Page 17 of Second Chance Summer

“Henny, did you hear me? I said we should probably head back.”

“Why you say that?”

“Because it’s dark out here. We might end up getting trafficked or something?”

“Trafficked? In Maui?” I ask, amused. This woman…

She laughs. “Yeah. I mean, it could happen.”

“I’ll fight for you, baby.”

We stop walking. I turn to her, stroke her hair, and say, “I’ve been curious about something all day.”

“What’s that?”

“Those things you said at dinner about how I look at you—like my life isn’t complete without you in it—do you believe that?”

“Only you can confirm that.”

“You said it, Nai.”

“I know, but—”

“You said I was the moon, and you were the sun, and life couldn’t exist without both of us.”

“Dang. You were listening closely, huh?”

“I was, and you know what? I will confirm it. I look at you like my life isn’t complete without you because it’s not. Now you don’t have to wonder what’s in my eyes when you look at me. It’s that.”

“I see.”

“You see what?” I ask, taking her hand, feeling her fingers curl around mine in acceptance.

“That you still care about me.”

“I never stopped,” I whisper.

A small smile decorates her luscious lips while those words hang between us. She looks down, and that prompts me to squeeze her hand gently so she makes that crucial eye contact with me again. I want so badly to tell her how much I love her. She said she only wanted this peace, this understanding between us while we’re here. I can’t risk pouring my heart out to her only for it to be broken once we return to Charlotte.

But we have now.

She backs away from me for a few steps, and then turns and runs towards the hotel. I chase behind her, running as fast as I can across this sand, and when I reach her, I swoop her off her feet and spin her around as she laughs. I lower her, and as her feet touch the ground, our lips collide in beautiful unison. In understanding. In need. If I’m reading her lips correctly and tasting her tongue the way I think it tastes, she wants us to work – at least that’s what I’m going with.

I pull back, releasing her mouth, and say, “Come on. Let’s go to the room. And don’t even think about sleeping. I plan on keeping you up late tonight.”

“Sleeping? The thought hadn’t even crossed my mind.”

Chapter 8

One Week Later

A week after we arrive home, I told myself I would settle right back into the comfort of my routine. My Saturday is mostly dedicated to errands, but a big portion of my time is for self-care, because who can take care of a woman better than she can?

Nobody.

I sat in the bathtub for like thirty minutes straight, covered in bubbles and orange slices. I shaved my legs. Dermaplaned my face, seeking that glass skin everyone obsesses over but can never seem to obtain. I paint my nails. Wash and moisturize my hair. And after all that, I walk around the house in my plush robe, feeling like a queen.

But I can’t get the week I spent with Hendrick in Hawaii out of my head. I felt like I was with a whole new man. No, I take that back. I feel like I was with the man I fell in love with – not the man I had four years into the marriage. But if he changed, I have to ask myself how much I’ve changed in his eyes. Even with those, he still accepts me, so why is it so hard for me to accept him?