Page 9 of Nights at Seaside
“That’s okay. I wasn’t sure if I’d get swamped at the last minute, so this was easier. And to be honest, I only bought the shop two months ago, so it’s still a thrill to be there, knowing it’s mine. I’ll pick up Merlin after our date and bring him back to Seaside with me.”
“Ah, you own the shop.”
She smiled, and pride filled her eyes. “I do.”
“That’s very cool. How do you like running it?”
“It’s a dream come true. I know the place still needs work, but you should have seen it before I got my hot little hands on it.”
He was trying not to think about her hot little hands.
“I think it looks great. Very artsy.” He ran his eyes over her outfit, which was sexy yet casual. She had a unique and appealing style. “Very you.”
“Thank you. I worked there for two years before buying it from Harlow Warren, the previous owner. It was pretty unloved when I took it over. But a little elbow grease goes a long way.”
As Sawyer drove down Route 6 listening to Sky and watching her facial expressions go from enthusiastic to thoughtful, to pensive, then right back to excited again, the more he liked her. She was easy to be with and not at all like the women he’d dated in the past, who were so worried about every word that left their mouths their conversations felt scripted.
“Since we’ll have to hurry to get to our destination before it gets dark, and it might be an hour before we make it to dinner, I thought we should get a snack first. Is that okay?”
Thinking of her ice cream addiction, he pulled into the parking lot of the Brewster Scoop.
“I’ll never turn down ice cream,” she said as he parked the car.
They headed into the ice cream shop and ordered cones. The Brewster Scoop was located behind the Brewster Store, a general store where little had changed since Sawyer was young. They still sold penny candy and homemade fudge.
“What isour destination, anyway?” she asked as they took their cones out front and sat on the stoop.
“I could tell you, but then it wouldn’t be a surprise.”
“I love surprises, and so far you’re full of them.”
SAWYER EARNED BONUS points for taking the edge off Sky’s nerves. She had no idea that her daisy dukes would cause her handsome date to say things that made her blush and think about all the thingsshewanted to do tohim. As if thinking about him all afternoon hadn’t been torture enough. When Jenna had called to invite her to another bonfire—this one was going to be at their beach house tomorrow night—Sky had nearly burst with excitement telling her about their impending date. Of course Jenna had squealed so loudly that Sky’d had to pull the phone away from her ear and promise to come by the bonfirewithhim tomorrow if the date went well.
“So, I’m full of surprises, huh?” Sawyer was holding his ice cream toward her with a heated look in his eyes. “Taste?”
If only he knew that she was dying for a taste…of him and that he was the most wonderful surprise of all. She never would have guessed that while she was reading her favorite poem, she’d been listening to the man she’d be spending time with the next night.
She leaned forward and licked his ice cream, and his eyes darkened.
“Thanks,” she said, licking the sweetness from her lips.
He watched her mouth intently, and her pulse quickened.
“Want to taste mine?” She tilted her cone toward him.
He leaned in close and gazed into her eyes. “What is it about you that makes me feel like a schoolboy peeking through a locker room window?” He searched her eyes, and the air between them sizzled and popped.
“Probably the same thing that makes me want you to.”
A devilish grin curved his lips, and they both leaned in closer. Sky was sure he was going to kiss her—and she wanted that kiss. A taste of his sensuous mouth, to know what the scrape of his thick scruff felt like against her cheeks.
But their lips didn’t touch. He placed his hand over hers, holding the ice cream cone. His hand was warm and strong, and when he dragged his tongue over the creamy cap, she practically licked it right along with him.
“Sweet,” he said, still holding her gaze.
Sky lifted a trembling finger and wiped a dab of ice cream from his lip. She couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t think. He was still holding her hand as her ice cream dripped over her knuckles. His eyes flamed, and she knew he was thinking about licking the ice cream from there, but if he did…If she felt that hot mouth of his anywhere except on her lips, she was going to lose it.
She brought her hand to her mouth and licked the ice cream off, which only made his eyes smolder even more.
