Page 11 of Seized by Love at Seaside
Blue locked up the cottage and headed back to his house, thinking about Lizzie and how glad he was that she’d agreed to go out with him again. He’d tried to distract himself from thinking about her too much today, which was why he’d worked at his cottage instead of on her kitchen, but with every board he’d installed, the hope that she’d want to go on another date, and another, and another, grew. Now he couldn’t shake the mounting desire that she’d want even more than that. When it came to sweet and sultry Lizzie Barber, one kiss was definitely not enough.
LIZZIE LOVED EVERYTHING about owning her own flower shop, from meeting new people every day to being surrounded by the scents of nature and the glorious colors of the plants and flowers. But by far, the best thing about owning P-town Petals was the location. Provincetown was an eclectic town that was home to about three thousand people in the off-season and nearly burst at the seams with upward of fifty thousand tourists over the summers, and it had always been Lizzie’s favorite place on earth. Provincetown was known for its harbor and beaches and the extensive diversity of artists and the community. Excitement vibrated through the town each week with an onslaught of tourists and a variety of shows and street entertainers. Even now, in October, there were still a large number of tourists. But Lizzie knew that in another month, the streets would be nearly empty and the buzz of excitement that made the town come alive would be tamped down to the gentle hum of residents reclaiming their quiet streets.
Lizzie rang up a bouquet of flowers for a customer and walked him out. “Thanks for coming in.” She inhaled the cool afternoon air, admiring Sky’s tattoo shop next door. Sky had recently renovated Inky Skies and painted the outside bright yellow. It fit in well with the other vibrant shops on Commercial Street, like the graffiti-covered Shop Therapy and bright orange sweets shop down the street. Lizzie’s shop was painted pale blue with flowers and greenery winding around the columns.
She waved to Sky through the open door. Her friend was absolutely beaming as she came outside wearing one of her long skirts and a soft purple sweater. Her dark hair was piled on top of her head in a messy bun, with long tendrils framing her face. But it was the mischievous look in her eyes that had Lizzie also grinning like a fool. She knew Sky wanted details about her evening with Blue, and just thinking about him made her insides go wild. It had been Sky’s text she’d missed last night when she and Blue were making out, and when she’d finally returned it two hours later, after editing her webcast, she’d still been confused about how to handle things with Blue, and she’d been vague in her reply to Sky.
“Is your place as crazy as mine today?” Sky asked, eyeing the tourists milling about in the streets. “Don’t they know it’s October? I mean, I’m thankful for the business, butsheesh! What a busy season it’s been.”
“It’s been insane. This is my first break, and I’m beat.” She’d been on such a high after kissing Blue that working through her edits hadn’t been as exhausting as normal, but then she’d lain wide-eyed in bed, her body vibrating, her mind reeling with thoughts of Blue, until she finally drifted off to sleep in the wee hours of the morning. She was surprised she had any energy at all.
“I bet you are.” Sky raised her brows. “You didn’t text me back until three fifteen. I guess you and Blue had areallygood time.”
Lizzie laughed. “Not that good of a time. He fixed my oven and then I just couldn’t sleep.”
“Fixed your oven. Seriously, Lizzie? This is me you’re talking to, remember?” Sky smiled and nudged her shoulder. “Details, woman. Come on.”
“I don’t have details. We kissed. Once.”
“One kiss? Was it that bad?” Sky’s disappointment was evident in her flat tone.
“No. It wasthatgood.” She pulled Sky away from the busy sidewalk to the doorway of her shop and lowered her voice. “The man kisses like it’s his profession. I think he’s perfected the art of seduction through one mind-blowing kiss.”
“That’s good, right? So why did you stop? When Sawyer and I first kissed, I could barely think, much less stop.”
“Yeah, well, it definitely wasn’t easy.” That was putting it mildly. She’d kicked herself all night for dragging her lips away from his. She wished she had a normal life, without secrets hanging over her head, but she’d made her bed—alone, unfortunately—and now she had to sleep in it. “But Blue is your best friend. Well, he was until you met Sawyer, and we both know that he’s not a player, and he’d give the shirt off his back to a stranger. He’s…perfect.”
“And?”
“And he doesn’t needmecomplicating his life.”
Sky rolled her eyes. “You’re the best thing that ever happened to him. You’re the total package. You’re gorgeous, smart, a great big sister to Maddy. You’re an amazing friend, and I’m sure you’ll be an incredible girlfriend.”
Lizzie smiled at a couple as they stepped inside her shop to admire the string gardens hanging in the front window. She wondered how incredible a girlfriend or friend Sky would think she was if she found out about her secret.
“I better go in and help them, but I did tell Blue I’d see him again tonight.”
“Really?” Sky hugged her. “That’s great. Perfect. See? Blue knows you’re the best woman around. You two will be great together!”
Lizzie wasn’t worried about their being great together. After last night’s kiss, she knew they had amazing chemistry. It was the rest of her life colliding with his that she worried about.
She headed inside to greet the young couple that was admiring her string gardens. The woman reached up and touched the ball of moss. Her long dark hair was tied back in a low ponytail, and when she went up on her toes, the man touched her back in the same manner Blue had touched Lizzie. She had to work hard to push past the jolt of desire that ran through her at the memory of his touch.
“Those are called string gardens. Are you familiar with them?” Lizzie asked.
“No,” the woman answered. “But they’re really cool.”
“They are cool. String gardens are essentially balls of soil held together with moss and string rather than pots. They aren’t difficult to make once you understand the process, and I actually give a free class once a month. This month’s class is on Wednesday evening, if you’re interested.” Lizzie had at least a dozen string gardens hanging from the ceiling, and not only were they a great conversation starter, but they fed right into her love of creating unique plantings. She explained the process of making a string garden to the couple, and before leaving, they bought two of her favorite plants and signed up for her class.
After they left Lizzie had an onslaught of customers. She was on her feet all day, and by the time she closed the shop, she was running late to meet Blue. She leaned her back against the door, the heaviness of fatigue suddenly settling in. She was so tired, she wouldn’t have her wits about her tonight, and it had taken every bit of her strength to stop kissing Blue last night. If they kissed tonight—and boy did she hope they would—she might not be able to stop.
She had a good feeling about Blue. Being with him was not just easy, but he’d looked at her like she hung the moon over the sea when they were on their walk, and she couldn’t remember the last time anyone had looked at her like that, if ever. She wanted to get closer to him, but at the same time, she knew she needed to keep her distance. Maybe she should cancel their date.It’s not a date.
Her mind traveled back to the look in his eyes when he said he wasn’t going to walk away from her, not after that kiss.That kiss.The kiss that left her head spinning and her excited in places she didn’t know could be turned on. If he could do that with one perfect kiss, what would it be like to go further? To feel his mouth traveling down her neck as his hands caressed her bare skin? A thrill rushed through her at the thought.
She grabbed her purse and fished out her cell phone, mulling over the idea of canceling before she got in too deep. She noticed she’d missed a text from Blue, and her heart leapt despite her concerns.
Are we still on for our friendly outing tonight?
