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Her heart thundered as he lowered his head over the paper. Did she want him to get it right or not?
He’d grinned as he’d slid the paper back toward her seconds later. “I guess this means you have to take your clothes off.”
Dang. He’d gotten it right.
Okay, she wouldn’t back down from the challenge. But not with him watching. “Turn around.”
His look of surprise revealed he’d never expected her to actually go through with it. But she refused to walk away from a bet or a dare or any kind of challenge. Everyone thought she was a shy, quiet nerd, but she had a fun side, too.
As Wes turned away from her, she hid behind a garbage can on the beach and removed her shorts and tank top, then her bra and underwear. A deep breath for courage and she was running into the waves before he could turn around.
His expression when he’d seen her in the ocean revealed she’d definitely impressed him. She’d impressed herself, actually. And when he’d climbed out of his swim trunks and joined her in the moonlight waves, she’d almost taken the leap, almost asked him on a date…a real one, one without their math books. And she’d been almost certain that he would have said yes. That night in the water, there had definitely been a spark between them.
Then Kelly and several of his friends had appeared in their car on the beach and honked their horn at him, and after just a second of contemplation, he’d abandoned her for them. She’d been left bobbing naked in the ocean, the sound of her classmates’ laughter echoing in her ears.
“Sarah?” He waved a hand in front of her face.
“Sorry, what?”
“I said, you could drive to my place to finish showering if you want.” He pulled his keys out of his pocket, but she shook her head.
“That’s okay. I’ll figure something out,” she mumbled.
The sound of a lawn mower in the back had her peeking around the side of the house. An older man, wearing a set of noise-canceling headphones, was cutting the grass along the fence. “Who’s that?”
Wes shrugged. “Not one of my guys. He arrived about fifteen minutes ago and said he used to do the landscaping for Dove.”
Sarah bit her lip. “I hope she didn’t pay him much.” She’d hate to have to let him go, though she could barely afford these renovations. But how did she fire a senior citizen? From that distance, the guy looked to be about a hundred years old. His slow pace made her hope he didn’t charge by the hour. “Could you try to find out who he is?”
“Sure thing.”
“Great…thanks. Um, I’ll be leaving in a few hours. I’ll just give you the keys to the place, and you have my cell number…”
Wes frowned. “You mean you’re going back to the city?”
“Yes.”
“I thought you were sticking around while the renos were being done.”
“Why would I do that?” The edge to her voice had him retreating slightly. As though he couldn’t possibly understand why she’d want to leave and get back to her life. Why being back in a hometown that never fully understood her could be causing her anxiety. Or how seeing him and remembering the past might have her itching to once again distract herself with long hours at work. “I’m needed back at the office.”
“Yeah, no, I get it,” he said. “So I assume you’ve added the inn to your homeowner insurance already?”
She frowned. “I rent.”
“You have no coverage on the place? I know Dove let it expire.”
Damn it!“Don’t you have insurance and workers’ comp?” She eyed the men on the roof.
“I do. But that covers my ass. What if someone stumbles in here when we’re not around and gets hurt?”
Sarah sighed. This place was already a headache. “I’ll figure it out.” She was not staying here another day. There had to be a way around this. Preferably a quick way.
She turned to go back inside. Now more desperate than ever to get the shampoo out of her hair and figure this out.
“Oh, and Sarah?”
She stopped and turned back. “What?”
