She was going to end up with a whole library of romance novels. She turned and scanned the living room. No bookshelves. Oh well.
She picked up the pencil and tapped it.
Tapped it some more.
Tapped it in time with the blinking cursor.
Then with the beat of the song.
Picked up the highlighter and tried to tap in time to both. Nope. She was no drummer.
She heaved a sigh and slammed both writing utensils on the countertop.
Rio glanced up, startled.
“Sorry, baby. Mommy’s just frustrated.”
This wasn’t working. She needed a change of scenery. This whole stove-top backdrop wasn’t doing a thing for her. She had a beach outside. It wasn’t a distraction—it was inspiration. What had she been thinking?
“We’re moving this party outside, girl. You wanna go outside? Yes, you do!”
She let Rio out, then gathered her things and carried them outside, taking two trips to do so. Her neighbor was nowhere to be seen—probably a good thing since he and his biceps were a bit of a distraction.
She set herself up at the circular table, facing the ocean,because why not? The chair was comfortable enough. The view inspiring.
“Okay, Sadie,think.You have a spunky heroine and an alpha hero. You need a setting.” Why not the beach? Tucker Island? Or someplace more exotic. More tropical. Readers loved to travel in their minds.
“St.Lucia.”
She’d been to the beautiful island two summers ago on a seven-day cruise (bon voyage, book advance!) she’d taken with Caroline and two other friends. St.Lucia had been her favorite because of the lush mountains that edged right up to the crystal-blue sea. She opened a website about the island to refresh her memory and perhaps spark an idea.
Twenty minutes later she was sold on the island but fresh out of ideas.
“Good morning!” a woman called from the public-access pathway not twenty feet from where she sat. The woman was perhaps thirty and carried a baby on her back.
“Good morning. Oh, what a cutie. How old is he?”
“Eleven months.” The woman paused not far from the deck, tucking her short black curls behind her ears. “It’s his first beach day. We moved to the island last week, just a few streets over.”
“How wonderful. You’ll love it. Everyone’s so friendly here. Where are you from?”
“Oh, not far, just Savannah. My husband got transferred and we decided to move here instead of commuting.”
“Not too shabby. I’m just here for the summer, visiting from New York. I’m Sadie.”
“Keisha. And this is Marcel.”
“Nice to meet you both.” Rio barked, making Sadie chuckle. “And this is Rio, who clearly wants an introduction.”
“So cute. What kind of dog is he or she?”
“She’s a Maltipoo. A real sweetheart.”
“Well, you’ll both be seeing a lot of us this summer. I’m finally trying to lose my baby weight, and I figured taking walks on the beach would be the least painful way to accomplish that.”
“You can’t beat it really. But you look fabulous. I’d never have guessed you had a baby at all if he wasn’t strapped to your back.”
“Thanks. I’d hoped the pounds would just fall off, but not so much. Of course, I’ve mostly just been sitting around the house reading and nursing, so what did I expect?”
