Page 79 of The Cottage on Pelican Bay

After changing into a pair of shorts and a midriff top, she headed to the kitchen. The fog was at ground level. She just hoped she would be able to see the sunrise through it.

With her coffee cup in hand, she stepped out on the porch and settled in the patio chair. All around her, she could hear the pelicans, hissing and squawking. She figured they were probably angry at the thickness of the fog that prevented them from hunting for their morning meal.

Her thoughts shifted to Saint yet again. If she didn’t hear from him by ten o’clock, she decided she’d drive over to his place. She wanted to believe he was there alone and the only reason she hadn’t heard from him was because he was mad at her.

She had taken a few sips of her coffee when she heard footsteps on the pier. From the way her heart began pounding and the gush of feminine need that stirred to life in her midsection, she knew there was only one man who could elicit such a reaction from her. Saint. She couldn’t make out anyone through the thick fog, but she stared intently in the direction of the pier, barely able to make it out.

Suddenly, a figure emerged from the fog. Although she still couldn’t make out his face, every pore of her body recognized him. Goose bumps of awareness formed on her skin. She placed her coffee cup on the table next to her chair as her breath caught in a surge of yearning and need.

She stood, so sure it was him that she moved toward the steps. Before she reached the first step, he appeared out of the fog. The moment he stepped onto the porch she threw herself into his arms.

Saint tightened his arms around Zara as he held her. He inhaled her scent, the aroma of the woman he loved. “I’m sorry, sweetheart. I didn’t mean to scare you. I didn’t realize you were out here on the porch. You can barely see anything through this fog.”

“You didn’t scare me,” she said, her gaze fixed on his face. “I knew it was you. I felt your presence. The fog is so thick I’m surprised you drove over here in it.”

“I had to because there’s something I have to tell you. It’s something that I should have told you weeks ago.”

“What?”

“I love you, Zara. I love you so damn much.”

Zara burst into tears, and he drew her back into his arms. He figured his declaration of love might elicit some reaction, but he honestly hadn’t expected this. “Oh, baby, I didn’t tell you that to make you cry. I know that you don’t love me, and I understand and accept that. And I—”

She pushed herself from his arms and stared into his face as more tears shone in her eyes. “That’s not why I’m crying, Saint.”

Using the tips of his fingers to gently wipe away her tears, he asked, “Then why are you crying?”

“Because I love you, too.”

Saint went still as hope rose up in his chest. He stared back at her. “What did you say?”

After swiping at more tears, she repeated her words. “I said the reason I’m crying is because I love you, and I wasn’t sure you could love me back.”

He drew her close, wrapping his arms tightly around her waist. “Of course I could love you back. I’ve known that I’ve loved you for a while. The reason I didn’t tell you was because I didn’t think you could love me back after what Maurice had done to you.”

“And that’s what I thought about with you. After Mia’s double rejection that you couldn’t love me.”

“Then why did you suggest I go meet up with her yesterday? You of all people knew how I felt about ever getting back together with her.”

“Yes, but hearing she was in town sent my mind into a tailspin. I figured the only reason she would come to Catalina Cove after all this time is because she realized she’d made a mistake and wanted you back. I knew I loved you. That’s what I had to tell you yesterday. But once I heard she was here, I panicked. If you recall, Maurice betrayed me with a woman from his past.”

Saint had forgotten about that. “I could never betray you with Mia or any woman, Zara. I don’t want Mia back and told her that very thing. There’s no doubt in my mind that I made my feelings very clear.”

She slid her gaze from his to look at the bay. “You didn’t contact me at all yesterday. So I thought...”

“That she and I were somewhere together?”

She turned her eyes back to him. “I did at first, but then a part of me—the one that trusts you—refused to believe that. After I thought things over, I woke up this morning and figured the only reason you hadn’t called or come back yesterday was because you were upset with me.”

“Yes, I was. After talking to Mia, I went boating on the bayou alone. I needed time to think. That’s when I decided to come here and tell you in person that I love you and to plead my case for why we should stay together, and how we can retain our relationship after you return to Boston. The reason I didn’t come here last night was because I didn’t get home from the bayou until late.”

She nodded. “Had I not heard from you by ten this morning, I would have shown up at your house to tell you that I love you and plead my case that we continue what we have.”

He gently brushed the back of his hand against her cheek. “Really?”

She smiled up at him. “Yes. Really. It’s too good to give up.”

Saint smiled back at her. “Then I think we need to go inside to talk about these pleas of ours some more.”

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