Page 14

The rain has stopped as we walk into Endless Waves. It's a beautiful place by the shore, and Sam reserved a table on the second-floor patio overlooking the water. Thanks to the huge awning, it's completely dry, yet misty enough still to be romantic.

Once again, he sits next to me on the outside of the booth, so he can slip an arm around me at every opportunity. I love that he's touching me so much, but I’m curious. How far does he expect this to go? And how much is just for the public?

We share small plates of food and try each other’s tropical fruity drinks At one point a couple of girls down on the sand take a flash photo. Sam leans over the railing and waves, then turns back to me.

“This is intense,” he says softly as the server brings our chocolate cake with raspberry sauce and two forks. When she’s gone, he adds, “We’ve talked about everything under the sun, and it feels like we’ve gone on like five dates already, glued together the past two days like this.”

“Yeah,” I nod. “Intense is right. But we’re getting the job done.”

His hand runs through his hair distractedly. “Screw the job. Julia, are you okay with us spending a ton of time together? Because I don’t want to stop. Ever.”

I’ve barely started to make sense of his words when Sam leans in to kiss me. Not lightly. Deeply. As if he can’t control the way he holds me, or the way his mouth devours mine.

My heart stops. My breathing stops. There it is again.

Kaboom.

8

SAM

Julia is lovely. Every kiss, every soft sigh.

I still can't pinpoint what it is about her. It's certainly not just how beautiful she is, nor the way we laugh together so easily and share stories about everything from movies to books to weird childhood hobbies. Not even how she feels pressed against me.

Maybe it's her bravery. It's obvious that she’s painfully shy. Her eyes are constantly darting around to see who is looking and might be photographing us. I can feel her cringe slightly every time she realizes we're being observed. Yet she's doing it anyway.

Everyone else at Morrison Public Relations has a photo on their website except Julia. She also doesn’t do social media. But she's risking everything to help me, and I’m beginning to think it's not just for the sake of her sister's company.

Her lips part slightly as our kiss deepens, my fingertips dragging lightly along the side of her neck and collarbone. “You're so soft everywhere," I murmur, nuzzling her cheek. "Even your hair is like silk."

She whimpers softly, then stiffens. "What if someone sees?"

I stop immediately, nodding. "Sorry. You're right."

"I mean…" Her eyelashes flutter. "I liked it. But, you know. Cameras everywhere."

"More importantly, we need to divide up this cake." I draw a line with my knife, making sure that she gets at least sixty percent of the slice.

"Okay," she says, a twinkle in her eye. "Best places on Earth to eat chocolate cake. Go."

"Right here with you." I tap my fork against hers. "Your turn."

"Ooh, good one.” She stares down at the glossy icing for a moment. "I haven't seen your cabin yet, but I'm guessing chocolate cake in the forest would be amazing."

"With a crackling fire and a glass of red wine? You bet."

Julia blinks. "You're staring."

"Of course I am. You're stunning." I grin. "Also, you have chocolate on your lip. May I?"

She tips her face up, and I lift my hand to wipe it off with my thumb. Instead, I kiss that side of her lip, then her entire mouth. Her soft hum of satisfaction sends a large portion of my blood running south. Damn, I haven't been this hard this often in years.

We clutch each other, kissing far too enthusiastically for a public place. Finally I force myself to pull away, as Julia giggles, then shakes her head. "I swear, when you kiss me like that, it’s like my ears are ringing. Or playing their own ocean wave soundtrack."

"Yeah. I⁠—"

Crap.