Just A Kiss (Angel Sands 4)

“Twenty-four last week. And he’s doing great. He graduated from Harvard a couple of years ago, and is doing research. You wouldn’t recognize him if you saw him. He’s about ten feet tall and all muscled up, nothing like he was as a kid.”

“I’d recognize him if he looks anything like you.” Her tongue peeked out to lick her lips. They looked as dry as his felt. “Say hi for me the next time you speak to him, okay? He was like my little brother back in the day.”

“I definitely will.”

A loud bell rang from the corner of the room, right as the MC stepped up to the microphone. “Ladies and gentlemen, please take your seats. Dinner is about to be served.”

“I guess that’s our cue. What table are you at? I’ve got table ten.” He pointed over to the far corner.

“I’m at the family table.” She inclined her head at table one. “I’ll catch you later?” Was it his imagination, or did she look disappointed?

He shot her a wink. “It was really good to see you.”

“And you.” She nodded. “So good.”

* * *

Table ten turned out to be the raucous one. Griffin and Jack sat to Breck’s left, pouring wine out as if a drought was about to kick in. On the other side of the table were Ember’s friends, Ally and Brooke, plus their partners, Nate and Aiden. Breck knew Aiden very well. He was one of the directors of Carter Leisure, the huge hotel company that owned the Silver Sands Resort. That made Aiden Breck’s boss, and the two of them were friends from the start.

On Breck’s right was Rachel Foss – Ember’s friend from school that Lucas had mentioned. Breck still couldn’t remember meeting her before, in spite of talking with her for the last five minutes.

“So you grew up with Lucas?” Rachel asked, resting her chin on her hand. “That must have been fun. What made you leave town?”

“My mom died when I was seventeen, so I moved to Boston with my dad.”

“I’m so sorry to hear that.” Rachel’s face dropped.

“It’s okay. It happened a long time ago.” He smiled at her to take the sting away.

“So are you back for good now?” She leaned forward, her eyes soft. As she spoke, Breck found himself sneaking a glance at table one. Caitie was talking to her mom, her face turned away from him.

“I don’t know how long I’m here for. We’re due to finish the reconstruction at the Silver Sands Resort next year. After that we’re hoping for another contract nearby.” He’d already discussed staying in California for a while with his dad, so they’d begun placing bids on contracts which would keep him close. He liked the area, liked having some autonomy. Luckily, his father was in agreement.

“That’s really interesting.” Rachel tipped her head to the side. “I drive past there every day. I keep wondering what is happening behind all those fences. Are you having to demolish a lot of it?”

He shook his head. “No, we’re mostly restoring. There’s a lot of history in those buildings. It was here before the town really grew. It would be a crime to knock it down.” From the corner of his eye, he saw Aiden nod in agreement.

“I’d love to see it sometime,” Rachel said, looking at him expectantly.

Breck took a sip of his drink. “Once we reach the next stage of construction, we’ll start having open days for the town. Maybe you could come along.”

Rachel grinned. “Oh, yes please.” She leaned forward. “So, do you surf like Lucas does?”

“When I get a chance,” he replied. “How about you?”

“No, but I love to watch. I go down sometimes before school and sit on the beach for a while. When do you surf?”

“Mostly on the weekends.” He shrugged. “When I’m not working.”

“Maybe I’ll come and watch you some time,” she suggested. “We could grab coffee or something afterward.” She was leaning so close his personal space was non-existent. It made him want to shuffle his chair back.

“Um, yeah. Sure.” From the corner of his eye he noticed Griff grinning. “I’m pretty busy though.”

“It’s fine. Let me give you my number.” She grabbed a pad and pen from her purse, and scribbled her digits down, tearing out the sheet of paper and pressing it into his hand. “Call me next time you’re free.”

Breck slid the piece of paper in his pocket. He had no intention of calling her. Not that she wasn’t a nice girl – if she was friends with Ember, he had no doubt she was. But she wasn’t his type. And he wasn’t in the market for a relationship.

Strange how his eyes were drawn to the front table again. To the woman he hadn’t seen for the past thirteen years. He swallowed hard as he took in her dark, lustrous hair, pulled over one shoulder to reveal her pale, slender neck.