Page 72 of Sweet Heat at Bayside
He tickled her ribs. She squealed and tried to get away, but he hauled her in and kissed her fiercely. “I love you, you pesty thing.”
“Youchoseme. What does that say about you?”
“That I have incredible taste.”
She grinned. “Isn’t that how this all started?”
They bought the earrings and the necklace and moved on to a display of used paperbacks. Serena held up a thriller by Leanna’s husband, Kurt Remington. “Look what I found.” She opened it to the dedication and read it aloud. “For my sweet Leanna and my precious Sloan. You are my treasures.” Sloan was their little boy.
She set the book down and gazed up at Drake. “Histreasures. That’s so romantic. But I prefer beingyourSupergirl. That has always felt romantic to me.”
He pressed his lips to hers and then he took her hand and they continued down the row. “Want to know a secret?”
“Always. Secrets are sexy.”
He looked at her out of the corner of his narrowing eyes.
“What? They are. Think about it. Secrets are things you tell only to very special people. That alone makes them sexy.”
“I guess you’re right, because this one is about my sexy girl. I used to wonder what it would be like to bring you to the drive-in. I’d picture the normal stuff, you know, making out in the back seat and all that. But because I was wicked jealous of every guy I heard about you going out with—”
“What?Even when we were younger?”
“Darn right.”
She pressed her body against his side and kissed his cheek. “I love knowing that about you. Tell me more.”
“It was torture, and even worse now that you’re grown up. Anyway, I thought about how proud I’d feel to strut around here with you on my arm, making all the other guys jealous. Like I am now.”
“You see me differently than anyone else does. I doubt any guys are looking at me that way.” She pointed to an older man with a protruding belly, sitting in a lawn chair beside a table of antiques. “Except maybe him.” She waved to the man, and he nodded.
“Right.” Drake turned her by the shoulders and said, “Ten o’clock, dark-haired guy stealing glances, and just beyond him, that bald guy was checking you out the last two times we stopped walking.”
“The dark-haired guy isn’t bad,” she said playfully.
He pulled her against him, glaring at her even though he knew she was kidding.
“Kiss me, you proud peacock. Claim your woman.”
And he did.
Ravenously.
They finally found Leanna’s booth, where she was surrounded by a crowd of customers who were tasting and buying jams. Leanna talked animatedly to each person, spouting off ingredients and flavors. She was perhaps the messiest person Drake knew, and also one of the sweetest. She was always in a constant state of disarray, with jam on her clothes and tousled hair, while her husband was the neatest, most organized man on the planet.
“Hey, you two!” Leanna finished helping the customers, then came around and hugged them both. “Oh gosh. Sorry.” She tried to wipe jam off Drake’s sleeve, where she’d accidentally smeared it.
“No worries. Hagen got me worse last night,” Drake assured her. “How are you?”
“I’m great.” Her gaze moved between him and Serena. “How areyouguys? Together, huh?”
“I’m a lucky guy,” Drake said proudly.
“Darn right you are, and don’t you forget it. Serena’s a catch.”
“Thanks, Leanna, and thank you for all your help with the opening,” Serena said.
She waved her hand dismissively. “Oh gosh, anytime. We came by after the flea market, and there were so many people. It was wild! And, Drake, I always knew you could sing, but holy cow. You’re a YouTube sensation. You sounded awesome.”
