Hearts at Seaside (Sweet with Heat: Seaside Summers Book 3) Page 15

  Chapter Thirteen

  JENNA STAYED WITH Pete for the rest of the day. She went with him to take care of a small boat repair at the marina, and then they had lunch at the Wellfleet Pier. It had been the most enjoyable day that he could remember in a very long time. Gone was the nervous energy that used to trail Jenna like a shadow around him and the uncertainty of his thoughts of their compatibility. He realized that even if she had remained nervous around him, it wouldn’t have hampered his feelings for her one iota. He loved being with Jenna, and even her need to line up the silverware at the café and organize his workbench in the barn didn’t bother him. It endeared her to him even more.

  Late afternoon found Pete caulking the seams along the bottom planks of the schooner, and he realized that he’d finish refitting the boat very soon. That should have thrilled him, but instead it gave him a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. This was supposed to be the project he and his father completed together. A joint effort. More importantly, it was supposed to be the project that pulled his father from his internal struggles and brought him back to Pete as the man—and the father—he used to be.

  He wiped the edge of the caulking with a rag, then set to work on the next plank. Jenna had been sitting in the grass talking on the phone with her mother for the last half hour. She was inviting her to visit for a few days, and darn if the first thing that entered Pete’s mind was of how it would affect their time together. He knew it was a selfish thought, and between his father and that thought, he was mired in guilt. A moment later, his thoughts shifted to what Jenna had said about rescuing their parents. He’d never thought of what he was doing with his father in those terms, but the more he thought about it, the more he realized that he wasn’t rescuing him. He was enabling him, putting a Band-Aid on a much larger problem. And what made it worse was that he hadn’t realized that part of the reason was probably that he wasn’t sure he was selfless enough to take over the hardware store and set his life aside for however many weeks it might take for his father to get the help he so desperately needed. Then again, the reality of his father drinking himself to death was a fear that gripped Pete every time he walked into his father’s dark house. The silent battle between them must have been warring in his subconscious.

  Even though he wasn’t running the store, hadn’t he already put his father’s life ahead of his own and set aside his freedom? Wasn’t he still?

  Yes, he realized, he was.

  He heard Jenna laugh softly, and it was so different from her normal loud, halting laugh that it pulled him from his thoughts. She was sitting just outside the barn with her legs stretched out in front of her. She wiggled her toes, and when Joey licked them, she laughed. Pete loved listening to the cadence of her voice and seeing her smile as she listened to her mother on the phone, then responded, and then listened again. It made him long for the relationship he once had with his father. He hadn’t realized how alone he’d felt dealing with his father’s drinking until he and Jenna had spent the day talking about their families.

  Jenna ended her call and jumped to her feet, reading a text on her phone. She tugged at her bikini top as she hurried across the grass toward him. Bo Derek had nothing on Jenna Ward. Jenna was the sexiest woman he’d ever met. Her shirts were always too tight on her breasts and too wide on her waist. Her dresses clung to every delicious curve. She couldn’t hide her body if she tried, but Jenna’s mannerisms that Pete thought might make them incompatible were the very things that softened her and made her even more alluring.

  “Bella texted. They’re having a barbecue tonight in the quad.” She reached for his hand and began swaying to the music. “Do you want to be my date?”

  He shoved the rag in his pocket and wrapped his arms around her. “That depends. Can I bring Joey?”

  “Always. I love Joey.” She went up on her tiptoes and puckered her lips.

  Pete pressed his lips to hers. “You love Joey, huh?”

  “Yeah. She’s the perfect dog. Sweet, cute, and not too demanding.”

  “So you don’t like demanding?” He lifted her into his arms, and Jenna wrapped her legs around his waist. She was light as a bird, and he loved the way she buried her hands in his hair and held on. Her skin was hot from the sun, and when he nuzzled against her neck, she smelled so good he had to kiss his way across her collarbone. “I can be pretty demanding.” She tightened her grip on his hair and he pressed openmouthed kisses down her breastbone and along the edge of her bikini top.

  “I like…” Jenna’s words came out as one long breath. “Pete.”

  “Too demanding?” He leaned back and looked at her. Her eyelids were heavy. She had a foggy, sexy look of wanting to be kissed.

  “I like your demands.” She returned his kiss with hunger, loving his mouth with hers and pressing her breasts against his chest. She felt so good that he wanted more of her. He had no control when it came to Jenna; he always wanted more. He wanted to be closer, wanted more of her heart, more of her love. Jenna tore her lips away and eyed the boat.

  “Have you christened it?” She raised her brows with a mischievous glint in her eyes.

  Holy cow. “No, I haven’t christened it, you dirty girl.”

  Jenna shot her arms straight up in the air. “Lift me up, baby. We’ve got lovin’ to do.”

  Pete took her in another greedy kiss. “Where the devil have you been all my life?”

  “Trying to get your attention, silly.” Jenna kissed his chin and reached her arms up again. “Come on.”

  She was so crazy cute, but there was no way he could hoist her into the boat. It was too tall. He set up the ladder with her clinging to his neck like a monkey. She kissed his chin, his jaw, his neck, driving him out of his freaking mind. Finally, when he had the ladder set up, he lifted her by her waist and turned her around, patting her butt as he followed her up the ladder.

  She stood in the middle of the boat, and he watched her eyes dance over his workmanship. He’d refinished all of the wood, stained and painted it, and worked his fingers to the bone, which he now realized he had done to work out his frustrations over his father’s drinking.

  “Pete, this is stunning. It’s beautiful.”

  “You’re stunning, Jenna. I don’t mean that as cheesy as it sounds.” He folded her into his arms and kissed the edge of her mouth. “You have the biggest heart of anyone I’ve ever known, and it comes through with everything you do and say.”

  He kissed her softly, loving the feel of her hands as they traveled up his chest, and he deepened the kiss. He pushed away the thoughts of his father and what the boat was supposed to signify and allowed himself to get lost in Jenna, in the taste of her lips as he dragged his tongue over the bow of her upper lip.

  “Pete.”

  She reached for him, her eyes full of pleasure and desire, her body ready to receive all that he had to give. Pete reveled in the sound of his name coming off her lips, and when their bodies joined together for the second time, his heart swelled and his whole body became hot with emotions. He’d shared his most intimate secret with Jenna, and as he lowered his cheek to hers, he barely contained the three words that he wanted to say. Their relationship was years in the making, and there was no stopping his heart from pouring out, one word at a time. He had to tell her, had to let her know, even if he withheld the words he really wanted her to hear.

  “I can’t even begin to conceive of a single night without you in my arms.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  THE NEXT MORNING Jenna lay on her side watching Pete’s chest rise and fall as he slept in her bed. She’d been watching him since before the sun came up, partially because she was still in shock that he was finally in her bed and partially because she couldn’t fathom a time when they weren’t together. They were so in sync with each other’s thoughts and desires. Not only in the bedroom, but even at the barbecue last night. It was like Pete instinctively knew when she was chilly, and he wrapped his arms around her and held her close. When she was talking
to Bella and Amy about her mother arriving in two days for a visit, he’d rubbed her shoulders, as if he knew the conversation was stressful for her. She’d never felt so comfortable with anyone, or with herself.

  She cuddled up against his warmth, trying to move quietly so as not to wake Joey, who was sleeping on a doggie bed that Pete had brought with them. Pete was wearing only a pair of black boxer briefs, with the sheets bunched up around his hips. Jenna took full advantage, drinking in every inch of him while he was unaware. His shoulders and chest looked enormous as he lay on his back with his heels hanging off the end of the bed. She’d always known her cottage was small, but last night they’d begun making love in the living room and had to move into the bedroom for lack of space. He somehow magnified how small three hundred and fifty square feet really was.

  He draped an arm over her back and pulled her against him. “How long are you going to stare at me?”

  “Your eyes have been closed. How could you possibly know I was staring at you?”

  “Babe, I can feel the heat of your stare almost as sharply as I can feel the heat of your body.” He kissed her and pulled her on top of him. “That’s better.”

  “How am I supposed to stalk you if you can tell when I’m doing it?”

  “Stalk me?” He arched a brow, and he looked so sexy all sleepy she could barely stand it.

  She kissed his chest. “Yeah, sneak peeks at you, take my fill of all these glorious muscles.” She moved farther down his stomach and kissed the ripples of his abs. “And all this pleasure.”

  AFTER PETE AND Jenna showered together, Jenna made coffee and toast while Pete scrambled eggs. The radio was on in the bedroom, and Jenna danced as she moved around the kitchen, humming as she spread Luscious Leanna’s watermelon jam on the toast. Jenna tried to bump his hip with hers, but their height difference was too great. She nearly gave him a charley horse. He pulled her into a hug and laughed.

  “Are you always this chipper in the morning?” He’d wanted to spend the day with Jenna, but he worried about smothering her.

  “Most of the time, but I think this is the Pete afterglow.” She pressed her hands to his waist and kissed his solar plexus, then pushed away to retrieve mugs and plates from the cabinets. She smiled up at him with so much warmth in her eyes that smothering didn’t seem like it would be an issue.

  Last night he’d seen the worry in her eyes, and he’d heard it in her voice when she was talking about her mother coming to visit. Despite what he knew must be eating her up inside, she was humming and smiling like her life was peachy. Her mother was arriving tomorrow, and he wanted nothing more than to take her mind off of it for a while.

  “I have a great idea. How about if we spend the day in Martha’s Vineyard? I can reschedule the boat repair I have scheduled, and you said you weren’t planning much today anyway.”

  Jenna turned with wide eyes. “Believe it or not, I’ve never been to Martha’s Vineyard.”

  “I know. That’s why I asked.”

  “You know?”

  “Just because we weren’t dating doesn’t mean I didn’t pay attention to the things you did and said.”

  “See? Just one more reason I’m drawn to you like fish to water. I’d love to go, but are you sure you can delay a boat repair? That sounds pretty important.”

  Her hair was still wet from their shower. He moved a few strands that were clinging to her chest over her shoulder and tucked her hair behind her ear.

  “You’re important, and we have a lot of years to make up for. I need to clean the pool here—it is Tuesday, after all—but then I’ll clear my schedule and we can go.” He wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her again.

  “Can we bring Joey?”

  She and Pete had taken Joey for a walk earlier, after they’d finally pried themselves from each other’s arms and gotten up for the day. He loved that she thought of his adorable pup. “We can, but if you’d rather not, I’m sure I can wrangle someone to keep an eye on her.”

  Jenna crouched beside Joey and petted her head. “Aw, poor Joey. Look at her. She doesn’t want to be pawned off on someone else.” She kissed the pup’s nose. “Do you, Joey? You want to come with us and spend the day in the sun, walking around, sniffing strangers and being too cute for words.” Jenna tilted Joey’s face up toward Pete. “Tell him, Joey. Tell Daddy you want to come with us.”

  As if on cue, Joey barked.

  Pete lifted Jenna to her feet and kissed her. “Nothing would make me happier than spending the entire day with my two best girls.” Pete didn’t tell her that tonight was the annual Illumination Night on Martha’s Vineyard, a night where all the lights in a neighborhood called the Campground were turned off and paper lanterns lit the streets and cottages. He knew Jenna would be blown away by the magical evening, and he couldn’t wait to experience it with her.

  Almost four hours later, after a forty-five-minute drive to Woods Hole and a ferry ride that took equally as long to reach the Vineyard, they parked Pete’s truck and meandered through the crowded streets and quaint shops. Like many Cape towns, the shops were mostly shingle sided, and they were decorated with an island feel. Most boasted aged wooden floors, and some had narrow staircases that led up to a second floor. No matter what the store, Jenna wanted to explore every inch. Pete wasn’t a big shopper, and he didn’t care for crowds, but as they walked hand in hand beneath the summer sun, moving in and out of stores at Jenna’s whim with Joey trotting happily by their side, he realized that it didn’t matter where they were or what they were doing. Being with Jenna felt good.

  Her eyes lit up as she inspected everything from knickknacks to kitchen items. He took pleasure in the little things that were unique to Jenna—the way she squeezed his hand when she saw something she loved and how she slipped one finger into the waistband of his shorts and pressed her other hand to his abs when she wanted his attention. It felt like they’d been a couple forever, and he wished they had.

  He wished he’d looked past everything else, and they’d come together before his mother had died, so Jenna could have known her. Heck, he wished for that time back so he and Jenna could have had time together before his father lost himself to the disease that changed both their lives.

  Jenna sifted through sarongs in an eclectic little clothing shop, swooping one after another around her neck with dramatic flair as she pranced a short path in front of Pete, batting her eyelashes and putting her palms up toward the ceiling.

  “Blue? Green? Yellow?” She fingered the edges of the colorful sarongs.

  “I love the green.”

  She frowned. “I like the blue.”

  He laughed. Only Jenna would ask and then dispute the answer. “The blue is beautiful. It sets off your eyes.”

  Jenna wrinkled her brow. “But the yellow will go with my yellow bikini.”

  Pete reached for her hand and led her to the cashier. “We’ll take all three.” He pulled out his wallet.

  “Oh, no.” She began unwinding the vibrant material from her body. “I can’t afford—”

  Pete unwrapped the sarongs, folded them neatly, and set them on the desk beside the cash register. He handed his credit card to the cashier, a gray-haired woman with bright blue eyes and weathered cheeks.

  “Pete, you can’t buy all of them.”

  He draped an arm over her shoulder. “I think I just did.”

  “Petey…thank you.” She hooked her finger in his shorts.

  The nickname no longer struck him as out of place. It claimed him as hers, and he liked that.

  THEY WALKED AROUND until the sun went down, and then they got takeout to eat in the park with Joey. It was intimate and romantic. Pete had ordered dinner for the two of them, and as he handed Jenna her dinner, she was surprised by what he’d chosen for her—oysters on the half shell and a chicken Caesar salad. Two of her favorite foods.

  “How did you know exactly what I’d want?” She watched a smile curl his lips.

  “I told you before, just
because we weren’t dating didn’t mean I wasn’t paying attention. I adore you, Jenna, and I guess that my mind must have known that before my heart caught on, or the other way around. You know what I mean.” He leaned in for a kiss.

  She thought she must have died and gone to heaven. All those years she thought he hadn’t paid much attention to her, and meanwhile he was memorizing her likes and dislikes?

  “What do you think of the Vineyard?” he asked.

  “Amazing, but I’m glad this was my first time. Now we have something that’s ours. Or at least in my memory it is.” She put her hand on his thigh, worrying over the question she couldn’t keep from asking. “Have you…taken many women here?” What is wrong with me?

  “Eh, I guess I bring a different woman about every other week or so.” He sipped his drink, and Jenna’s heart sank.

  He set his drink down and cupped her cheeks in his hands. “You’re a goof. Do you think I’d take you someplace I made a habit out of taking other women? What do I have to do to prove how different you are?” He kissed her, and the zing Jenna had come to love warmed her all over. “The last time I was here was a few years ago with Sky. I brought her the summer after she graduated from college.”

  She poked him in the side. “Don’t do that to me. In fact, if I ever ask you something stupid like that and the answer is not something I would want to hear, lie to me, okay?”

  He shook his head. “No can do. I’m not a liar.”

  She loved that about him. They poured more water into Joey’s water bowl and watched families stroll around the park.

  “So, when are you going to fess up to turning off your hot water so I’d come over and fix it?”