by Teri Wilson
Besides, Lucas was probably already gone on his road trip. Even if he wasn’t and by some miracle, they made up, Jenna and the kids already had one foot out the door. The rental on the beach house ran out in less than twenty-four hours.
“We’re leaving tomorrow. It’s better this way.” She nodded in an effort to make herself believe what she was saying.
“It’s certainly safer,” Maureen countered.
She said it like it was a bad thing—like Jenna wasn’t just trying to protect herself and her kids, but as if she was hiding instead.
Maybe because you are.
She took a deep breath. She didn’t want to stop and examine her life right now. If she did, she was afraid she might be disappointed with what she’d find.
“Do you mind if we pick up the pace a little? I just want to keep moving,” she said.
Maureen nodded. “Sure.”
Jenna took off walking again, the sand swallowing her footsteps, but no matter how fast or long her strides, the beach stretched out before her, bathed in beautiful silvery light.
Chapter Eighteen
Jenna tried to cram a stack of books into the last of her organizational bins after they got home from summer camp, but it was no use. She had zero room left to pack anything. Too bad Tybee Island didn’t have a Container Store. Or perhaps a moving van.
Also, weren’t they leaving with approximately ten pounds less chocolate than when they’d arrived? Jenna assumed they’d have plenty of space.
This is ridiculous. She shook her head as she turned the books sideways and tried to slide them into the side of the bin. Still no luck.
“The car is already filled to the brim. I don’t understand where all this stuff came from.” Did she really need her gigantic hardback thesaurus? Could she leave it behind and start using an app instead? Nope. She was way too old-school for that. She’d no sooner part with her antique typewriter.
Ugh, the typewriter! She hadn’t packed that yet either, and they were scheduled to leave bright and early the following morning.
“I swear we didn’t bring this much,” she muttered.
Nick strolled into the room and tucked a pair of earbuds into his backpack, already packed and sitting in one of the living room chairs.
“Well, I’m almost done with my stuff.” He pulled a face. “Ally, not so much.”
Jenna looked up from the books in her hand, pausing when she caught sight of Nick standing with his back to the big picture window and its dazzling ocean view.
The water sparkled like diamonds in the late afternoon sun. A group of pelicans flew in a perfectly arranged V against the sweeping blue sky. No matter how many times she visited the island, its beautiful beaches never failed to take Jenna’s breath away.
But it wasn’t the sea view that made her throat clog with emotion all of a sudden. It was her son—Nick, her sweet little boy. Except he didn’t seem so little anymore. He was a little taller than he’d been when they’d first moved into the beach house. His favorite blue t-shirt wasn’t quite as baggy as it had once been, and he was definitely going to need a few new pairs of longer shorts when they got back home to Savannah.
But the changes that caught her so off guard weren’t strictly physical. Nick had a new air about him now. He seemed to have become more self-assured overnight, more confident. He even carried himself differently.
So much had happened since they’d come here, and somewhere along the way, her shy little boy had become a young man.
“What did I do now?” He froze and shot her a questioning glance.
She was staring.
“Nothing.” Jenna smiled at her boy, but her lips trembled and before she knew what was happening, she realized she was blinking back tears.
Her smile turned watery. “You just look so grown up—even from these last five weeks.”
Had it really been only five weeks? It felt like a lifetime…on so many levels.
Nick eyed her as she crossed the room to stand beside him in front of the window. “Are you seriously crying right now?”
“What? Nooo. I just have overactive tear ducts.” She dabbed at the corners of her eyes in a wholly ineffectual effort to keep the tears at bay.
It was beginning to be a problem. She’d been crying off and on all day, blinking back tears during her walk with Maureen and now this.
I’m kind of a mess.
Saying goodbye to this place had never been so hard.
“Riiight,” Nick said.
She sniffed. So much for trying to seem stoic. “But you do look grown up, though.”
A glimmer of pride shone in those hazel eyes she knew so well. “I kinda learned a lot this summer.”
“Yeah. Like what?” Jenna settled herself onto the arm of an easy chair, and Nick did the same opposite her.
“Like chocolate doesn’t go with everything,” he said with a grin.
“Very true.” She nodded and tried her best not to think about Lucas choking down his arugula-chocolate chip salad like a trooper. His enthusiasm had been downright heroic.
“Bunk beds are super uncomfortable,” Nick added. Lesson learned.
Jenna laughed. “I totally agree.”
“And…” Nick’s voice drifted off as his attention snagged on something he saw out the window.
Jenna followed his gaze and spotted Lucas in the gravel driveway, loading boxes into the back of a large black SUV. She blinked hard and looked away. “And?”
“And…” Nick turned to face her again, and his smile seemed lit from within. “You miss one hundred percent of the shots you never take.”
His words made Jenna feel numb all over. It sounded like something Maureen might have said all those times she’d tried to convince her to take a chance on dating.
On Lucas.
On life.
Instinct told her to change the subject and stick to something less painful, something safe. But how long was she going to keep trying to guard her heart? Even when she kept herself tucked safely behind walls, she still managed to get her heart broken.
She’d been doing her level best to get through the remaining few hours until Lucas was gone and she could leave this summer behind for good. She knew she should tell him goodbye—she owed him that much—but she couldn’t seem to do it. And deep, deep down, she knew it wasn’t what she wanted. Not now, and maybe not ever.
So maybe playing it safe really wasn’t the answer. Maybe living her life meant joining the game instead of watching from the sidelines, hoping not to get caught up in the fray.
Maybe rather than protecting herself and her kids, all this time she’d simply been too afraid to take the shot.
“Who told you that?” she said softly.
Nick’s eyes danced. “Lucas.”
Of course it had been him. He’d done his best to be a friend to Nick. A role model. He’d also tried to give her the same exact advice, and she’d thrown the precious act of kindness back in his face.
I’ve been so wrong.
But perhaps it wasn’t too late to make things right.
“See?” Her chest felt light all of a sudden, flush with hope. “This was a very grown-up conversation.”
She smiled and nodded toward the bedroom he shared with Ally and the two loathsome bunk beds. “Now go finish packing.”
He hopped off the chair as Jenna stood to sneak a glance at Lucas out on the driveway, still loading things into the car. The sight of him filled her like warm sunshine.
“Nick?” she said.
He walked back toward her carrying a Mason jar filled with the seashells he’d found on his morning beachcombing adventures with his sister.
Jenna took a deep breath. “I think I need to go talk to him.”
“You do?”
Butterflies beat nervous wings against her insides as she stepped away from the
window. “Yeah. I think so.”
“Then go.” Nick smiled his new grown-up smile and pointed toward the door. “Like now!”
She quickened her pace. By the time she reached the patio, she’d broken into a full-on run with her flip-flops smacking the wooden planks of the deck beneath her feet.
She didn’t allow herself to think about whether or not he’d want to talk to her again after their terrible conversation at Doran’s Cove. She’d simply have to convince him to hear her out—she’d beg if she had to.
But what if she was too late? What if he’d already gone?
Impossible. He’d been standing beside the SUV only moments ago. He couldn’t have left so quickly.
But as Jenna made her way down the patio stairs, the sound of an engine roaring to life made her heart stop. And when she reached the gravel drive, the big vehicle rolled away, along with every bit of her newfound hope.
“Lucas, wait! Lucas, stop. Stop. Lucas! Wait!” She chased after the SUV, but it kept moving toward the street until she was left standing in front of the beach house alone.
“Oh come on! No.” She slowed to a stop, breathing hard. “I was like two feet away.”
The car kept going, and all Jenna could do was stare at its disappearing bulk and wonder how she was going to explain to her kids that she’d really and truly let Lucas leave without any of them telling him goodbye.
But then a voice called out from the upper deck of the duplex, and it belonged to the one person in the world she most wanted to see. “Are you talking to yourself down there?”
She whipped her head around and sure enough, Lucas was leaning against the railing, watching her from above. To her immense relief, he even looked a little bit happy to see her.
He cocked his head, and a smile lingered on his lips. “Because if you are, we might need to find you some more friends.”
Hope rekindled, and Jenna’s heart swelled with joy. She grinned up at him, breathless. There was so much to say, and she wasn’t sure where to start. Lucas was wrong, though—she didn’t need to find any new friends.
She only needed him.
Lucas hadn’t seen Jenna smile for two long days, but catching his first glimpse of the dazzling grin on her upturned face the moment she realized he hadn’t gone anywhere had definitely been worth the wait.
“You’re still here?” she said, and then she nibbled on her lip while her cheeks flushed pink.
He loved it when she blushed. Smart, capable Jenna Turner could try and control things all she wanted, but the blossoming color on her peaches-and-cream complexion told him that some things couldn’t be contained.
“Yep. There was a last-minute change of plans.” He pushed away from the railing, walked down a few steps and then paused.
“Good. I mean…” She blew a lock of hair from her face, shoved her hands into the pockets of her jean shorts and then promptly removed them. “Hi.”
Lucas couldn’t help but smile. He’d never imagined he’d ever see Jenna at a loss for words. It was sweet, and more than a little bit adorable.
“This is good because…” She took a deep breath and started over. “I wanted to tell you I’m sorry.”
His heart pounded against his chest. “You did?”
Lucas would’ve been fine with simply agreeing to forget the past two days and start over. After all, there was a lot he was sorry about, too. But now that she’d said the words, they were like a balm, healing him bone-deep.
“For lashing out.” She nodded and started walking slowly toward the stairs while she kept talking. “You’ve been amazing with my kids all summer.”
Her eyes danced as she set her foot on the first step. “Okay, maybe not when we first got here—but mostly amazing.”
“Thank you.” He laughed. “I think?”
“I was wrong about you,” she said, slowly climbing up the stairs while he moved down them, toward the landing.
Once there, he paused and waited for her to meet him in the middle. After all, wasn’t that their thing? “You were?”
“Maybe I wanted to be right, but you were just kind of…”
“Great?” he said.
She stepped onto the landing and closed the remaining the distance between them. Then she was suddenly right there, close enough for Lucas to catch the scent of her wind-tossed hair. It smelled like orange blossoms and sugared coconut, and it made him want to kiss her until summer turned to fall.
“Kinda.” Her smile radiated joy.
There was only one thing left to tell her, and he needed to do it now. They’d come too far to leave anything else left unsaid.
“So you don’t think that I’m a stubborn, messy surfer who’s totally distracted?” He arched a brow.
Jenna rolled her beautiful eyes. “Oh, you’re absolutely stubborn and…”
And?
She stared at him. “Wait. How are you quoting…?”
“The message you left for the rental agency?”
She blew out a breath as realization dawned. “You’re LM Management?” Then she swallowed, and Lucas traced the motion up and down the graceful column of her throat. “And you own the duplex.”
“Hey, summer camp isn’t a year-round gig. I had to diversify,” he teased.
But she still looked embarrassed, and Lucas didn’t want that. He didn’t want her to wish he hadn’t overheard the things she’d said. He just wanted her not to believe them anymore.
So he fixed his gaze with hers and told her the one thought he’d kept coming back to over and over, even when he’d worried he might never see her again. “I’m really glad that you stayed.”
She brightened. “I didn’t mean all those things I said.”
That wasn’t the whole truth, and they both knew it. She’d made her disdain for his freewheeling, houseplant-free lifestyle more than clear in the beginning. They’d both been wrong about a lot of things back then.
She shrugged. “Okay, maybe I did when I first said it, but I was wrong.”
He nodded. “I was, too.”
“You were?” she breathed.
Without a doubt. He’d been so terribly misguided, so thoroughly foolish about the most important thing of all. “I was wrong to think I could stay unattached to the three of you.”
It was important for him to make that clear. He didn’t just have feelings for Jenna—he loved Ally and Nick too. Although he suspected that Jenna had recognized how thoroughly he’d fallen for them even before he’d even been aware of it himself.
“Why do think I’m still hanging around here?” Had she actually believed he’d go anywhere without telling them goodbye? “You got me.”
She blinked furiously, but it didn’t stop her eyes from welling up. “What about your trip?”
“Don’t worry about that. I’ll catch up. I just couldn’t miss you.” He drew in a long breath, and he thought about the tie Jenna had given him after dinner a few nights ago and the look of pride on Ally and Nick’s faces when he’d opened it. That was the moment when Lucas had known they’d stolen his heart, the moment when everything changed. No matter how hard he’d tried not to believe it. “All of you.”
She smiled through a thick veil of tears.
“Are you crying?”
“No,” she said as more tears streamed down her face. “Why does everyone keep saying that?”
“Come here.” He reached for her, pulling her close, and just like that, it felt like every part of Lucas’s life clicked into place.
“What? I’m not crying,” she murmured into his shoulder.
“I know,” he whispered. If she wanted to pretend she was in control, he’d let her…
So long as she was his.
“What are we going to do?” she said, her voice equal parts wonder and worry.
He ran a soothing hand up and down her ba
ck. “About all of this?”
“About us?”
He pulled back just far enough to meet her gaze. Then he tucked her hair behind her ear and mustered as much solemnity as he possibly could. “First, I think we need to set some new rules. You know, guidelines.”
“Oh.” A smile tugged at her lips before she nodded in mock seriousness. “And what would those guidelines look like, exactly?”
“Rule number one, I definitely get to kiss you.” That was a biggie, far more important than no music after 9 p.m. or making sure Tank kept all four of his paws on Lucas’s side of the patio.
“Like right now?” A slow smile crept to her lips.
Like yesterday. Lucas nodded. “Preferably.”
“I’m willing to agree to that,” she said, all-business.
But when he cupped her face in his hands, the pretense fell away, leaving nothing but love behind. Love…
And the most perfect kiss Lucas could ever want—sweet like honey from the moment his lips touched hers. Alive and wistful, all at the same time. It had taken them a long, long time to get to this place, and now that they’d found their way, he never wanted to leave. Jenna and her kids were his heart.
His home.
And he no longer wanted that home split down the middle.
He rested his forehead against Jenna’s as her heartbeat crashed into his. “Now I’ve got one more rule that needs to be addressed.”
The sun dipped beneath the horizon, spilling rose-gold light over the sea as Jenna made her way over the dune with a few planks from the recently disassembled fence balanced in her hands.
Ally, Nick and Lucas walked along the sand beside her with the remaining boards split between them. Tearing down the dividing line that had separated the two halves of the beach house for five weeks straight had been a group effort. And now watching the last remaining bits of the fence burn into ash would be one too.
“So there are no sides anymore?” Nick asked as they cleared the sea oats and carried the wood toward the bonfire pit.
“You are free to roam,” Lucas said.
Ally glanced at him over her shoulder. “Does that mean Tank can come over whenever he wants?”
