Page 30 of Serenity at Seagrove
She thought about Archer and how he had shared pieces of his own struggle when they were kayaking. He seemed to be tentatively, slowly learning to breathe through the pain instead of pushing and fighting against it. And wasn’t that what she was doing now in her own way? Learning to be present in the discomfort of not getting the very things she had wanted her whole life. Learning how to find peace in the midst of this tempest.
A particularly loud crack of thunder made her jump. She laughed softly at herself and shook her head. "Yeah, some meditation teacher I am. I can't believe I just got startled by a little thunder."
She thought about how she wanted someone to share Serenity with her. Maybe she would get a little dog since she was allergic to cats. She'd seen the animal shelter driving into town and made a mental note to visit there soon.
As she settled back against the cushions, she felt a sense of calm wash over her. There was a storm raging outside, no doubt about it. Yes, she was sitting alone in the dark, but she was here in Seagrove. She was breathing, and somehow, right now, that was enough.
* * *
Archer paced back and forth over the length of his room at Dawson’s house. The power outage was making the space feel even smaller, more confining. The storm was raging outside, the wind howling and the rain lashing against the windows. It had been many years since he’d seen a storm like this. He’d never minded them growing up. He found a strange comfort in the chaos and enjoyed the wild, untamed energy of the South Carolina Lowcountry during a storm.
But tonight, he felt restless. He was almost at the edge of worry. He couldn’t help himself—his thoughts kept circling back to Luna. The way he’d seen Serenity’s shuttered windows when he walked back down the beach, evidence of her preparations. The image of her there alone in the sprawling house nagged at him. He knew she was more than capable. She had a quiet strength that most people only dreamed of having.
But he wasn’t sure what to call this thing developing between them. Maybe he was imagining it. Maybe he was leaning on her a little too much. But it didn’t stop the concern gnawing at his gut. Before he could even second-guess himself, he grabbed his rain jacket and headed for the door. But when he opened it, the wind nearly knocked him off his feet as he stepped outside. Rain pelted him in the face like tiny daggers, cold and sharp. He squinted into the darkness, trying to orient himself toward Serenity.
What was he doing? Only an idiot would walk on the beach in the middle of this kind of storm. He was one of those people who would be on the news for dying in a silly way, like being impaled by a palm tree or knocked to the ground by a flying dolphin.
Luna was fine. She had to be. And even if she wasn’t, what could he possibly offer her? A guy with a bum shoulder was going to save her? He was still trying to figure out how to navigate his own storms. But for some reason, his feet just kept moving, propelling him down the beach.
Underneath the worry and the uncertainty was the truth he was beginning to acknowledge. He wanted to be there with Luna—not just for her, but for himself.
When he reached Serenity’s porch, rain streaming down his face, he raised his hand to knock and hesitated. What if she didn’t want him there? What if she didn’t want to be stuck inside with one of her clients during a storm? What if he was overstepping?
But then, faintly over the howl of the wind, he heard something—the soft strains of music, the gentle chords of a guitar. And then, he realized he was exactly where he was meant to be.
He knocked, the sound almost lost to the roar of the storm. For a long moment, there was no response, and then the door cracked open. All he could see was Luna’s surprised face in the candlelight. Man, she was even more beautiful in candlelight.
"Archer? What are you doing here?" Her eyes were wide as she took in his drenched appearance. "Is everything okay? Are Julie and Dawson?—"
"Yeah, I just—" He ran his hand through his wet hair, suddenly feeling like a fool. "I wanted to make sure you were all right with the storms and all."
In that moment, he realized he could have just called her and asked if that’s all he wanted. It would have been easy to send her a text and ask if she was okay. He knew that, and she knew that, and now he was exposed. Now she knew he just wanted to be there with her, and he didn’t even know exactly why.
Something softened in her expression. "That’s really sweet of you. Come in, you must be freezing to death."
She stepped aside and ushered him into the warmth of Serenity. His face was transformed by candlelight, with shadows dancing on the walls. The soft music he’d heard from the porch wrapped around them. He stripped off his raincoat and hung it on the coat rack by the door.
"I didn’t know you played," he said, pointing toward a guitar leaning against the couch.
She smiled just a little. "It helps me feel grounded, especially in moments like this."
She motioned for him to sit and handed him a towel. "I was about to make some tea. Would you like some?"
"Oh, tea sounds perfect." His adrenaline was starting to settle down.
Luna busied herself in the kitchen, and Archer looked around the room. Despite the storm raging outside, the place was peaceful. There was a steadiness that seemed to always emanate from Luna herself.
She returned with two steaming mugs, handing him one before sitting on the couch.
"So, you braved a hurricane to check on me?"
"Uh, it wasn’t quite a hurricane, just a bad storm, and it seemed like the right thing to do. I mean, you’re new here."
"Well, I appreciate it more than you know." Her eyes met his, candlelight flickering in their depths. "You know, it’s been a long time since somebody’s done something like that for me. I can’t remember the last time someone cared where I was.”
The unspoken weight of her words hung in the air, and Archer found himself wanting to know more, wanting to know all of her stories.
He cradled his mug, letting the warmth seep into his hands. "You know, I’m not great at this," he admitted, his voice low. "The whole being there for someone thing. I’ve been pretty self-centered for a long time."
