider behind me and head for the lounge chair on the other side of the yard. Ugh. She’s caught between meaning well and loving me and not being able to accept that I’m not… masculine, I guess.
Weird since she and my dad have lived on Kala since I was two. Four of the six islands that make up the Isle of Kala are an LGBTQIA+ resort. A solid 90% + of the residents on Kala are part of the queer community. Mom seems to have no problem with anyone else but me.
I drop everything on the lounge chair and look at the neighbor’s house. A grin slides up my face when I see Laiken out back mowing his lawn. Not a loud mower. One of those old ones that has a wheel or whatever at the end that turns and chops grass as you push it.
He looks at me as I wave and raises his hand to wave back. I pull my shirt over my head and drop it on the ground before letting my shorts drop. Before I climb on the lounge chair, I waggle my fingers at him again.
Laiken shakes his head, continuing to mow his lawn.
I’ve been flirting with Laiken since I was sixteen. I think that’s when I realized how freaking hot he is. Not just his graying bear of an exterior that’s always on display since he rarely wears a shirt, but everything else about him, too. And I would know. I’ve known him my entire life. He was there in the hospital the day I was born.
Because he and my father have been best friends since they were kids. And I’m crushing hard.
Chapter Two
LAIKEN HAZELWOOD
I’ve toyedwith the idea of hiring out my lawn care to one of the teenagers in the neighborhood so they can earn a little money. Sometimes I let them tend to the flowerbeds in the front when I’ve let too much time go by and they’re overgrown with weeds. Especially right before a resident meeting.
However, I find it therapeutic to tend to my outdoor space. The sun is warm, there’s always a breeze coming in off the water, and almost always, I end up with something gorgeous to look at.
Namely, Lie Cain.
My heart jumps into my throat when he steps outside with his arms full of magazines. He waves, giving me a big smile and then strips down until he’s in nothing but the skimpiest little Speedo that makes his junk look like he has an orange in his underwear. Or maybe a pear.
When I’m close and he’s walking around in something like that, I nearly groan because I can see the way his dick is arranged so it curls down and around his balls. I can see the perfect outline of his damn cockhead.
Then this little twinky jerk gives me his back and straddles the lounge chair. He bends over to arrange his things and I’m left staring at the sexiest ass I’ve ever seen.
My dick is definitely taking notice. A wave of arousal rushes through me at the same time guilt gets thick in my chest. I turn abruptly and mow away from his backyard.
I’m no stranger to Elijah Cain. I’ve seen him nearly every single day of his life since the moment he was conceived. His father, Nason, and I have been friends for over thirty years.
He began flirting with me four years ago when he was in high school, and at the time, I found it nothing but amusing. He was a kid. He’s my best friend’s son. In a way, he felt like my nephew.
But when he came home from college a few months ago, he’d suddenly stopped looking like a child to me. He was now an adult. Everything about him had grown up. And I’ve found that I really like every damn thing I see.
