NOW THAT SAM AND I ARE SPEAKING—well, and kissing and being all heated or whatever—I feel like an asshole while walking around town in his clothes. But the fabric of his old T-shirt is soft and worn, and it’s shaped to fit him, so I like the way it feels on me. But after I stop in to see him, I’m going to make the rather long drive to a mall to buy myself more clothes. Girl clothes—not clothes borrowed from a smokin’ hot neighbor boy who fed me seafood last night and then kissed me until I thought I might scream.
I’m energized and alert in an entirely new way today. My body is aware of every move I make, my skin reacting to air and touch with renewed sensitivity, and my mood is undeniably positive. Now, I just need to adjust my outward appearance to match.
The temperature is in the high sixties today, and the sky is a flawless blue. It’s perfect weather for this seaside town. The traffic in Watermark is slowly picking up, exactly as Sam told me it would, as the town heads into true tourist season. It’s strange to be back down at the inn again. The last time I was here was very different, but I’m no longer freaked out from having fled Chicago.
The Coastal Inn looks like the epitome of New England, and I take in the magnitude of the business Sam’s parents must do. I don’t know how many rooms it has, but it is quite the sizable building. Sam must stay busy. I’m not sure where to find him, so I start at the front desk. Felicia is just walking into the lobby when I get there, and she brightens so much at the sight of me that I relax any worries about my appearance.
“Stella!” Felicia has a clipboard in her hand, but she holds out her other arm and beckons me in. Her hug lingers for a second, and she quickly rubs my shoulder before pulling back to assess me. “It’s so nice to see you. Things are settling in okay for you? You and Sam are…getting along?” She’s clearly trying not to smile too broadly.
I’m standing in her son’s clothing, so I can’t really pretend otherwise. “Um…Sam just let me borrow some things.” I clear my throat. “That’s all.”
“Mmhmm.” She makes what I’m sure is an imaginary note on her paper. “Did you stop by to see him? He’s working in room three twelve.”
“I did come by to see Sam but also you.” I feel shy now, unused to speaking to a maternal figure who hasn’t so far shown herself to be mentally unstable. “That night I was here? You were very kind. I don’t know how to thank you.”
“You can thank me by being happy. That’s all.” Felicia pulls the glasses down from her head and checks me out again, wrinkling her nose at my hair. “And maybe by going to see my daughter.”
“Kelly, right?” I laugh. “Sam told me. I’m on my way there this afternoon. Clothes shopping first.”
“Enjoy your day, kiddo. I’ve got to get back to work, but you and Sam should come by for dinner on Monday night. It’s usually quieter then, and we do a big family meal out on the deck. We’d love to have you.”
“I’d really like that.” I’ve never been invited on my own to a dinner party. “Thank you.”
She directs me to find Sam, and my stomach is in knots while I make my way up the staircase to the second floor and then the third. What if last night was a fluke? What if Sam is a cold, angry silent boy again? What if he was just burning off steam with that kiss, with the way he let his hands hold my waist as his tongue and lips explored my taste and my feel and—
I’ll just have to find out. A room down the long wooden hallway is open, and sunlight pours out. Before I am even through the threshold, Sam answers all of my unspoken questions. He drops the paintbrush onto a tray and is across the room in a flash, grabbing me by the hand and backing me up so that our bodies slam the door shut. I can’t even get out a greeting because his lips are brushing over my neck. Hands entwine in mine, and he pulls them around his waist. Forming words is impossible because I am too engulfed in his touch to think clearly. His lips are so soft, and he trails them up higher until he kisses my cheek. He wraps his arms around me as he eases me in and hugs me, tightly squeezing me. I hug him back, struck by the security I feel. It’s embarrassing how little experience I have with hugging, but he makes it easy.
After he finally relaxes his hold, Sam steps back, and I can see how bubbly he really is today.
“C’mon! Let’s go down to the storeroom and see about hooking you up with some stuff for the apartment, okay? You’re going to love it.”
The storage area in the basement of the inn is massive, and it’s also the area used for deliveries, as indicated by the large garage doors on tracks.
A man lifts a floor lamp from the back of a furniture pile and tries to make his way out.
“Dad! You’re going to fall. Pass the lamp over.” Sam frowns and shakes his head.
“I’m not going to fall. Stop acting like I’m three hundred years old.” The man winks at me.
Of coursethis is Sam’s father, I think.
His height and build, not to mention his sharp cheekbones, are the same. Gray colors his hairline, blending into the dark brown, and he moves with the same decisiveness as his son.
He emerges from behind a dresser and holds out a hand. “I’m Micah, Sam’s father. You must be Stella.” His smile and charm are irresistible.
“It’s so nice to meet you.”
“I hear you’re coming to dinner on Monday, yes?”
“You are?” Sam asks.
“She is,” Micah says, wiping dusty hands on his jeans. “Your mom just texted me that promise. And so are you, Sam. I can’t remember the last time you came to a family dinner. It’s been at least a year. This pretty girl is our excuse to get you there.”
My face heats a bit.
Sam sounds agreeable enough when he says, “We’ll come. Maybe we should do a clambake? Stella’s probably never been to one.” His palm touches my lower back. “Have you?”
“I haven’t, but I don’t want you to go to any trouble just for—”
