He chuckled. “Does that mean you won’t like me if I’m ever just an average Joe again?”
“Oh, you will never be an average Joe. Never were.”
“Are you sweet talking me so I don’t notice it’s still dark out, but you’re slowly backing us toward the door?”
“No? Wait. Is it working?”
He tugged me close and planted a kiss on my mouth. “No sweet talking necessary. I’d follow you anywhere, Delaney Reed.”
“Back atcha, Ryder Bailey.”
He snapped his fingers for Spud who plopped down in a sit next to us, waiting for Ryder to pick up his leash. “Beach or lake?”
“I’m thinking beach.”
“Good.”
We walked through the quiet neighborhood, past houses still dark, or with only single windows illuminated. The air was heavy and damp, the hearty evergreen bushes and trees in the yards spackled with dew.
It was just over a mile to the beach access we liked to use. We walked it hand in hand, stopping for Spud to get his sniff on. By the time our shoes hit the soft sand, my muscles were moving a lot better, my ribs weren’t giving me as much grief, and the sun was just starting to rise up over the Coastal Range behind us to the east, slowly dragging back the long heavy shadows of night and replacing them with dawn.
We ambled toward the water where the sand was wet and packed harder, but instead of heading off in a jog, we strolled north.
“What’s on the agenda today?” I asked.
“Which agenda?” he said.
“Any of them. Wedding?”
“Follow up. All the follow up. Two weeks sounds like a long time out, but there are still a lot of tentative agreements I’d like to nail down. Cheese is still an issue. What do you think about a DJ for music instead of a live band?”
“You were going to bring in a live band?”
“It was an option.”
“I think a DJ sounds great. As long as there are some fun songs in there too.”
“Like what, the Funky Chicken?”
“Sure. And the Time Warp.”
“Just a jump to the left,” he said. “Any other requests?”
“Check with Jean. She probably has a list of songs she wants to dance to.”
“Already done.”
“Look at you. You don’t need me for this, do you?”
“Oh, I very much need you for this, but I don’t need you toworryabout it. I’m enjoying the process.”
We were quiet for a bit, and Ryder bent and unlatched Spud’s leash. We were the only people on the beach at this point, and Spud was trained to return at a whistle.
“Anything else today?”
“I have some drawings to go over with a client. Mr. Tabbs wants to build an ADU on his lot. He said it’s for his mother-in-law, but the way his daughter keeps talking about it, she’s going to move in there first, then give it to Nana when Nana’s done going on cruises.”
“Fun,” I said. “Anything else?”
