Total pages in book: 50
Estimated words: 45996 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 230(@200wpm)___ 184(@250wpm)___ 153(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 45996 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 230(@200wpm)___ 184(@250wpm)___ 153(@300wpm)
Inner monologue time: Get your head straight, Hawthorne. You have guarded people through riots and red carpets without this kind of distraction. But none of them had Sadie’s mix of stubborn and soft. None of them made me want to pull them closer to see if they’d push back. This is work. Intel first. Then keep her safe. Then maybe figure out why the idea of her leaving at the end of this makes my chest feel tight.
I force myself to scan the beach like I’m supposed to. A group of guys tossing a football near the water. A couple of older locals with metal detectors. A woman in a big hat reading a book two blankets over. Nothing screaming suspicious. Yet.
“See the couple with the matching visors?” I say, nodding toward a pair walking the wet sand. “They look like regulars. Might know if any new yachts have been causing talk at the marina.”
Sadie follows my gaze, then surprises me by standing up and brushing sand off her legs. “The two women a few blankets down have been watching us since we sat. Let’s start there. They look friendly enough.”
Before I can argue she’s already walking over, cover-up fluttering, that natural teacher smile in place. I follow because that’s the job, but also because I want to see what she does with it. Sadie’s a natural. She introduces us like we’ve been together forever.
“Hi, I’m Sadie and this is Jace. We’re new to town for a little while and trying to figure out where the locals actually hang out.”
The women are in their late thirties, both fit, both wearing the kind of expensive sunglasses that say country club money. Melissa has dark hair twisted up, Brooke has sun-streaked highlights. They introduce themselves and within two minutes Sadie has them laughing about the line at The Salty Spoon and the eternal missing flip-flops on the wall there.
I slide into the conversation when there’s a gap. “Heard there was some excitement with a big boat at Bluefin Marina last week. Any truth to the rumors?”
Melissa waves a manicured hand. “Oh, summer yacht drama is constant. Rich people and their toys. Nothing that made the police blotter, if that’s what you’re asking.”
Brooke leans in like she’s sharing state secrets. “But if you want real gossip, the Dune Point Country Club is where it all happens. Members only, but the wives run the social calendar. You two should come tomorrow night. Casual dinner. Good food, better stories. Bring your boyfriend.”
Sadie goes still beside me for half a second. We both know what this is. An in. A chance to hear what the people who actually run this town are saying. We have to accept. And we have to sell the couple thing right now, in front of these women who are already watching us like they’re casting a romcom.
I don’t even think. I reach over, slide my arm around Sadie’s waist, and pull her gently against my side.
The second my palm meets the bare skin above the bikini bottom, the world tilts beneath my feet. Her skin is warm from the sun, smooth and soft and perfect under my fingers. The curve of her hip presses into mine like it belongs there. I feel every inch of her along my body and my board shorts suddenly feel way too thin. I’m instantly hard, the reaction so fast and strong I have to angle my hips away from the women and shift my weight to hide it. My heart kicks like I ran a sprint. This isn’t just attraction. This is want, sharp and real and way past professional.
Sadie plays along like she was born for it. She rests her hand on my chest, fingers warm through my shirt, and leans into me just enough to sell it. “Boyfriend,” she says with a smile that looks almost real. “Still in the phase where he thinks he can charm me into anything.”
The women laugh. Melissa points at me. “He has the look of a man who usually gets what he wants.”
I grin, keeping my arm right where it is because letting go feels like losing something I didn’t know I needed. “She keeps me honest. Best thing that ever happened to me, even if she fights me on it daily.”
Sadie’s fingers tighten on my shirt for a beat. When the women look away she whispers without moving her lips much, “You’re enjoying this far too much, Hawthorne.”
I murmur back, my mouth close to her ear so only she hears, “Just doing the job. But I’m not going to lie. You feel good right here.”
She doesn’t pull away. If anything she settles a fraction closer. The women keep talking, inviting us officially, giving us the details for tomorrow night. I keep my arm around Sadie the whole time, my thumb tracing lazy circles on her side without even meaning to. Every touch sends another spark through me. I’m supposed to be listening for useful intel. Instead I’m cataloging the way she laughs at Brooke’s story about the regatta disaster, the way her serious edges soften in the sun, the way she fits against me like she was made for it.