They drove out of the lot, and as they passed the old newsstand, she craned her neck to take a second look.
“That place has been closed for a while,” Brant said. “Davis’s parents own it.”
“Keira told me. I don’t know why it intrigues me. I guess because it’s unique.”
“Like you.” He stopped at the light at Main Street and reached behind the seat for the megaphone.
“What are you doing with that?” Cait asked, wide-eyed.
He grinned and turned onto Main Street, slowing the truck to a crawl as he lifted the megaphone to his mouth and announced, “It’s that time of year again, folks! Join us for a family-friendly dune-side movie on Rock Harbor Beach Friday night at eight!”
People stopped on the sidewalks, waving and pointing at the truck, and Cait sank lower in her seat, holding Scrappy tighter. “What are you doing?”
“Announcing the movie. You heard my mom say it was my turn.”
“I thought she meant handing out flyers!”
“What fun is that?” He raised the megaphone again. “Join us for a dune-side movie Friday night at eight o’clock on Rock Harbor Beach. And don’t forget to stop by the hottest restaurant on this side of the island, the Bistro on Sunset Beach, co-owned by this lovely lady beside me, Cait Weatherby, and her sisters.”
Cait shielded her face with one hand. “You’re crazy!”
“Crazy about you, darlin’.” He offered her the megaphone. “Want to take a shot?”
“No!” She shook her head vehemently, holding her hands up like shields.
“Suit yourself.” He announced the movie up and down the commercial streets, then tucked the megaphone behind his seat and headed for the cove.
Cait gaped at him.
“What? You just got great free advertising.”
“Thank you, crazy man, but a little warning would have been nice.” She sat up with a wide smile. “How often do you do that?”
“Whenever my parents decide to have a movie night. They don’t do anything on a schedule.” As they wound through the residential streets, he said, “When we were little, they’d pile us in the back of this truck on a whim, and we’d wave to everyone and take turns doing the announcements. Sometimes my dad would claim the megaphone because he missed doing it. He used to say he couldn’t give up all the fun just because he was a grown-up.”
“It sounds like you had such a fun childhood.”
“Yeah, I’m lucky, and I realize that now more than ever. But I’m on a mission to get you swimming and make up for all the things you missed out on.” He reached over to pet Scrappy. “Right, Scrap?”
A little while later he pulled down the gravel road and parked at the dead end by the woods that led to Mermaid Cove.
“This looks like the beginning of a bad horror movie. Should I fear for my life?”
He laughed. “The cove is through the woods. The pines are prickly, and there’s no trail, which is why no one ever goes there.” He got out and went around the truck to open Cait’s door, but she climbed out with Scrappy before he reached her. “I need to get faster at that.”
She wrinkled her nose. “I don’t know if I’ll ever get used to you opening a car door for me.”
“There you go, robbing me of the small pleasures in life.” He leaned in for a kiss, grabbed the bag of beach supplies he’d brought, tossed Cait’s backpack over his shoulder, and reached for her hand. “Let’s go, swimmer gal.”
Brant held branches out of the way for Cait to walk by and pointed out logs and holes in the ground as they made their way through the woods. When they cleared the trees and hit the sandy beach, it was just as magical as Brant remembered. The cove was big enough for boats and small enough to feel like they were miles away from civilization, nestled between enormous boulders and cliffs and the beach.
He put a hand on Cait’s back. “What do you think?”
“I can’t believe we have this gorgeous beach to ourselves. It’s even more beautiful than it was from the water.” She looked at him with a wide grin.
“I bet you want to come back one day and sketch it from this side.”
She whispered, “It’s like you read my mind. It’s weird how you can do that.”
“I think it’s pretty great.” He kissed her cheek. “I haven’t been here in a hundred years.”
“In that case, you might be too old for me.”
“I’ll give you old.” He swatted her ass.
She made a surprised squeak and took off running across the sand. He dropped everything and sprinted after her, catching her around her waist, careful not to hurt Scrappy as he hauled her closer, kissing her laughing lips. “That sassy mouth of yours is going to get you in trouble.”
“If this is what you consider trouble, then I look forward to it.”
“Not half as much as I do.” He nipped at her lower lip, giving it a gentle tug. He wanted to lower her to the sand and love every inch of her until she couldn’t remember ever having been hurt, but he’d promised to go at her pace, and he was not going to screw that up. “How about you strip down to your suit while I take care of Scrappy.”
He took the pooch and went to get the bags. When he turned around, Cait was pulling her shirt over her head. He whistled, and she gave him a deadpan look, but her lips tipped up at the edges. She unbuttoned her jeans, and he hollered, “That’s it, baby. Take it off.”
Her cheeks flamed. “Would you stop?”
“And miss those blushing cheeks? Not a chance.”
She turned around. Her bathing suit was backless, with one string around her neck and another tied across her back. Brant pounded a stake into the sand and tied Scrappy’s leash to it as Cait shimmied out of her jeans. He looked at Cait, and holy hell, his body flamed. Her suit rode between her butt cheeks and high on her hips, revealing most of her gorgeous heart-shaped ass. “Damn, baby. Now, that’s a million-dollar view.”
She looked over her shoulder, killing him with her sexiness, and twisted her torso, pushing out her butt so she could see it. “Ohmygod!” Her hands flew behind her, spreading across her butt cheeks as she spun around. The front of her suit was just as revealing, with a plunging neckline that dipped to her sternum and intricate cutouts in the shape of a flower that went almost all the way down to her promised land.
“I had no idea it was like this!” she said anxiously. “I didn’t have a bathing suit, so I ran out on my break and picked one up. I threw it on so fast before leaving work, I didn’t even look in the mirror. The girl who sold it to me said this was full coverage!” She looked down at her barely covered breasts and began tugging at the string around her neck, trying to pull it higher. “Full coverage for a child maybe.”
He went to her, trying to tamp down the heat in his loins. “You are absolutely stunning, and nobody will see you besides me.”
“I see me. I don’t wear thong bathing suits.”
He drew her into his arms and tried to put her at ease another way. “I’m totally cool with you taking it off. Do you want me to skinny-dip, too?”
She buried her face in his chest, laughing.