Seaside Kisses

by Stacy Claflin

  Color filled his cheeks. "Right." He dipped it in and pulled it out, water streaming down.

  "You can wring it out and it won't do that," she said.

  "You must think I'm pampered." He twisted the rag and then went back to the spot he'd been working.

  "Never. We all have to learn. Believe it or not, I wasn't born knowing how to clean." Her pulse felt afire as she put her hand back over his. "Try it at this angle." She pressed her hand into his, helping him remove the spot. It was hard to focus. She was so aware of how close he was.

  In a way, it reminded her of all the times she'd shared a desk with him in school. But even then, they hadn't been this close. She could smell his cologne and their sides touched.

  He didn't seem at all bothered by it—not that she was bothered by his touch. After the spot was cleaned, he moved over and dipped the rag into the bucket. "Let's see if I can do this next one on my own."

  "I have faith in you," she teased.

  Rafael gave her a funny look. It appeared to be a mixture of embarrassment and determination. "Thanks." He scrubbed, removing the egg faster than even she had.

  "See?" Amara asked. "I told you. It just takes some muscle, and you obviously have more than I do." She took the opportunity to look over his muscles and nodded with approval.

  Rafael's lips curved upward and he flexed his muscles, making them bulge even more through his silk shirt.

  Amara enjoyed the sight for a moment and then reached back into the bucket and found another rag. "Is that a challenge?" she teased. She squeezed out the excess water and then rubbed a spot on the window.

  "Hey!" Rafael laughed and attacked another spot.

  They cleaned furiously, laughing the whole time. Just before they were done, Amara splashed some suds on Rafael's face, careful to avoid his nice shirt.

  "Oh, yeah?" he asked, his eyes gleaming. He scooped up a handful of bubbles and held them up, his eyes narrowing but his mouth grinning devilishly.

  Amara's mouth dropped open. She squealed and ducked just Rafael threw the suds. They splashed onto the door behind her. Amara glanced back and laughed. She turned, and just as she made eye contact with Rafael a big glob of foam splashed onto her whole face.

  She froze, surprised.

  "Oh, no," Rafael said. "I'm so sorry." But he was laughing. It was a beautiful sound.

  Amara laughed, too. "It's okay." She wiped some of the bubbles off, flinging them onto the ground. Luckily none had gotten into her eyes, or that would have been trouble for her contacts.

  "Let me help you with that." Rafael stepped closer and wiped more of the suds from her eyes to her jawline. His hands lingered near her cheeks, almost cupping her face.

  Amara's breath caught and they stared into each other's eyes. Swallowing, she reached up and wiped some soap from his stubble.

  Neither spoke, and Amara's heart pounded so loudly she thought it would explode out of her chest.

  Rafael leaned closer—so close she could smell mint on his breath. Her eyes widened, her skin on fire. He paused, still staring into her eyes.

  Amara's hand slid on his face, scratching against the start of his five o'clock shadow. He moved his hands down and cupped her chin, brushing his lips against hers. His lips were soft, his kiss gentle. She smelled hints of ginger and sandalwood on his skin.

  Amara breathed deeply, finally overcoming the shock. She prepared herself to return the kiss.

  Rafael pulled away, his eyes wide. "I'm so sorry, Amara. I shouldn't have done that."

  She opened her mouth to protest.

  "I wasn't thinking. That was really rude. I don't want you to think I'm the kind of guy who forces myself on people like that."

  "I… I don't think—"

  "I need to put these supplies away. I'm supposed to meet someone."

  Realization washed over her that he regretted kissing her. Amara took a deep breath and stood tall, trying to cover her embarrassment. "Accidents happen. I'll see you around."

  "Uh, thanks for helping me clean the window. It was… fun."

  Fun. Right. Amara nodded. "Glad to help." She ran inside, grabbed her ugly purse, and hurried past him before she could further humiliate herself.

  Four

  "Why are you so distracted, Raf?" asked Jake, the youngest but only married Hunter brother, folding a shirt in Rafael's shop.

  Rafael stared at him. There was no way he was going to tell him that he couldn't stop thinking about Amara Fowler—or that unbelievable kiss. He hadn't meant to, but it kept replaying in his mind. His heart raced every time he recalled her soft, sweet lips on his. She'd smelled sweet, like candy.

  But they had only ran into each other a few times since he'd returned. He needed time to get over being cheated on, and Amara was too nice to use as a rebound. It wasn't fair to her. That was the only reason he'd stopped the kiss.

  Rafael realized Jake was talking again. He paused, appearing to expect a response from Rafael.

  "I'm just thinking," Rafael said. "I need to open the store, but things keep coming up. I know that's part of business, but not things like the egging."

  "Do you think they were going after you in particular?" asked Zachary, looking up from Rafael's laptop.

  "They didn't hit any other shops." Rafael scowled.

  "But why you?" asked Jake. He pulled another shirt from the box.

  Rafael shrugged. "That lady next door doesn't seem to like me."

  "Mrs. Johnson?" asked Zachary.

  "No, on the other side," Rafael said. "The bridal shop."

  "Oh," Jake said. "Does she see you as competition?"

  "I don't see how," Rafael said. "I'm not selling anything for weddings."

  "But you sell nice clothes that could be worn on the honeymoon," Jake said.

  "And rehearsal dinners," Rafael added. "Our two businesses could be complimentary, but she doesn't see it that way. Did I tell you guys she called the cops on me when I unloaded some boxes the other day?"

  "For real?" Zachary asked, looking up from his laptop.

  "Do you think she egged you?" Jake asked, not looking like he believed it.

  "Something like that seems beneath her," Rafael said. "I can't see her doing that. Though I wouldn't put hiring someone past her."

  "She's got a couple kids in high school," Jake said. "They have a reputation for being punks. One of the kids I hired to help out in the shop warned me not to hire them."

  Zachary raised an eyebrow. "Sounds like they'd have been more than happy to throw some eggs at Mommy's competition."

  Jake laughed. "Wouldn't surprise me. They were suspended for vandalism last year from what I heard."

  Rafael pulled out his phone and opened the app where he kept all his notes. "I'm going to add security cameras to my list."

  "Not a bad idea," Zachary said.

  Rafael made a note. "I didn't think I'd need them here in Kittle Falls, but apparently I do."

  "Brayden didn't think he needed a security system in his condo, either." Jake opened a new box of clothes and pulled out some shirts.

  "This may be Kittle Falls," Zachary said, "but people are people. It's always good to protect ourselves and our stuff."

  They discussed how the town had changed over the last year or two while continuing to get the store in order.

  "It looks good enough to open," Jake said.

  Rafael frowned. It didn't look anything like his old one in LA, but then again, it probably never would—or at least not for a while. He would need to paint the walls, get new carpeting, purchase all new displays… and the list went on. But none of that was in the current budget. He would need to make sales first, and for now, that would mean winning customers with his white walls and brown carpeting.

  "Do you have a date?" Jake asked.

  Rafael's face paled. How could the subject change so quickly?

  "When are you going to open shop?" Jake asked.

  Rafael let out a sigh of relief. "As soon as it's ready," Rafael said.

&
nbsp; "You know what you should do?" Zachary asked.

  Rafael raised an eyebrow.

  "We should put together a huge grand opening sale. Jasmine had one for her dance studio, remember? She got a lot of sign-ups that day."

  "Oh," Jake said, his eyes widening, "that's a great idea. It'll get people in here, looking around. They'll see what you have. I get the feeling talking to the locals that they have no idea what your shop is going to be like."

  Rafael thought about it. "That might not be a bad idea. I could build some excitement."

  "I can hand fliers out at the shop," Jake said.

  "And I'll bet Jasmine would be more than happy to give some to her customers," Zachary said.

  A smile crept on Rafael's face. "That would be great. I could also take out an ad in the paper."

  "Or better yet," Zachary said, "maybe you can get them to do a feature on you or the store. Could you imagine being on the front page?"

  "I doubt that."

  "Oh, come on. This is Kittle Falls—in the off season."

  "Maybe."

  "I have an idea," Jake said. "We could put together some prize packs from the shop."

  "Jasmine can give a free session," Zachary said. "Well, I'd have to ask, obviously, but I know she'll say yes."

  Rafael nodded. "I could give away some things, too. Maybe a scarf or a hat."

  "Now all we need is a date," Jake said.

  Rafael opened his calendar app. "Do you think a week is too soon?"

  "Yeah," Jake said. "We need more time to build buzz and get everything ready."

  "I don't want to wait more than that to open the shop."

  "So, open it," Zachary said. "You can still have the big event after the fact. As long as it's in the first month, you'll be fine."

  "Two weeks?" Rafael asked. "I can open the Monday before, and then have the grand opening that Saturday."

  The brothers exchanged excited glances.

  "Now that sounds like a plan." Zachary held up a fist.

  Rafael and Jake bumped it with their own.

  "Well, I've got to get going," Jake said. "I need to relieve Cruz at the shop. He's going out with the realtor to look at houses this afternoon."

  "Tell him good luck," Rafael said, adding notes about the big event in his app. "Oh, and thanks for helping out, Jake."

  "No problem. That's what family's for."

  "Mind if I get going, too?" Zachary asked. "I slept in this morning, so I need to get some more writing in."

  "Just as long as you ask Jasmine if she'll hand out fliers," Rafael said.

  "And donate a free session or two," Zachary said.

  "Thanks, guys," Rafael said.

  He wandered around the store. Everything looked decent—but that wasn't good enough. Even though he had a tight budget, he needed to find a way to spruce things up. Maybe he could order some extra fabric and hang some on the walls. That would at least add color to the drab walls. He made notes every time he thought of a new possibility.

  After about an hour, just when he was about ready to call it a day, he heard the door open. Rafael turned to the front, suspicious. He wasn't expecting anyone.

  Brayden walked in. "Hey, little brother."

  Always with the pecking order. Brayden would never let any of the brothers forget who the oldest was.

  "Shouldn't you be at your clinic?" Rafael asked, teasing.

  "Just left. Everyone has it under control. And besides, it's Saturday. My practice is closed."

  "I'm on my way out," Rafael said. "Want to get lunch?"

  "Actually, I came here because I heard this is a good place to find honeymoon attire."

  Rafael paused. "You two finally set a date?"

  "Almost. Now that both of our businesses are where we want them, we're ready."

  "Congratulations, Brayden."

  He beamed.

  "So, you really want to look at clothes? Or do you want to grab a bite?" Rafael asked.

  "Can I have a look? As brother of the owner, I'd like to have a look at the inventory before anyone else."

  Rafael spread his hand out and panned the room. "Have at it. I need to look some stuff up, anyway."

  "Oh. For what?" Brayden asked, walking to a mannequin.

  "I'm going to have a grand opening in a couple weeks, and—"

  "If you need any help, just shout my way. Remember the one I had for the clinic?"

  Rafael paused. "The health fair?"

  "Right. We didn't call it a grand opening, but that's what it was. It was a huge success all around. People learned what we had to offer and they also got a bunch of free health information."

  "It was fun, too. Where'd you find the band?" Rafael asked, more ideas spinning.

  "High school kids."

  "Nice." Rafael added more notes to his app.

  With the help of his family, his grand opening was going be a big hit. Not everyone had understood Brayden's clinic, but now everyone in Kittle Falls knew that they could go to the urgent care for everything that wasn't serious enough for the emergency room, including the cardiology and family practice clinics to see doctors for regular visits.

  Since the nearest hospital was half an hour away—in good traffic—the new clinic was just what the town needed.

  Even though Rafael's shop was hardly saving lives, the residents of Kittle Falls didn't really understand what he had to offer, either. Everyone tended to dress casually—what else would anyone expect from a quaint beach town?—so he got a lot of strange looks and questions about his business since coming back home.

  "What do you think of this?" Brayden asked, bringing Rafael back from his thoughts. He held up a sea foam green silk shirt. "Would this work for a dance on a cruise ship?"

  "You're going on one for your honeymoon?"

  Brayden shrugged. "It wasn't my first choice, but Lana really wants to. She's never been on one."

  "That would be perfect for dancing or going to one of the fancier restaurants."

  "What about pants?" Brayden asked.

  "Actually, I have a shipment coming in tomorrow that would go perfectly with those."

  "Tomorrow's Sunday."

  "Yeah?" Rafael asked, trying to figure out his point.

  "The post office is closed on Sundays."

  "Right. This is Kittle Falls. Well, as long as they don't try to stop the delivery truck, I should be fine."

  They discussed clothes for a little longer before leaving to grab some lunch at a deli. After they sat with the sandwiches, they discussed Brayden's upcoming honeymoon. Rafael kept the questions coming because he knew the next logical step of the conversation would be his own love life. He didn't want to talk about it—neither Amara nor his ex, Kristine.

  Brayden wiped his mouth with a napkin. "Thanks for all the fashion tips. I've always felt clueless when it comes to clothes."

  "You don't have to tell me." Rafael grinned.

  "I guess I wouldn't." Brayden laughed. "And now that you're back in town, you can help me spruce up my wardrobe. Lana liked that tie you gave me for my birthday. And a lot of others have complimented it, too."

  "It's the height of fashion right now."

  "Mind if I swing by to pick your brain some more?"

  "Sure." Rafael told him his schedule.

  Brayden set down his empty glass. "So, why are you starting completely over with your business? You were doing so well in LA."

  Rafael groaned. A topic he didn't want to discuss—especially with Brayden. He'd moved back to Kittle Falls after having sold his successful cardiology practice. Rafael had essentially walked away from his failing business in order to avoid going into debt.

  "Well?" Brayden gave him an expectant look.

  Frowning, Rafael ran his hands through his hair. "If I tell you, do you promise not to bring it up again?"

  His brother's face turned serious. "Sure. What happened?"

  Rafael took a deep breath, preparing himself. He hated thinking about it, much less talking about it. "Tony
had all these great ideas to grow the business. After seeing what he could do, I took him on as a partner. Stupidest decision of my life."

  Brayden arched a brow.

  "He made a bunch of decisions without talking to me. He made a major deal we had no way of completing. He promised a large company a huge order that would take at least twice our staff to complete, and he gave them a ridiculous discount on top of it. Tony swore we could do it. He convinced me it would bring in more money in the long run because the other company would continue business with us. We lost half of what I'd built and saved over that deal." Rafael took a deep breath, feeling the anger surfacing.

  "What did you do?" Brayden asked softly.

  "I panicked. We barely remained in the black. I've never lost so much sleep in my life. Not just worrying about everything, but spending every waking hour working to fulfill that order. And no, the other company did not return to us. Long story short, the mess trickled down and affected other accounts. Tony tried to fix his screw-up, but he made even more mistakes which finally dropped us into the red. He ruined everything I'd worked so hard for."

  Brayden let out a low whistle and shook his head. "I'm so sorry. I had no idea."

  Rafael shrugged. "It is what it is. Now all I can do is make the best of what I have left, and thankfully Mom and Dad have offered their help."

  "Well, if I can do anything for you, just let me know."

  "I've got it, but thanks. You ready to go?"

  "Yeah." They threw their food away and headed out.

  Just as they stepped outside, Amara and Janelle walked by.

  Rafael froze. His heart raced again, just like it had when he'd kissed her.

  He watched her for a moment before Janelle noticed them. They all exchanged hellos and went their own separate ways. Rafael tried to make eye contact with Amara, but she wouldn't look at him. His heart sank, but he knew it was for the best. Rafael couldn't risk getting heartbroken again, and he didn't want to hurt her, either.

  "Who was that with Janelle Anderson?" Brayden asked.

  "Amara Fowler."

  Brayden gave his brother a double take. "Amara? As in, Alex's twin sister?"

  "She grew up."

  "Wow, I'd say," Brayden said. "I didn't even recognize her. Apparently I've missed a lot while I was in Dallas. So many things have changed around here."