Page 41 of The Other Plan

I caught his sideways smile, but this time chose to ignore it. “Well, we should head out. Be good, Arnold!” I called and closed the door, making sure the doggy flap was unlocked so he could get back in.

I grabbed my purse and headed to the black rental car in my driveway. Carter hurried to the passenger side and opened my door.

“Seriously? You open doors now?”

“What did I tell you? I’m all grown up.”

I rolled my eyes as he closed my door. After hurrying over to the driver’s side, he jumped in and started the car. I gave him directions to Jake and Cassie’s house in Bailey’s Harbor, pointing out all the scenic landmarks along the way. Carter oohed and aahed over the gorgeous landscape we saw along the backroads, stopping to take a picture with a herd of cows that wandered up to the fence along the road. Seeing blips of his carefree, fun personality that I had loved so much started wearing down the armor I’d strapped on before he’d come to pick me up.

“This is it. Turn left here.”

We pulled down the long, gravel driveway that led to Jake and Cassie’s house. Jake was Jo’s best friend since diapers, and he’d met Cassie a couple years ago. I’d planned a beautiful wedding for the two of them last summer right here on their waterfront property. It had been a gorgeous event filled with love and laughter, and I’d been so thrilled to be part of their incredible love story.

“Hey, Jenna!” Cassie waved from the back porch as we climbed out of the car. “Paddleboards are down by the dock. Help yourself, and let me know if you need anything!”

“Thanks, Cassie!” I called back

Jake stepped out behind her, wrapping his arm around her waist and pressing a hand to the baby bump distending her stomach. I smiled as he waved.

My sister’s bestie was going to be a dad. I’d grown up with him running around the house along with Jo and Matt. Seeing him so happy in his new life with Cassie made me grin.

The perfect couple. Just like Jo and Matt, these two had pushed through every obstacle to fight toward their happily ever after. For a moment, I wondered what would happen if I followed their lead—fought for love instead of running away from it. I glanced over at Carter, and his green eyes met mine, coaxing me out of my shell and beckoning me to toss my fears and good sense aside and launch into his arms for a kiss I knew would change my life.

But fear wove that familiar knot through my stomach, and I looked away.

I’d seen what love had done to my mother. She’d never been the same after my father had walked out. And I knew what I’d gone through after the first time I’d fallen for Carter. Maybe women in my family just couldn’t handle heartbreak. And lord knows what would become of Jo if something happened to Matt. Not that he would ever leave her, he loved her more than any words could describe, but those same depths that she loved him would drown her if something ever happened.

But what if it works out?

Pushing aside the soft words hope whispered in my ear, I dug into the resolve that under no circumstances would I let my feelings for Carter get the best of me today.

And then we reached the water... and he took off his shirt.

Sweet. Baby. Jesus.

My jaw slackened as I soaked in the sight of every cut line on his muscular body. The way his defined abs flexed as he reached for the paddleboards. How his pecs swelled when he lifted them away from the wall. And then he turned to look at me, his biceps bulging as he held a board up on each side of him, and I got to see every incredible inch of him unchecked.

“You ready?” he asked.

Ready to paddleboard? Yes. Ready to resist you? No.

CHAPTER TWELVE

CARTER

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The sun began to lower in the sky, but the warm rays still drenched my skin as I stood on my board. I closed my eyes to relish this long-lost feeling. How many years had it been since I’d been on a surfboard or paddleboard? Five? Six?

I thought back to the last time I’d been in the water. It had been the summer after I’d met Camilla.

Six.

Six long years since I’d indulged in the thing that used to set my soul on fire. Hell, the way I was feeling right now, was the thing that still set my soul on fire. I hadn’t realized how much I’d missed it until I slid into the water and up onto the board. It felt like no time had passed, and everything I’d known just came crashing back into me. How to move with the board, how to balance and turn, how the water became part of me, and me, part of it. It soothed aches in my soul that I didn’t even know that I had.

Kinda like seeing Jenna again did.

“Like this?” she asked.