Chapter 1
Heather Parker sat in the shade of the gazebo on the beach, a sketch pad in hand. A young mother and her daughter knelt in the sand, making a sandcastle. The girl, who looked to be about three years old, concentrated on carefully decorating the castle with seashells.
Heather looked down and began to sketch the scene. The mother, the girl, the sandcastle, the waves. The familiarity of the act of sketching warmed her from the inside like the sunshine warmed her skin. It had been a while. She’d been busy helping her mother move and helping out at Sea Glass Cafe. Her illustrations had taken a back seat to her family obligations.
At least until her agent called and asked to see new work. A card company was interested in her designing a line of greeting cards for them with a beachy theme. Perfect timing since she was here in Moonbeam with daily access to the beach. She wanted to see if she could get some preliminary sketches done to show the company.
A shriek drew her attention away from the sketch and back to the beach. A wave had come up with the rising tide and knocked down the sandcastle. The little girl launched herself into her mother’s arms, sobbing. The mother held the child and patted her back. As the girl finally calmed down, the woman wiped away her tears and took her hand. They moved further up the beach and began the process of building the castle again.
Heather’s heart clutched in her chest at the tenderness of the moment. The closeness that was obvious between the mother and child. That was not something she’d really had growing up, and a part of her, deep inside, was still a small girl longing for it. She sighed and went back to work.
She continued her sketch, glancing up now and then to take in more details. She concentrated on the sketch, lost in her own little world where she got to create the reality she wanted on the page. She liked that. Creating the scene, changing things, the total control over the perfect little vignettes. If only life were that easy to control.
A shadow fell across her page and she looked up. Her heart thumped, and she caught her breath.“Jesse.”
No, life wasnoteasy to control.
“Heather. I thought that was you.”Jesse stood right in front of her looking unbelievably handsome in worn shorts and a t-shirt stretched tightly across his broad chest.
“I was just sketching.”That much was obvious. Still, Jesse had a way of making her thoughts jumble and words come out awkwardly.
“Didn’t know if you’d just jump up and run off if I stopped to say hi.”He cocked his head to one side, eyeing her.
“I…of course not.”Although, that had been her first instinct. And it still did seem like the safest choice…
He glanced at her drawing pad, then out toward the beach. A small smile flitted across his face.“You always did like to draw those scenes with all the tiny details.”
She set her pencil down.“It’s just a rough sketch.”
Jesse turned back to her.“So Parker Cafe seems to be doing well. I heard you’ve been helping out.”
“Sea Glass Cafe,”she corrected automatically.
He laughed.“Yes, Sea Glass. I should remember that if I run into Livy.”
“My cousin spends half her time correcting people.”She let a small smile creep across her lips. Who knew she could make small talk with Jesse?
“I’m glad that it’s working out for Livy. And for your mom. I hear rave reviews of her cooking there.”
“She’s got all the family’s old recipes. And she really is a great cook.”Heather wished she would have gotten the cooking gene from her mom, but no such luck.
“So—”Jesse paused, looking tentative.“How have you been?”
“Fine.”
“You’ve stuck around Moonbeam longer than your usual stay.”
So he’d been keeping track of her comings and goings?“Well—there’s the cafe. And then Mom…”
“I heard your folks are divorcing.”
“It’s a done deal now.”
“Oh.”He looked surprised.
“Mom didn’t want it dragging out any longer. She just moved out from Aunt Donna’s house to her own apartment, too.”
“Did she?”
