Page 83 of Summer on Sunshine Bay

“It turns you on, doesn’t it?” He came over and dumped his berries into her basket and then leaned in and kissed her. “Tide’s out.”

She was about to open the cooler to put the basket of blueberries in when she noticed the reflector tape on the cooler’s lid. She shook her head and laughed. “Is there anything you didn’t think of?”

“I doubt it. You know I like to be prepared.”

“I do, and your daughter is exactly like you.”

“Perfect. I know.”

“Careful, or we won’t be able to fit the lamp on your big head,” she said, putting on her headlamp.

The moon was bright and almost full, shimmering on the water and the sand. But James had insisted they wear the lamps, as clamming at night could be dangerous. He was right, and Eva hadn’t teased him. Although she had teased him when she caught him putting fluorescent tape on the handles of the clamming rake and shovel.

They weren’t the only ones out clamming tonight. There were three other couples and a Marine and Environmental Sciences officer on the beach. “You did get a shellfishing license, didn’t you?” Her family renewed theirs every year, even though it had been at least two years since they’d gone clamming. “And you brought a gauge?” she whispered. If he didn’t have both, they’d get kicked off the beach.

He gave her a look and handed her gardening gloves.

“I’m sorry for doubting you, Mr. Perfect,” she said, fighting a smile as she attached the mesh clamming bag to her shorts. Everyone else had pails or buckets, but James had bought them bags. They made it easier to maneuver, so she wasn’t about to tease him or complain.

In less than thirty minutes, they’d filled their bags with the allotted take for the night. It was more than they’d use.

“Take whatever we don’t need for tomorrow’s special. You can make linguine and clams.” They’d decided to have fried clams and chips, as James called fries.

“Sounds good,” she said, bending down to take the basket of berries out of the cooler.

James emptied both their bags of clams into the cooler and then filled it with water. They’d leave them there for at least twenty minutes before preparing them for dinner.

Clamming was a dirty business, and they used the outdoor shower, which delayed dinner by more than an hour. They had a little too much fun cooking together and didn’t end up eating out on the deck by candlelight until ten o’clock. They decided to leave the blueberry crumble for another night and instead danced under the stars.

It was almost midnight when James drove her home and walked her to her door. She couldn’t remember a night she’d enjoyed more than this one. Unless she counted the nights she’d spent with him in London. It was exactly what she’d needed, and she didn’t want their night together to end.

She opened the door and tugged him inside. “Stay with me.”

“I thought you’d never ask.” He closed the door with his foot, picked her up, and carried her to her room.

She ignored the uptick in her pulse. It would be okay. They’d enjoy a few weeks of each other’s company, and then James would go back to his life in London, and she’d go back to her life here. They’d pick up where they’d left off whenever he came back to visit Lila. It was the perfect relationship, really. Kind of like having your cake and eating it too.

Chapter Twenty-Three

Lila opened the door to the bridge and joined Luke in the relatively small, confined space. He glanced at her. “You should’ve brought a jacket. Grab mine.”

“I always forget that it’s ten degrees cooler on the water.” She slipped the fleece-lined windbreaker off the back of his captain’s chair. Lila and her parents and about seventy other passengers were whale watching on theCaptain Joe.

“Where’s your boyfriend? I thought he’d be keeping you warm.”

“He threw me over for a cute blonde.”

Luke smiled, nodding at the bow of the boat. “I wouldn’t feel bad. It looks like he threw the cute blonde over for your mother.”

Lila moved in beside him and leaned forward. “Who but my mother would sing ‘My Heart Will Go On’ when we’re on the ocean?” It was the theme song fromTitanic, of all things.

Luke laughed. “I think it’s okay. I can guarantee I’m not going to run into an iceberg. But is it just me, or does she sound exactly like Celine Dion?”

“She does, and the passengers seem to love it.”

“Admiral too. He’s singing with her.”

The dog had his head thrown back, howling. “Okay, that’s just too cute not to film.” And post on Captain Joe’s, La Dolce Vita’s, and SUP Sunshine’s Instagram accounts. She managed all three. Admiral was as big a draw on Luke’s accounts as her mother was on the Rosettis’.

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