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Therefore, Wells kept coming back, not wanting to disappoint her. His last remaining fan. His last remaining . . . anything. Josephine.
“Let’s get one thing straight, belle. You will never wonder where you stand with me or if I’m bullshitting you. You get exactly what you see. I don’t mess around with people, but especially you.”
“You’re saying I can’t be an avid spectator and have a boyfriend?” He gave a brief headshake. “Not if I was your boyfriend.”
“Your impenetrable darkness just comes naturally.” “Sort of like your brightness.” That caught her off guard. “You think I’m . . . that I have brightness?” “Better . . . better . . . ,” murmured the barber.
“Do I strike you as the kind of guy who gets hurt feelings?” “I am very sorry to inform you that everyone has feelings.” “I’m going to deeply regret hiring you.” “No, you’re not.”
“Are you my caddie or my Zen master?” “Get you a woman who does both, Whitaker.”
“You know . . .” She tucked a stray piece of hair into her ponytail. “If you have something on your mind, now would be a good time to let it off. We have golfer-caddie confidentiality. Legally, I can’t repeat anything you tell me.” “That’s not a thing, Josephine.” “I just made it a thing.”
“Maybe I don’t have the right . . . tools to handle success, you know? Maybe I have this skill—and that’s it. None of the character that makes me deserve it. Nothing . . . else.”
“Second . . .” He swiped off his ballcap and scrubbed at his forehead. “Could you tell me what I need to know to help her take care of herself? Please.” Josephine’s mother burst into noisy tears. Great. I’m already regretting this. But he didn’t, really. Not even a little.
“Just so we’re clear, this is not a jealousy thing. I’m just trying to preserve your modesty.” “My hero,” she breathed. “Protecting my innocent nature one hairy nipple at a time.”
“You don’t want games? Fine. I wasn’t visiting anyone in Palm Beach. I came for you.”
“I’m only humoring you because I feel like a Batman villain after last night.” “Well,” she said, without missing a beat. “You are the Bane of my existence.”
“I brought you here with good intentions. I want to win for you. But hope is a fucking monster, belle, especially when that hope is pinned on me.”
“You’re wearing a uniform with my name on it, belle. There is nothing hotter.”
He made an affronted sound, his head lifting to study his reflection. Wells: I give great face, belle, and you know it. Josephine: You’re looking in the mirror, aren’t you?
“You need me to be nice? I’ll be the nicest person you ever met. Just to you. Only you. Jesus Christ, you’re so beautiful.”
Although “hooked up” sounded incredibly insufficient, considering he’d forgotten his room number, date of birth, and the current sitting president afterward.
He kissed her. It happened without any critical thought involved. Kissing her was like the words to a favorite song. He simply knew the lyrics.
“Thank you, Wells. Really.” Ask me to walk on broken glass next. Watch me not even hesitate.
Just before he fell asleep, the most absurd thought occurred to him. What if the problem that morning hadn’t been their inability to sleep? What if they’d been unable to sleep . . . apart?
“I appreciate you wanting me to be satisfied with the strategy, but caddies don’t just . . . climb on their golfers.” He arched an eyebrow at her. “You know what I mean.” Wells hissed out a breath. “I’m afraid I need your opinion on a landing spot or I won’t be confident in the shot, belle.” “Seriously?” He hitched his chin toward his back. “Someone once said my ass could be used as a roller coaster seat. Test out the theory.”
He gave the binoculars back. “Check again.” His hand, now free, wrapped around her ankle, his thumb sliding into her sock in a sweeping arc. Dug in roughly. “Take all the time you need.” At this rate, she’d need, like, thirteen seconds to orgasm. Tops.
“My ponytail is crooked?” “Since the eleventh hole.” He jerked a shoulder. “It’s cute, so I didn’t say anything.”
“I just . . . have this pretty intense need to make sure everyone knows you’re very fucking important. Okay? Could you kindly just go along with it?”
How could she miss the scrape of his jaw on her cheeks so badly when she’d experienced it only once?
Considering how it started, this morning was turning into the most fun he’d had in a really long time. Maybe even his entire life. Just being around her was . . . eighty experiences rolled into one. Relaxing, arousing, comfortable, arousing. Fun and interesting and right. And arousing. Was it a weird time to mention that he’d like to take a bite out of her neck?
Josephine would have to be out of her mind to want to be his girlfriend, really. Still, it had a nice ring to it. Oooh. Rings. Wow. Pump the brakes, man.
Everything was green, like her eyes. His entire universe. His entire existence came down to her. Little gold flecks and the scent of flowers and her unruly auburn hair.
“There is a lot more to Wells. And maybe, when he called to ask for help getting back on the tour, he was playing for me. But he’s playing for himself again now, too. He loves this game. He’s great at it. And you’re a fair-weather fan and friend, sir. In my book, that’s the worst possible thing you could be. Excuse me.”
“Are you wondering what make-up sex feels like when it counts this much?” “Yes,” she breathed, her belly fluttering wildly, along with her heart. “Thank God,” Wells said on a gruff exhale. “At least that’s something. At least that’s hope. You’re always giving me that.” He cupped her face, alarming Josephine when she couldn’t help but turn into the warmth, like a flower receiving water.
Christ, he didn’t even have Josephine’s address. Only the location of the pro shop. A fact that was straight-up mind blowing, considering she was the one. What a cliché thing to call someone whose well-being had him this terrified.
“Please, God, let her be okay.” The air conditioner had turned the sweat to ice on his skin, but he barely noticed. “I’ll be a nicer person. I’ll sell this car and give all the money to charity. I’ll never break another club. I’ll donate both of my kidneys. Yes, both. Take my soul, while you’re at it. Take everything. Whatever you want, I’ll do it. Please.”
“Okay.” She shifted on her bare feet. “Would a hug help—” “Yes,” Wells rasped, barreling toward her like a cruise missile. Josephine was scooped off the floor and enveloped in a bear hug that was so fierce, it made her eyes water. Wells buried his face in her neck and breathed deeply, gathering Josephine closer, closer, like he was trying to absorb her. “You and me not being together all the time is fucking stupid, Josephine,” he roared. “You’re shouting in my ear.”
Words were just leaving his mouth without orders from his brain. Had his fucking filter been carried down the shower drain along with the water?
How could she have known he would balance her like he’d been born for the job? Respect, challenge, arouse, and protect her, all at once. Make her feel passionate enough to fight and laugh in the same breath.
And her apartment wasn’t large by any stretch of the imagination, so the muffled snores of her boss/lover could be heard clear to the kitchen if one listened hard enough. Not ideal. This was incredibly not ideal. I got this. I can handle this. If I can handle Wells’s temper on the golf course, two retirees should be a piece of cake.
His jawline ticked. “I don’t miss people to the point of torment, Josephine. And I don’t spend the night with women, waking up every couple of hours to convince myself they’re not a dream. I do both of those things with you like it’s my job. And a lot of other annoying things I’m not willing to admit yet, but they involve planning trips to Bath and Body Works and wondering if Wellsophine is a viable ship name.”
“I was very happy being alone until you showed up. You’ve ruined me.” Her heart galloped in her chest. “I’m sorry.” “I’m not. I love being ruined by you. Bring it the fuck on.”
That sealed it. Josephine wanted something—Josephine got it. Period.
Joey-Roo, mouthed Wells with a smug wink. Josephine kicked him under the table while taking a giant bite of her cupcake. I’m going to marry this woman. Done fucking deal. Someone direct him to the nearest ring shop.
“Are you sure you want a next time?” “Yes, belle,” Wells growled, finally giving in to the unrelenting impulse to grab the leg of her chair and pull Josephine as close as possible, planting a firm kiss in the center of her forehead. “I want all of your next times.”
“You let me act like this, because you know I would—and I will—humble myself in front of the whole fucking world for you, Josephine.”
I’m so gone for this woman. She’s not just the one. She’s . . . the rest of me.
“Apparently, it’s what I’ve needed without realizing it. I’m not fragile. He reminds me of that, but somehow . . . I know if I wanted to have a fragile moment, he’d just whip out some glue and fill in the cracks.”
“It sounds like he’s been whipping out a lot of things,” Tallulah deadpanned. “I’m not complaining. Clothes are stupid.”
“People usually don’t know, until they have one. Not really.” She very clearly kicked her friend under the table. “Right, Tallulah?” The aspiring marine biologist choked on her wine, but recovered fast. “She’s right. You have to have one to find out if you actually want one. It’s pretty fucked.
Maybe she wasn’t in love with him . . . back. Totally possible. Totally understandable. Wells couldn’t even fault her for that. He’d probably join an order of monks, take a vow of silence, and go live on a remote goddamn mountaintop if that was the case, but he’d get it.
“Don’t you think I want to be selfish? Don’t you think I want to say ‘Yes, great idea, hire a manager’ so I can keep you with me on the tour? Of course, I do. I hate being away from you, Josephine. You know that. This is your fault for teaching me how to be selfless and wise and considerate. I want you to have your dream more than I want mine now.”
“I had no idea what unconditional love looked like until you, Josephine. You taught me how to be like this. And I will love you whether or not you’re helping me win some fucking game. We. Are bigger. Than a game. Someday, when you’re done being angry with me for this, I will be waiting to show you that. I’ll invent new ways to show you.”
That’s what he’d been doing all along. Shouting his insecurities at her and disguising them as arguments.
