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Almost.
Down on the beach, Lucy arranges a circle of folding beach chairs under an awning. Rex and River are digging out posts for the volleyball net. Dad and Eden are filling a giant sandy hole with charcoal briquettes for a low and slow seafood roast.
Sarah stops beside me, her arms full of rolled towels.
“What do you need, Cole?” she asks.
I pull a face. What do I need? So many things. But none of them are things that she can provide. I sigh deeply.
“Nothing.” I heft the ice chest off the ground and start down the path to the beach. Sarah follows. I give her a tight smile over my shoulder. “I hope it’s okay that I invited my assistant here.”
“As long as you two don’t spend the entire time working.” Sarah shrugs. “I guess you’ve been in the city for too many years to remember that we hold a bonfire anytime the Lord blesses us with a winter day like today. It’s so gorgeous out here.”
Sarah is making a subtle reference to me moving away, and insinuating that I don’t remember my childhood in the Cape. My first instinct is to tell her that this has been my home longer than she has been here. But that would only start a fight. I would look like a bully.
My grip on the cooler tightens, but I force my face to relax. Instead of reacting to her words, I just say, “It is pretty outside.”
“Cole!” Walker, Rex and Rhett’s best friend, shouts my name. “Come help me dig this pit for the food to cook in! It’s almost done.”
I give Sarah a hard smile. “I’m off to help.”
She nods and walks over to Lucy. I plunk the heavy ice chest down by a chair and walk over to the area that Walker has cleared of debris. Walker is a frequent house guest at La Villa Coralle, being in charge of the legal department for my father’s company. At the moment, he’s rolled up the sleeves of his button-up and the cuffs of his blue Dockers, and is dragging a large piece of driftwood into the middle of the circle. He looks over at Charlie, grinning at him.
“Doing okay over there?”
My son is making a circle of grapefruit-sized rocks around the perimeter of the three-quarters-finished pit. He raises a rock with the seriousness of an undertaker. “Almost done.”
“Can you start digging while I grab some more driftwood?” Walker asks me.
“Sure.” I walk to the middle, grab a shovel, and start digging. In the back of my mind, I wonder where Savannah is with the blueprints I asked her to pick up from the office before coming here.
Did that piece of rusting metal she insists on calling a car finally clank to a halt for the last time? I’m about to stop and check my phone when I hear Lucy’s voice.
“Sav! Sav, over here!”
I turn and see Savannah clutching an oversized white sun hat to her head. I’m glad to see that she chose blue jeans, pink canvas shoes, and a very warm-looking bright pink parka to wear today. I admit, I was afraid she would show up in her normal heels and short dress. Don’t get me wrong. I like Savannah in any clothing. But if I’m honest, I prefer to see her dressed more comfortably and laid back, like she is right now. There’s something sexy about picking substance over style. A lesson that Holly could have used, for sure.
Savannah has an oversized black canvas tote over her shoulder with several rolls of blueprints sticking out.
“Hey!” She hurries over to Lucy, giving her a quick squeeze. “Wow, I didn’t realize that y’all were gonna go all out.”
Lucy grins. “Blame my mom. She freaking loves the beach during the winter.”
My dad stands up and walks over to the girls. He thrusts his hand out. “Hi there. I’m Sam Bennett.”
Savannah beams from ear to ear. She puts her tote bag down and shakes his hand.
“I’ve heard so much about you. It’s nice to match a face to the stories Cole tells me. And this house is just…” She whistles. “Like, wow. I love the hydrangeas that you have out front. Those really take a lot of hard work to maintain. They look gorgeous.”
My dad lights up. “Thank you, young lady. The house is my pride and joy, after my grandson of course. You should make sure that one of the kids gives you a tour later.”
Savannah smiles and turns, scanning the beach. Somehow, she hasn’t noticed me yet. And a petty little voice inside my head is practically screaming for her attention. It fucking stings that she hasn’t looked my way yet. I want her eyes on me, and only me, right this second.
I stand up, stick the tip of my shovel into the sand, and wave at her. Savannah spots me, blinks several times, and her eyes widen. I glance down at my rolled-up sleeves and bare feet. Ah, she’s not used to seeing me dressed so casually.
Surely, it’s that and not the fact that she might find me attractive. Sure, she kissed me back… but a large part of me wonders if she’s hungry for more. Me? I’m a starving man. But I can’t figure her out.
Savannah comes over, lugging her tote. She grins at me as she comes to a stop. Then she bends and curtsies.
