Page 24 of When Morning Comes Around

He held her gaze, but she just shrugged and put the jacket on. He put his own on and couldn’t help chuckling when he looked at her. She was struggling to fasten the zipper.

“Want a hand? There’s a knack to it.”

She gave him a rueful smile. “Then yes, please. It’s obvious that I don’t have the knack.”

He stepped closer and took hold of the zipper. It took him a few moments to line it up, then he tugged the tab right up to her chin. When he looked down at her upturned face, all his breath caught in his chest. Her eyes were a beautiful, light brown color that he’d tried to avoid noticing until now. Her full, plump lips seemed to quiver as she gave him a hesitant smile. She was beautiful. And that thought made him step back quickly.

She didn’t seem to notice his reaction. Instead, she held up her arms and laughed as she waved the empty ends of the sleeves around – they were far too long for her, of course.

He made a face. “Sorry, do you want to dig through the bags for your own coat?”

She shook her head vigorously. “I do not, thank you. This is perfect! My hands won’t get cold.”

As he looked her over, he was tempted to say that her ass wouldn’t, either. The jacket came halfway down her thighs. He refrained from mentioning that, though. Instead, he checked the back seat again and was happy to find two beanies. He offered one to her. “Want to keep your head warm, too?”

“Thanks, but I’ll only wear it if you promise not to laugh.”

He laughed even as he asked, “Why would I laugh?”

She pointed at him. “See? You’re doing it already, and I haven’t even put it on yet.”

He shrugged and put his own hat on. “I don’t think anyone looks particularly fetching wearing one of these things, but that’s not the point of them, is it?”

He felt as though he’d said the wrong thing when her smile faded. “No, you’re right. I was just being silly.” She put the hat on and looked up at him. “Shall we go?”

Her short, dark hair stuck out from underneath the hat, looking almost like a fur fringe. He winked at her. “I’m not laughing.”

She narrowed her eyes at him and punched his arm. “See! Now you know exactly what I’m talking about, don’t you?”

He chuckled. “Yeah, sorry. It looks kind of cute, though.”

She smiled through pursed lips. “Cute? Well, that’s a new one. I’ll take it. It beats what I’ve been called in the past.”

His smile faded. He wanted to ask what she’d been called in the past – and by whom. At the same time, he had a feeling that he wouldn’t like the answers. So instead, he offered her his arm. “Come on, let’s get this beach walk in.”

When she slipped her arm through his, his throat went dry. What the hell was he doing? This was how he and Polly used to walk. He sucked in a deep breath and blew it out slowly. He didn’t understand his reaction, but he didn’t need to. It didn’t matter.

Sadie grinned up at him when they reached the water’s edge. “Did you know that there’s all kinds of quartz on the beaches around here? I used to come hunting for them when I was a kid. I used to have a little collection of rocks. I even had some beautiful rose quartz.”

He tilted his head to the side as he smiled down at her. “You’re a rock hound?”

She laughed. “I wouldn’t go that far. In fact, I…” Her words trailed off as she stared out at the water. “You know what? I haven’t gone rock hunting in years – not since I first met Dale. He thought it was an utter waste of time.”

Something inside of Dominic reared up when he heard that. He hated when people put down others’ interests. No one had the right to judge – what might seem trivial to one person held major significance to another; he knew that.

He gave her arm a squeeze. “Well, I reckon today’s the day we change that.” He looked down at the pebbles they were walking on. “I don’t really know what I’m looking for, but I bet we can find something good.”

Her eyes were wide as they looked up into his. “It’s okay. You don’t need to…”

He held her gaze and nodded. “Yeah, I do. You have the chance to do something you haven’t done in far too long – I’m happy to be a part of it.”

As they walked slowly along the water’s edge, eyes down on the pebbles beneath their feet, his words kept replaying in his head. From what she’d told him, it seemed that there were many things that Sadie hadn’t done in far too long. It was hard to deny that something inside him wanted to be there with her as she rediscovered them. He shoved his hands deeper in his pockets and focused on searching for quartz instead.

Chapter Seven

When Sadie awoke on Sunday morning, she rolled onto her back and stared up at the ceiling. For the first time since she’d left home, everything that had happened came flooding back into her mind.

She’d wondered if she was in shock, if her brain was refusing to process what had happened – what she’d seen. She’d kept pushing the thoughts away and focusing on what needed to be done. Even during the long hours in the minivan as she drove across the country, she hadn’t allowed herself to dwell on what had happened.

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