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Beth gave her a shy smile. “Thank you.”
She felt Wyatt’s hand on the small of her back and couldn’t help leaning into him. Something about this man intrigued her in a way no other had, and she was drawn to him in ways she couldn’t explain. Like a moth to a flame.
“The secondhand books are in the back over on the right.” Wyatt pointed in the general direction. “I’ll wait here with Freya. Take your time, there’s no rush.”
“Thank you.” She was reluctant to move away from his warmth but followed his instructions and walked to the back of the store, over to the other side from where they’d entered. She was delighted to find there seemed to be hundreds of romance books for sale in the used section, and even more so when she learned how cheap they were. She took her time and selected a dozen books to purchase.
When she got back to the counter, Wyatt was talking to Leni as she slipped Freya some sort of treat. The dog was now on the other side of the counter, standing next to the bookstore owner. Wyatt gazed at Beth. “You all done?”
“Yes, thanks. There were so many to choose from I had trouble keeping it to this many!”
Leni laughed. “The bookworm’s dilemma, am I right? Let’s see what you’ve got here.” She rummaged through Beth’s selections. “Oh, good choices here! And it turns out we’re having a sale right now, so this lot will cost you two dollars.”
Beth’s eyes widened. “Two dollars? For all of them?”
“Yep! I’m happy to be moving stock out of the used section, so I’m always having some sort of sale.”
She reached into her handbag and plucked out both her wallet and the canvas bag Wyatt had given her. “Wow, that’s fantastic. Thank you so much.”
Leni accepted the dollar bills Beth handed her, placing them in the old-fashioned register and then bagging her books. “It’s nice to meet you, Beth. Hope you enjoy your stay in Silverbell Shore.”
“Nice to meet you too.”
Wyatt picked up the bag of books off the counter. “Say goodbye to Miss Leni, Freya. Time to go.”
The dog held out a paw for the store owner to shake, which Leni did. Freya then trotted through the door Wyatt held open for Beth.
They went to the grocery store next. Beth separated from Wyatt and Freya so she could pick up some essentials. She’d noted her cabin had a fridge in it, so she grabbed a few perishables, such as milk and yogurt. Wyatt appeared to be purchasing enough food for a week; his cart was full by the time they met up again and reached the register.
He plucked her basket from her arm and placed her belongings with his. Beth gazed at him intently. “What are you doing? I can pay for my own groceries.”
“I know you can.” His voice was almost soothing. “But if I add them to mine, I get more points.” He whipped out a red card from his wallet. “The more points I get, the more money I save. So you’re really helping me out and saving me money.”
She narrowed her eyes, not the least bit convinced, and had to blink rapidly. Why was this man being so kind to her? Did he pity her? Have an inkling of why she was in Silverbell Shore? He couldn’t possibly know she was on the run from her abusive ex, could he?
“I don’t know if I believe that.” She crossed her arms over her chest. “You have to let me do something to help.”
“Fine. You can help me cook dinner tonight.”
“Dinner?”
“I grabbed some steaks to put on the grill.” He stopped loading the groceries onto the conveyor belt. “I guess I should have asked. You’re not vegetarian, are you? Have any food allergies I should know about?”
“No and no. I can eat anything.” She softened her gaze and gave him a smile. “You want to eat dinner together?”
“Sure. Unless you’re too tired after the long day you’ve no doubt had.”
She hesitated only a few seconds before speaking again. “I’d love to have dinner with you.”
“Great.”
Once they were done, Wyatt pushed the cart out to his truck and they loaded the bags into the bed. When they got back to his place, she took the bags with her items to her cabin after Wyatt told her to rest up for a few hours until dinner.
He was incredibly respectful of giving her space, something Miles never had, and she appreciated it more than she could put into words.
ChapterSix
An hour later, Beth had her nose in one of her new books when something thumped against the screen door. Since the weather was lovely, she’d left the front door open, which meant when she looked up she could see Freya sitting on the front porch, her paw knocking on the door.
