Page 28 of Summer Ever After

With Ian, there had never been this much heat. Sure, she’d wanted him, had dreamed of what it could be like, but it didn’t compare to how Aaron made her feel. How he was making her feel now.

“Beth.” Her name was a soft groan that escaped his lips as they were pressed against her own.

“I don’t want to think.” She sighed and closed her eyes as he kissed her forehead. “Please, I just needed… a moment.” She looked up at him.

She felt his chest vibrate as he chuckled softly. “Take as many moments as you need.” His fingers tightened for a brief moment on her hips.

“I didn’t mean to attack you.” She rested her forehead against his chest.

“You’ll hear no complaints from me,” he said as his arms wrapped around her shoulders. “Although, I can hear the next paddle boarding group of the day heading our way.”

She stiffened and then jerked away from him when she heard the voices outside the door. Aubrey’s voice rose over the group as she began listing off instructions.

“Do you think we can sneak out…” She glanced around and realized there were only two ways in and out of the boathouse. The door he was still backed up against and the larger doors that opened over the bay.

“I’m not swimming for it,” he said with a chuckle.

“Right.” Her shoulders slumped. “Aubrey is so going to tell everyone.”

He shrugged. “They’ve been speculating for a while now.”

“They have?” she asked just as the door opened, and Aubrey stepped inside.

When she saw them, a huge grin filled her lips. “Good morning,” she said cheerfully.

“Morning,” Aaron replied. He quickly took Beth’s hand in his and pulled her through the group of paddle boarders.

“Don’t mind them,” Aubrey called out, “just a little workplace romance hot spot.”

Beth’s face heated as he pulled her down the pathway. By the time they stepped into the main building, she felt back under control.

Beth tried to slip back into her usual rhythm once she and Aaron parted ways in the lobby. He gave her hand one last squeeze before heading out to make his usual rounds, leaving her standing at the front desk with her pulse still uneven.

Work. She needed to work.

She pulled up the day’s registration logs, though her mind kept wandering back to the boathouse, to the heat of his lips and the steadiness of his hands on her hips. The memory was both grounding and dizzying, a reminder that she had just done something she hadn’t let herself even want for so long.

“Someone’s glowing.”

Beth’s head snapped up to see Jules leaning on the end of the counter, smirking like a cat with a bowl of cream. Hannah stood beside her, arms folded, eyes dancing with barely disguised amusement.

“Aubrey has a big mouth.” Beth groaned. “Please don’t start in on me. I’m still processing… things.”

“Oh, we’re starting,” Hannah said, sliding into the chair across from her. “You disappeared with Aaron for, what was that, ten minutes? Or so Zoey claims. And Aubrey finds you two holed up in the boathouse, then you come in here looking like you just got off a rollercoaster.”

“I did not,” Beth protested, cheeks heating.

“An Aaron rollercoaster,” Jules supplied, causing them both to giggle like schoolgirls. “You totally did,” Jules said, grinning. She plopped down beside Hannah. “So… are we talking sparks or SPARKS?”

Beth buried her face in her hands. “Why do I even work here.”

“Because you love us,” Hannah said sweetly before sobering. “But seriously, Beth… Aaron being here, with you, when Ian showed up? That wasn’t nothing.”

Beth froze, her heart giving a painful twist. The mention of Ian soured her stomach as his words echoed in her mind. “This isn’t over.”

Jules picked up on it instantly. “Hey, are you okay?”

Beth nodded quickly. “Yeah. It just caught me off guard, Ian being here.”