Page 8 of Sweet Summertide

“A charming, good-looking guy with your family background? You probably have your pick of any number of socialites,” Holly said and let go of his hand.

“You think I’m good-looking?” Teddy said. “Charming too?”

Holly nodded and felt flatfooted in this conversation. It was her turn to swallow down the nerves. “You’re pushing your luck.”

Teddy hopped down and closed the distance between them. “And what if I wanted to kiss you right now? Would that be pushing my luck?” he backed her against the railing. Her hands caught the top piece of wood behind her bottom, and she arched her back away from him. She wasn’t afraid of his advance. She wanted it. She craved the thrill of his attention. His arms hemmed her in, and she was at his mercy.

“Tell me, Holly, what do you really want to know?” he spoke into the tender tissue near her ear. His breath warmed her skin, but the air matched the temperature just as fast. The sensation was unsatisfying, and she wanted more.

She leaned her face against his. The short, groomed hair on his cheeks and jaw pressed into her flesh and lured her into wanting to find the smoothness of his lips. “I want you to kiss me,” she whispered. The closer he moved to her mouth, the higher her heart rate climbed. Butterflies flitted inside her belly but transformed into red flags at the memory of her pastrelationships. She slid her fingers in between their mouths just in time.

Teddy cleared his throat and backed away.

“I need to know if you really like me, or if I’m just another flighty socialite to add to your conquests,” Holly said, but her query had a sharpness she hadn’t intended. Her question had sounded more like a character accusation than an invitation for honesty. “Teddy.”

He backed off and tucked his hands into his black pants pockets. “Even if I did like you, I get the feeling you would have a hard time believing it. Am I over the target?”

“You might be.” She was surprised by how clearly he saw her.

“Do you trust me?” Teddy said with a one-sided grin.

Holly liked the idea of trusting him but wasn’t quite there yet. “I think so. I want to.”

Teddy turned to walk back to the resort, and she grabbed his elbow, knowing she had ruined the moment. “Well, Holly, I suppose I’ll have to help you make up your mind. In the meantime, why don’t I walk you back up?”

“I’m sorry, Teddy. I didn’t mean to offend you. I’ve just been hurt?—”

He stopped and put a finger on her lips. “I told you to stop apologizing. We all have stuff in our pasts that messes us up. As for my conquests, as you call them, I have none.”

His declaration was hard to believe. A guy as good looking, charismatic, and well-mannered as Teddy had no notches in his belt? She was sure there was more to his story now and was determined to get the whole tale. “Will I see you again soon?”

“I’m staying here at the Foundry for the rest of the summer, maybe I’ll bump into you again.” Teddy walked her towards her car where Millie and the man who had greeted Teddy at the station, Alfonso, were sitting on the hood engaged in conversation. Slowing, Teddy spoke in a hushed tone. “I’m notoffended.” He stopped and held her hands, standing face to face. “I’m glad you came here tonight.”

“Me too.” She thought he might kiss her now. His eyes trained on hers, and his tongue darted out and wet his lips. She stood taller and tucked his hands around her waist, but a hoot—coming not from a nearby owl watching the show, but from the couple sitting on the car—broke their connection. Another moment ruined. At least this one wasn’t her fault.

Teddy released her and met up with the man. “Alfonso.” Teddy placed an arm around Alfonso’s neck and removed him from the hood of the car. “We have a mess to clean up, no?” he said the last part in a pseudo-Italian accent which caused the chef to laugh as they walked towards the building.

Millie hopped down. “What was that all about?”

Holly watched the men go inside. Teddy stopped and nodded before disappearing on the other side of the door. “I think I’m in love.”

“Okay, TayTay. Let’s pull the reins on this one and get you home. You have a big day tomorrow at your shop.”

CHAPTER 4

The ambient morninglight made the vacant storefront windows into an ideal mirror. Holly checked her reflection and straightened her white hair ribbon looped around the base of her ponytail. Leaning in, she pressed the puffiness from her under-eyes, thinking she looked more drained than she felt. She had stayed up later than she should have, going over her business plans and concocting reasons to accidentally bump into Teddy again. Her scheming would have to wait because today, she had no time to be tired. Today, she had a shop to build.

“Holly,” Millie yelled and waved from where she was parked down the street. She jogged, with her brunette, swingy, bob-style haircut bouncing around her jawline, and caught up with Holly. “Didn’t sleep much last night?”

“Is it that obvious?” Holly shook her head and flexed the muscles in her cheeks in an effort to look as sprightly as she felt. “I don’t know why, but I stayed awake thinking about getting my new sign today, and about … Teddy Black.”

Millie put an arm over Holly’s shoulders and hugged her in. “You’ve got it bad.”

“Do you know he was going to kiss me last night.” She slapped a hand against her forehead. “And I can’t believe I almost let him.”

“Maybe he was just teasing you?” Millie guessed.

“Yeah. And whatever he was doing, I liked it.” Holly threw her hands up and stepped up to the edge of the curb. In her white and blue espadrilles, she teetered like she was falling from a cliff, not a six-inch step down. “If he kissed me or not. Being with him was … thrilling. But I’ll worry about him later. I have bigger things to think about right now. Like that.” She presented her hands towards the large sign being hoisted out of a wooden crate across the street.

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