“Okay.”
I internally sag with relief when he gets out of the car and walks around to open my door. But when he helps me out and pulls me straight into his warm, solid body for a hug, his arms coming around me send all of my senses into overdrive once again.
“You know I’m here for you if you need anything, right?”
“Mmhmm,” I mumble into his shirt, breathing deeply. God, he smells so good.
“Mila! Jackson! Hey, guys!” Riley’s cheerful voice breaks us apart, and I look over to see Dean lifting her wheelchair out of the back of their car. As I start to head over to say hello, someone else calls Jackson’s name from down by the beach.
“It’s Phil. Do you mind if I…” he gestures toward the beach.
“No, go, I’ll be down in a minute.” I say, giving him an encouraging smile.
He bends down and gives me a quick kiss on the cheek and my eyes flutter closed then he’s gone.
“Man, you’ve got it bad.”
I open my eyes to see Riley beside me.
“Come on, you’ve been working here all this time so you can show me the best way to get around.”
We leave Dean at their car and set off toward the main building. Summer made sure there was a paved path all the way to the dock and down to the first beachfront cabin, which she decided to make fully accessible after meeting Riley and hearing about how there are few fully accessible vacation spots for people with mobility challenges. We take off toward the pier, where Summer has tables laden with food. At several people’s urging, she turned the barbecue into a potluck, so everyone has brought their favourite dishes. My mouth starts to water just thinking about it.
“Does the good doctor know you’re hopelessly in love with him?”
The way Riley asks the question so casually makes me trip over my own feet.
“What?”
She pivots her chair to partially block me on the path. Thankfully there’s no one around us right now to see the blush that I can feel creeping all over my face.
“You heard me. You’re in love with him.”
“Riley. Shh.” I gesture frantically to try and get her to stop talking. I’m not ready for this. What if Jackson hears her?
“Oh relax. No one is around. So, out with it. Does he know?”
“No. He doesn’t. And he can’t, because he wants to stay friends, remember?” I fold my arms across my chest defensively.
“I get why you guys started the whole pretend relationship thing. It was smart, at first. But you need to tell him things have changed for you,” she says gently. “He deserves to know an amazing woman has fallen for him.”
“I —”
Thankfully, I notice Riley’s eyes widen almost comically and I stop talking because two arms snake around my waist and I’m pulled back against Jackson’s broad chest.
“Hello ladies. Everyone’s starting to dish up the food. You should come and get in line.”
“Great idea. Oh look, there’s Dean.” Riley waves at her husband. “Mila. Think about it.”
She turns and wheels quickly over to Dean, who’s standing in line. He bends down and kisses her, and seeing their real, deep, honest love sends a pang of longing through me. I’ve never wanted that…until now.
Chapter 16
Jackson
“Thank you, Mrs. Hopkins. I’m sure Mila and I will really enjoy the pie, it was very kind of you to drop it off.” I wave at my patient as she leaves the clinic, having dropped off a strawberry rhubarb pie. Apparently, it’s Mila’s favourite, and Mrs. Hopkins thought I could surprise her with it tonight. The way the old lady winked at me when she suggested a romantic dinner was mildly uncomfortable, but I guess I’m getting used to how over-involved everyone is in each other’s lives here. And the pie does look delicious. Too bad I’m not exactly sure when I’ll get to share it with my “girlfriend”.
Something is up with Mila. And I feel like a total idiot because for the life of me I cannot figure out what it is. She’s pulling back, which should be a relief. After all, I’m the one who wants to stay just friends. But ever since the barbecue at Oceanside, I’ve felt her drifting away. Part of me wishes there were someone I could ask about her to make sure everything is okay. But no one knows the truth of our relationship, and it would be more than a little suspicious for me to ask her brother or one of her friends if they know what is going on with her.
