“He’s a trip,” Amelia said as he sauntered away.
“He’s something.” I let out a long breath. “You feel like getting out of here? We could walk down to the beach or head over to Main Street and do some window shopping.”
She finished her drink. “As much as I love the shops on Main Street, I’m gonna have to go with option A. The beach, please.”
We paid our bill and stepped into an early July evening. The sun hung low in the sky and a breeze rustled Amelia’s skirt against her thighs. We walked in silence for a few moments before she tentatively glanced my way.
“How did your wife die?” Her voice was quiet, as if the topic scared her. Considering how little I spoke of Natalie, I could see why she’d be nervous to ask the question.
“Car accident.” I stared at the horizon, ready for the hammer of pain to strike my heart, surprised when it didn’t hit with as much force as usual.
She let out a sad sigh. “You didn’t have time to prepare or anything. Not that it’s ever easy to lose someone you love.”
I shook my head. “It was a shock. For all of us.”
Amelia bobbed her head, absorbing the information.
“The kids took it hard. Charlie was only four and a half when it happened and she kept asking when Mommy would come home, no matter how many times I explained that she wouldn’t.” The memories of my daughter’s heart breaking every time she asked the question washed over me. “Those early weeks were tough. I was numb. Shocked. I just wanted to curl into bed and not come out, but I had three little kids who needed me to be there. To function.”
Amelia’s fingers threaded with mine, her thumb caressing my knuckle. “That had to be so hard.”
“It was. It is.” I stared at my feet, replaying the ups and downs of the last eighteen months. “But it’s getting better now. I think maybe my spirit guides decided I’d suffered long enough and sent me someone to take my mind off things.” I gave her hand a squeeze and she graced me with a smile. “What about you? Any husbands or boyfriends hiding in your past?”
“No one that matters.” Amelia’s smile disintegrated, the muscle in her jaw pulsing, and I knew there was more to the story, but with the heaviness of Natalie hanging around us, I didn’t want to further darken the mood. I let the topic drop.
As we came to the spot where the sidewalk blended into the beach, Amelia turned to me. “Would Jude really have closed the bar?”
“Once you called him on it, he one-hundred percent would have done it. He never backs down from a challenge. And while I would have loved to have you all to myself, I couldn’t imagine costing his waitresses a nights’ wages, especially when we had all this waiting for us.” I gestured to the waves crashing against the rocky shore, the sky ablaze with the setting sun.
She shook her head, laughing quietly to herself. “I’ll have to remember that about him. Maybe even use it to my advantage.”
Amelia turned to stare at the water, holding her hair out of her eyes as a breeze fluttered past. I wrapped an arm around her waist, drawing her close so her back pressed to my front, then kissed her neck, just below her ear.
She angled her head, closing her eyes. “More.”
Her voice was low. Needy.
I kissed her jawline, breathing in the scent of vetiver.
“More.” She spun in my arms and cupped my cheeks, then pressed her lips to mine. The wind blew her hair across my face and her skirt against my legs. My dick swelled at the passion behind her kiss and I wrapped both arms around her, pulling her tight against me.
Holy shit did I need this.
I needed her.
I buried my fingers in her hair, tasting the gin and tonic on her lips.
Burning with the need to touch her, I slid my hands up her back. She was so warm, so supple. A small gasp sounded in the back of her throat and if we weren’t outside, I would have slid my hands under her dress and explored those legs, that ass. I’d have cupped her breasts and sucked those nipples into my mouth until she cried my name in ecstasy and pleasure.
But a family walked by on their way to the beach, so I pulled away and ended the kiss.
Amelia stared up at me, her lips pink and swollen, her eyes wide and locked on mine as a slow smile spread across her face. “And just think,” she said. “You thought you’d forgotten how to ace a first date.”
Chapter Fourteen
Amelia
I drove home with the memory of Jack’s lips on mine. The feel of his hands on my back, drawing me close. My body burned for his and I couldn’t wait to see him again. To talk to him again. To touch him again.
To kiss him again…
Never in the history of kisses had one affected me like his. I was drunk on adrenaline, butterflies, and the promise of more time with Jack.
When I pulled into my driveway, I found Evie waiting on the front porch, sitting on the top step with her elbows on her knees. “I heard you were on your way back,” she said as I killed the engine. “I couldn’t wait. I had to be here when you got home so you could tell me everything.”
I climbed out of the car and shut the door with a dreamy sigh. “Oh, Evie! I had a fantabulous night,” I began, then froze as her statement registered. “Wait. Who in the world told you I was coming home?” My hands hit my hips and my head cocked with a question.
Laughing, she rolled her eyes. “Between Izzy, Greta, and the rest of Wildrose, I could’ve had up to the minute info on your whereabouts from the second you pulled out of the driveway. Hell. Greta’s probably on her porch, posting a play-by-play of this very conversation.”
I narrowed my eyes and peered across the street. “Probably.”
“But since I was good and respected your privacy, I’m feeling very impatient. It’s time for you to tell me everything.” Evie patted the space beside her. “Come on. Sit. Spill.”
I perched on the step, pretending to be bored and nonchalant. “There’s nothing to tell. We had some drinks. Went for a walk.” I bobbed my head as I trailed off with a shrug.
“You don’t come home from ‘some drinks and a walk’ with a grin like that. Besides, Greta said you were flirting shamelessly.”
“I thought you said you respected my privacy.” I gave Evie the side-eye. “How do you know what Greta said if that’s true?”
“Alex gave me the play-by-play.” Her eyes twinkled as I let out a long sigh.
“Flirting shamelessly? She wasn’t even there to know what I was doing!” I crossed my arms in a huff. What right did she have, posting stuff like that about me? Sure, my entire philosophy was built around not being ashamed to be me, but really…?
Evie elbowed me. “Come on, Amelia. Are you really going to worry about that right now? Don’t make me log into Facebook to find out how your date went.”
I turned to her with mischief in my eyes. “I guess the kiss was pretty memorable. You know, standing there on the beach while the sun set. Jack’s hands going on a little field trip…definitely a top ten kisses kind of moment.”
“Top ten?” Evie raised her brows. “You’re grinning at me like that and expect me to believe he only rates in the top ten? Nope. Not buying it, chica.”