Somewhere With You (Windswept Bay Book 2) (7 page)

“Good for you. You must be hurting. Grieving. You should never have been working in the first place.”

“I had commitments. My father was a stickler for keeping commitments.”

“Your father died. You’re entitled to mourn.”

He stared at her; she’d echoed in similar ways what he’d told Kym. “It’s more than that, though. I realized that I don’t want to live my life where all that matters is work and commitments to work. I’ve never taken a vacation. I’ve been to some of the most beautiful places in the world but I’ve looked at it from behind a glass hotel room window, a car window, and a conference room window.” He turned to face her. “And then I meet you. You’re passionate about something and you’re vibrant and alive and caring.”

She stood on the top step and he was one step below her, making them eye to eye. He reached for her and she came hesitantly at first into his arms. “You draw me to you like nothing I’ve ever felt before.” His adrenaline raced with the feel of her in his arms. He knew he was moving too fast but he’d never felt as passionate about anything in his life as he did about Shar. And it was hard to hold back.

She placed her arms around him and hugged him tightly. He felt her heart thundering against his. He just held her. They stood like that for a long moment with the sound of the ocean behind them and the moonlight surrounding them.

After a moment, she pulled out of his arms. “You’ve never had a vacation?”

“Never. Until now.”

“That’s just sad. We’ll have to do something about that. I have an early morning and a busy day tomorrow. What are you doing at five-thirty in the morning?”

He narrowed his eyes. “I don’t know—why?”

“I look for turtle nests at various places every morning. I try to go at sunrise before too many other people are stirring. You can come, if you want?”

“I want,” he said without hesitation. He pulled her back into his arms and then lowered his lips to hers. The taste of salt air on her lips was a reminder that he was in a tropical place on a magical night. He made the kiss quick, not trusting the emotions that threatened to overwhelm him.

“You have a good night,” he said, his voice husky.

She nodded and backed out of his arms, turning to the door. She pulled a key from her pocket and had the door opened quickly. Rufus raced inside as if he was overjoyed to be back at his place.

“Gage.” She turned back to him. “I’m not looking for a relationship. Nothing serious.”

Her words didn’t surprise him. He’d felt that about her. And understood it to a point, he thought. He cupped her jaw. “One day at a time,” he said. “I’ll see you in the morning.”

He left then, heading back the way they’d come. Not giving her the chance to say more.

Chapter Eight

Shar couldn’t think straight as she watched Gage disappear across the sand. Every fiber of her body hummed a happy tune from the kisses that he’d given her and she could still feel the last one. Her fingers went to her lips automatically, as if touching her lips where he’d kissed her would hold onto the feelings he’d drawn from her.

She wasn’t on the market for a relationship. She wasn’t.

But…could she stop what he made her feel?

Locking the door, she forced herself to stop watching the beach where he had been and she headed to her room to get ready for bed.

He’d lost his dad and he’d never been on a vacation, despite all the money he obviously had. There was more to life than just work.

Her own father had worked long hours at the resort when she was growing up but he’d always had time for her and her brothers and sisters. There was a balance and it was obvious Gage’s dad hadn’t had that. And neither had Gage.

The entire idea threw her into a tailspin and she’d been unable not to invite Gage to her early morning excursions. She could tell that he might not realize it but he was in need of some life. And she couldn’t help showing him what he’d been missing. She liked to rescue things…and she couldn’t help the feeling that Gage Lancaster needed rescuing.

The fact that he attracted her like nothing she’d ever felt was an exciting addition that she also couldn’t ignore. She’d just have to let him know up front that she was not one to get tied down.

Nope. Not her. And yet there was no denying that she couldn’t wait till sunrise.

When Shar pulled up outside Gage’s home the next morning, he was waiting on the front porch of the massive house. He jogged toward the car and her heart skipped beats…she’d anticipated seeing him even in the short hours that she’d managed to sleep.

“I’ve been waiting for hours to see you again.” He slid into the seat next to her and before she could react, he’d leaned across and kissed her soundly on the lips.

A protest formed in the back of her mind but the exhilaration of his touch buried it behind the haze of joy that filled her. “It was a short night,” she managed as he relaxed back in the seat and smiled at her.

“Too long if you ask me,” he said. “I’m ready for the sunrise with you.”

Shar was not often at a loss for words but she was now. Not finding a coherent reply, she drove. Finally, words seeped into her thoughts. “It’s going to be a beautiful sunrise. I can guarantee it. We’re going to one of my favorite beaches on the opposite side of the island. We get sunsets on this side; we get sunrises on the opposite.”

“Sounds good to me. Is it far?”

“Nothing on the island is far.” She began to feel more herself as she drove.

“I’m starting to realize that. It’s not like Manhattan. Of course, a cab can get you where you want but it’s never a straight, easy shot in traffic.”

She laughed. “I’ve never been to New York. Not sure I’d like it.”

“It’s certainly different than here but it has its charm. You’ll have to come visit sometime. I’ll show you everything.”

She looked across at him. “Does that mean you’re going to slow down and enjoy yourself a little more than you have in the past?”

He looked thoughtful. “I’ve given it some thought and I’m going to make some changes.”

For some reason she wasn’t quite sure about, his words made her sad and happy at the same time. “Good. I’m glad.”

“But right now I’m going to enjoy the sunrise and searching for clutches with you.”

Those words caused a whirlwind in the pit of her stomach. “Sounds good. And well deserved.”

As they arrived at the beach, the thin pink line of sunrise was just beginning to peek over the horizon. She parked her car. “Let’s grab the gear and head out,” she said.

“Lead the way.” He joined her at the back of her vehicle.

Within moments, they were jogging along the water’s edge toward the rising sun. The gentle waves lapped just a few feet from them. Gage’s stride was longer than hers but he paced himself with her.

“I just watch for turtle trails coming from the water. You usually can’t miss them. And then we mark the area with the eggs. It warns curious people to stay away.”

She’d pulled on her backpack today that held small flags and yellow tape warning people to stay back. She’d made the mistake of not wearing her backpack on her own beach and had needed her knife that day.

“So you do this every morning?”

“Every morning. I need exercise and so the two hobbies go together well.”

“Multi-tasking at its best.” He grinned. “Hey, there.” He pointed to tracks ahead of them in the dim morning light.

“Yes, that’s what we’re looking for,” Shar said, happy he’d spotted it first. She’d been slightly distracted by him. “I had a feeling today would be a good day.”

“So you don’t find them every day?” he asked.

She pulled off her backpack and pulled out a couple of red flags and handed them to Gage. “Take these and we’ll push them into the ground on either side of the hole. No, there’s not enough of me to go around. But someone finds them and calls them in. I just enjoy the thrill of finding them myself.”

He laughed. “I totally get it.”

She heard the excitement in his voice and she felt that he did get it. Not everyone who’d ever been in her life had felt the same way.

She pulled out a notebook and noted where the nest was and then from where they stuck out of the backpack, she pulled out three wooden sticks each eighteen inches long. She handed these to Gage too. Last, she pulled out a flyer that cautioned people to stay back and not to touch the sea turtle nest.

Within seconds, they had three stakes in the ground around the nest and then the caution tape was attached from one stick to the other so that it made a protective barrier.

“And so our work is done. And just before the sun comes up.”

Gage picked her backpack up and strapped it on his back. “I’ll carry this for you. I had actually forgotten about the sunrise.” He smiled.

“Me too. Come on.”

She jogged a short distance to a flat rock big enough for two. “I love to watch the sunrise from here.”

They sat beside each other on the rock, arms brushing. They were barely touching and yet Shar had never felt so attuned to anyone in her life.

“I had a blast,” Gage said later, as he got out of the car in front of his house.

“I did too. You helped a creature that’s struggling with extinction today. Every one that we can save is one more to carry on.”

He got that. Not until he’d seen the eggs had it hit him, though. “I get what you’re doing, Shar. I could get hooked on it too.”

She smiled over at him. Excitement sparkled in her eyes and he understood it now, the determination she had and the exhilaration she felt when she found a nest.

He could become obsessed with that feeling himself. He wondered whether that was how his father felt in business. Gage had never felt that kind of all-consuming drive and passion…until he’d met Shar. Until he saw her passion and he wondered what it would feel like to have that passion directed at him. Someone was going to be a lucky man one day. Shar Sinclair was a special woman.

“I’ll see you later. Have a good day at work.”

She’d told him that she jogged and looked for sea turtles eggs early and then showered and headed by the hospital to check on the turtles; then she headed to work by nine. She’d said that she and her sisters had decided earlier that year to take over the running of the resort so their parents could retire. And they were doing some remodeling.

She was, he decided, a very busy lady.

“Oh wait,” she said. “My schedule is off today. It’s going to be busy. I’m picking up bridesmaids’ dresses from the cleaners today. The wedding is at the resort and it’s almost here.” She shook her head. “I can’t believe it.”

“Your sister and Grant?” He clarified making sure he was following her rushed words.

“Yes. You’re very welcome to come to the party. We’re having the wedding on the beach of the resort but there will just be family and a few close friends of the family. But then we’re opening the reception up to the resort guests and friends.”

“It sounds like a fun time. I’d hate to intrude.”

“Believe me, you won’t be. There’s a lot going on behind the scenes and there will be press there and photographers taking shots for advertising purposes, along with the regular wedding photographer. It was the best way we could come up with a solution to promote the resort without inviting the whole world to Cali and Grant’s wedding. We’re just hoping no helicopters show up.”

He laughed, and then realized she was serious. “I guess Grant is the reason for that?”

“Hey, it could be my sister or the resort,” she teased indignantly. “But it’s not. It’s Grant. Cali has had to adjust to the idea.”

“I bet.”

“Come by when you have time and I’ll show you the murals.”

“You’ve got a deal. Talk to you later.” He closed the door and smiled as she drove away. He smiled all the way into the house as he headed toward the shower.

Chapter Nine

“Everything looks wonderful,” Cali said, later that morning as she looked at the decorations for the wedding. “Just beautiful.”

“It’ll look better when it’s not set up in a storage area.” Shar looked around the room with a critical eye. She wanted this wedding to be wonderful for Cali and Grant. And setting everything up here so that they could get a small sense of how it was actually going to come together out on the beach had been her idea.

Not only did it need to be picture-perfect for Cali, they were using the wedding in some advertisements on social media and in brochures. Because there was a lot of interest in Grant Ellington, the famous sea life artist and his wedding, Shar and Jillian had talked Cali into letting the resort gain some of that free publicity. But it had to be perfect.

Shar studied the white and soft blues that matched the water perfectly and the ribbons and lace, satisfied that this was going to be an outstanding wedding for her sister. The idea tugged hard at her heart in an unexpected moment of wistfulness.

“Put the water and the Lookout Point in the backdrop and it will be spectacular,” she said.

“The wedding of the year.” Jillian wiped tears from her eyes. “I am so overwhelmed. I’m speechless so I can’t imagine how I’ll be on the actual wedding day. Oh, Cali, this is what you deserve and this time you’re going to get all your dreams.”