Page 39 of Serenity at Seagrove
"More yourself, maybe? Like you can breathe here?"
His eyes met hers.
"I am. Breathing, I mean. For the first time in a long time."
She felt the weight of his words, understanding that they meant more than just the physical act of breathing. She’d seen such a transformation in him over the past weeks, from the angry, injured man who had first walked into Serenity to this version of Archer, who could find such joy in teaching children.
"Your turn again," he said, setting up another ball. "Now let’s work on that follow-through."
She took her stance, and he moved behind her again, his hands light on her hips.
"Now rotate here," he said softly. "Let your body follow the motion naturally."
She tried to focus on the technical aspects of the swing, but she just couldn’t help the way she felt like she needed to turn around and kiss him square on the lips. Probably inappropriate for a golf lesson.
"That’s it," he said as she completed another swing. "See? You’re a natural."
"Now you’re just being kind," she said, laughing and turning to face him.
"I’m being honest," he said.
He was close enough that she could see flecks of green in his eyes and the slight stubble on his jaw. For a moment, neither of them moved. All she could hear was the distant crashing of waves and the sound of birds overhead. She felt herself sway slightly toward him, drawn by some invisible force. But then a groundskeeper’s cart rumbled in the distance and broke the spell.
Archer stepped back, running his hand through his hair.
"You know, we should probably wrap up. You’ve got morning classes to teach."
She nodded, trying to push down the flutter of disappointment she felt.
"Thanks for the lesson."
"Thanks for letting me share this with you," he said softly.
As they walked back toward their cars, Luna realized that somewhere between the breathing exercises and the golf swings, something had shifted between them. She wasn’t sure either of them was ready to acknowledge it yet.
CHAPTER11
"You're overthinking this," Janine said as she watched Luna examine herself in the boutique's mirror for the umpteenth time. The blue dress she wore caught the light beautifully, but Luna's expression remained uncertain.
"You know, I just want to look…” Luna trailed off as she smoothed the fabric with her hands.
"Like you haven't spent hours and hours choosing the perfect dress," Janine said, laughing. "How was that golf lesson, by the way?"
Luna's cheeks heated up. "Well, it was instructional."
Janine handed her another dress that was a soft sage green color. "And did this instruction involve any hands-on teaching?"
"Janine," Luna said, waving her hand.
"What? I'm just asking what everybody in town is wondering. The way that you two look at each other is like a proposal is going to happen at any moment."
Luna walked into the dressing room, mainly to hide her reddened cheeks and grateful for a moment to compose herself. "There's nothing to wonder about. We're just friends. He's being nice."
"Nice?" Janine's laugh floated over the door. "Archer Hawk isn't being nice. He's either all in or all out, and he watches you when you're teaching class, and he lights up when you're around. That's not just being nice."
Luna slipped the green dress over her head. The fabric settled around her. And when she stepped out, Janine fell silent.
“Oh,” Janine said with her hand over her mouth. "That's the one."
