Page 12 of Summer with a SEAL

“Sounds perfect. See you soon, angel,” he said, ducking into the guest bathroom.

The door shut behind him, and she wondered what she’d gotten herself into.

Chapter 4

“Knock-knock!” a male voice called out, and a beat later, Jacob was walking barefoot into their kitchen, wearing dry shorts and a tee shirt. “I didn’t want to startle you,” he said with a crooked grin. “Ryker says they should be discharged in half an hour or so.”

“Oh, fantastic,” Jessica said. “I guess we should just wait here for them. I’m not sure where the hospital is, but by the time we drive over and park, they’ll probably be leaving.”

“Sure thing. He’ll let us know if anything changes.”

She nodded, her eyes landing on his damp hair.

“I figured I’d better rinse off. I don’t want to get sand and salt all over your place. I hope you don’t mind—I just grabbed one of the towels down there.”

“No problem,” she said, feeling her cheeks heat as his gaze tracked over her sundress. “It’s the least we could do after you guys rescued Amy. Shoot, we should have you guys all over for dinner sometime or something.”

“I wouldn’t turn that down,” he said with a wink. “And you look nice,” he said easily, looking around the open kitchen area across to the family room. She knew he wasn’t trying to freak her out by ogling her, but there was definitely something satisfying about hearing Jacob compliment her in his deep voice.

“Thanks. My other sundress was covered in sand, so I figured I should change, too. Can I get you a beer or something?” she asked.

“Sure thing, angel. That sounds fantastic.”

Jessica padded across the kitchen barefoot to the fridge and grabbed two bottles. Jacob chuckled beside her as he glanced in the open door. “Beer, fruit, diet soda.”

She shrugged, grabbing a bottle opener from the drawer. “We’ve been eating dinner out every night. We won’t all summer, obviously, but since this is our first week here, we were excited to try out some restaurants.”

“Hell, you’re on vacation,” he agreed. “Nothing wrong with that.” He took the bottle opener from her and popped both caps, handing her back a longneck. “Hell of a way to start a vacation though with your friend ending up in the ER after nearly drowning—make sure you tell her to be careful swimming.”

“Yeah, I think it was just an impulsive type of thing to take a dip with that guy she met. I doubt she’ll do that again—ever.”

“Let’s go wait on the deck,” Jacob said, cocking his head in that direction. “I know it’s dark out, but I’ll imagine the spectacular view.”

She giggled. “Listening to the waves is pretty damn—darn relaxing.” She shrugged as he glanced over at her, his lips quirking. “I teach high schoolers. I try to avoid swearing because they’ll never let me hear the end of it.”

“Fair enough. Can’t say I do the same, but I’m with a bunch of Navy guys all day training,” he added with a low chuckle.

“So swearing like a sailor’s a real thing?” she joked, crossing the room toward the door.

“That’s probably the understatement of the year,” he said. He reached out and pulled open the sliding glass door, gesturing for her to go first. Again, she marveled at how comfortable he was here. How at ease in his own skin. She felt like a nervous wreck just standing here talking to Jacob, and he was cool as a cucumber. Or whatever.

“This is fucking awesome,” he said as he followed her outside. She glanced back at him, surprised, and she sensed his smile in the darkness. “Sorry angel, I couldn’t resist.”

“I’m beginning to think you like teasing me,” she said, sinking down into one of the Adirondack chairs.

Jacob grabbed one and dragged it closer to her, folding his large body as he sank down. “Affirmative, angel. But that’s just because you make it so damn easy.”

She brushed a strand of her hair back, glancing over at him in the darkness. It felt weirdly right sitting out here on the deck together—odd, since they’d just met. But suddenly she didn’t feel nervous anymore. The sound of the ocean waves crashing on the shore calmed her. And Jacob hadn’t done a single thing to make her uncomfortable. He teased her, sure, but he hadn’t gotten too close.

He stretched his long legs out and took a swig of his beer. “I should’ve gotten a place right on the water—it’s relaxing as hell.”

“Where do you live?”

“I’ve got an apartment near base—nothing fancy, but we’re gone a lot of the time.”

“Right. Because you’re in the military.”

He nodded, meeting her gaze in the darkness. The only light was coming from the inside of the beach house, and it felt secluded and private out here on the deck. “We don’t deploy for long periods of time like most of the military does—we’re sent out on ops.”

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