On Dry Land (Swimming Upstream #3) Read online

  “Ava?”

  “I’m fine!” Ava snapped harshly.

  “Liar!” Tyler countered as he sprung from the lounge and stalked into the kitchen, emptying his bowl into the trash.

  “What? What do you want me to say, Tyler? Do you want to hear that I was terrified? That I’m surprised I didn’t literally shit my pants? That one minute I almost lost everything, including my life? Do you want to hear that all day I’ve been in a shitty mood because I’m so damn tired all the time that I can barely stand people, let alone stand myself? So tell me, Tyler, what the fuck do you want me to say?”

  It was a face off. Ava stood in the lounge room, hands on her hips, panting steadily while Tyler blew out a frustrated breath, his hands on his head.

  “Fuck, Ava! I don’t want you to say anything but the truth. Do you know what it was like to get that call this afternoon? To know that because I’m a stubborn shit that I hadn’t spoken to you in days because I was pissed off at you…”

  “I deserved it.”

  “Shit no! That’s the thing. You didn’t. Just ’cause I think something should be the way I want it, doesn’t mean I’m right.”

  A giggle escaped Ava’s lips. She never thought she’d see the day when a guy, Tyler nonetheless, admit they’d been wrong. Surely that was a myth. A rarity. Like spotting Bigfoot or the Loch Ness monster, always talked about but in reality it just didn’t happen.

  “Stop laughing!”

  “But you said you were wrong,” Ava barely got out before she snorted, sending her into another fit of hysterical laughter.

  “Did you just snort?”

  “No!”

  “Ava?”

  “Just shut up and kiss me. Please?”

  Tyler didn’t need to be asked twice. In three strides he was dominating her space. As Ava licked her lips, Tyler’s fingers sunk into Ava’s hips and he yanked her towards him. Taking a breath, Tyler crushed his lips against Ava’s until they were both breathless.

  Rolling over, Ava rubbed her eyes roughly before stealing a glance at the clock. It was almost midnight. She hadn’t meant to fall asleep and she rarely crashed that heavily, but for some reason being wrapped in Tyler’s arms, cocooned by his warmth, made Ava sleepy. Wriggling out from under Tyler’s heavy arm, Ava scooted into the bathroom and took care of business and threw on her robe. Moments later she padded back into the bedroom and crawled into the chair in the corner of the room. Tucking her knees against her chest, Ava wrapped her arms around her legs and watched Tyler sleep. She was trying to play it cool, calm, and collected, but the sight of the beautiful man lying spread-eagled on her bed with the pink flannel sheets draped low on his hips made her mouth water. His hair was mussed, and knowing that it was her own fingers responsible made her grin stupidly.

  Ava didn’t know how long she sat there watching the steady rise and fall of his broad, hairless chest, but she didn’t look away. She couldn’t. Too mesmerized by his body, Ava didn’t even notice when his eyes fluttered open.

  “See something you like?”

  His voice was thick with sleep but it wrapped around Ava’s heart and owned it completely. She held the words themselves inside. A feat that proved to be harder than she could have ever envisaged.

  “Maybe.”

  “Well then, why don’t you crawl back in here and keep me warm?”

  Ava giggled as she pushed the hair back from her forehead. Standing up, Ava yanked the hem of her robe down as far as it would go. There wasn’t much give in the cotton. It fell mid-thigh, and even though she didn’t want to be, Ava was overcome with humiliation. It was a peculiar feeling she couldn’t quite wrap her heads around. Tyler had seen her in far less than a thin robe, but for some reason she was frozen where she stood with embarrassment.

  “Ava?” Tyler voice trembled as he pushed himself up on his elbows.

  “Yeah?”

  He sighed heavily before sitting up. The covers left nothing to the imagination. Every bare inch of exposed, tanned skin sent Ava’s pulse sky rocketing. Tyler remained silent but reached out his hand and when Ava’s fingers touched Tyler’s outstretched palm, he wrenched her into his lap. Ava fell willingly with a giggle that vibrated through her body.

  Within seconds and without Ava knowing how, she was pinned beneath Tyler, his arms framing her face and her robe abandoned on the floor. Lifting herself up, Ava kissed Tyler lightly before letting her head flop back against the pillow.

  Tyler kissed her with everything he had. He held nothing back, but before things had a chance to get out of hand again, Tyler rolled to Ava’s side. Ava felt a chill pass through her body at the loss of Tyler’s body heat even though he was still there.

  “Ava…do you want me to go?”

  “What?”

  “Do you want me to go home?”

  Startled, Ava forced herself upright, completely ignoring her nakedness. “Why…why would you even think that? I don’t want you to go.” The words gushed from Ava so quickly she could barely contain them. Her only saving grace was the one word she did manage to hold back.

  “You always do.”

  Chapter 7

  Tyler

  His words were barely audible, but at the same time they were deafening.

  Tyler hadn’t wanted to say anything. He’d never intended to, but once the words were out there, there was nothing to be done but deal with the consequences. Even though he’d been the one to initiate the conversation, it didn’t mean it was one he wanted. And he definitely wasn’t about to have it wearing nothing but his birthday suit. Craving the need to be protected, Tyler reached down beside the bed, grabbed his boxers, and yanked them on carelessly.

  “Tyler.” Ava’s voice was soft, broken, and she looked so small. She’d melted back amongst the nest of pillows almost as if she was trying to hide.

  “You gotta tell me why. Please. I need to know. What do I do to make you run?” Tyler croaked.

  “Nothing.”

  “Then why, Ava? Why do you leave?”

  “Because I can’t stay.”

  “But why, damn it?”

  He’d wanted to stay calm. Have a rational discussion. But his emotions had gotten the better of him and he couldn’t sit there a moment longer. Leaping from the bed in one smooth, fluid motion, Tyler found himself pacing Ava’s bedroom, running his hands through his hair.

  With shaking fingers, Ava reached out and pulled on Tyler’s button down shirt she’d ripped off him earlier. Shrugging it on, Ava stood, her legs barely holding her.

  Regret filled Tyler. Moments earlier Ava’s eyes had been alight with mischief and happiness but now they were filled with fear and uncertainty. His stomach turned with the knowledge that he’d been the one to put it there. If only he’d kept his big mouth shut, then instead of standing on the opposite side of the room, the bed between them, the void feeling wider than the Grand Canyon, he’d have been wrapped around the most amazing girl in his world.

  “Tyler, I…I just can’t.”

  “But why, Ava? There’s got to be a reason. Tell me. Please. How am I supposed to fix it if I don’t know what I’m supposed to be fixing?”

  With tears streaming silently down her face, Ava hiccupped. Tyler wanted to jump the bed and wipe away her tears. He wanted to make it better and maybe that’s what made it so hard. What he wanted to do and what he knew he needed to do were so far apart he couldn’t reconcile the two.

  “There’s nothing to fix.”

  “Bullshit!”

  Frustrated and with his blood boiling, Tyler stalked from the room and pulled on his jeans, barely pausing to zip them as he stuffed his feet in shoes. The moment his hand touched the cool metal of the door handle, Tyler realized what he was doing. He was guilty of the exact same crime he’d accused Ava of. Running. Fighting to justify it in his head, Tyler spied the time on the microwave, the red numbers glowing at him. It was the middle of the night. Changing his mind, Tyler kicked off his shoes and collapsed heavily on the lounge. He was exhauste
d in every way a person could be. Mentally. Emotionally. Physically. Running his hands across his stubble covered chin, he slumped back and closed his eyes.

  He didn’t know how long he sat there but he knew the moment a warm, soft, sweet smelling body found its way into his lap.

  “Please don’t cry,” Tyler begged, as he nuzzled against her neck.

  “I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t be, Short Stack.”

  “But—”

  “Nope! No buts! Come on, it’s late and we’ve both had a trying day. Let’s go to bed,” Tyler instructed, cutting her off.

  Ava went to protest but Tyler silenced her with his lips. Rising from the lounge, Tyler wobbled under her weight but he stubbornly refused to put her down. As Ava dotted his neck with tiny, innocent kisses, Tyler’s strides lengthened. Without a word they reached the bedroom, divested each other of their clothing, and wrapped themselves in each other’s tender embrace before promptly falling asleep.

  As the heaviness settled over them and Tyler spooned Ava tenderly, the words slipped almost silently from his lips, “I love you, Short Stack.”

  When Tyler woke the next morning, the sunlight was pouring in the window and once again the bed beside him was empty. It took him a minute to gain his bearings and figure out where he was exactly, but as his eyes cracked open he realized he was in Ava’s bed. There was nowhere else it could be. The bedside table was buried under a mountain of tattered paperbacks with a pair of glasses resting precariously on top. Stretching out his aching arms, Tyler sighed heavily as the weight of last night came rushing back. Everything from Ava’s car accident, which had scared the shit out of him, to the argument that ensued right through the moment before sleep when he spilled his guts.

  “Fuck!” Tyler swore as he jolted upright, eyes suddenly frantic.

  He had no way of knowing if Ava had heard his sleepy confession. All he knew for sure was the woman he wanted in the bed beside him wasn’t. In one fluid movement he sprang from the bed and tugged on his jeans, not bothering with his underwear. Tyler was striding down the hallway as he zipped up.

  Turning the corner, his heart sank.

  Ava looked a fright. Her hair was mattered, her eyes red-rimmed and glassy, her chapped lips were slightly parted and her breathing coming in short, shallow bursts, but it was her fingers that captured his attention. Furiously they flew across the keyboard with reckless abandon. Completely hypnotized, Tyler lent against the wall, folded his arms across his chest, and just watched. Ava didn’t even realize he was standing there.

  “Morning, Short Stack,” Tyler said eventually, breaking the silence as he moved towards her.

  Startled, Ava jumped where she sat as her eyes met Tyler’s. “Fuck, Tyler! I didn’t see you.”

  “Obviously.”

  Eyeing him warily, it took Ava a moment to catch up, “You shithead!” she scolded as she attempted to cover herself. “How long have you been standing there?”

  “Long enough.”

  “Why didn’t you say something?”

  “I just did!”

  “You know what I mean.”

  Ignoring Ava’s snappy reply, Tyler tried to divert the conversation. “How long have you been up?”

  Shrugging her shoulders, Ava wiped her nose on her shoulder before realizing whose shirt she wore. “I…I…”

  With a hearty chuckle, Tyler moved towards her, almost stalking her like she was his next victim. “I-don’t-give-a-rat’s-ass-about-the-shirt,” he assured her as he kissed her neck between each word.

  “Tyler…” Ava’s voice was filled with a heady combination of lust and warning. It boiled Tyler’s blood as it pounded in his ears.

  Without warning, Tyler lifted Ava effortlessly from her chair and kissed her deeply. When he brushed the seam of her lips with his tongue he felt the fight evaporate from her as she welcomed him home. Home. As the word danced in his mind, Tyler had to force himself to concentrate on the warm woman in his arms instead of letting his mind take him places it had no right to be.

  Shifting her in his arms, Tyler set her bare feet on the floor, and before she had the chance to protest, he stole her seat in front of the computer.

  “Don’t, Tyler,” she whined as she tried to step in his way, but with the flick of his wrist and a few well placed kisses, Ava was squirming and trying to dart out of reach. Sighing heavily, Ava stepped backwards. “Did you want some breakfast?”

  “You trying to distract me?”

  “Would I do that?”

  “Yes,” Tyler answered quickly. That’s exactly what she’d try to do. And it was exactly what she was attempting.

  “Tyler…” her voice was thick like honey. Sickeningly sweet.

  “Ava…”

  “Don’t read it. Please. It’s not finished…”

  “What’s in it for me?

  Tyler watched as fear passed over her features before being banished away with a heavy swallow. He knew Ava was trying to be tough. Trying to force a confidence they both knew she didn’t possess, but it wasn’t about to stop her. When her fingers found the hem of his shirt, Tyler would have sworn he stopped breathing.

  “Ava…”

  “Yes, Tyler?”

  “Don’t start something you can’t finish.” His words came out as a desperate hungry growl. His whole body was on fire. Sitting in front of Ava’s computer, surrounded by scrunched up balls of paper, his eyes were glued to the pale thighs slowly being revealed.

  “Who said I can’t finish it?” Ava whispered, and with one movement, she pulled Tyler’s shirt over her head, leaving her naked.

  “Fuck, Ava!”

  But she was gone.

  Unable to force rational thought into his body, before he knew it Tyler’s feet were following the seductive sounds of her laughter.

  Chapter 8

  Ava

  “Fuck, that was close,” Ava sighed as she lay in her bed stealing sporadic glances at the God-like man lying beside her.

  “I can hear the wheels in your head spinning, Ava,” he teased. That damn grin of his got her in trouble so damn often.

  “Liar,” Ava called him out as she trailed her fingers up and down his chest.

  He rolled over and winked, sending Ava’s heart into overdrive. Even after all these months Ava still had trouble believing that Tyler had chosen her. Over and over and over again, he continued to choose her.

  “So, now you’ve distracted me and it’s…shit. Well, it’s after ten o’clock. I want to know…” Tyler moved and suddenly Ava found herself pinned beneath Tyler’s weight. “How much of my life, of our life, is in that new book?”

  “Why? You worried?”

  “Maybe.”

  “Well, in that case you’ll be happy to know that nothing that has happened in our real life has made the cut.”

  “We’re that boring?”

  A snicker snuck out unexpectedly as Tyler placed a wet kiss behind her ear and tugged on her ear lobe with his teeth, sending Ava’s libido into overdrive. “Never. But I didn’t want to risk upsetting the guy who is the inspiration for the main character.”

  “Why not?”

  “’Cause I don’t want him to storm into my office and make a fool out of himself.”

  “Really? A fool out of himself.”

  “Yep! That would be totally embarrassing!”

  “Well, we can’t have that.” Tyler laughed as he rolled off her. “So, Miss Jacobs, do you have plans for today?”

  “Umm…”

  “Good! Then don’t make any. I’m taking you out. So, shower up. We’re leaving in fifteen minutes.”

  “Bossy much?”

  “You have no idea, Short Stack!”

  “Shower now!” Tyler repeated as he slapped her playfully on her bare butt. “We’re leaving in fifteen no matter what you’re wearing!”

  “Agh!” Ava squawked as she ran into the bathroom and slammed the door behind her.

  Through the thin door Ava could hear Tyler’s laugh, a
nd shaking her head, Ava stepped into the shower and let the scalding water pound on her head. She was thankful for the moment alone. It had been a hell of a twenty-four hours. Some space and time was exactly what she needed.

  For the next ten minutes Ava scrubbed and shaved and exfoliated every inch of her body. With every pass of the loofa, the grime went down the drain and the aches and pains returned. As did the memories. The car accident. Inviting Tyler into her apartment. Then his night time confession. Suddenly Ava was chilled. She didn’t know why. Was it Tyler’s words that had freaked her out? Ava didn’t think Tyler knew she’d heard him. She’d pretended to be sleeping so she didn’t have to reply. The truth was, she didn’t know what she was going to say. She knew what she wanted to say, but the words seemed to get stuck in her throat, so instead, she squeezed her eyes shut as tight as she could.

  “Ava, come on!”

  “Coming!”

  Ava jumped from the shower and hastily got dressed. She had no doubt Tyler was serious about leaving whether she was ready or not and she wasn’t about to risk it. She pulled her hair into a messy bun on the top of her head and waved the mascara wand over her eyelashes.

  “Leaving now!” Tyler announced as he pushed open the door. “Shit, Ava!”

  “What?”

  Butterflies filled her stomach with dread.

  “Has anyone ever told you how gorgeous you are?”

  Ava felt her cheeks burn. She hated compliments. Always had. Always would. Coming from Tyler made them even harder to take. “Where’d you get the clean shirt?”

  “You mean one without the snot covered sleeve?”

  “Yeah.”

  “The car. But don’t change the subject. You’re beautiful, Short Stack!” Tyler tugged her into his arms and held her firmly against his chest.

  “If you think so,” she dodged as she traced her fingers across his stubbly cheek.

  “Well, I do. So you best believe it. Now, put your shoes on so we can go.”