by Ellis Quinn
“Aw,” she said, “we’re going to have to get my little guy a Band-Aid.”
They both snickered while Buster pranced circles around them. To him, falling off bikes was way more fun than zigzagging forever down Haunted Hill.
But her eyes stayed locked with Marcus’s. And his big crystal blue eyes stayed locked with hers. A big lug of a guy, rough, tough, and capable, and yet so tender. Those blue eyes were innocent, and she wondered how on earth did she ever leave Chesapeake Cove when he was still in it.
Her chin tilted. His head cocked to the side a small degree. It was like that night in the skinny cramped pilot house on that land bound crabber boat.
It was going to happen. Oh gosh, it was really going to happen.
“Hold up,” she said.
He looked wounded.
She said, “I can’t.”
He said, “I’m sorry . . .”
“No, I can’t with that stupid helmet on, you look like you’re twelve.”
“It saved my life,” he said, with a knowing smile and flashing eyes.
He unclipped his helmet as she unclipped hers. They set them down with hard plastic sounds on the pavement, and resumed their positions, her on her knees before him between his spread out legs. Two grownups in Halloween costumes playing around like this was twenty-five years ago.
She looked in his eyes and smiled wide. He smiled widely, too. Their eyes closed, their faces drew closer. His big warm hand touched her cool throat, and it felt like the hair on the nape of her neck floated away. She was light as a feather, and her lips touched his . . . her lips at last touched his . . .
Over Marcus’s shoulder, Buster Crab watched them quizzically. And with Marcus’s hand on her neck, cool mist on her hot exposed skin, pale light from the antiques store’s display window tracing the handsome ridges on Marcus Seabolt’s face, the soft feel of his lips on hers, she couldn’t imagine this moment being any better.
Afterword
I hope you enjoyed reading this mystery as much as I enjoyed writing it!
There is still plenty more to learn about Bette, and Pris, and Cherry, Marcus, and Vance and Ripken. I hope you’ll read the next book too—I promise it’ll be fun!
If you enjoyed this book (or even if you didn’t) I’d appreciate your honest review on the marketplace where you read it. Reviews help so much!
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