Page 5 of Seized by Love at Seaside
“Let’s eat at the beach,” he said as he helped her in again.
She wondered if she could just spend all night getting in and out of his truck, because it felt so good when he held her.
They drove down the narrow road toward Cahoon Hollow Beach with the bag of food sitting between them. It smelled like heaven, and when Lizzie’s stomach growled—roared—she wanted to curl up from embarrassment.
“Ah, you’re a normal person after all.” He smiled as he dug into the bag with one hand, withdrew a fry, and held it in front of her mouth. “Open up.”
“I can wait,” she lied, wanting to rip the delicious-smelling fry from his hand.
“How can you resist the smell of PJ’s fries?” He waved it under her nose, and when she reached for it, he pulled it away. “Uh-uh. Open yourmouth.”
“Geez, you’re a pain.”
“The best kind of pain there is,” he teased as he fed her the fry.
Chapter Three
THIS MIGHT NOT be a date, but this was the first time Blue had been alone with Lizzie since they met, and he wasn’t in a hurry to share her with Hunter and their friends. He parked at the edge of the parking lot and circled the truck to open her door. Just getting in and out of the truck proved both entertaining and enjoyable. He loved the feel of Lizzie’s sweet curves beneath his palms and couldn’t resist helping her down by lifting her from the waist. Her heated stare was either a warning or an invitation, and for the first time in his life, he couldn’t tell which. She definitely had a way of fogging his brain.
He grabbed the food from the cab of the truck and blankets from behind the front seat and carried them around to the back, where he opened the tailgate and reached for Lizzie’s waist again to lift her up.
“We’re eating in the bed of your truck?”
He lifted her easily and climbed in behind her. Gently turning her shoulders so she was facing the ocean, he said, “Look. This is why we’re eating here.”
The moon was almost full, glowing orange and yellow against the gunmetal sky, casting a streak of light across the dark water. A single light illuminated the tip of a sail as a boat moved past the shore, and on the beach, two bonfires cut through the night.
“It’s gorgeous,” she said just above a whisper.
He lifted her chin and gazed into her hazel eyes. “I’m not a bad guy, Lizzie. I’m not sure why you’re dead set against dating me, but if you give us a try, you might enjoy spending time together.”
He moved away from her to spread out the blankets and to keep from doing something or saying something he shouldn’t. He’d wanted to get closer to Lizzie from the first moment he’d set eyes on her as she hustled around the beach preparing for their friends’ wedding. Even when Bradley Cooper showed up at the wedding, she didn’t falter for a moment. She had insurmountable grace, and there was something about the way she moved, with confidence and focus, that had sucked him right in, and it had only gotten more powerful every time he saw her.
She stood with her back to him, her arms wrapped around her middle as she ran her hands over her arms. Not only did she have grace and class, but there was no denying that she had a great butt, shapely legs, lean shoulders, and—heck, everything about Lizzie was exquisite.
He spread the blankets out in the bed of the truck and noticed she was trembling. He wanted desperately to tuck her against him to keep her warm, but he didn’t want to chance moving too quickly and scaring her off. After all, thiswasn’ta date. Blue jumped from the bed of the truck and grabbed one of his zip-up sweatshirts from the cab, then climbed back in and draped it over her shoulders.
“Thank you,” she said, turning to face him as he helped her slip her arms in.
He rolled up the sleeves four times, and she looked crazy cute. Curbing the urge to pull her into his arms and kiss her smiling lips was torture.
“You didn’t have to go to all this trouble,” she said as she sank down to the blanket to eat.
“Lizzie, seriously. How long have you lived here?” He handed her a lobster roll.
“I grew up here.” She took a bite of the sandwich, her eyes quizzical.
“Then you know that eating dinner at the beach is never trouble. Toss a blanket in the truck, grab a sweatshirt, and you’re good.” He leaned in closer and said, “And if you’re lucky enough to bring the prettiest girl on the Cape with you, then you’re way better than good.”
Lizzie smiled and her shoulders relaxed. “You do know how to flatter a girl. Blue, can I ask you something?”
“Of course.”
“You were friends with Sky for years and you guys never took it further, or at least according to Sky you guys never did. She’s beautiful, smart, funny.” Her eyes rolled over his face, as if she were searching for an answer. “Why didn’t you two ever date? And why do you want to date me so badly?”
Their friends often wondered why he and Sky had never dated when they were close enough to spend the night on each other’s couch and before Sky met her fiancé, Sawyer, they’d hung out more often than he hung out with his guy friends. He didn’t understand it very well himself, and he wasn’t sure his answer would make any sense, but he had only one thing to offer Lizzie—the truth.
“That’s like asking why someone likes chocolate ice cream but doesn’t like vanilla. I’m not sure of the exact reasons, but from the moment Sky and I met, we were friends.” He shrugged, because to him, it was that simple. “Sky is all those things you said, and she has been my best friend for a few years, but for whatever reason, I was never attracted to her in that way.”
