7. Chapter Seven
Chapter Seven
He couldn’t stop thinking of her.
The next day, Simon started the morning working at the small desk in the guest room. He found himself constantly staring out the window at the sunny day. He wondered if there was a warm breeze like there had been the day before.
He moved downstairs. His first thought was to go to the back deck, but he resisted the idea.
He didn’t want to be constantly reminded of the moonlit walk he’d taken with Jenna.
And how beautiful she’d looked—how he could listen to the soft tones of her voice for hours.
The more he got to know about Jenna—the more he wanted to know.
And that wasn’t good. He promised himself he wasn’t going to let himself get into the position he’d been in with his ex—not again. So, then why had he almost kissed Jenna on the beach? Why had he wondered if her lips were soft? And if her kiss was sweet?
He halted those thoughts. They weren’t helping anything. The point was that he’d resisted the temptation. That was the important part. The next step was to avoid his beautiful neighbor. But how was he to do that when they shared a duplex?
As fast as his writer’s block had disappeared upon his arrival on the island, it had suddenly reappeared in the form of Jenna.
In fact, he hadn’t gotten much sleep because he kept thinking of her. She was sweet and gorgeous. That was quite a heady combination.
He had to resist the temptation. He needed to stay focused on his writing. It was the whole reason he was on Bluestar Island.
It was a little before eleven when he made his way to the front porch. He could only assume his neighbor was at work. So, he’d have a few hours without having to worry about running into her.
Gus wandered out behind him. The dog found a spot at the top of the steps where he could lie down and watch the passing golf carts.
Lucky for Simon, Gus didn’t mind the move. For the most part, Gus was pretty easygoing. Except for the part where he insisted on sleeping in Simon’s bed. He’d bought the dog a huge orthopedic bed. Gus sat on it once. That was enough for him.
Simon settled back in the rocker on the front porch. He turned on his keyboard writer. There was another blinking cursor. He stared at it and tried to remember where he’d left off in the story.
It took him a moment to remember that he’d paused to look up what sort of mineral or rock was red. He wanted something like that for his hero’s home world. Because he was a visual writer, and the red rock, especially the exploding red rock, made a spectacular image in his mind.
So, that was where he was in the book. The hero’s world had been neglected and robbed of its nutrients. Now it was imploding. And so, Simon sat there and wrote a couple paragraphs about how everywhere this hero turned, there was red rock being thrown through the sky while the planet burned.
His fingers were moving rapidly over the keyboard when he heard a little squeak of a door being opened. His fingers paused. Without even looking, he instinctively knew it was Jenna.
He told himself he wasn’t going to look up. He was just going to keep his head down and type. He didn’t even care if he typed: Don’t look up—over and over again. That was what the backspace button was for.
But then Gus got to his feet. And of course, being the responsible pet-parent that he was, Simon had to lift his head to see what his dog was up to. Gus was headed straight for Jenna. Before he knew it, Simon’s gaze shifted to Jenna.
Their gazes caught and held. And then his heart was beating faster than normal. And any thoughts of the red planet floated away on the summer breeze.
“Hi.” Jenna’s smile broadened, puffing up her cheeks ever so slightly and making her eyes twinkle.
“Hi.” Did his voice sound strange? Was it a little higher-pitched than normal?
Her gaze moved to his keyboard writer. “Sorry if I disturbed you.”
He swallowed hard, hoping when he spoke his voice sounded normal again. “You didn’t. I needed a break.”
Now what had he gone and said that for? He was just getting into the chapter. Normally there were no breaks permitted until he reached the end of said chapter. Except that he was already taking a break and thoughts of his fictional world were a long way from his mind.
Jenna stepped closer. “Whatcha working on?”
He didn’t know how to answer. If she didn’t know his true identity, he didn’t want to clue her in. And if she did know, he didn’t want her to know that he was working on a new series. So, what did he tell her?
“Nothing interesting.” It was definitely time to change the subject. “Are you headed to the market?”
She didn’t look like she was going to work. She had on a pair of yellow shorts and a white knit top. She wore her dark curls loose around her face. She looked—well, she looked amazing. Not that he was noticing or anything.
She shook her head. “It’s my day off. I was just going to head into town for a bit.” She hesitated as though there was something she wanted to say, but she wasn’t sure whether to say it or not. “Would you like to join me?”
Yes. The answer teetered on the back of his tongue. He most certainly did—at least that was what his heart was saying.
His mind told him to turn her down. He had work to do—important work to finish before his publisher yanked their deal with him. But it was more than that. He knew if he spent more time with Jenna, they’d end up growing closer, and that wasn’t safe for him—for his scarred heart.
It was with the greatest reluctance that he said, “No. I should probably stay here.”
Instead of just accepting his answer and walking away, she asked, “Are you waiting for someone?”
He shook his head. “No. It’s just me and Gus.”
“Have you seen Bluestar yet?”
He nodded. “I saw it when I was transporting my stuff from the harbor to here.”
“That’s not seeing Bluestar. That’s passing through it briefly.” She paused as though thinking out what to say next. “Have you even eaten at the Lighthouse Cafe yet?”
“No. Why?”
“Because it’s the most iconic restaurant on the island. Plus, they have the most delicious food. You have to try it. Trust me. You won’t regret it.”
The way she was going on about the place, well, it couldn’t be that good—no restaurant was that good. “I’ll keep it in mind.”
“No. I mean you have to try it now.”
Surely, he didn’t understand her correctly. “As in right now?”
She smiled at him, and a warm, fuzzy feeling bloomed in his chest. Then she nodded, and he felt as though she’d just cast a spell over him that made it impossible for him to turn her down.
When she went on to say, “As in right now,” he knew he was having lunch at this Lighthouse Cafe that she loved so much.
And then as though he’d totally lost his self-will, he said, “Okay. Let me just get Gus settled inside.”
“By the way, did you happen to see my sunglasses?” she asked. “I know I had them yesterday. I thought I put them down out here, but I can’t seem to find them today.”
“No. I haven’t seen them.”
“That’s strange. I keep losing things lately. I don’t know where they could be.”
So, he wasn’t the only one misplacing stuff. This meant they had something in common. He didn’t know why it should matter, but it made him like her all the more.
They were going to lunch.
Jenna couldn’t believe that she’d asked Simon to lunch.
It was the last thing on her mind when she’d stepped out onto the porch.
She was just planning to run to the Seaside Bookshop to pick up her copy of that month’s book club read.
They picked books a month in advance so that Melinda, the owner of the bookshop, had time to order them.
All except one person in their group liked to read paperbacks. Lily was the only one who preferred to read on her e-reader. To each their own.
Jenna waited on the porch while Simon got Gus situated inside. It took him a moment. She was beginning to suspect that Gus was not happy about being left home alone.
When Simon stepped out onto the porch, she was surprised to find him wearing a blue ball cap that was pulled low on his face, and he’d donned a pair of dark sunglasses. She struggled not to laugh and quickly lost the challenge.
He frowned at her. “What are you laughing about?”
“What’s with the ball cap and dark sunglasses?” And then she had a silly idea. “Are you an international spy trying to hide your ID?”
His frown deepened. “I could just stay home.”
She stopped laughing. “No. We’re going to lunch.” She wasn’t quite sure why this was so important to her, but she hooked her arm through his. “Let’s go.”
With a sigh, he walked down the steps with her. When he turned toward his cart, she said, “I’m driving.”
His gaze met hers. “I can drive.”
“But you don’t even know where you’re going.” She knew he couldn’t argue that point, because it was true.
There was another sigh from him as he walked with her to her cart. Once they were seated, he seemed to take up most of the front seat. Their arms brushed as she got situated. The connection sent a wave of goosebumps down her arms.
She tried to ignore the reaction as she started the cart. And then they were off. It wasn’t even noon yet so she took the long way to the cafe.
She pointed out Beachcomber Park, The Purple Guppy restaurant, Whippy Dippy—otherwise known to locals as Dips—the local ice cream shop, the firehouse and a number of other places of interest, until they reached their destination.
“And this is the Lighthouse Cafe.” She looked over at the cafe, trying to see it for the first time.
As he stared at the lighthouse, he said, “I honestly wasn’t expecting there to be a little lighthouse connected to the restaurant. Can visitors go in it?”
“No. I’m afraid not. But there is a lighthouse at the southern tip of the island that visitors can climb. You’ll have to visit it.”
He nodded. “I’ll keep it in mind.” He glanced back at the small lighthouse. “Does it work? I mean the light? Does it work at night?”
She nodded. “It does. And if you like the outside this much, wait until you try their food. It’s delicious.”