Page 34 of Island Rescuer

She shook her head and handed him a towel. “It’s okay. Not too soon.” She crouched down and spread a towel on the sand for herself. “It’s a gorgeous night.”

“Would you rather I dragged down the chairs?”

“No, of course not. This is fun.”

He wasn’t entirely convinced. “And?” he pressed.

“And nothing.” She slipped out of her flip-flops and sat down, her face tilted upward toward him. “What’s in the bag, Knox?”

She couldn’t make it any clearer that he needed to move on. So he did. He arranged his towel close to hers and then opened the bag between them. He’d planned the surprise and he needed to follow through. “S’mores.” He quickly unpacked the supplies. Marshmallows, chocolate bars, graham crackers, extendable skewers, and napkins.

Her smile bloomed and a peal of laughter followed. “S’mores!” She clapped her hands together. “Brilliant. You thought of everything.”

Everything except her nightmare about fire. “I try.”

“This is great.” She reached over and touched his forearm. “I mean it. Thank you.”

“The fire rattled you.”

“Only for a second. You’re here. We’re together. It’s almost like a date.”

Almost.“Under the circumstances, I thought we could pretend.”

“Yes,” she agreed enthusiastically.

What he wouldn’t give to take her on a real date. For his sole focus to be romancing her, watching over her purely out of joy, without any security concerns. He leaned in and kissed her gently. She leaned into the contact, her sweet taste making his head spin.

Harper Ellington was special, inside and out. Always had been. But even with their newfound personal connection, he could see the looming threat dimming her usual shine. He wanted to promise her the world—a safe and happy world free of worries.

As if.

Better to focus on the small joys like this night and make it as special as possible for both of them.

With twilight falling, they laughed like a couple of kids as they roasted marshmallows and debated the ideal ratio of chocolate to graham crackers. They traded stories about summer camps they’d both attended—though in different years. She’d also been sent to Europe to learn the industry from another perspective thanks to her father’s connections.

Being overseas was probably why she’d never heard the gory details of his misadventures. Something to be grateful for.

She stacked two marshmallows on the skewer and held it out over the fire. “I used to be so jealous of Rhett,” she mused.

“Why?”

“He got to attend hospitality school in France.”

“But you just said?—”

“I was sent to Italy, more of a private exchange program with the Bollani family. Except Trina went to France rather than study here in Charleston. This is really the first chance we’ve had to be friends.”

“Hold on.” He struggled to catch up. “You knew Trina from before?”

“We’d met, yes. But she went to school with Rhett in France. Her family seemed to trust her ability to handle herself away from home.”

“Your family trusts you.”

“Now, maybe.” She waved off her grumpiness. “Probably then. I know I’m lucky and blessed or whatever spin you want to put on it. My family is fabulous. They empowered me. Gave me a career and a future. I’ve seen the ugly-family flip side up close with Hannah and Sonya.”

And him, but neither of them said it. “Family support is a big deal.”

“Mine definitely supports me,” she agreed. “But they also went over the top sheltering me. Then and now.”

---