He sighed. “Avery, I only spent four seconds with the guy, and your relationship isn’t any of my business.” Did she want him to wish her good luck? Tell her he thought Tucker was a great guy? He really hadn’t spent enough time with him to form a valid opinion and he doubted Avery would want to hear his invalid opinion, seeing as how it was hastily formed and based on raging jealousy.
Clearing his throat, he held up his oyster knife. “So I guess I’m supposed to use this for something?”
Avery hesitated only a moment before fully embracing David’s subject change. “Yes.” She looked at the oyster still in her hand. “So you slide the knife in here, at the hinge, like so,” she said, as she demonstrated, “then slide it all the way around the edge until you can lift the top right off.” She lifted the top of the shell, revealing a shining, shimmering . . . glob. David took a deep breath. He was really supposed to eat that thing? Steeling his nerves, he tried to smile at Avery. He’d seen some of the grossest things imaginable in the ER. He could handle this.
She laughed. “Oh my word. Try not to look so miserable. At least not until you actually try one.” She held out the oyster. “Here. You hold this, and I’ll doctor it up for you.”
“Wait, you’re going to make me eat it right now? Right here as we shuck them?”
“Absolutely,” Avery said. “At least this first one. I want to know what you think.”
“Right now now?” David asked again.
“Now now,” Avery said. “So first you add a little splash of lemon.” David watched as she squeezed the lemon slice over the oyster. “Then you add a little bit of olive oil, a little bit of garlic paste, and a healthy dollop of cocktail sauce.”
“And I’m just supposed to . . .” David felt panic rising in his throat and he swallowed it down. The panic, not the oyster. He still wasn’t sure he’d be able to manage that.
“Slurp it down,” Avery said. “Except, wait.” She picked up a little tiny fork off the tray. “It’s easier if you loosen it from the shell first. That way, it falls right into your mouth.” She stuck the fork under the oyster, wiggling it gently until the mass slid forward just slightly.
David held the oyster in his hand but made no move to lift it to his mouth.
“Come on!” Avery said, bouncing on her toes. “Shake it a little, then take it all in at once.”
He held the oyster to his lips but hesitated. “I don’t know if I can do it,” he said, legit fear in his voice.
Avery laughed. “Come on!” she said again. “Trust the flavor explosion. I promise you’ll love it.”
Gathering his nerves, he tilted the oyster into his mouth and slurped.
It actually did feel like a flavor explosion in his mouth. The salt of the oyster and the bite of the cocktail sauce and the smooth nutty flavor of the olive oil combined into something that actually tasted . . . good. He chewed and swallowed, then met Avery’s gaze, his eyes wide. “That was amazing.”
She held her hands up in victory. “See? I told you!”
“I mean, the texture is a little weird. But it’s totally worth it.”
“You get used to the texture,” Avery said. “Some people eat them with crackers so they have something to crunch, but I think the crackers dilute the flavor. This is the best way.”
“I trust you,” David said, surprised by how much he actually meant what he said. “Can I have another one?”
They stood on the back porch, laughing and talking as they shucked the rest of the oysters, then they took them inside where the conversation continued as they ate, right down to the very last oyster.
“The last one is yours,” Avery said. “You’re the guest.”
David shook his head. “But you’re the chef. You deserve it.”
“I’m pretty sure God was the chef of these. I can’t take the credit.”
David dressed the oyster, then handed it to her. “You at least get the credit for convincing me to try them. I’m officially converted.”
Avery grinned, then ate the last oyster, dropping the shell back onto the plate. “Get a little sun on those shoulders and we might make you a South Carolina boy yet.”
“I think I need to make it through my first hurricane before I can take that title,” David said with a roll of his eyes. “Get over my need to board up the windows when the first cloud blows in.”
Avery laughed and adrenaline surged through David’s veins. Knowing he’d caused that sound was the best kind of natural high.
“But you were so cute trying to board up your windows.”
“Very funny,” David said. Something crackled in the air between them. At least, David felt like something did, though he was far from an expert. But there was something about the way Avery looked at him, about the awareness in her gaze, that made him wonder. Did she sense it too? As far as he was concerned, everything about Avery felt both incredible and impossible all at the same time. He was afraid to look away, mostly because he couldn’t believe she was there, with him, in the first place.
An image of Tucker, his arms wrapped around Avery, flashed through his mind.
Stupid Tucker.
David pushed himself up from the table with enough force that his chair tipped backward, clattering to the kitchen floor.
Avery looked at him in surprise. “You okay?”
“Yeah.” He cleared his throat, trying to cover his discomfort. Stupid Tucker? No. Stupid ego—his ego—was likely more appropriate. He ran a hand across his jaw. “Want to go for a walk?”
Avery raised her eyebrows. “There’s more food. I baked some halibut. And then there’s dessert.”
“Oh, right. Of course there is. Sorry.” He moved to sit back down, but Avery stilled him with a hand on his arm.
“Let’s take a walk first,” she said. “You look like you could use some air. And the food will keep.”
David’s shoulders relaxed. Air sounded good. A walk sounded even better. Spending time with Avery made him feel a little like a caged animal. His feelings were so intense, so overwhelming, it took a lot of effort to remain calm. Normal.
His impulse was to just tell her. How beautiful he thought she was. How captivating he found her smile. How much he appreciated her sense of humor, her understated confidence. It was completely ridiculous. He’d only known the woman a couple of weeks. Only spent a handful of days in her presence.
David had never experienced anything like it before. When it came to relationships of any kind, he was cautious, careful. It generally took him a long time to warm up to new people. It hadn’t taken five minutes for him to warm up to Avery. Why was she so different? It made him feel reckless, which thrilled him and terrified all at the same time.
Chapter 7
Avery led David down the sandy path that cut between their backyards to the beach. Halfway there, the path turned into a worn, wooden walkway that wound through twenty-five yards of scrubby beach flora, a natural barrier that separated the water from the homes that lined the shoreline. It was one of the things she loved most about Sullivan’s. No long, concrete boardwalks, or looming hotels overshadowing the beach. Her island was wild and unpolished, just the way she liked it. The sun was low on the horizon behind them, minutes from dropping behind the island.
“It’s beautiful here,” David said, an echo to her own thoughts. “Sometimes when I’m working too much, I forget this is in my backyard.”
They hit the beach and turned right, walking toward the lighthouse that rose in the distance.
“You ought to come out here every day,” Avery said. “Make it a part of your bedtime ritual.”
“Is it part of your bedtime ritual?” He asked the question, but then looked away quickly enough that she almost missed the blush coloring his cheeks. She bit her lip, not wanting to smile and make him even more uncomfortable. Was it just that he’d referenced her bedtime routine that made him so nervous? Could the poor guy be any more adorable?
“Most nights, yes,” Avery said. “I think it makes it easier for me to fa
ll asleep.”
“Why? Because of the sounds?”
Avery shrugged. “That’s maybe a part of it. But it’s more about remembering that the world is so much bigger than I am, you know? It’s hard to look at the vastness of the ocean and stay lost inside your own head. Out here, I feel small. But not in a bad way.”
“No, I get that,” David said. “Like a reminder that all the little things that we make so important in our self-centered lives don’t actually matter when you think about how big the world really is. I felt that hiking the Andes in Bolivia.”
“Exactly!” Avery reached out and grabbed David’s arm, just above his wrist, excited that he understood how she felt. She’d tried to explain her feelings to Tucker once and he’d completely misunderstood. “How is feeling small a good thing?” he’d said, shooting her a confused look.
Before she moved her hand, David shifted, twisting his arm and catching her fingers with his own. It happened so fast she hardly knew how it happened, but it did happen, and she was legit holding his hand.
Heat traveled up her arm, pinging her heart in places she didn’t expect. What was happening to her? She wasn’t interested in David. David was . . . everything that had never been her type. Which meant she had to let go of his hand. She pulled her hand away, crouching down and adjusting the strap on her sandal that didn’t actually need adjusting. “Um, want to look for sand dollars?”
David paused before answering, looking at his hand a long moment before shoving it into his pocket. She’d tried to be subtle, but he’d clearly felt her rejection. “As long as you make sure I don’t kill any,” David said, a serious look in his eye.
His eyes somehow looked bluer on the beach. With little flecks of gold that shone in the late evening light. She suddenly wondered what he’d look like with his glasses off, his hair a little more tousled, the top few buttons of his shirt undone.
“Tucker’s an attorney,” she said abruptly, willing the image of her boyfriend into her mind. Or would she still call him her ex-boyfriend? Maybe her newly recycled boyfriend?
“Great,” David said, following behind her as she walked closer to the water. That’s where they’d find the best sand dollars.
“His father is in real estate. He owns half of Charleston, and Tucker sits on his legal team.”
“Good for him,” David said, his voice detached.
“He really is a nice guy,” Avery said. Why was she still talking about Tucker? “Maybe we could all go out sometime. On a double date or something. I have this friend at work I could set you up with, if you want. Her name is Shelley.”
David stopped, leveling her a stare that was so pointed, so completely transparent that it almost took Avery’s breath away. David’s eyes said everything, like they were some kind of conduit to his innermost thoughts.
I don’t want to go on a double date with you.
I don’t want to be set up with anyone.
I want you. I want you. I want you.
Still, he said nothing until he raised one shoulder in a half-shrug. “Sure. If you want.”
Avery swallowed, afraid to break eye contact. “Great.”
“Great,” David repeated.
Avery could almost picture Shelley and David together. Almost. Shelley would agree to it, she was sure, but only because Avery had told her David was a doctor. That kind of thing had always impressed Shelley.
And that didn’t sit right in Avery’s mind. David wasn’t just a status symbol or a six-figure income. He was a real guy who had a lot more to offer than his paycheck. But then, he wasn’t exactly the kind of guy that had dates lined up at his front door. Maybe it wasn’t such a bad thing if status got the girl on the date, as long as it wasn’t the only reason she stuck around. Avery grunted in frustration. Why did she care so much in the first place?
She didn’t.
She shouldn’t.
She wasn’t going to think about it anymore.
“Should we just keep standing here staring at each other?” David said.
Avery brought her focus back to the moment. “Sorry, let’s walk,” Avery said quickly, heading off again down the beach. She kept her eyes trained on the ground, looking for signs of the smooth, white sand dollars she knew they’d find hiding in the sand.
“You seem like you’ve got a lot on your mind,” David said as he fell in step beside her. “I can see you thinking.”
“Yeah?” As long as he couldn’t see what she was thinking, they might make it through the rest of the night. “I guess I do. Work stuff, and Tucker stuff. Family stuff.” She reached down and pulled a sand dollar out of the sand, rinsing it in the surf that swirled around her feet. She held it up. “See? The bottom is completely smooth. No little purple hairs. That’s how you know it’s already dead.”
“Got it,” David said. “What sort of family stuff? If you don’t mind me asking.”
“Nothing big,” Avery said. “My parents just keep pestering me to move upstate so I can be closer to them and my brother, Shawn. Shawn’s wife is from Greenville, and as soon as they had kids, my parents moved up so they could help out. I think my parents dream of perfect Sunday afternoon meals with all of us together.”
“That doesn’t sound so bad,” David said.
“Not at all. But, who wants to live in the Upstate? How could I when I’m used to this?” She held her arms out, motioning to the beach around her then spun around, her face tipped up to the sky. The first stars had appeared, twinkling next to the faintly red light she immediately recognized as Mars. “If you come out here in the wintertime, there’s an hour just before the sun sets when you can see four planets at once, stretching in an arc across the sky.” She pointed at Mars, then slowly traced a line across and down toward the horizon. “Mars, Saturn, Jupiter, and then Venus.” She looked back at David. “Jupiter will be out later tonight, but . . .” She shrugged. ‘The winter sky is better.”
David studied her a moment. “You really do love it here, don’t you?”
Avery smiled. “As much as I’ve ever loved anything.”
David reached down and picked up his own sand dollar, holding it up for Avery to inspect. “This one’s good, right?”
She pulled it from his hand, her fingers grazing against his in a way that shouldn’t have made her heart skip but did anyway. “Yep. That’s a keeper,” she said before handing it back.
They walked a few more steps in silence before David spoke again. “I love that about you.”
Avery looked at him and smiled. “What?”
“That you feel so passionately about things. That . . . I don’t know. It just seems like everything you do, you do it like you really mean it. I wish I could be more like that.”
“But you are like that, aren’t you? You’re clearly passionate about your work.”
“My work, yes. But you’re like that with everything.”
Avery stifled a laugh. “It got me in trouble when I was a kid. My mother used to tell me I had the ideas of a genius, but the forethought and impulse control of a drunken teenager.”
“Sounds like a dangerous combination,” David said. “But seeing as how I’ve only lived here a couple of months and I’ve already stitched you up once, maybe I shouldn’t be surprised.”
Avery bumped his shoulder with hers. “Hey, now. Don’t be judging. There was nothing unsafe about pressure washing my roof. That was just bad luck.”
“Weren’t you pressure washing your roof while on your roof?”
Avery rolled her eyes. “Fine. Maybe I could have been slightly safer. But there was one corner that I just couldn’t reach from the ladder. What else was I supposed to do?”
“I really do admire your boldness. If anything, I had too much impulse control growing up. It seems like all I did was watch from the sidelines, calculating the likelihood that I might get hurt or that someone might laugh at me. I went to a pool party once and spent an hour and forty-five minutes sitting on the side of the pool watching everyone else swim. I fi
nally found the courage to jump in fifteen minutes before the party was over. It was the best fifteen minutes I had all summer and I just remember thinking, why didn’t I jump in sooner? What was I so afraid of, you know?”
Avery shrugged. “I definitely recommend jumping in the pool, but . . . I don’t know. I think you’re pretty okay just the way you are.”
David smiled and Avery’s stomach tightened, some involuntary reflex that both thrilled and frustrated her at the same time. “Pretty okay, huh?” David said.
“Can I try something?” Avery stopped, turning David to face her. “Just for a minute.”
David raised an eyebrow. “I don’t know. The look in your eye makes me think I should maybe say no.”
She bit her lip. “Just trust me.”
The look on his face said he did trust her. He nodded slightly, permission to move forward with whatever it was she had planned. Slowly, Avery reached up and gently slid David’s glasses from his face. She folded the glasses and hooked them over the collar of her shirt then reached for David’s hair, running her fingers through the front, lifting it at the roots and mussing it just enough for him to look a little more casual. Finally, she unbuttoned the top button of his collared shirt. “There,” she said, her voice soft. “Now you look like you’re dressed for the beach.” Her hands lingered on his chest for a beat longer than necessary, long enough that she could feel the pounding of his heart through his shirt.
David cleared his throat. “Dressed for the beach but too blind to actually see it.”
Avery’s eyes widened. “That bad, huh?”
“Definitely that bad.”
“Fine. You can have the glasses back. But first, give me your phone.”
David pulled his phone from his pocket and unlocked the screen then handed it over. Avery turned so she and David faced the same direction, then leaned in before holding up the phone and snapping a photo of the two of them together. She returned the phone, then returned the glasses.
David put the glasses on before pulling up the photo. He studied it closely, Avery leaning over his arm to look too. “I hardly look like myself,” he said.
D is for Doctor (ABCs of Love Sweet Romance Book 4) Page 6
