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“Anyway, I’m babbling,” Jenna says with a laugh as she unlocks the unit and leads us inside. “Sorry, it’s been a long day. My number is here on the counter, along with the Wi-Fi information and anything else you might need to know. There are no other guests in the other two units right now, so you have the place all to yourself.”
“We love the sound of that,” Archer says.
I can’t stop staring at the gorgeousness of this place. The furniture is simple but inviting. The kitchen has blue cabinets, and the backsplash is in the shape of mountains. The beds look soft and cozy, and Jenna wasn’t kidding about the views.
“This is stunning,” I say at last.
“Thank you,” Jenna says. “It’s been a labor of love, that’s for sure. You guys make yourselves at home and let me know if you need anything.”
“Food,” Archer says immediately. “We’ve been traveling all day, and I’m starving.”
“He would be starving if we hadn’t been traveling all day,” I inform her, making her laugh.
“I have two brothers and a husband, I get it,” Jenna says. “My favorite restaurant in town is Ciao. It’s the best Italian food I’ve ever had.”
“Perfect,” Archer says.
“I’m going to freshen up,” I say and smile at Jenna. “Thank you for your hospitality.”
I walk through the master bedroom that’s on the main floor and into a bathroom that makes my girlie-girl heart sigh in pleasure. The bathtub is deep and inviting. The separate shower is big enough for a party of six. And the décor of this place is absolutely on point. I’d call it rustic chic. Perfect for the mountains, but not too rustic.
I open my bag and am pleasantly surprised to see that it looks as if Archer thought of just about everything.
Except pajamas.
I smirk and unpack, choose a red summer dress to change into for dinner, and sweep a little makeup on my face before returning to the living room.
“I think I’m starving, too,” I say when I join Archer, who’s checking out the provisions in the kitchen. He glances up at me, and his jaw drops.
“Fuck me, you’re gorgeous.”
Every girl should have a man in their life that looks at her the way Archer’s looking at me right now.
“You’re not so bad yourself.”
He walks around the kitchen counter and frames my face in his big hands as he kisses me, lightly at first as if he’s memorizing the shape of my lips, and then he sinks into me, enjoying me. My head spins, and my fingers dive into his thick hair. But before I know it, he comes up for air.
“If I don’t stop now, we won’t eat, and I need my strength so I can do a hell of a lot more than this later.”
“I like that strategy.” I nip at his lips once more and then pull out of his arms. “Let’s eat.”* * *Jenna didn’t steer us wrong.
“Okay, this is pretty great,” I say after we order our food and have a chance to soak in the atmosphere. Our waitress wrote her name on the white paper on our table with an orange crayon. She just delivered wine and the best garlic bread I’ve ever had in my life. “If we had this in Bandon, I’d weigh four hundred pounds. And I haven’t even had the entrée yet.”
“This bread,” he says with half a piece in his mouth. “I could die.”
I love that we can sit here and enjoy ourselves, and I don’t have to worry about being recognized by anyone. I don’t have to even think about what my name is or if I’m in danger here. I can just be myself, a woman in love with this incredible man who brought me here on a surprise vacation.
And, yes, I’m in love with him. I can’t deny it. He was wonderful when he was twenty, but he’s absolutely marvelous now. I don’t know how this will all shake out, but I’m going to enjoy him for as long as it lasts.
We’ve both earned it.
“You’re gorgeous in red,” he says before shoving more bread into his mouth. He doesn’t eat like a Neanderthal, but he definitely enjoys his food. And I can’t blame him. “You should wear it more often.”
“So noted.”
Our food is delivered, and the aroma of red sauce hits my nose and makes me want to moan in delight.
“We might have to move here,” Archer says grimly after taking his first bite. “I don’t know if I can live without this now that I know it’s here.”
“Okay, now you’re just being dramatic.” But I take my first bite, and my shoulders sag. “You’re right. We’re moving here.”* * *The sun has gone down by the time we leave Ciao, our bellies full of the most amazing food. The tiramisu we ordered was the best I’ve ever had, and I’m Italian.
