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I shook my head. “Thanks, but I don’t want to intrude on your family time. I think I’ll just go check out the island, and maybe soak up some sun on the beach.”
The waitress came then and delivered my sandwich. Sage ordered one for herself and the two of us chatted about the wedding while we ate. When we were done, we went our separate ways. I left the hotel on foot, walking toward the beach, while she went to meet up with her family.
The beach was full of people, and I walked along the sand until I found a relatively empty spot. Opening my bag, I stripped out of my shorts and tank top, stuffing the clothing inside along with my sandals. The sand was hot, so I hurried toward the water on my tiptoes, sighing in relief when I reached the wet sand, my toes sinking into it. I continued until I was waist deep in the ocean with the slight waves rushing over me.
I couldn’t keep the smile off my face. I’d always loved the ocean. The salty smell of the air, the sound of the lapping waves, the feeling of floating suspended in the water. It made me feel peaceful.
After a while, I walked back to my bag, stopping along the way to pick up a small pretty shell that I wanted to take home with me as a souvenir. When I reached my bag, I dug around inside and spread my towel out on the sand. Laying on my stomach, I wore my sunglasses as I started to read my book, soon getting swept away in the fictional world in which the paranormal romance was based.
It was late afternoon when the sound of kids’ laughter reached my ears, and I glanced over to see a group of four kids—three boys and one girl—bopping a beach ball back and forth nearby. They all looked so much alike that they had to be related, and I spotted a small group of adults keeping an eye on the kids from their beach chairs nearby.
As I watched, they lost control of the ball and it came my way, landing in the sand beside me. I sat up and picked up the ball, tossing it back to them.
“Hey, do you wanna play with us?” the little girl asked, and I wondered if she just wanted another girl in the game.
“Sure,” I said, walking over.
I didn’t expect joining them to be as much fun as it turned out to be. The kids were energetic and dramatic in a way that all kids tended to be. I learned that they were two sets of siblings and cousins, on vacation with their parents. The girl was the youngest of the group at just eight years old, and she was possibly the sweetest little girl I’d ever met. That was saying something, since I was a fifth grade teacher.
As I bopped the ball around with the kids, I couldn’t help wondering if I’d ever have my own. I wasn’t lying to Sage this morning when I told her that my mom had been talking about grandkids more and more lately, but that wasn’t the only reason that it was on my mind. I’d always wanted to be a mom. The problem was that my love life had never been stable enough for it. I tended to always fall for the wrong guy and my relationships didn’t last long. I didn’t want to be stuck with a loser or a jerk in my life—and mychild’slife—forever.
I’d never really considered raising a child on my own. In my mind, the ideal situation would be to find true love and a happy marriage before starting a family, but I was starting to wonder if that was going to happen. I would rather have been a single mom than never having kids at all. I knew that I had a few years before I really needed to start figuring all this out, but I already knew that if I didn’t settle down eventually, I would go to a sperm bank.
Suddenly, I felt a tingle run down my spine as the fine hairs on the back of my neck stood up, my body telling me that I was being watched. I turned and locked eyes with Ben, who was standing nearby, not even pretending that he wasn’t watching me.
He looked amazingly hot in his low-slung swim trunks, his well-toned torso on full display. He had a red star tattooed on his pec, which gave him a sexy, bad-boy look. I couldn’t stop myself from staring at him, my eyes tracing the hard lines of his body, from the sinewy muscles of his arms and shoulders to his broad chest and the ridges between his six-pack abs.
Who knew that men were really built this way?
I was distracted enough to lose track of the game until the beach ball collided with my head. The kids all laughed, and I gave them a smile as I scooped it up and tossed it back.
“I’m going to step away, guys. Thanks for playing with me,” I said. The little girl ran over and gave me a hug around the waist that made my heart pitter-patter.
When she let go and ran back to the other kids, I went over to Ben, who was still watching me, the corner of his mouth hitched up in a smile. I knew that I should probably be offended as his gaze blatantly swept over me, taking in all the bare skin I had on display in my bikini, but hadn’t I just been doing the same thing to him?
Warmth seemed to spread through me everywhere that his eyes landed, the intensity of his stare feeling almost like a physical touch and I bit my lip as arousal stirred in my gut. This time, I didn’t try and stop or ignore the sensation.
“Are you following me?” I teased with a grin when I reached him. I noticed that he was holding a white T-shirt in one fisted hand.
He laughed, the sexy sound doing more provocative things to my body. “You know that you’re not the only one that likes the beach, right?”
“Okay, you’ve got a point. Are you here by yourself?” I wasn’t sure why I was asking that.
“Not anymore,” he said, giving me an easy going smile as he canted his head to the side. “You want to go for a walk with me?”
I knew that I should have said no. I had told myself to stay away from this guy as much as possible to avoid the temptation he created in me. But I wasn’t strong enough to fight it. Or maybe I just didn’t want to any longer.
“Sure,” I said.
I grabbed my bag and pulled on my shorts and tank top, feeling like it would be best to at least be covered up if I was going to be around this man. He waited patiently, and we headed off down the beach, walking right along the water’s edge. We didn’t say much at first, but the silence wasn’t uncomfortable. I was enjoying his company without feeling the need to make small talk.
I noticed that some of the women that we passed paused to watch us, openly checking Ben out. I couldn’t really blame them, but I still didn’t like it—and I certainly had no right to the jealousy that surged through me.
Ben noticed the annoyed look on my face as I stared at a woman that stopped in her tracks to run her eyes over him greedily. He chuckled and slowed down as he pulled his shirt on.
“Is that better?” he asked.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I replied stubbornly.
