Page 52 of Summer Love

He showed me how to install the floors, leaving space between the boards to give them room to expand. I focused on the job, and we worked until our stomachs rumbled.

"Let's grab lunch." Hudson headed toward the door.

I raised a brow. "We can leave for lunch?"

He grinned boyishly. "I'm the boss. We can do whatever we want. You want to get out of here?"

"Yeah." I stood up and brushed off my jeans. We weren't doing dirty work necessarily, but I felt hot and sweaty.

"Tacos or subs?" he asked when we were in the cab of his truck.

"Can we sit on the beach?" I asked him, rolling down the window so I could feel the breeze on my face.

"I know a food truck that's in the perfect location for that." Hudson grinned over at me, and I felt his excitement. It was like we were playing hooky from school or something.

I turned on the radio to a popular song, singing along to the words.

When we parked, Hudson turned off the engine. "I didn't realize you were one of those people who sang to the radio."

"Only sometimes."

His eyes crinkled at the corners. "The windows are down?"

I grinned. "Exactly. Conditions have to be just right."

We walked up to the truck, ordering several tacos and iced teas, then carried everything to the beach. He'd thought to grab a blanket, so he threw it on the sand. "I think this is the first time I've done this during a workday."

"How can you not do it more? It's the perk of living on an island. You have to come over to the beach as much as possible."

"I think I take it for granted. If I didn't live on the beach, I'm not sure I'd go out of my way to take a walk on it or just sit and eat lunch."

I bumped his shoulder. "Stick with me. I'll loosen you up. Remind you of the good things in life."

"I believe that."

We ate our tacos, the toppings falling in the sand, attracting some of the birds. Hudson shooed them away.

"You look ridiculous chasing birds."

He plopped onto the blanket next to me. "I want to enjoy our lunch in peace."

We finished our tacos and sipped our teas. "That was a nice break after being on our knees all morning." We'd used pads and gloves, but it was hard work.

"You're a trooper. I never expected you to last this long or even participate in the work."

"If only my Boston friends could see me now. They'd think I was crazy. Installing floors for a story and eating lunches on the beach. They'd say I was unmotivated."

"They'd want to talk you into going back."

"They think you have to be in the city to have more opportunities. But everyone there is about pretenses, and how things look on the outside. Here, it's real. Life moves according to the weather and tourist season. It's slower but more intentional. And I think that's what my old friends were missing. When you slow down, you can really analyze things and make better decisions."

"Are you making better decisions since you've been home?" Hudson asked.

"Yeah, I think I am. I'm certainly happier, less stressed. I'm still worried about keeping this job. That Valerie won't need a full-time staffer, but we'll see."

"Will you be happy writing this kind of stuff?"

"As long as I get to research people's stories and write the articles from that angle, I'll be okay."

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