Read Online Sea Breeze by Patricia D. Eddy, Jennifer Senhaji - Free Book Online Page A

verge of breaking. I don’t know how he reads me so well after so little time. He washes my hair, gently massaging the sand from my scalp as the warm water rains down on us.
    I get out first and wrap myself up in one of Eric’s towels, giving him time to wash his body and hair. Climbing under his blankets, I snuggle in and wait for him to join me. He comes out of the bathroom, a towel around his waist. He rubs a smaller hand towel over his head a few times and throws it in the chair in the corner of the room. He’s so beautiful. This wasn’t supposed to happen.
    “Scoot over.” A snort escapes me. There’s nowhere to move, as he has the smallest bed known to man. I sit up, my back against the wall, giving him at least some place to sit down. He lifts the blankets, towel still firmly in place, and lies down on his side. “Come here.” He pulls on my leg, turning me, and I slide down next to him. He spoons me and kisses the back of my wet head as I stare at the chipped paint of his bedroom wall. “Is there someone waiting for you back in Vegas?”
    I stiffen and my breath hitches. He squeezes me tightly against his chest, and places a delicate kiss against my neck. My throat thickens. “No. There’s no one. I… I don’t have anyone.” This time, Eric tenses next to me.
    “Did you just come out of a long relationship? Was it a bad breakup?”
    Another snort escapes before I can stop it. “Yeah, you could say that.”
    Eric huffs against the back of my head. “Did you love him?”
    Turning, I smile softly at his pained expression. “Yes. I loved her.” His eyebrows furrow in confusion.
    “I’m sorry, I don’t understand. Are you —”
    “No. Um... my mother died recently. Well, about three months ago.”
    Eric pushes some of my wet hair behind my ear. “I’m so sorry. She must have been very young. What happened?”
    “She was only fifty.” I don’t want to dump on Eric, but my emotions are bubbling at the surface. I’ve kept them to myself for so long, I’m about ready to crack. I swallow the lump in my throat. “I feel so guilty.”
    “Why? It’s not your fault.”
    “Because I was relieved.”
    He takes a moment to let that sink in. He’s a smart guy. I know he doesn’t think I killed her. Or at least, I don’t think he does. “She didn’t... abuse you, did she?”
    “What? No.” He releases a relieved breath. “She was an alcoholic from the time I was about eleven years old, or that’s when I realized it, anyway.”
    “So you took care of her. What about your dad?”
    “Never met him, never want to. She never got over him. She couldn’t move on with her life, so she slowly killed herself. Liver failure.”
    “A kid needs a parent. It sounds like you ended up being the parent.”
    “Yes. Which, when you get used to it, is not so bad. I made my own meals, made sure I got to school and all that. Got a job as soon as I was old enough to get a work permit. The hard part was the worry. Worrying she’d fall and break her neck. Worrying she’d leave her cigarette burning and catch the apartment on fire. Worrying she’d choke on her puke in her sleep.”
    “Jesus.” Eric pulls me into his arms and holds me tightly against his chest.
    His heart beats a steady rhythm against my ear. “Pretty ironic I became a bartender, huh. But it’s good money, especially in Vegas, and I had two people to support.”
    “You loved her though.”
    Tears track down my cheeks. “Of course I did. She was my mom. I hated her for killing herself. For not being able to get over it. For not fighting for me. For giving up. But I loved her too.”
    “I’m sure she loved you in her own way.”
    My voice cracks. “I know she did. She was smart. She could have been so much more. In any case, I couldn’t leave her. Ever. She couldn’t take care of herself. It was dangerous. When I was at work, I was always waiting for that phone call. I’ve never been able to leave Vegas before.” I lift my head from