by Zoe York
The accelerated program was no joke, he reported, but he was in the final days of it. “I’ll be back in a couple of weeks for good. Graduation’s around the corner.”
The next morning, they had everyone over for brunch in their backyard before they took off on their honeymoon—an entire week completely unplugged. They left their pagers and cell phones on the kitchen counter and drove to the city for two nights. They slept on thousand-thread-count sheets, ate at five-star restaurants, and had wild monkey sex against the dark windows, overlooking the glittering metropolis below.
Then they got extra-large lattes for the road, piled into Owen’s truck, and headed north again, to a camp site they had to hike out to. They didn’t pass a single soul on the way, and as soon as their tent was set up, Owen stripped down to nothing.
“Come on,” he said, peeling her out of her clothes. “We’re going skinny dipping. It’s not just my wish list we’re checking off on this trip.”
She scrambled out of her clothes and chased after him, splashing into the cold lake water. He caught her in his arms and pulled her close to warm her up.
She wiped damp tendrils of hair off his forehead. “You didn’t forget.”
“I keep many lists in that book you gave me. Things my wife wants to do.”
“Nice.”
He licked at the corner of her mouth. “Things I want to do to my wife.”
“Even nicer.”
“And my favourite list of all…”
She arched an eyebrow.
He grinned. “Baby names. Three days of skinny dipping and we might need to consult it in a few months.”
Labour Day weekend meant tourists galore in Pine Harbour. Ever since County Country, their town had been overrun with people looking for famous singers on the weekend. The lack of lattes usually discouraged them from sticking around too long. But Owen couldn’t hunker down at home and avoid the traffic, because his wife wanted to go to the farmer’s market.
They had a hot date night planned. Cheese board, veggie tray, and an over-the-top vampire slayer TV show. They needed supplies.
While Kerry slept in on Saturday morning, he hopped in the shower, then made them both fancy coffees. By the time he got back to the bedroom, he realized he had missed eight text messages from his brothers on their group chat. He clicked the screen open.
Seth: What’s the plan for Adam’s graduation ceremony? I can fly south and could collect folks on the way, shorten the trip? Let’s coordinate.
Adam: Countdown is ON.
Josh: We can’t wait. I’m coming down early to party.
Will: Seth, can you pick me up? Unlike Josh, I have a full-time job with responsibilities.
Josh: Hey, I’m an entrepreneur with a million followers on TikTok.
Will: As I was saying…
Adam: Owen, what’s your plan? Hey, do you remember Captain Petersen? She sent me a message the other day, she’s staying not far from here. We’re going to meet up for drinks.
Seth: Newlyweds don’t answer text messages this early on a weekend. We should all be so lucky.
Time to put a stop to that speculation.
Owen: My wife is still sleeping, thank you very much. I was making her coffee. I think we’ll drive down, though. Wouldn’t miss it.
Adam: Cool.
Owen: I’m not sure if I know Petersen.
Adam: You’ve met her. Tall, blonde. She was my boss on tour, worked in Meaford for a while. Rumour has it she’s given up the army life and is a baker now.
Josh: You gotta tell her about the bakery here! Anne Minelli cannot find a buyer. She could get it for dirt cheap. Is she hot?
Adam: Shut up.
Seth: Shut up.
Will: I was going to say, but they beat me to it.
Owen: I’m going to go wake up my wife now. We have a farmer’s market to get to. Adam, say hi to Captain Petersen for me.
Josh: Words I never thought I’d hear you say.
Adam: Yikes. Have fun with that.
Owen put his phone away and shook his head, smiling. They were still young and had years ahead of them before they settled down. But once they did, they would learn just how rewarding a trip to the farmer’s market could be.
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For more information about Pine Harbour, visit the series website at www.pineharbour.ca. Discover Lore’s drink menu from The Green Hedgehog, see more of Owen’s library borrows (including the cover for The Lady Loves a Necromancer!), see a town map, and read about all the books set in this town… including Adam’s book, coming next: Fierce at Heart.
Acknowledgements
I started writing this book in October 2017, and then my life went sideways, as lives sometimes do. I wrote two other Pine Harbour books before I felt ready to pick this project up again, and I’m grateful to my editor, Kristi Yanta, for helping me stumble through all three novels. Completing them has been therapeutic, and for the first time in a long time, I’m not carrying around parts of untold stories.
It is a joy to say that. And I’m sure it won’t last for long! I can’t wait to dig into writing Adam’s book next.
As I was out of my element with Hayden, Kerry Rubel graciously answered a lot of questions about junior hockey. Most of that discussion didn’t end up on the page, as research so often falls to the wayside when there are grown-up characters more interested in the bed that is right there! But it was important for me to know what Becca and Hayden would be dealing with from the hockey side of things, and if I messed any of that up for storytelling purposes, that’s on me.
Thanks as well to Sadie and Jessica, who read this in chunks, and my family, who were really very good about being ignored at long stretches as we came down to the end.
Finally, thank you to every single reader who discovered Pine Harbour in the first series and pre-ordered this book, sight-unseen, because they couldn’t wait to go back. I’m so glad to have your trust.
~ Zoe
What to Read Next
Want more Pine Harbour?
Read Jenna’s story
A standalone contemporary romance about a man in uniform and the midwife he swept off her feet in a whirlwind romance…
Sean Foster came back from war broken from the inside out. And he doesn’t care about being fixed. Not even by a woman who followed him halfway around the world due to some misguided loyalty.
Jenna Kowalczyk had two weeks with a man who stole her heart. They promised each other forever, but one brutal explosion proved that promise to be paper-thin.
She should leave him in the past. That’s what he wants her to do. But from the second she shows up in Pine Harbour, she knows she’s staying–no matter how much heartache is in store for her.
VISIT MY WEBSITE TO KEEP READING!
Dani’s story is waiting
Never fall in love with your best friend’s little sister…
Contractor and army reservist Jake Foster fell in love with Dani Minelli when she was a colt-legged high school senior. He knew he was too old to even look at her, let alone touch.
Now a paramedic, Dani has been trying to get Jake’s attention since returning to Pine Harbour a grown woman—and failing miserably at every turn.
This winter, everything is going to change. And when the snow stops falling, Jake and Dani won’t be able to hide from their attraction any longer.
GET ALL THE LINKS ON MY WEBSITE HERE
The Original Series
Before The Kincaids of Pine Harbour there were eight other books. Pine Harbour: The Original Series is now complete!
Meet the Foster boys: Dean, Jake, Matt and Sean. A cop, a contractor, a paramedic and an adventure racer. All soldiers. None of them looking for love, but it’s coming!
Their best friends are the Minellis: Zander, Rafe, Tom and Dani. A full-time soldier, a cop, a park ranger and a paramedic. Dani’s the only g
irl in the entire bunch and she’s not sure how she feels about that. When Rafe got married, she was thrilled to have a sister–and even though he and Olivia have split up, Dani’s not giving up that bond. (And neither is Rafe, for that matter).
The Books of Pine Harbour
Love in a Small Town
Rafe and Olivia
Six years. Two break-ups. One divorce. They should be over each other…
Love in a Snowstorm
Jake and Dani
Never fall in love with your best friend’s little sister…
Love on a Spring Morning*
Ryan and Holly
Duplicity. Desire. Denial. They were doomed from the start.
Love on a Summer Night
Zander and Faith
Sometimes saying goodbye is just the beginning.
Love on the Run
Dean and Liana
She needs a bodyguard. He needs a job. But there’s nothing strictly professional about their attraction.
Love in a Sandstorm
Sean and Jenna
It was supposed to be a fling. Two weeks in the south of Spain before they returned to war. They weren’t supposed to fall in love…
Love on the Outskirts of Town
Matt and Tasha
She fell for him over cupcake decorating, with her daughter sitting between them. And then she learned his name, but it was too late.
Love on the Edge of Reason
Tom and Chloe
Friends with benefits worked just fine—until the double lines on the pregnancy test.
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Also by Zoe York
Explore all my series! Through all of them, you’ll find a similar sweet, steamy heat to this book.
SMALL TOWN ROMANCE
Pine Harbour
Wardham
Camp Firefly Falls
MILITARY ROMANCE
Pine Harbour
Camp Firefly Falls
SEALs Undone
Hot Caribbean Nights
Vikings in Space (yes, I write sci-fi sometimes, too!)
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About the Author
Thirteen-time USA Today bestselling romance author Zoe York lives in London, Ontario with her young family. She’s currently chugging Americanos, wiping sticky fingers, and dreaming of heroes in and out of uniform.
www.zoeyork.com
Cover design: Zoe York, using images licensed from DepositPhoto
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Copyright © 2020 Zoe York
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