Page 158 of Banter & Blushes

“I’m not going to leave you because I miss my town and my friends. Not now, not ever. When I make a promise, I keep it. I’m nother,Zaki.”

“I know.” He smiled. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay.” I squeezed him back. “Sadie’s coming.”

“Welcome to the Cliffside Diner.” She handed us the menus. “Can I get your drinks while you look over the menu?”

“What is it that Lanie was drinking? With the blueberries?” I asked. “I don’t see it on the menu.”

“Ah!” Sadie smiled. “We’re testing a new blueberry tea. It’s Molly Dalton’s latest healthy food experiment. She’s selling the tea leaves at Seaside Stories—the gift shop a few doors down—and we’re serving it up to locals cold with the berries to entice them. Antioxidants and blah blah blah. They have it at the resort, too.”

I grinned back at her. “I’d love to try it.”

“Got it down for ya. And for you, hockey guy?”

Zaki flashed his teeth. “Ice water, no lemon, please.”

“Be back in a jiff.”

Zaki and I had a lovely breakfast. I splurged on buttermilk crepes with fruit and whipped cream, and he had the Mainer omelet with lobster, tomatoes, mascarpone, and freshly chopped dill. We said goodbye to Meemaw and Lanie on our way out, our bellies and hearts full.

“How about a stroll on the beach?” Zaki asked, pointing to an entrance to the Cliff Walk, a paved walkway that stretched the length of the cliff. “There’s a stairway to the shore a little ways down.”

“Sure.” I tucked my arm into his and sighed. “It’s so beautiful here.”

“You’rebeautiful,” he said, bending down to sneak in a kiss on my cheek and dislodging my hat.

I laughed. “Did you know that lighthouse is a guest suite?” I asked. “Meggie said she and Flynn will be staying there the night of the wedding. There’s a tour of it online.”

“Oh yeah?” Zaki asked. “That sounds cool.”

We reached the steps marked “Private Beach. Cliff Walk Resort Guests Only.” He gestured for me to descend first. It was a long way to the bottom, and I had to hold up my skirt to avoid tripping on it.

The beach was buzzing with activity. A rental shack, covered in colorful buoys, seemed to be the hub of activity. Kayaks, floats, and loungers dotted the sand and sea. Families splashed in the water and built sandcastles.

“I’m glad the camp has a beach day tomorrow,” I said. “The girls will love this.”

“They sure will.” Zaki stopped to scan the beach. “Let’s go over there. See those boulders in the shade of the cliff? Looks like a good place to sit.”

“It does.” A nice, private area to sit and enjoy the ambience was just what I’d been thinking.

We removed our sandals—Zaki insisted on carrying mine—and trekked down the beach to the rocks. He dropped our shoes at the base of the boulder and helped me up onto it. When he hesitated, I patted the rock. “Come sit.”

He shook his head. “I think I’ll head to the shack and get us bottles of water. Gotta stay hydrated. Be right back.” He blew me a theatrical kiss, complete with a bow, and jogged off with a grin. I pulled my small sketchbook and a pencil out of my satchel and began to draw the lighthouse on the water.

Zaki returned with the waters, but he still didn’t climb up. And he lookedreallynervous.

“Is everything okay?” I asked. “You look like you’re going to be sick.”

He shrugged and reached up to me. “Come on down for a second?”

“Okaaay.” I set my sketchbook and pencil down and took his hands, then carefully slid off the rock and onto the sand. He turned me so that my back was to the shack and the sea was to my right. “You’re actingreallystrange.”

“So, normal then,” he assessed.

I shook my head. “Not your normal strange. Different strange.”

“Well … I had an idea. Hear me out?”

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