She took Jackson’s hand and walked with him along the beach. His touch made her skin tingle. She liked it. She liked being with him.
“Where are we going?” she asked as they hiked up the beach. Trees obscured most of her vision.
“Dinner at my place,” he replied. He stopped short. “As long as you’d like dinner. If your stomach is still queasy, we can do something else.”
She smiled. “My stomach is feeling better. I’ll just eat light and I think I’ll be okay. Thank you.”
He looked her over and then nodded. He gave her hand a squeeze before continuing up the hill.
She liked that he was concerned. She felt a little bad that she’d messed up his plans for a romantic date night with her seasickness. This obviously wasn’t the way he had planned things. Yet, he was taking it in stride and still smiling.
As they crested the ridge of the hill, she saw the house. It was beautiful. Giant windows overlooked the ocean on all sides. The building itself was probably only a bedroom and main room, but the windows more than made up for the lack of space inside. She grinned and picked up her pace.
Jackson lead her to the front door. He didn’t knock, instead going right inside. The house was even more beautiful on the inside than it was outside. Soft, comfortable furniture in grays and off-whites sat on gray driftwood colored floors. The windows were like being inside a bubble looking out at the world.
“Wow,” she whispered, taking off her shoes at the door. She didn’t want to track sand inside. “What is this place?”
“This is my personal beach house,” Jackson explained. “Since you mentioned you wanted a house with space, I thought you might like it here. It’s one of my favorite places to come and relax. Plus, it was close.”
“It’s amazing,” she agreed, walking through the home. It was as small as she suspected, but warm and inviting. She loved it.
“Let me get you a drink,” Jackson said, dropping her hand as he went to the small kitchen. “Have a seat. Or, feel free to freshen up.”
The room had a large comfortable looking couch and several smaller chairs. A wood burning fireplace sat off to the side and Emma could only imagine how comfortable this room must be in the winter with a fire lighting up the big windows.
Pictures hung on the far wall by the window. She walked over and looked them over. They were all of Jackson in various locations around the world. He climbed mountains, she learned, looking at the pictures.
She went to the small bathroom off to the side and cleaned herself up. Her makeup was smudged from crying and her hair tangled in every imaginable direction. She scrubbed at her teeth with her fingers and did her best to make herself look presentable before going back out to the main room.
The sun started to set, painting the entire room in gold and orange. Emma stood in front of a window, absorbing the color of the setting sun with her entire being. Her stomach queasiness was completely gone now. Solid ground had done the trick.
“Here you are,” Jackson said, handing her a heavy glass full of amber liquid.
Emma sniffed before sipping. The taste was ginger ale.
“Is there any alcohol in this?” she asked, taking a deeper sip.
“No, just ginger. I thought it might help your stomach.”
She smiled and took another sip. It was sweet of him to make sure she was feeling better.
“I smell something cooking. Are we eating here?”
Jackson nodded. “I have shrimp mosca. It’s my favorite. I’m afraid it’s not done, since we had to move it from the yacht. I figured you wouldn’t want to eat on the water.”
“No,” Emma agreed. Just the thought being on the boat again made her stomach tense. She took another sip of ginger ale.
“It’s just us here, so we’ll have to mostly fend for ourselves. I’m afraid I only have Jeb and some security on the island right now.”
“Jeb was the man who took the speed boat on the beach, right?” Emma asked, recalling the name.
Jackson smiled at her. “Yes. He maintains the island for me. When our plans changed, he set up our dinner here instead of out on the yacht like I had planned.”
“Thank you for changing your plans,” Emma said. “I’m sorry about my stomach.”
Jackson took her hands in his. “Don’t be sorry, Emma. This may work out better.”
“Still, I know you had everything all planned. I feel a little bad.”