His smile faltered a bit. “Not sure. Probably tomorrow. He lives close by with Bridget’s husband. Olivia notified the police, and has a team keeping an eye on the house.”
Tara gripped hishand. “After all this time, it must feel a little unreal.”
“It does.” He stared out at the restless waves. “This isn’t how I imagined things going down. I should be better at waiting by now.”
“No way. That’s not how it works. Eager anticipation requires a different kind of patience.”
Smart woman. “I’m glad you’re here.” He hadn’t meant to say it out loud, but there was no point in denyingthe truth.
She gave his hand a squeeze, her smile the embodiment of pure joy. “Me too. Thank you for sharing your happy news with me.”
As if he wouldn’t? She was beautiful. And intelligent. And compassionate. And sitting in the sand with him, clearly not afraid to get dirty, just as she’d sat on the ground with Crystal a few hours ago.
Jeff was high on good news, his emotions soaring, andall amped up with nowhere to go.
“Do you want to keep walking?” she asked. “Or go get dinner?”
“I’m not sure I can stand yet.”
She laughed. “Sitting it is. We can watch the sunset. Or I can grab some food and we can eat on the beach.”
“Are you hungry?” He was famished, but not for food.
“I could eat.” She crossed her legs and leaned forward to doodle in the sand, gracefully drawing asimple smiley face. “But I can wait.”
Suddenlyhecouldn’t wait to taste her again. His patience had snapped on every level, and he wanted to kiss her nearly as much as he wanted to see his son. He could no longer muster any good arguments for keeping his distance.
“Tara.” His plea came out low and rough.
She gazed up into his eyes, her own a mesmerizing dark brown, like the richest coffee.Slowly, she reached up and caressed his cheek.
Fuck it. A man could only take so much.
He lowered his head and kissed her.
