Page 57 of Secrets at Seaside
“Or a marketing degree. It takes a bit of sales knowledge to really understand things like retail therapy, which I’m sure you’ll need at some point.”
Amy touched her forehead to his and smiled. His world righted itself again.
She mimicked his sarcasm. “If only you’d listened to your father.”
“If only…”
Their lips met, and Tony savored the kiss. They were sitting on the lawn of the cemetery beside his father’s grave and making out like he had just come back from war. In a way, he felt as though he had. Fourteen years was way too long to have such a skewed view of his father. It upset him that he’d carried around all those bad feelings for so long for a man who might not have handled things well at the end of his life, but really, who was Tony to decide the appropriate way to handle one’s mortality?
He had a lot of healing to do. They both did. At least now he felt as though he saw things a little more clearly. He needed to forgive his father in order to move forward with Amy. And while the path to forgiveness might be cloudy and dark, he had Amy to help him find his way.
Chapter Nineteen
OVER THE NEXT few days Amy noticed a lightening in Tony, from the way he walked to the look in his eyes. He’d shared memories of his father that made them laugh and cry. It wasn’t an easy undoing of Tony’s feelings from that harsh summer’s end, but it was a start, and Tony seemed open to dealing with his feelings rather than repressing them. Unlike Amy, who was doing all she could to ignore her upcoming meeting with Duke and to avoid going surfing with Tony. Not to mention dealing with her father.One thing at a time.
She and Jenna spent Thursday morning at the Wellfleet Library, looking through the romance novels. If only life was as pretty as Nora Roberts or Susan Mallery painted it to be.
“I think I’m going to start reading erotica.” Jenna set a paperback on the display table, then straightened the other books so the spines were all facing in the same direction.
“Erotica?” Amy shook her head.
“Uh-huh. You know, to make sure Pete and I don’t get bored in the bedroom.” Jenna reached for a copy ofFifty Shades of Grey.
“So, you’re suddenly into bondage? Do they make leather bras that will fit your Beyoncé boobs?”
Jenna laughed. “I don’t want bondage! Don’t you think they have some other ideas?”
“How would I know?” Amy leaned her hip against the table. “Are you and Pete having trouble?”
“No way. We have more sex than should be legal. Good sex, too. But how do you know if you’re boring a guy or not? I mean, I’ve never slept with a guy for a whole year before.” Jenna flipped through the paperback. “I could never get bored of Pete, and he says he will never tire of me, but…” She set the book down, perfectly lined up with the others, and whispered, “I just want to make sure, you know?”
“Well, you’re barking up the wrong tree. I’ve been with one man, so everything I know, I basically learned from him. Or, you know, hands-on research.”
Jenna laughed.
“Besides, the way Pete is always all over you, I don’t think you have to worry. He’s so in love with you. You could lie there and not move and he’d be happy just to be close to you.”
“Yeah, I am pretty incredible.” Jenna threw her head back and laughed so loud two women looked up from a nearby table. She slapped her hand over her mouth. “Sorry,” she whispered.
They moved to another display of books.
“Can I ask you something else?” Jenna asked.
“Sure, not that I was any help on your first question.”
“Wasn’t it hard for you all those years, knowing Tony was seeing other women? I mean, we’ve all seen the pictures of him in the surf magazines. There were always women around him.”
Amy closed her eyes for a beat. That was one of her tender spots. She hated thinking about any other woman in Tony’s arms, but she’d turned him away. She couldn’t blame him for taking comfort in the arms of another…or many others. She took a minute to rein in her jealousy before answering.
“Every time I saw him in a magazine with a girl, I used the picture as a dart board.”
Jenna laughed. “And how’d you do?”
“Let’s just say that I started out as an amateur, and I’m now an expert.”
“See? Spin it positive. Now you have more skills.”
Amy rolled her eyes.
