Page 21 of One Sweet Day I Found You

Six

A soft breeze slipped through the trees behind them as Nick kicked at the rocks with his heels. He sipped from a stainless-steel travel mug as Courtney dangled her feet over the large outcrop of rocks at the water’s edge. She looked happy there.

The sunshine warmed their faces and Nick squinted, glancing at Courtney as she gazed out at the bobbing waves and sipped from her paper coffee cup.

A thick forest of cedar, fir, and birch lay behind them. Mossy green earth and fern blanketed the rocks in shaded spots along the short trail they’d taken to reach the small cliff.

They’d chatted along the way about Courtney’s impression of Heritage Bay and some of Nick’s favorite places to take a kayak out on the lake. Nick explained that this particular lookout was one of his favorite spots on the entire peninsula.

He’d also offered her some useful facts and figures for her article beyond that of the kayak tours, which he hoped she’d use. For instance, the peninsula’s three-hundred-plus miles of coastline saw a surge of population throughout the summer, but most people thought it never really felt crowded.

Courtney reached again for her pen without looking and accidentally brushed Nick’s fingers. When she pulled her hand back, he automatically sat up and repositioned himself, stealing a glance at her. Those soft freckles across her nose. Her rosy cheeks. He felt distracted.

“So, what’s the best time of day to take these trips?” Courtney asked. “Like, do the waves pick up a lot in the afternoon? Seemed calmer out there this morning.”

Already, the water was beating against the shoreline with greater force.

“Yeah, sometimes afternoons are rougher, but often, they’re not. Just depends.”

“Safe answer?”

“You guessed it,” Nick said. “We offer both morning and afternoon tours. Wouldn’t want to scare anyone away. But really, the weather’s the main factor. If a storm’s expected, we don’t go out at all.”

“Okay. Makes sense.” Courtney jotted a few more notes on the page then looked up again, fixing her gaze on the water. “Well, I think I have just about everything I need.”

She removed her visor and took out her ponytail holder. He watched the breeze slip through the long, sun-kissed brown locks of her hair as it fell across her shoulders. She glanced at him and he looked away before she caught him staring.

“Can you think of anything else to add?”

Where had this girl come from? She looked perfectly at home sitting on a rock in the middle of nowhere. Most of the women he met couldn’t pull off that look, at least not well.

And what demon had gotten into his head and taken over his thoughts?Keep it together, dude.It would be unprofessional to flirt right now.

Nick willed himself not to look at the soft outline of her neck or the curves of her gently toned arms. “Uh, nope,” he answered. “I think you’ve got it all.”

Courtney looked up from her notebook.

“So, what would you like to leave the readers with? Why should they choose your company when there are so many others around here offering these kinds of trips?”

Shemight not be distracted but Nick had better cool it. He flashed a goofy grin and shrugged innocently. “How could they go anywhere else? I mean, what’s not to like?”

Courtney laughed playfully. “Besides the obvious, then?”

Wassheflirting now? “I’m just kidding around.” He sat back. “But, seriously, we know this sport; we know these waters; we offer more time slots than the other companies around here, and all at a great rate. More bang for your buck. Check online for our reviews. Great track record. We’ve been around the longest, too.”

“Got it.” Courtney grinned. “Quite the salesman, eh?”

Man, she was cute.

“I try.” He stared out at the water. Should he ask for her number?

Nah.She was conducting an interview, not making the rounds through some nightclub. Besides, well...

He hated to think it, but she was exactly the kind of girl who worried him. The kind that could do him real damage—the kind of damage his ex-girlfriend, Regina had done. He didn’t need to seethatlook on a woman’s face again.

Courtney put away her notebook. “Okay, well I think I’ve got what I need to write the best blog post ever.”

“Really?” He grinned again. You’re that sure?”

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