Page 71 of Hearts at Seaside
Epilogue
GONE WERE THE hot afternoons of summer, replaced with the crisp coming of fall. It was the end of September, and Jenna had moved in with Pete three weeks earlier. The school where she’d worked in Rhode Island had thrown her a lovely farewell luncheon, and her landlord was able to find a new tenant quickly and relieved Jenna of the last two months that remained on her lease. Her mother had been excited about Jenna and Pete’s news. She’d come full circle and was more like the mother Jenna had always known. Jenna would miss her today, but her mother and her new boyfriend, Carlos, were on a cruise to the Bahamas, and Jenna was happy that her mother had settled down and seemed happy again.
Pete’s father had done well at rehab and he’d been home for almost a week. Sky was living with him now and running the hardware store until he was ready to go back full-time. He’d helped Pete put the final coat of antifouling paint on the bottom of the schooner. Today they were taking it out for the first trip on the open water, and all their friends returned to the Cape to celebrate with them.
Jenna leaned against Pete’s kitchen counter, watching Leanna pull a tray of warm muffins from the oven. The kitchen smelled warm and inviting and felt like home with Leanna and Bella tooling around as they waited for Amy, Jamie, and Tony to arrive. After a summer of not seeing the guys, they were all excited to spend the afternoon together. Amy was over the moon. She’d talked Jenna’s ear off on the phone last night, gushing about seeing Tony again, and Pete was excited to show off his handiwork to the men of Seaside. Unfortunately, Kurt was in New York for the weekend meeting with his editor, Caden had to work, and Evan was busy with his part-time job.
Jenna’s stomach got all fluttery when Pete walked into the kitchen looking sinfully sexy wearing nothing but his favorite pair of Levi’s. Bella and Leanna called Jenna’s reactions to Pete, and his to her, theirhoneymoon stage, but as far as she could tell, Bella and Leanna were still in that stage, too, with Caden and Kurt, and she hoped it never ended for any of them.
Pete folded her in his arms and kissed her.
“Hey, you have guests here,” Leanna teased.
“Sorry, Leanna, but I don’t think Jenna would approve of me kissing you, too.” He kissed Jenna again. “Hey, babe. I noticed that you made your way through my drawers, and I appreciate it, but where can I find my white tank tops?”
She hooked her finger in the waist of his jeans and raised her brows. “I love making my way through your drawers.”
Pete pressed his hips to hers. “You have free rein to my drawers anytime you want it,” he said against her lips before stealing another kiss. “Tank top?”
“On the closet shelves, with the rest of your white shirts. You had too many whites for the drawer, so I took over a shelf.”
“Your house will never be the same,” Bella said.
“I knew what I was getting into,” Pete said. “Andourhouse has never felt more like home.”
Our house.Jenna hugged him tightly and shot a cheesy grin in Bella’s direction. She watched Pete walk away, embarrassed when a dreamy sigh—the kind Amy was known for—escaped her lips.
“Careful, swoongirl. You’re going to burn a hole in the man, looking at him like that. I can hardly believe that all three of us are living at the Cape now. You and Pete will still stay at Seaside during the summers, right?”
“Of course. We’ll live here the rest of the year. The same way you and Leanna have done with Caden and Kurt.”
“Good. Now we need to work on Amy. And you know, if Amy and Tony ever do get together, we’ll have to find a woman for Jamie, too. He’s too great to be without a woman.” Bella reached for one of Leanna’s muffins, and Leanna swatted her hand. “You’re so testy.”
“I want there to be enough for everyone,” Leanna said. “And you always pick at the tops and leave the rest.”
“First we have to get Jamie away from his computer. Good luck with that,” Jenna said.
Leanna turned to set the hot pad on the table, and Bella snuck a muffin. Without turning around, Leanna said, “I saw that.”
Bella laughed. “Hey, they’re here!”
They hurried out the door in one mass, pushing past one another on the way to greet Amy, Tony, and Jamie. It was a chilly morning and, as if they’d compared notes before dressing, the girls wore hoodies and jeans, and the men wore jeans and T-shirts. It might set women back fifty years, but Jenna secretly loved that men could brave the cold while women needed warmth.
Pete walked outside in his tank and jeans as Jamie hugged Jenna.
“Hands off my woman,” Pete said with a smile.
“I believe that’s,hands off my princess.” Jenna touched her tiara, because who wouldn’t wear one if she had one?
Pete embraced Jamie. “Great to see you, man.”
“It was a long summer, but the new project is off the ground with a great management staff in place, so I’m on track to spend more than just weekends here next summer.” Jamie pulled Bella into his arms. “I missed everyone.”
Pete went to greet Tony, who was still hugging Amy. Jenna gently touched Pete’s hand.
“Give them a sec,” she whispered.
“They’re just friends, Jenna,” Pete reminded her.
