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Not wanting to give it all away right off the bat, especially since I hadn’t really gotten too much of anything about him just yet, I chose to play a bit with him. “Tell you what,” I started. “I’ll give you my number, andifyou call, maybe we can discuss what else I like to do.”
His lips twitched as something intensified in his eyes. Johnny was no longer simply amused. There was something else there, and I had to admit that I liked the way it looked a lot.
Placing the shell back into my palm, he said, “You’ve got yourself a deal.”
“You don’t want to keep it until you get both pieces of information from me?” I asked, wanting him to be sure.
He shook his head. “I trust you’re going to give me your number, so if the only stipulation is that I need to call to get the other information I want, there’s nothing for me to be worried about. I know I’m going to call you.”
I allowed my eyes to roam over his body, something I’d been struggling to not do, and said, “I assume you aren’t carrying your phone on you.”
“Nope.”
“So, how will you remember my number?”
Johnny turned, an indication he was ready to continue with our walk, and answered, “I don’t think there’s anything you can tell me now that I’ll soon forget.”
I carefully deposited the shell into my bucket, turned, and fell into step beside him. Then I rattled off my cell phone number.
It remained to be seen whether he’d remember it or not, but there was no question I was secretly hoping he had a photographic memory.
TWO
Kiera
“I’m so sorry about this, Kiera.”
“It’s okay, Thea. Honestly, River is far more important,” I replied.
“I know, and I’m so grateful you understand, but I’m cancelling at the very definition of last minute,” she returned.
It was the very last minute.
Thea, who had been one of my closest and dearest friends for years, had planned to come to the beach to meet me for dinner, drinks, and dancing tonight. She was supposed to drive from our hometown of Dogwood, spend the night tonight, and head back home tomorrow afternoon. Sadly, just ten minutes ago, she’d gotten a call from her mom letting her know that River had spiked a fever and was feeling particularly crabby.
Thea was a single mom, and she already felt guilty about leaving her nine-month-old son overnight as it was. Knowing he might be getting sick, she just couldn’t bring herself to have a fun night out, hours away from home. So, she was turning around to head back.
I was already seated at a table at the restaurant. Feeling bummed, but not upset in the least with her, I promised, “You didn’t do it on purpose. We’ll plan something soon.”
“Thanks for understanding, Kiera.”
“Don’t worry about it. Give the little guy a squeeze from me. I hope he feels better soon,” I said.
Thea and I disconnected the call, and I glanced down at my body. I’d gotten myself all dressed up for nothing. I was disappointed that I wasn’t going to be able to spend some time with my friend tonight. Not only did she deserve a break and a fun night out, but I had been hoping I could tell her about what had happened to me today.
Thea and I had both been single for a while, and she would have been overjoyed to hear about my encounter with Johnny on the beach yesterday afternoon.
I hadn’t spoken to him since our walk yesterday, and I still questioned whether or not he’d be able to remember my phone number off the top of his head like he had indicated he would.
I didn’t want to jump to conclusions just yet, though. He was obviously on his own vacation, so I didn’t think it’d be fair to expect him to call me now. The likelihood was that if he had intended to call me, he probably wasn’t going to do it until he was back home.
And while I could have shared the story about Johnny with Thea over the phone, I figured it was best to just let her go and allow her to concentrate on getting home to her boy. She was going to be too distracted, worrying about him, to be able to pay attention to anything I had wanted to share with her.
On that thought, I decided I was going to just leave. I wasn’t the kind of girl who could sit somewhere and eat alone. I knew people did it, but I’d never been one who felt comfortable doing it.
Already starting to feel awkward about sitting at the table alone, I scooted my chair back. I’d go and find my server to let her know I was leaving and that the table could be given to someone else.
But just as I was about to stand, someone walked up to the table and said, “Kiera?”
