Forty and Free: A Sweet Romance Series Bundle - Books 1 - 4

by Blake, Lillianna

Ella lowered her sunglasses enough to look over at the two. Then she pushed them back up and looked down at her book. But she wasn’t reading. It was impossible.

  Now she was intrigued by the two. They seemed to be alone on the beach. Where was the wife? She glanced around to see if there was another woman nearby. She didn’t notice anyone.

  When she looked back at the two, Tommy was running straight toward his father. The older man jumped out of the way just in time for Tommy to slide face first into the sand.

  “No tackling, I’m too old for that.”

  In an effort to keep her peace and to ignore the way the man’s muscles rippled every time he moved, she stuck her earbuds into her ears and started playing some music on her phone. She could find ways to block them out.

  As the soothing tunes filled her senses, she began to relax. She started the same paragraph she’d attempted to read for the past few minutes. Just when she was getting to the next scene—a very intense moment between the two main characters—she noticed a shadow fall across her.

  She looked up in time to see the older man slide right beside her chair. He managed to catch the football—evidenced by the way it thumped against his broad chest—but he kicked up a lot of sand in the process. The sand sprayed across her stomach and even a bit up into her face. She sputtered as she sat up in her chair. There was no way to brush it off, as it was sticking to the sunscreen on her skin.

  “I’m so sorry.” He leaned over her, so close that she couldn’t help but look into his eyes. “Are you okay?”

  Ella was prepared to put him in his place, but when she looked into his eyes, her words caught in her throat. She wasn’t sure if she was dizzy from the rush of getting hit with the sand, or the impact of his deep brown eyes.

  She pushed her sunglasses back up on her nose. “You should really be more careful.”

  “I’m sorry—my son—he wasn’t paying attention. I didn’t mean to get sand on you, but I didn’t want the ball to hit you.” He frowned.

  It seemed to her that he was genuinely apologetic, but her temper still flared.

  “Your son?” She looked past him to Thomas, who seemed to be looking at everything but her.

  “Yes. He recently turned eighteen. This is our last trip together before he goes off to college.” He shrugged. “We’re just trying to revisit our youth a bit, I guess.”

  “I can see that.” She raised an eyebrow. “Well, maybe you could enjoy your time together somewhere far away from me?”

  “Sure, of course. Again, sorry for the hassle. I’m sure all the sand can be washed off by a quick dip in the water.”

  “I didn’t want to go in the water. I wanted to sit here and read my book—which is what I was doing before you and your son interrupted me.”

  Dane’s eyes narrowed. She noticed the shift in his stance, from relaxed to tense.

  “I apologized. I am truly sorry that we interrupted your peaceful moment. However, there’s no rule against playing football on the beach.”

  “There’s no rule against wanting peace either.” She scrunched up her nose and stared at him. “This is supposed to be a peaceful place, not a sports arena.”

  “It’s the beach. People have different ideas of peaceful. I never quite understand people who go to the beach just to sit and read. You have paradise in front of you, but you need to escape into what?” He peered at the cover of her book.

  Ella was mortified as she watched him mouth the title. “Oh, vampire romance novel, huh?”

  “It’s not what you think.” She blinked as her cheeks grew hot. “It’s a love story.”

  “Okay.” He smirked. “That’s why the guy with the fangs doesn’t have any clothes on.”

  “It’s a cape. He’s wearing a cape.” She clutched her book tighter.

  “Hm. Well, if it’s a naked vampire you’re looking for, I’m not sure that you’re going to find him on a sunny beach.” He quirked an eyebrow. “Maybe a dark alley?”

  “I can read whatever I please. Perhaps you should be more concerned with your son’s behavior than a stranger’s reading habits. It was no accident that he threw that football this way.” She lowered her sunglasses enough that he could see her glare.

  “It was an accident, I’m sure of it. But again, you’re right, we shouldn’t have disturbed you. We’ll just move along and leave you to your love story.” He winked at her.

  She wanted to be furious, but instead she found herself lost in his eyes. It was quite possibly the most irritating thing she’d ever experienced. She wanted to come up with a sharp retort, but she was too distracted by the way his lips curved into a playful smile.

  Instead, she snapped her book open and held it up in front of her face to hide her blush. Of course this only revealed the back cover, which featured a scantily clad heroine.

  She knew he’d walked away when his shadow moved away from her.

  Her heart raced in his absence. She wanted to tell him exactly what he could do with his apology, but she couldn’t bring herself to peek out from behind her book.

  Once again she reminded herself that she was not going to be involved with any more men—not for a while. And especially not a man like that. Nope, no way. It wasn’t going to happen.

  She reread the same paragraph yet again.

  Chapter 6

  Dane found it difficult to walk away from the woman without apologizing again. Still, he forced himself to, as his apologies only appeared to be making her more angry.

  He thought about the way he’d reacted to her so impulsively. Even as the words flew out of his mouth, he regretted them. He certainly had no business poking fun at her reading material. His heart sunk as he was reminded of why he steered clear of romance. The truth was, he had never been any good at it.

  Pam had had to give him step-by-step instructions for Valentine’s Day. She’d always dropped little reminders a few weeks before their anniversary so that he wouldn’t forget. When he thought of all of the times he must have disappointed her with his inattentiveness, it made his chest ache. But never once did she complain. She’d accepted him for who he was, with all of his faults. He knew there was very little chance of ever finding something like that again.

  Thomas fell into step beside him. “Wow! Dad, you really told her.”

  “I don’t know what came over me.” Dane shook his head, feeling his cheeks burn with shame. “I never should have talked to her like that.”

  “Well, she was being rude.”

  “Was she? I did cover her in sand. I think we were the ones who were rude first. Don’t you?”

  “I guess. We got a little carried away.” Thomas looked away toward the water.

  “Thomas, we’ve had our talks, and I know you don’t want to hear more, but I need to tell you this…” He paused and snapped his fingers to get his son’s attention. “Can you listen to me, please?”

  “Sorry.” Thomas turned to look at him. The boyish smile on his lips made Dane smile, despite the seriousness that he was feeling in the moment.

  He put a hand on his son’s shoulder and looked into his eyes. “I used to think that my words didn’t matter. I could always take them back—apologize and make things better. But I promise you, when you say something hurtful to the woman you love, the hurt in her eyes is going to be something that you won’t forget. She will tell you that she forgives you—and she will try—but when you break that spell—when you tread on her feelings as if they don’t matter—she won’t ever truly forget.”

  “What are you talking about, Dad?” Thomas narrowed his eyes. “Love isn’t like that any more. People fight all the time.”

  “There’s a difference between arguing and hurting. Never lose sight of who is standing in front of you. Dating may have changed, romance may be old-fashioned, but love itself does not change.”

  “Alright, alright. I’ll try to remember.”

  “I mean it, Thomas. Your words have power. Don’t think for a second that the way I spoke to that woman is ever
an acceptable way to treat a lady. I don’t know where my senses went, but it wasn’t right.”

  “Maybe they disappeared along with the rest of her bikini.” Thomas laughed.

  “Oh, but you are still eighteen, aren’t you?” Dane gave his shoulder a playful slap. “How about a swim?” Dane tossed the football down in the sand. “We can give her space and still have fun.”

  “I don’t know, I see a few ladies that I might like to toss a football at.” Thomas glanced around at the young women lined up on the more populous part of the beach.

  Dane grabbed his shoulder and turned him back around. “Are you saying that you did that on purpose? You overthrew the ball so it would hit her?”

  “I didn’t expect you to catch it.” Thomas shrugged.

  “Why would you do that?” Dane narrowed his eyes. “That’s absurd. She could have been hurt.”

  “Because I thought she was cute—you know, for an older chick. I thought maybe you might like her. It’s a great way to start a conversation. It worked at summer camp last year.”

  “Oh, son, we’re going to have to work on your idea of romance.” Dane sighed and glanced back at the woman. “There is never an excuse for disrupting a person’s peace. And,” he turned back to his son. “I’ve already told you multiple times I’m not interested in any kind of relationship. When are you going to accept that?”

  “Never.” Thomas winked at him, then rushed off into the water.

  Dane rolled his eyes and charged after him. When his body struck the warm water he was reminded to take it slow. All of his efforts at the gym had made him strong, but his body still had some new creaks that he’d not felt before. He eased his way further out and felt the tug of the current.

  “That current is pretty strong. Don’t go out too far,” he shouted toward his son.

  “Yes, Dad. Do you want me to wear my floaties too?”

  “Ha ha.” Dane sent a wall of water in his son’s direction.

  Thomas ducked under the water to avoid it.

  The more they played, the more Dane forgot about his frustration with his son. He was only trying to do his old dad a favor. Still, he felt badly that the woman had been a target of his son’s reckless behavior. Beyond that, he was shocked by his own response to her. He’d always prided himself on being courteous—especially to women—and yet he had traded insults without batting an eye. He decided that he’d have a bottle of wine sent to her room as an apology.

  He dove under the water and swam hard to try to clear his mind. If she’d had that much of an affect on him it was impossible to imagine what it would be like to have to see her again.

  When he emerged from the water, he was surprised to be greeted by the sight of her. He watched as she waded in, stretching her body out to float on top of the water. It was amazing to him that despite the exchange they’d shared, he was subtly fascinated by her. It wasn’t quite an interest as much as a curiosity. He wanted to look away, and yet the draw remained.

  To cleanse himself of it, he dove down under the water once more.

  Chapter 7

  Even after the two men had left, it was difficult for Ella to calm down. Her heart pounded. Her mind whirled from anger at the disruption, but she also felt annoyed with herself for her behavior. She was known to have a sharp tongue, but sometimes she wished that she didn’t.

  Most of the men she dated wouldn’t dare to question her. Even when there was an argument, most wouldn’t come back at her the way that the man on the beach had. But maybe that was because she never let a relationship last much longer than a few dates. She told herself it was so that the fun wouldn’t turn into obligation, but she knew better than that. It was because she didn’t want any man becoming too engrained in her life.

  No matter how she tried to get back into her book, she wasn’t able to relax enough to enjoy it. One moment she wanted to apologize for being so harsh, the next she wanted to demand another apology from him. But what remained consistent throughout was her desire to look into his eyes again. That need made a shiver race down her spine.

  What was it about him that had gotten her attention? He was handsome enough, with a toned body, but she was used to dating younger men, so there was nothing terribly attention-grabbing about his looks.

  She tossed down her book. No matter how many times she read the words she couldn’t find a way to stop thinking about the man. As infuriating as it was, she was curious about him. The problem was, she didn’t want to be curious about him. She wanted to forget him entirely.

  As she stood up from the beach chair she scanned the beach for any sign of the father and son duo. She spotted them in the water roughhousing yet again. With a shake of her head, she walked for a few minutes along the beach to put some distance between them.

  As soon as she put one foot into the water all of the confusion she felt toward her encounter with the man disappeared along with the flow of the water. She waded out further and further until the water was deep enough for her to float. She stretched out on her back and let the buoyancy of the water support her. It felt nice to be weightless.

  As the current rocked her, she relaxed even more. It wasn’t long before she let her ears dip beneath the waves. With the subtle lull of the water, she recalled the sailboat that Louis had chartered for them.

  It had been during sunrise, the horizon endless. He’d reached out and traced his fingertips along her cheek, smiling at her. The moment had been so precious to her that she closed her eyes and did her best to memorize it. Now she only wished that she could forget it.

  A stray splash of water rushed across her cheek and tickled the corner of her lips. Maybe the vacation was a mistake. Years of avoiding her emotions had left her paralyzed by the prospect of actually facing them. Dwelling even for a minute on the past caused a flood of memories to come rushing back.

  “I love you, Lou.” She’d grabbed his hand and held onto it even as he continued toward the door.

  “Stop, Ella. You’re better than this. We had our fun. Let’s just leave it at that.”

  “Fun?” She was startled by the word. There were a million words she would have used to describe the relationship that she’d had with her husband—passionate, soulful, intimate, romantic. Fun was not one of them. “Are you trying to say that you never loved me?”

  The way he’d looked at her then was burned into her memory, despite every attempt to forget it—the quirk of his brow, the way his lips curled, even the subtle chuckle that was barely above a whisper. It was all she needed to hear to know that she’d been fooled—more than just fooled, she was left heartbroken.

  While she’d been professing her love to him, he’d only been playing a game with her.

  During the months that followed their divorce, she’d become determined never to be that vulnerable again. Even as time passed, she found herself sticking to that determination. It was the main reason why, when she dated, she stuck to a rule of keeping an emotional distance. She would not be fooled again.

  Perhaps the draw of a stranger on the beach was enough to get her attention, but she couldn’t expect it to be more than that. Instead, she focused her attention on the subtle sounds of the underwater world that filled her ears.

  Weightless and drifting, she opened her eyes. The expansive clear blue sky above her invited her to let her mind wander. She could imagine herself anywhere she pleased, but surprisingly, she was perfectly content in the moment, caught between the water and the sky as her mind stretched as wide as the ocean. She had no concept of where she was, or where the shore was. It never occurred to her that she was drifting—and at a rather rapid rate. All that mattered was the peace that washed over her.

  Isolated from the rest of the swimmers, she didn’t anticipate any interruptions. She could unwind and just be herself. As her own hopes began to emerge, a life far different than the one she’d expected began to form in her mind’s eye.

  She’d convinced herself that she could be alone and deliriously happy; but cut of
f from the outside world, deprived of gravity and all sense of boundaries, the truth had somehow emerged in the form of deep brown eyes and a smile just for her.

  One man, who knew her inside and out and would never lie to her—that’s what she truly wanted.

  Whether it was a bit of water or a tear that slid down her cheek, she couldn’t be sure. She didn’t have time to think about it as she felt the brush of fingertips along her arm.

  Chapter 8

  Dane couldn’t help but look over in the woman’s direction. It was as if there was a magnetic draw that pulled his attention to her. He’d noticed, with his last few glances, that she seemed to be getting further and further away. He wasn’t familiar with the water, but he knew enough to think that she was out too far.

  Still, he reminded himself to mind his own business. She could be an Olympic swimmer for all he knew.

  “Thomas, I bet we could sign up for some snorkeling lessons. What do you think?”

  “Sounds good.” Thomas sprawled out on his back in the water. “Are you ready to head back? Getting tired?”

  “Not just yet.” Dane looked over in the woman’s direction again. He didn’t want to leave the water until he was sure that she was safe. Then he looked back at his son. “You can go ahead if you want.”

  “No, that’s okay. I’ll wait for you. I’m going to swim for a bit.”

  “Okay, take it easy though.”

  “I will.”

  Thomas began to swim across the water. Dane watched him for a moment. He remembered the argument he and Pam had had over Thomas’s first swimming lesson.

  “He’s too young, Dane.”

  “The earlier he learns, the better.”

  “But he’s told you that he’s scared.”

  “That’s only because he hasn’t done it yet. Once he does, he’ll love it.”

  “Or, if we push him while he’s too young, he might never want to swim.” Pam shook her head. “I don’t think it’s a good idea.”

  “I already signed him up, Pam.”

  “We should have talked about it first.”

  “Look, I know why you’re concerned. But I’m his father and I should get a say too. If he doesn’t learn how to swim, then every time we’re around water he’ll be in danger. It just makes sense to teach him now.”