by Unknown
The Inn at Blue Moon Bay was packed. Everyone had come out for the event. Olivia, smart as always, had gone with a theme of ‘quite the character’ and everyone was dressed as their favorite character from the book they loved the most.
I was in full-on flapper gear from my favorite nineteen-twenties circa masterpiece and Luke went as the love interest from that book. His white tux and slicked back hair made a perfect foil for my beaded, feathered dress and fan.
Claire had come as a character from a romance novel—and her wedding gown and train were so cute and frilly. When I saw the actor who played Travis, dressed like the character from a popular spy novel series and giving my sister the eye, I pushed them toward each other and suggested they dance. I watched them go, thinking what a cute couple they made, and there were definitely sparks there, too.
Wendy and Max were dressed like a husband-and-wife team of sleuths and I remembered that the books those characters had come from had always been Wendy’s favorites when we were kids. Megan was dressed in a long white gown and a set of feather-light lace gloves, her favorite character. Olivia, naturally, wore an outfit that spoke volumes about her love for her favorite chick-lit heroine.
Everyone was present tonight. Rita Rose and John Smythe, clearly super fans of the soap opera, were having a ball talking to the whole cast and crew of the show. John, in particular, was having a good time chatting up Adele and it was obvious she was enjoying his attention.
I found myself standing next to Olivia, Megan and Wendy. I gave Olivia a hug. “Wow, I can’t believe this turnout. You’re so amazing at this kind of thing.”
Olivia’s gaze went around the room and a long smile turned her mouth upward. “I think it’s because I love my job. When you love something you do well at it.”
Wendy nodded. “I’ll second that.”
“Me too,” I said. “Oh, Wendy, I saw that the inn got a write up in the Blue Moon Bay Beat. Such great advertising for the Inn at Blue Moon Bay. I know your grandma would be so proud of you and Brian.”
“Thank you, that means a lot.” Wendy gave me a warm hug, before reaching for a shrimp and lobster tartlet from a nearby server. Her eyes went to Max, standing nearby and chatting with Luke and a few others. “I didn’t do it alone. I didn’t even know how much I’d love running this place. It’s amazing how things work out in life.”
Megan snagged a glass of champagne from a circulating tray and then handed it to me. She took more glasses until we all had one. She asked, “Are you happy to be back home for a few days, Charlie?”
I took a long sip of champagne. The bubbles tickled my nose and throat. “I am but I’ll admit I’m having fun filming in L.A. It’s been a great experience and they even forgave me when I forgot that I wasn’t supposed to actually flick the lighter and did, and then caught a branch in the grove of fake cherry trees on fire.”
Olivia laughed, then stopped a passing waiter and took some chocolates from his tray. She placed them on a napkin and then held them out to us so we could all share the treats. “I’m so happy for you, Charlie. You get to do what you love and keep the house that you love at the same time. That’s wonderful.”
“It is. By the way, I have something for you.” I pulled the envelope out of my beaded purse and handed it to Olivia.
“What’s this?” she asked.
I bit back a grin. “Oh, a little donation for the library.”
Olivia opened the envelope, gasped and then held it up so that Megan and Wendy could see the check. “Charlie, are you crazy? That’s all of the money you got from Rex. Don’t you want to keep any of it?”
I let a bit of chocolate dissolve on my tongue and then washed it down with a swallow of champagne. “No. I appreciate that he that gave the money to me, but I have my own income now. I’m not starting over, really, because I’ve learned a lot. But I am starting fresh. The library is where I was inspired to act in the first place, after getting lost reading all of those wonderful stories. So now the library can start fresh, too. It seems fitting, don’t you think?”
We had a big group hug, the four of us—all of us back home and friends again. Megan’s glass tilted a little and she hastily righted it as we broke the hug. “Now that you finally have the true fame you always wanted, was it everything you thought it would be?”
“I’ve learned it’s the same as any other life, except that people write about me. Sometimes they write things that are true. Sometimes they write things that aren’t true. But at least they’re using my actual name now.” I laughed. “I appreciate that my work makes people happy, and makes me happy at the same time.”
Brody, Olivia’s boyfriend, approached and swept a low bow, and then asked Olivia to dance. When they were gone, Wendy turned to me. “Thank goodness Olivia had the sense to say no to a karaoke machine or we’d all be listening to Brody serenade her all night long.”
Megan choked. “It’s sweet how romantic he is, though.”
Wendy giggled. “It is sweet. It’s just that the last time he did it made Max decide he needed to serenade me, too. Speaking of Max . . .” She swept away to where he stood and they headed for the dance floor.
I set my empty champagne flute aside and saw Megan staring at Wendy’s brother, Brian. I nudged her a little. “Ask him to dance.”
Megan twisted her hands together. “He thinks of me as his little sister.”
I rolled my eyes at that. “So? Show him you’re not. . . show him who you really are.”
Megan paused. Her gaze went back to Brian. “Oh, I don’t know.”
“Do not make me drag you over there.” I lunged at her like I was about to and she skipped off toward him. I laughed as she asked him to dance. It hadn’t taken much persuasion on my part. It was easy to see she was over the moon for him, probably even over a blue moon.
I spotted Luke standing alone near a potted plant and walked over to him. “You’re the big star in the room. What are you doing by the potted plant?”
He caught my hand and pulled me closer to his side. “I was watching you. It seems to be my favorite pastime lately.”
I fanned myself. “It’s getting hot in here. Want to go out for some air?”
He stopped near the exit door. “Think an alarm will go off?”
I shot the door a look. “I think we’re safe here at the inn.”
We laughed and headed out on the deck. Luke ran his hands along the railing and smiled up at the star-filled sky and then back at me. “So, we’re right above where the legend all started.”
“I was just thinking that.” I smiled as he put an arm around me and we stood there, looking out at the bay. The wind tugged at my hair and our clothes, bringing with it that undeniable ocean scent. “This will always be the place where we started.”
His other hand rested on mine against the railing. “Remembering when we were both reading gossip magazines, trying to figure out more about each other?”
I laughed. “Maybe we should have just asked.”
His shoulder rested against mine, imparting his warmth to me. “It wouldn’t have been as much fun.”
We stood there, just relishing being close to one another. Luke lifted his hand and turned to face me, leaning against the railing. “I wanted to tell you earlier but we were so busy getting here I didn’t have time. I talked to everyone. The producer, the director, and even Adele. I told them why I asked for you to be fired. Then I apologized for not telling them the truth in the first place.”
I ran a finger over his strong jaw. “You didn’t have to do that.”
“Yes, I did. They want to bring Piper back, just as soon as your movie wraps.”
Happy little tears popped up into my eyes. “What about Adele?”
“She knows and I don’t think she’ll be making any ultimatums any time soon. Besides, she said just the other day she misses the cookies you used to bake and bring on set.”
I could hardly breathe. “It’s official then?”
“It is.”
&nb
sp; I grabbed him and held on tight. Our mouths met while the wind stirred and ruffled the high waves before they crashed against the shore. Luke broke off the kiss for a second, staring over my head. “Hey, look. It’s a full moon tonight, the second of the month. A blue moon.”
I looked upward. “Yeah, it happens.”
He lifted my chin. “Then we have to do this.”
I rested my hands against his chest. “Do what?”
“Kiss under the blue moon so the legend comes true. Oh, wait. We’re not at the spot by the bay . . .”
“For me, the legend has already come true,” I said as his mouth came down on mine again, promising forever love in just one kiss.
THE END
If you enjoyed spending time
with these characters,
be sure to read Megan’s story in:
The Sweetest Kiss
(Kissed by the Bay series, Book 4)
About the author:
SUSAN HATLER is a New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author, who writes humorous and emotional contemporary romance and young adult novels. Many of Susan's books have been translated into German, Spanish, French and Italian. A natural optimist, she believes life is amazing, people are fascinating, and imagination is endless. She loves spending time with her characters and hopes you do, too.
You can reach Susan here:
Facebook: facebook.com/authorsusanhatler
Twitter: twitter.com/susanhatler
Website: www.susanhatler.com
Blog: susanhatler.com/category/susans-blog
Titles by Susan Hatler
Kissed by the Bay Series
Every Little Kiss
The Perfect Kiss
Just One Kiss
The Sweetest Kiss
Better Date than Never Series
Love at First Date
Truth or Date
My Last Blind Date
Save the Date
A Twist of Date
License to Date
Driven to Date
Up to Date
Déjà Date
Date and Dash
Treasured Dreams Series
An Unexpected Date
An Unexpected Kiss
An Unexpected Love
An Unexpected Proposal
An Unexpected Wedding
An Unexpected Joy
An Unexpected Baby
Young Adult Novels
Shaken
See Me
The Crush Dilemma