“Maybe once,” she teased.
“Hmm.” He smoothed a flyaway strand of hair from her face. “I’m so glad you chose dating and working. This is so much better than just working.”
She grinned. Then she tugged him toward her and kissed him again. He responded immediately, and his hand tangled in her hair as he tasted her.
The door to the store opened with an unmistakable bell chime, and Adam lifted his head. His gaze was searing as he released her and stepped away.
It sounded as if several people had walked in. They were unusually lively and chattering for this early in the morning.
Lucy closed her eyes and exhaled as Adam walked around the bookcase to greet their customers. She waited a moment to compose herself and to catch her breath while she listened to Adam talk to the customers about an upcoming new release.
She could get used to this—kissing Adam behind a bookcase. Hearing him tell her she was beautiful. Watching his green eyes gaze at her with affection. She gave a happy little sigh, then joined Adam in helping their customers.
Adam’s gaze went to hers as soon as she approached, and they shared a knowing smile. She didn’t know how everything would play out between them, but she was looking forward to finding out.
Lucy smiled to herself as she moved around the store, unpacking new stock that had arrived that morning. She found Adam’s gaze on her more than once. Mr. Parks returned to the store in a cheerful mood, and she and Adam shared a knowing secret smile.
“I think I’ll go home and catch up on a few things.” Mr. Parks looked from Lucy to Adam.
“Sounds great, Dad,” Adam said. “We’ve got things covered.”
Mr. Parks nodded. “I can see that you do. Take good care of my son.”
Lucy stared after him. When the door shut behind him, she turned to Adam. “Does your dad know about us?” How could he know? she wondered. She barely knew herself.
Adam came to stand by her. “I think he guessed. I mean, you’ve been staring at me all morning.”
“Funny.” Lucy slipped into his arms, surprised at how natural it felt already.
“So ...” Adam said. “Every August we do inventory. Are you ready to learn the ropes?”
“I love it when you talk business, boss.”
He grinned and bent down, giving her a light kiss. One she enjoyed very much.
“Great. I hope the tedium won’t drive you away,” he said, pressing his lips against her neck.
“Maybe we can take some breaks here and there.” She ran her hands over his shoulders. “Lots of breaks.”
He lifted his head, holding her gaze. “That sounds good to me.” He took her hand, and they walked to the cash register together. Then he pulled up the inventory lists on the laptop.
As Adam explained the inventory procedures they had to go through, she couldn’t help but smile to herself. Who would have thought walking in here on that rainy day several weeks ago would change her life? Even her sister would have a hard time believing it. Lucy fully intended to tell her sister more about Adam, but for now, she was going to be selfish and keep him all to herself.
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Are you serious? June Dawson tapped Send on her phone and smiled as the chime confirmed her sent text.
Her best friend Sydney was planning an all-girls weekend on one of the Hawaiian islands before she married at the end of the summer. Typical Sydney. Everything about Sydney had always been over the top, whereas everything about June was, well, middle class, average, run-of the-mill... There were dozens of clichés June could identify herself with. Her phone chimed again from the group chat with a text from Maria.
I’m in! Maria texted.
Everything was easy for Maria, who bubbled with enthusiasm about the smallest things in life. Maria made snap decisions, and they were always the right ones. In fact, if June had to place a bet, she would have bet Maria would marry first out of the three friends. As it was, Maria had a pretty serious boyfriend, who she was positive would propose within weeks.
I hope he does propose. June wasn’t even dating, but she had no problem being happy for her two best friends. Sydney, Maria, and June had become friends when Maria moved into their Seattle suburb. They’d all attended the same high school and been assigned to a group American history class project their senior year. June had known who Sydney was from afar as the class president and valedictorian, not to mention the homecoming queen. Sydney had always been popular in high school, and June... not even close. It was Maria who bridged the gap between them when they had to work on the history project.
Once June got to know Sydney, they became fast friends, and Maria completed the friendship circle. When they all roomed together at Washington University, June worried that after graduation, they’d hardly see each other again.
She was wrong.
Sydney planned semi-annual all-girl vacations, and Maria had created a private Facebook group where they posted their pictures and updates and sometimes had late-night chats.
I’m serious, June, and don’t tell us you’re working, Sydney texted. We all have jobs, and that’s why corporate America mandates vacations. Did you know the French take off the entire month of August?
June read through the text twice. Then she checked her phone calendar for the dates Sydney had proposed. June worked for a national pet store chain as the director of accounting, and she couldn’t miss anything on the corporate level. At least she didn’t have any corporate meetings that week—those would be the following week. And... her last vacation had been five months ago when she, Sydney, and Maria had gone to Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
Somehow she and her best friends had all ended up working in a different state after college graduation. June was in Portland, Sydney in Santa Rosa, where she worked as vice president of a software firm, and Maria had stayed in Seattle, working in Internet marketing.
June scrolled to the beginning of the texting strand. Sydney wanted to book a bungalow in Maui at a posh resort. June tapped on the link in the text, and it pulled up her browser and opened to the resort’s web page. Seeing the crystal-blue ocean edging the beautiful resort nearly made June’s decision for her.
She turned to her laptop and filled out a vacation request form. She didn’t want to commit until she knew she could get the days off. Maybe she was too cautious and practical, at least, she’d often been accused as such. But that was her strength as a corporate-level accountant.
June texted the girls and told them she’d made a vacation request. They both sent cheering texts in reply, and June laughed at their enthusiasm. At least someone was excited to spend time with her. The subsequent texts were mostly between Sydney and Maria as they discussed Sydney’s wedding dress. Both of June’s friends knew she was a fashion accident waiting to happen, so they probably weren’t too surprised when June had little to offer, except for, You’ll look beautiful.
And Sydney would make a beautiful bride. Blessed with a petite body, soft blonde hair, and gorgeous hazel eyes, Sydney could wear a yoga outfit and looked like she’d arrived from a magazine photoshoot.
After a few more minutes of texting, June finally wrote, Gotta go, ladies. I’ll let you know if I can get the vacation days as soon as I find out.
Hot date? Sydney immediately texted back.
I need to look that up in the dictionary to know what you mean. LOL, June texted. She hadn’t been on a date in months. After she and Kevin broke up over six months ago, she hadn’t gotten back into the dating scene like she thought she might. It was just as well, she decided. Two of her co-workers were going through divorces, and June herself came from a divorced family. Single life wasn’t bad—al
though, at age twenty-six, she was starting to tear up when she saw adorable baby pictures posted on Facebook. All the better that Sydney and Maria get married and start having babies June could spoil.
No new men in your life? Sydney pressed.
Not unless you count Office Mike, who asked me out again last week, June answered. I’ll tell you all the boring details in Maui ☺
You’d better! I love Office Mike stories! Maria chimed in.
Moments later, June was buried in her work, sure Sydney and Maria were plotting to set her up with someone—even though they all lived in different states. June had no doubt Sydney would try to find a way. June really did want to be in a relationship, but when she compared herself to the other single women she was around—heck, to her two best friends—June was average.
What other twenty-six-year-old single woman preferred to stay in on a weekend night and read a guilty-pleasure novel? June had discovered Regency romances her senior year in high school, and ever since then, they had become a reward after finishing a deadline or achieving a goal. And, truth be told, the heroes in those Regencies were quite... heroic. Of course the heroines were always interesting and a bit charmed in life. June’s life was far from charmed.
The novels weren’t real, nor were the characters in them, but when June closed the book with a happy sigh, she hoped that one day she’d have a man look at her like she was the most important woman in the world.
That night she received a confirmation from corporate that she could take her requested vacation days—human resources must be working overtime—and now June had a new thing to worry about. What was she going to look like in a swimsuit after a long winter?
* * *
Two weeks later found June hugging Sydney and Maria at the Honolulu Airport. They’d each arranged their own flights over and had managed to arrive within a couple hours of each other.
“We have enough time to get something to eat before we catch the plane to Maui,” Sydney said.
June decided that each of her friends looked fabulous—Sydney even more so than usual with her pre-bridal glow bringing a pink blush to her creamy skin. And Maria’s olive skin made her look like she’d already spent a week in Paradise. June could already feel her usually straight hair starting to wave with the humidity. She’d probably end up wearing it in a messy bun the entire trip. She had gone to the effort to get a few highlights put in her hair so she didn’t look too drab from the Portland rainy season.
“Real food sounds great,” Maria said. “I’m starving. I don’t know what’s worse, sitting crammed between two strangers for hours on end, or being forced to eat cardboard-tasting airplane food.”
Sydney laughed, and June smiled. Her own flight had been delightful. She’d read an entire Sarah Eden Regency novel and had loved every minute of it. June had two more stashed in her suitcase. She’d have to download another book to her Kindle app if she ran out of reading material. June had decided to take this vacation seriously, and although she’d brought her laptop, she only planned to review her already compiled notes for the upcoming corporate review.
“Hey, look at this,” Sydney said, digging into her brightly colored shoulder bag. “The resort sent us care packages.” She handed over two gift bags decorated in red flowers.
June opened hers to find a pair of sunglasses, a set of postcards, a water canister with the resort’s logo on it, and a discount card to the hotel’s gift shop. “Oooh, fancy,” June said, putting on the sunglasses. They were decent quality, although she didn’t recognize the brand name.
After ordering teriyaki chicken rice bowls at one of the airport cafés, the women made their way to the Hawaiian Air terminal.
“So, tell us what’s going on with Josh,” Sydney asked Maria when they’d settled into their seats.
Maria released a huge sigh. “Nothing’s going on. Well, I guess everything’s the same. Which means nothing’s going on.”
“So no proposal in the works?” Sydney continued.
“He’s really kind of a quiet guy,” Maria said. “Which I like about him, but it also means we don’t often talk about things beyond the immediate.”
Sydney nodded as if she completely understood. June wished she had some advice, but truly, she was the last person to advise someone on boyfriend issues.
Before June turned her phone off, a text came in. She was surprised, yet not surprised, that the text was from Office Mike. She and a couple of ladies in accounting had given him that nickname because he had asked out every woman in their department. Only Lisa had been fool enough to go out with him.
Thinking about you on your vacation. Have a great time & send me pics of you on the beach!
Which, in Office Mike lingo, meant he wanted pictures of her in her swimsuit. She showed the text to Sydney and Maria, who both laughed. June had told them plenty of Office Mike stories. He’d become the butt of many of their jokes when someone was having a bad day, such as: “Life could be worse—you could be dating Office Mike.”
“You should Photoshop your face onto a Victoria Secret model,” Maria teased. “It’ll put him in the fetal position.”
June laughed. “Don’t tempt me.” She powered off her phone without replying to Office Mike and settled back in her chair, listening to Sydney and Maria jump around topics like they couldn’t wait to get everything discussed in the first hour of their vacation.
It felt great to relax, truly relax, June decided. An entire week without work, or Office Mike leering at her, or nights spent alone in her apartment.
The friends barely had enough time to eat a pack of pretzels, and drink a Hawaiian guava juice, before the plane touched down on the tarmac in Maui. If possible, Maui was even more beautiful and pristine than Oahu.
A shuttle picked the ladies up and drove them to the resort, where they checked in at the main hotel lobby. Then a bellhop offered to drive them to their bungalow in a golf cart, and as June sat with her girlfriends riding in the cart, the turquoise-blue ocean acting as a backdrop to the beautiful resort, she knew she was a lucky woman.
She might go so far as to leave her phone off for the rest of the day. Or maybe she’d leave her phone on but only check her e-mail a few times.
The bellhop dropped off their luggage, and while Maria and Sydney were ooing and ahhing over the touristy décor of the bungalow, June walked out onto the back patio. The warm, humid air smelled heavenly. Vines laced across a trellis that stretched over the patio, and vibrant orange and red flowers bloomed above. A small mosaic-tiled table sat in one corner of the patio with three white wicker chairs, and a gate opened up onto a path that led straight to the beach.
It was like looking at a postcard picture. June followed the path, walking past another bungalow to the north, and stepped onto the pale yellow sand. She slipped off her shoes, left them by the path, and dug her toes into the fine gold granules. It felt luxurious. In the ocean, a surfer was paddling toward the shore. The waves were mellow, and June decided the surfer wouldn’t have much luck today. She watched the idyllic scene as the surfer strode out of the water, carrying his surf board under one arm.
Once he got to the dry sand, he set the board down and peeled off his surf shirt, then shook his hair out. June realized she was staring. The man had a washboard stomach, and not that she hadn’t seen them before—in magazines or on the beach in the summer back home—but this man was looking right at her.
June’s face flushed, and she wanted to turn away, but that would look too obvious. She’d left her phone in the bungalow, so she couldn’t pretend to be suddenly busy with that. No, she was practically rooted to her spot as the man strode toward her. Heart drumming, she wondered why he was walking her way, of all places on the beach.
“Wow, would you look at him?” Sydney said.
June flinched. She hadn’t heard either Sydney or Maria approach. The women stood next to her, ogling the man.
“Don’t stare,” June hissed. “He’s looking right at us.”
“M
mm,” Sydney said. “Too bad I’m taken. I guess you have dibs on him, June.”
“I don’t have dibs on anyone,” June said, feeling panic shoot through her. She’d hoped for a moment that the man might be young—even a high school student—so he’d be clearly off limits. But as the surfer grew closer, June estimated him to be about thirty.
“Hello there,” he said, as he came within earshot.
His eyes were blue. No, green. Blue-green. Like a pond reflecting a paradise-blue sky. June wanted to slap her cheeks, then squeeze her eyes shut and start all over. She couldn’t stop staring at him. His shoulders were broad, his waist tapered, and his skin was brushed with a faint sunburn. So, maybe not a local.
“Hello,” Sydney called out in an enthusiastic voice. “Are you from around here?”
He smiled.
It was like a jolt of lightening had physically pierced June in the stomach, and she stepped back.
“No, I’m here on vacation,” he said, tilting his head toward the next bungalow. “Looks like we’re neighbors.”
He was probably here with his gorgeous wife and two adorable kids, June decided.
Sydney stepped forward and held out her hand. The surfer shook it, that smile still on his face. “Nice to meet you, neighbor,” Sydney said. “These are my friends, Maria and June.” Her voice lingered on June’s name for a tad longer than necessary. “We’re here on vacation too.”
The man nodded and said, “I’m Lance.”
“You’re here alone?” Sydney pressed.
His mouth quirked as if he found her question funny. Or maybe annoying.
June wanted to melt into the sand. Lance’s gaze went from Sydney to Maria, then stopped on June. She knew she’d start blushing if he kept looking at her.
“Technically I’m alone, although I’m hanging out with a friend who lives on the island,” Lance said.
“A lady friend?” Sydney said, her voice lifting with a suggestive inflection.
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