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“Perfect. We can wear them to the next family dinner,” I suggest, teasing.
“You don’t think it’d be cute?”
“I think they’re hideous,” I confess. “There’s no way I’m wearing that ugly shirt.”
“Then we’re getting them,” Ryan says while digging though the pile until he finds the sizes he’s looking for.
“I’m not wearing it,” I throw over my shoulder as he heads towards the bored girl to pay for the gaudy shirts, his laughter following him the entire way.
There’s also no hiding the smile on my face either.
Ryan takes my hand as we head towards another small waterfront shop in downtown Travelers End. This one houses small trinkets and souvenirs. Shark tooth necklaces, dolphin key chains, glass bottles with colorful sand; it’s all here.
Together, we make our way down the aisles of goodies, checking out a few knick-knacks along the way. Ryan is checking out brightly painted glass coasters, hoping to find a set he likes for Mrs. Hanson. I grab an intricately decorated seashell covered photo frame without Ryan noticing and slip up to the counter to pay for the souvenir.
“What did you get?” he asks as he slides against my back. His breath fans across the shell of my ear, his lips trailing a warm blaze of heat against the column of my neck. An instant shiver rakes through my body.
“I’m not telling,” I whisper as the cashier hands me my change.
“Is it a fish shaped spoon rest for the stove? I’ve always wanted one of those.”
“I’ll keep that in mind for Christmas,” I snort.
“I have ways of getting it out of you,” he mumbles as his lips caress the sensitive skin behind my ear. Suddenly, my breathing is shallow and my body on high alert.
“Your tactics hardly seem fair,” I respond as I slowly turn to face him.
His eyes are bright with lust and gleam with playfulness. “All’s fair in love and war, baby,” he replies, the corner of his mouth slightly curled upward.
Ryan keeps his eyes trained on mine as he slowly leans forward. I know what he’s thinking because I’m thinking it too. The moment our lips touch, it’s like the Fourth of July. Sparks fly as I wrap my hands around his neck and hold on. His kiss instantly turns possessive, consuming, with vehemence. Will kissing him always be this way? God, I sure hope so.
A loud throat clears behind me as we quickly pull apart. Red faced, I turn to face the man, who only moments ago, sold me the goods in my bag. Now, however, his eyes are diverted and refuse to make eye contact. I’m sure my cheeks are the same color of fuchsia as his.
Ryan chuckles behind me and places his purchases on the counter. Besides the floral painted coasters, he tosses a beach scene key chain on the counter. The name scrolled across the front in big gold letter catches my attention right away. Laughter bursts from my throat as I take in that single word.
“Um, Ryan?” I ask sweetly.
“Yes?” Ryan stuffs cash back into his money clip and places it in the front pocket of his shorts.
“That’s not how my name is spelled.”
Ryan leads me towards the front entrance. “I know that, but apparently these key chains only come in Jaime with an M-I-E, and since they don’t have one spelled with an I-M-E, I decided to go ahead and buy you the misspelled one. Jamie is still Jaime, right?”
“Except that it’s not spelled right,” I reply, fighting the smile threating to take over my face.
“Details. It still says Jaime, even if it’s spelled Jamie. And since it’s my favorite name in the whole world, I wanted to buy it.”
We step outside into the warmer sea air. “That’s a pretty big deal, favorite name in the whole world.”
He stops and turns to face me. “It’s a huge deal. It’s not every day that I make a statement like this one,” he chimes in, dangling the misspelled key chain from between his fingers.
“Then I should fall at your feet in appreciation, shouldn’t I?” I step closer and grab ahold of the key chain.
“Dropping to your knees is unnecessary in public, sweetheart. Now, if we were…say, in private, I wouldn’t be opposed to seeing you do a little worshipping.” Ryan’s eyebrow arches suggestively and his grin is pure wicked intent. And, honestly, if the way my body is humming is any indication, I don’t think I’d mind showing Ryan a little appreciation for his two dollar misspelled key chain purchase.
Smiling sweetly, I snatch the key chain from his fingers and say, “I guess we’ll just have to wait until later and see.” He laughs as we turn, together, and head down the block.
Window shopping is exhausting when Ryan insists on stopping at most of the shops along the street. As we enter a store filled with handspun glass, my stomach growls. It’s loud enough that Ryan hears causing my cheeks to tint a flattering shade of pink.
