Summer Love at the Beach (Summer Instalove)

first, though.”

“No,” he said quickly. “You look wonderful, and I want you to be comfortable. You can sit in

the kitchen and tell me all about yourself while I cook.” His eyebrow quirked up. “Or you can tell me about anything else you wanted. Or you can stay quiet. It’s all good.”

He took my hand and led me back towards his house, still walking at the very edge of the

beach in the water.

I realized that he had sort of told me I was coming for dinner, rather than asking me. Of

course I could have said no, and walked away. But there was something strangely confident

about him announcing that he was going to spend time with me, and feed me.

As we got to his house, he paused, as if wanting to make sure I was on board. Pulling my

phone from my pocket, I used the voice to text feature so that he could hear. “Hey Julie –

I’m having dinner at Mitch’s tonight. I’ll be home later.”

Mitch chuckled warmly. “Do you take off with random guys often?”

I shook my head as we walked through his garden. “Never, actually.”

As we walked through the huge sliding glass doors into his kitchen, I took a look around. His house was much more comfortable than my brother’s. Julie had obviously decorated with

no personality, her only thought being to impress others. Mitch’s furniture looked like it was chosen to really live in.

“Do you spend a lot of time here?” I asked.

“At least two long weekends a month in the summer,” he said. “I live in the city, right

downtown. So it’s great to get out to the beach where the only traffic is joggers and people

walking their dogs.”

I smiled and nodded. It really did feel like a world away.

“I promise you a great meal, and whatever amount of conversation you like,” Mitch smiled

down at me. “The only thing I can’t promise is that I’ll be able to keep my hands off this…”

He turned to stand in front of me, clasping my back and sliding his hands down until one

cupped my ass and the other gripped the side of my hip. “You’re an absolutely beautiful girl, Becca. I’ve never met anyone as sexy as you are. I’m having all sorts of dark desires about

you, so I’m afraid you’re going to have to practice right now.”

“What do you mean? Practice what?” I asked. He was being both intense and playful at the

same time, and I wasn’t sure which I liked more.

“Take hold of my hand, pull it off your hip, and tell me no.” His dazzling grin made my pulse uneven.

I understood what he was doing, and it was absolutely adorable. But if I was going to try to

be brave, and run with the feelings flooding me, making my pulse skip like a stone across