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Alice has been sending daily emails for updates, and I'm running out of excuses. I have a camera full of images I could send her, but I’ve been stalling because every time I start typing, I erase more words than I write.
I remove a Harlequin romance from the shelf, studying the gaudily dressed woman on the cover, who is wrapped in a man’s broad, bare-chested embrace.
“Poor thing,” I tsk. “He’s going to break your heart, and you won’t even see it coming.”
“Oh, he loves her. He just doesn’t know it until chapter fourteen.”
A melodic voice startles me into nearly dropping the damn thing between us.
“Oops!” The woman I saw Marcus with at Ernesto’s coffee shop smiles apologetically when I recover. “The Captain’s Brideis one of my favorites. He’s a pirate, and she’s the daughter of the king whose port he’s trying to seize. Fated enemies and all that.”
Her thick ebony hair is braided over her shoulder, complimenting her deeply bronzed complexion. Most Topica Bay natives share similar features, but this woman’s eyes are an oceanic green instead of a rich brown.
“Uh, you okay?” she asks.
“Yeah, sorry. I’m not really into romance,” I say before sliding the suspicious book back into place.
“Shame,” Penelope says, popping up from my other side. Her arm whips around as she imitates a sword fight. “The swashbuckling, roguish, well-endowed men… You’re seriously missing out.”
When her dark brows wiggle, I bark a laugh. “Where the hell did you come from?”
“We’re grabbing Cat’s kids from their hiding spot,” she says, pointing at a tent strung with fairy lights where two young girls are snuggled up with stacks of books surrounding them.
“Ah, that would explain all the giggling,” I say to her friend.
“Yes, the laughter is never ending.” She smiles in that motherly way—partially annoyed, partially adoring the shit out of them—then says, “I’m Catalonia by the way. But most people call me Cat.”
Penelope interjects before I can give my name, holding one hand up in the shape of an ‘O’ and jabs her opposite finger in and out of the center. “If you’re looking for agood time,Cat has the hottest recommendations.”
I snort. “I’m good on the panty pirates, thanks.”
Cat’s promiscuous smile culls a pool of jealousy in the pit of my stomach.
It’s not her beauty that has my skin itching with envy, but the possibility of who she may be to Marcus and whether they’ve been doing all the dirty things hidden between these pages.
“Mommy!” the two young girls shout before rushing down the aisle. They’re spitting images of their mother, and close enough in age to be twins if the oldest didn’t have a few inches on her sister.
“Here come my monsters.” Cat rolls her eyes, but the minute they reach her, she turns to tickle them.
Their scrunching faces share many similarities, but up close, they couldn’t be more opposite. One wears her hair up, and the other wears it down. One has on a vivid pink dress, and the other wears a modest pair of khaki pants and a plain white shirt with ruffled sleeves.
“I’m Theresa, and this is my sister, Sariah,” the one in the dress says before shaking my hand.
“Heather.” A slither of warmth dances around my soul at their sweet innocence. “It’s very nice to meet you guys.”
Sariah tugs on the bottom of Cat’s shirt with a big goofy grin. “Mom, is your friend coming with us to the bonfire?”
Cat and Penelope glance at me expectantly.
“Me? Oh, no, I’m going home.” I point to the romance I was holding. “And much like your pirate friend here, I’ll be drowning myself in rum.”
Theresa’s head cocks. “What’s rum?”
“You have to go,” Penelope demands. “I won’t take no for an answer.”
“I’ve got blogging to do, remember?”
“Right, right. Your woefully-boring-and-not-at-all-romantic travel blog.”
