Page 51 of Summer on Sunshine Bay

He shook his head with a laugh. “You sound like you think I have the answers to your and David’s problems.”

“You don’t?” she asked, only half teasing.

He smiled. “My advice, for what it’s worth, is to kick back and relax. We’ve just enjoyed a great meal, we’ve got amazing music playing in the background and a truly spectacular sunset to enjoy.” He lifted his beer bottle. “To the good life.”

She smiled and lifted her water bottle. “La Dolce Vita.” And to her handsome dinner date, she thought as the tension seeped from her body.Companion, Lila corrected herself in her head, and then she corrected herself again:friend.

Chapter Fifteen

Eva stood in her bare feet on La Dolce Vita’s deck, wearing a man’s white T-shirt and a pair of black leggings, wondering how much wine she’d actually consumed the night before. She was positive it had been only two glasses, and small ones at that because her sister was monitoring her wine consumption in an effort to eradicate Eva’s hot flashes. But she must’ve sneaked a few when Gia wasn’t looking. It was the only explanation for how her sister and Jennifer had talked her into joining Gia’s early-morning yoga class.

Eva glanced at the cluster of people standing in the sand several yards from the restaurant. There were at least twenty of them in varying states of undress. The majority of them were women who wore brightly colored yoga pants with sports bras or tank tops, along with a couple of men who wore spandex shorts with T-shirts. One brave soul wore a Speedo.

Her sister and Jennifer stood at the front of the class. Apparently they had coordinated their outfits. They were wearing neon-green yoga shorts and matching sports bras, which showed off their firm and lean bodies. They clearly spent a lot of time with their yoga mats.

Eva turned to head back to her apartment. With the number of people in the class, she doubted her sister and Jennifer would even notice she wasn’t there. She’d tell them she’d sneaked in late for the class and left early.

“Eva!” Jennifer called, waving a blue mat. “I found an extra one for you.”

The woman was annoyingly chipper this morning considering she’d nearly polished off an entire bottle of wine on her own the night before. She’d been vivacious and funny, open and at ease, while they discussed how to update La Dolce Vita and how to take the pressure off Lila.

Eva didn’t believe the full-bodied cabernet sauvignon she’d paired with bacon-wrapped Gorgonzola-stuffed dates and a savory mushroom tart was responsible for Jennifer letting her hair down. It was more likely due to her getting out from under her husband’s thumb. Eva had told her she should do it more often while ignoring James’s warning glance. She’d also tucked Sage’s business card into Jennifer’s purse when he wasn’t looking, before loading her into a cab.

At Jennifer’s greeting, Gia looked up, seemingly surprised that Eva had honored her promise. Eva didn’t know why. She’d never broken a promise to her sister before. Still, she was considering offering an excuse—Carmen needed her in the kitchen—until Gia’s gorgeous face split into a wide grin that held a hint of a challenge.

Eva sighed as she stomped down the stairs to the beach. She never backed down from a challenge, something her sister knew only too well.

It was a gorgeous morning with cotton candy clouds sailing across the cerulean sky on a light breeze, ensuring that the sand was cool between Eva’s toes. She smelled coconut sunscreen as she made her way around the other participants, who were getting situated on their mats.

“Thanks,” she said to the smiling Jennifer, and took the proffered mat.

Jennifer patted the sand. “I saved you a place.”

“I think I’ll pass. I’m about as flexible as a fork. I’ll be more comfortable at the back of the class. You can join me if you want to.”

“Do you mind if I stay here?”

“Not at all,” she said, secretly relieved. Unlike her, she imagined Jennifer was as flexible as a wet noodle. She also seemed like the type of woman who’d sat at the front of the class in school, waving her hand for the teacher to call on her. The last thing Eva wanted was Jennifer drawing attention her way.

Gia, who’d been talking to Speedo Guy, smiled and pointed to the spot Eva was scoping out for herself. Instead he plopped his mat at her sister’s feet. She gave Eva big eyes, nodding at the place beside him—no doubt thinking Eva would keep him in line.

Instead Eva said, “Have fun,” and walked to the very back of the class, adding a couple of extra feet for good measure.

A shadow fell over her, and a mat landed two feet on her right. She turned her head to warn the person away with the Rosetti stare. It had no effect on this particular man. James had grown immune to it over the years.

He smiled. “Good morning to you too.”

“What are you doing here?” she asked him while half listening to her sister, who was telling the class to inhale the joy and light and to welcome the day into their bodies.

“I was invited, remember?” he said as he sat on his mat. He wore shorts and a T-shirt that hugged his broad shoulders and impressive pecs. Of course he worked out.

“You forgot to shave,” she said with a tinge of annoyance. He looked altogether too handsome with that sexy scruff on his face.

He stroked his chin between his thumb and forefinger. “I’m thinking of growing a beard.”

“You really are bored, aren’t you?”

“You have no idea,” he said.

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