Love on the Boardwalk (A Cinnamon Bay Romance Book 1)

by Nikki Lynn Barrett

  As the attending ladies began to weed down, she felt able to breathe again. The relief was short lived.

  Eva glanced over for whatever reason, and this time, Lizzie was the one who waved her over. What else could she do? She owed the older woman for giving her and Mac access to the house.

  “Is there anything else I can do for you ladies?” Eva asked, thinking a light shove out the door would be best.

  Birdie’s arm of brass bangles rattled as she yanked Eva down to an empty chair. “We were just talking about you.”

  Go figure. She never would have guessed.

  “And Mac Jenssen,” Trixie chimed in.

  No surprise there, either.

  “What time are you meeting him at the Wayfare house?” Hattie asked, and Eva wasn’t quite sure how, but she sensed these ladies either knew or could tell she and Mac weren’t on visiting terms.

  “I’m…um…”

  She didn’t get her sentence out, and Birdie cut her off. “I think Mac would be interested in the tale of the lighthouse.”

  “I’m sorry. Is this book club or a history lesson?”

  Lizzie pointed at the empty chair to her right. “Sit down, girl. It’s time to get schooled.”

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  M AC SPENT THE next day in the attic, sweating in places he didn’t think could sweat. Turns out, he was wrong on multiple levels.

  Lizzie had made it clear in her instructions that the attic was one area she wanted to be cleaned before he left, so he figured he might as well get it done and out of the way. Then he could focus the rest of his time on the aspects of the house he wanted.

  Besides, the argument with Eva that morning had left him feeling frustrated and angrier than he’d expected to feel for a woman he’d just met.

  A woman he’d just slept with too, his subconscious reminded him.

  Mac shook his head, muscles quaking as he attacked the next pile of random goodness his grandfather decided to hoard in the rafters. Women. He didn’t know what to do with them.

  He’d done what she asked by being discreet. Plus, it wasn’t like she hadn’t wanted to be intimate too. Now it seemed she had changed her mind entirely.

  Carrying the furniture from the attic to the garage, like Elizabeth had specified, had worn off some of his mixed emotions and irritability. Nothing like pushing his body to the breaking point to get his mind in line.

  And make no mistake, with the amount of furniture he had to move, it gave him plenty of opportunities.

  Soon, cleaning the old furniture, his strokes became less harried, and he found he could appreciate the craftsmanship of the pieces. There was a peace in restoring the finish with lemon oil, something soothing in the scent, something fresh and new when mixed with the sea air rolling in from the open garage doors.

  He tried to keep the space uncluttered, or at least in some semblance of order, knowing Lizzie was thinking of having a couple yard sales this summer. He’d have to ask when she planned on hosting the sales so he could come back and purchase some of the contents of the house. There were a few pieces he had his eyes on, not that he had any room in his car to take them with him when he left. But he’d like to have them anyway.

  He also didn’t want to push his luck by asking to buy the pieces now. His aunt seemed like a lady set in her ways, and he didn’t want to ruin the amazing opportunity he had of exploring his grandfather’s house. The Wayfare.

  Mac skipped lunch and stayed in the attic, sorting papers into boxes and piling them by the stairs. He planned to further sort them later into what needed to be shredded, kept and recycled, but tonight he didn't have the head space to embark on that type of work.

  “Yoo-hoo!”

  He stopped filling another box and lifted it up into his arms half-empty when he spotted Eva walking up the stairs. Her unsure eyes landed on him as she took the last two steps into the attic.

  Carrying the box on his hip, Mac said, “I’m surprised to see you here.”

  She wrung her hands in front of her. “So am I.”

  “What brings you?”

  Damn, he needed to work on his tone. He sounded annoyed, embittered, which did not make it easy to have a conversation.

  “There’s something I want to show you,” Eva began.

  She looked beautiful, he thought, dressed in a pair of khaki shorts and a purple tank top that emphasized the color of her eyes. She’d left her hair loose and flowing around her shoulders in waves.

  He’d never seen a prettier sight. And there he was looking like something the cat barfed up.

  “Will you get in the car?”

  He should say no and go back to working alone. It was less complicated than Eva, but Mac was here to face complications, and he’d been damned if he turned away from her.

  “Does this mean we’re good?” he pushed. Then ran a hand over his forehead to wipe the sweat away.

  Her lips pursed, voice tentative. “We will be if you get in the car.”

  Well then. It looked like he had no choice.

  MAC LET EVA drive. One, he had no idea where she wanted to take him. Two, it gave him the chance to study her without the opportunity for her to bolt.

  He watched the wind from the open window caress her dark hair, blowing soft strands across her face. Eyes focused on the road, her face relaxed, an easy smile gracing her lips.

  “You see something you like?”

  The same swift smile graced his own lips at her tone. Airy, light, completely unencumbered. Good, Mac thought. At least she gave him no indication of regrets this time around. In fact, she seemed to have gotten over whatever issues they’d aired in their tiff.

  Maybe his luck hadn’t run out after all!

  He couldn’t have stood it if she felt sorry for sleeping with him. On his grandfather’s couch, no less. And in the guest bedroom a couple more times.

  “You’re damn right I do,” he retorted, sticking his arm out the window, enjoying the breeze. “Now, are you going to tell me where we’re going? And why I couldn’t wear flip-flops?”

  “I guess it’s no secret. You saw the turnoff.” Eva flicked on her signal and veered the car to the left, driving between two towering palm trees and into the cooling shade of the state park.

  “I’ve been in town for this long, and I still haven’t been able to come out here.”

  Eva shrugged, her tank top giving him an unimpeded view of her tanned shoulders. “It’s a beautiful place if you have the day to spend. Just trees, sand, and sea. But I’m not taking you to the beach.”

  She pulled past an outpost manned by a park official and handed off a five-dollar bill. After thanking the man, she drove through the park before pulling into a lot, giving them excellent views of the crashing surf.

  “Okay, it’s going to be a little bit of a walk. And technically, the public is not supposed to go here, so I had to work a little bit of my magic.”

  “You’ve got a guy?”

  Eva chuckled. “Yeah, I’ve got a guy, and her name is Spring. Grab that bug spray. We’re taking a hike.”

  It was a hike in name only, considering the landscape stretched out flat before them. Keeping to the sandy soil next to the beach, Eva took him weaving between trees, the sun high overhead.

  “I used to come out here sometimes with friends. You aren’t allowed to make a bonfire on the beach, but we did them anyway,” she told him over her shoulder. “A couple of beers, some marshmallows, and a starry sky overhead.”

  Mac tried his best not to let her see how the heat affected him, sweat already dotting his forehead and lower back. “Sounds like my kind of night.”

  “As long as you bring the bug spray. Now you see why I wanted you to put on a healthy layer.” Eva indicated the swarm of gnats buzzing around their heads, not close enough to touch.

  “Your foresight is astounding.”

  They made small talk for the rest of their trek until the woods opened up. Lowlands and tidewater spread around them, a boardwalk taking them acros
s the marsh toward a towering black and white lighthouse standing sentinel over a calm ocean.

  “Okay, why is this gorgeous piece of scenery not the next it spot in Cinnamon Bay?” he mused, stepping around her with his eyes captivated by the spiral lines of the hulking structure.

  “Well, it needs a butt ton of work. Technical term. I’m not sure of the full extent, but the park closed this area off to the public because it’s a safety hazard. Some people even toss the word condemned around.”

  The closer they got to the lighthouse, the clearer it became to see the black and yellow caution tape cordoning off the entire area.

  “The park needs to get their heads out of the sand. This place can be a great tourist attraction.” Mac held the tape up and slipped beneath it, following Eva’s lead. “Guess we’re ignoring the warnings?”

  Her smile turned coy. “Like you said. I got a guy. As long as we don’t try to go near the lighthouse, we’re fine. The police aren’t going to come after us for trespassing.”

  They stopped several feet away from the hulking tower of brick and mortar, listening to the soft hush and pull of waves on the rocks.

  “You’re probably wondering why I brought you out here,” she said slowly.

  “I’ve been wondering since you told me to get in the car. Now I’m positively dumbfounded.”

  Eva rubbed her hands together like she was enjoying the torment.

  Little minx.

  “Okay, I heard an interesting story at book club…” she began.

  “Is this going to be fact or fiction?” One brow raised in question.

  “A little bit of both, if the ladies are to be believed.” Eva took a deep breath then dove into the retelling. “The story goes, Captain Leo “Lionheart” DeVane, the scourge of the West Indies, frequented Cinnamon Bay to visit his mistress Marianne Rosewood, a witch with an affinity for herbs, spices, and potions.”

  A pirate and a witch…if he were a bit more creative, Mac could have turned the premise into one hell of a bestseller. Unfortunately, his mind didn’t work that way.

  “What happened to them?” he asked, to keep the story going.

  “Well, with the knowledge of an incoming shipment of cinnamon, Leo became determined to commandeer the ship. Marianne, according to local tale, was tasked with capturing the attention of the lighthouse keeper to keep him from sounding the alarm. Together, Leo and Marianne would play their parts, capture the booty, and use it to build the rest of their lives together. I guess spices were worth a lot.”

  “I’m going to guess things didn’t go according to plan.”

  “If the Hens are to be believed, the light never came on that night. Two ships crashed together at sea, and neither the lighthouse keeper nor the dread pirate were ever found.”

  Mac found himself leaning toward her, his attention captured entirely. “And the witch?”

  Eva turned to him and spread her arms wide. “She lived on, survived by her daughter. Because if she hadn’t, I wouldn’t be here.”

  He paused for a moment before breaking out in laughter. “Eva, please. You really expect me to believe that you’re related to a witch?”

  “My cousin Calliope and I are the last living descendants of Marianne Rosewood. And before you say anything stupid that you might regret,” she teasingly warned him, “know we’ve done our ancestry research and it’s true. It’s fact.”

  “I appreciate you bringing me out here to tell me the story of your past. I really do.” He reached for her then, closing the distance separating them. Needing to touch her, to feel her. If she’d let him.

  “I didn’t bring you here to talk about me. That was the buildup to the main event.”

  She didn’t fight him when his arms came around her waist to tug her forward. Blinking up at him, eyes impossibly large, Eva opened her mouth to continue the story. “There’s another reason.”

  Mac dipped to nibble the side of her mouth. No doubt pushing his luck with her. But, as his mother always told him, strike while the iron was hot. “Care to enlighten me?”

  “Mac…your grandfather…” Eva continued.

  “What about him?”

  “The lighthouse attendant who disappeared left a family behind. His name was Abraham Parker. According to the paperwork I found at the library, his son Joshua lived into adulthood, survived by his own son. And his. And his,” she told him. “Down to you.”

  Mac stilled, his stomach swooping like he’d taken a dive on a roller coaster without a seatbelt.

  “You have got to be kidding me.”

  She shook her head. “Your ties to Cinnamon Bay run just as deep as mine, it seems. The witch’s relative, and the descendant of the lighthouse keeper who was never found.”

  Coming together after all this time.

  “It’s impossible,” he murmured, his mouth drying and the motion of his hands stilling.

  “If I’ve learned anything in this life, it’s that nothing is impossible.”

  “How can it be? I mean, it’s crazy. It’s insane!”

  “Mac and Elizabeth Parker are descended from Abraham Parker, of that I’m sure. The literature proves it. Which means, even though you were adopted and your last name changed, you have Parker blood in you.” Eva broke away from him to point at the lighthouse. “And your ancestor stood here, worked here. Kept the Bay safe. Now you’re here.”

  Full circle.

  He’d come full circle, and to be standing here with Eva…the moment took on a new level of poignancy. His heart beat a little faster, his lungs worked a little harder.

  “That’s amazing,” he whispered, glancing up toward the highest tip of the lighthouse and the empty chamber of glass where a light used to glow in the dark.

  A similar light sparking inside him.

  “I thought you’d be happy.”

  When he glanced down at her, Eva worried her lower lip, as though afraid of how he would react. “I am. Just processing right now. Thank you for bringing me here. Thank you for thinking about me.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  This time she came to him, looping her arms over his neck and drawing him forward in a hug.

  “I think maybe I owe you an apology.”

  It didn’t take long for him to channel his feelings into desire. For her. It came quick and hard, taking him under like the waves on the shore.

  Mac tightened his hold on her, dropping his mouth low to capture hers. The kiss instantly catapulted into new levels, her tongue sweeping through his lips, tangling with his own.

  He dug his fingers into her shirt when she moaned. Her chest heaved to bring her breasts up close.

  “Eva…” he began.

  Suddenly her fingers were against his mouth. “Not here, mister.”

  He dropped his forehead to hers with a groan. “Tell me when and where, and I will make it happen.”

  “Who says there is even going to be a second time?” she toyed. “I mean, I acted like a lovestruck teenager this morning, but you have to admit, I made some good points.”

  The thought was a dash of cold water on his overheated system. “No, don’t say that.”

  “I think we need to proceed with caution.”

  “As long as we proceed,” Mac insisted.

  He hated to be that person, one who tried cajoling someone into something they didn’t want. But in this instance, Mac didn’t believe it was entirely unwanted.

  “There’s no future for us, Mac. Why should we even proceed?” Her voice dropped low, her gaze hot, and her hands tangling through his hair. Then she sighed. “Why should we keep giving into this when there are no strings?”

  “There are phrases for those kinds of flings. Maybe something we should consider. I want to spend as much time with you as possible while I’m in Cinnamon Bay. It’s not time to say our goodbyes yet.”

  She took a moment to consider his words. His little witch, Mac mused, because she’d certainly worked her magic on him. He’d fallen completely under her spell and had no pl
ans to leave it anytime soon.

  “Maybe…”

  “Yes?” he pressed, nuzzling her hair and causing her to giggle.

  “Maybe we can try the friends with benefits thing. I mean, we have a wonderful time together. As long as we are both on the same page.”

  “Definitely friends,” he was quick to agree.

  “Definitely friends. We have good conversation, great sex…and you know what? I’m not ready to say goodbye yet either.”

  His heart soared at the statement. Great sex, hell yeah! He’d take it.

  He stepped away from her, although it pained him and stuck out his hand. “Do we have an agreement there, Eva Mae? Friends with benefits?”

  “As long as we keep it to ourselves, then yes.” It took her another moment, but eventually, she took his hand, giving it a single firm shake.

  Mac used the momentum to draw her back to him for a steamy kiss that would have fogged up his glasses had he been wearing any.

  “You can’t be serious,” Eva groaned against his mouth.

  “Deadly serious. There’s no one around.”

  “There’s going to be sand in terrible places.”

  Her warning rang true, but Mac was willing to damn the consequences.

  Flinging her over his shoulder, her laughter echoed in his ears as he carried her toward the nearest tree for some heavy petting.

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  M AC AWOKE EARLY the next day, having showered twice to get the aforementioned sand out of terrible places where sand should never go, and then headed over to Wayfare house, eager to learn more about his family.

  Each day in Cinnamon Bay connected him more to a man he’d never met, a history he hadn’t been ready to claim for his own, and yet he was starting to feel as close to it all as if he had.

  Eva had filled a part of him with her tale of the lighthouse history, a part that he’d never known had been empty. And now, he wasn’t as scared to learn more about his grandfather and father.

  Was there anything that connected them, the same interests, or hobbies? Did they prefer steak or ribs? Did they share the same favorite colors? He wanted to know everything.