Page 16 of Booked for Summer

How’s it going in Nantucket? Sold any books yet?

Jade quickly typed out a reply.

Nope. It’s not exactly busy.

Why? Too many holidaymakers with other things on their mind besides reading…

What could be better than reading?!

If you have to ask, you’ve not had sex with the right person yet.

A tingle hummed through Jade as she responded.

After last night, maybe I can think of one thing…

She laughed as her phone lit up with an incoming call.

‘Oh my God,’ said Lauren. ‘You’ve only been out there one day and you’ve already found someone to shag?’

The smile slipped from Jade’s face but she reminded herself Lauren didn’t mean to make her sound cheap, easy. ‘It’s not like I went looking for a hook-up. It just happened.’

‘Yeah, I know. It’s just ithappensto you far more than it does to the rest of us.’

Did it? Or was Lauren judging against her own, stricter values? ‘We didn’t actually have sex. Just… fooled around.’

It felt wrong, dismissing the evening like that, as if it had been trivial, inconsequential, when it had been friggingmagical. Better than anything she’d ever experienced. So much so that she regretted not having sex, regretted giving in to her fear of feeling cheapened because now it felt like a missed opportunity. How many other chances would she get to have spectacular sex with an incredibly attractive man, on his yacht, under the stars? A man who’d actually shown her more respect, more care, than any of the guys she’d been out with.

‘So, spill the beans, what was he like? Are you hooking up again?’ Just as Jade was deciding how much to tell her, Lauren swore. ‘Damn it, I’m being bleeped. Another life to save. Take care and I’ll message you later to get all the dirty details.’

Life to save. Dirty details. After ending the call Jade swallowed, and swallowed again, but the bad taste was still in her mouth, the heaviness still in her stomach. Getting up from her chair she walked through the bookstore, taking in the shelves of bright book covers, and then to the outside where she took a deep breath. There was no room in her life for Lauren’s ugly comparisons when she had books and the ocean.

Glancing at her watch, she realised it was one o’clock already. Time to close up shop for an hour and take a break, because she’d worked sooooo hard. And, okay, she wasn’t saving lives, but this was a chance toliveher life.

Switching the shop sign toclosed for lunch, she locked up and glanced along the wharf. Which way to head? As it was her first full day, maybe she’d take Daisy’s advice and grab her lunch from Provisions on Straight Wharf. Apparently their sandwiches were to die for.

She smiled as she strolled across the wooden boardwalk. It was a beautiful day, the sky a vivid shade of blue, the breeze off the sea keeping the temperature down to pleasantly warm.

Taking a left, she headed into town. As she neared the historic district, the tarmac roads changed to cobblestones, and with weathered old colonial buildings lining both sides, it felt like stepping back in time. Main Street was wide, yet the cobbles on the road, the redbrick of the pavements and the rows of trees providing dappled shade gave it an air of intimacy, of a past rich with history. Everywhere she turned, planters brimming with flowers were set outside boutiques with Georgian-style windows displaying artisan crafts or designer clothes. Bustling café’s advertised homemade ice creams and fresh seafood. So many of the buildings were made from grey wood slats– she’d read that it was traditional for Nantucket, the wood being cedar shingles, which turned a soft grey as they weathered. Talk about New England charm– now she really understood what it meant. It was rustic and romantic, yet also rich and elegant. It wascaptivating.

Her pulse kicked up a gear as she spotted a familiar, tall figure walking away from Straight Wharf, a takeout coffee in his hand. Sporting a white linen shirt and chinos, his eyes covered by shades, Liam could have been a film star, or a model… and maybe he was.

Had she been rash, taking things so far with a guy she didn’t know?Day one and you’ve already found someone to shag.

Sod it, no. Lauren could think what she liked. She’d known the previous two guys she’d dated a few weeks before she’d slept with them.And look how well they turned out.

Last night had been special. She and Liam had shared confidences, connected in a way she hadn’t done with boyfriends she’d thought she knew inside out. When she’d left him in the early hours of this morning, she’d not felt cheap. She’d felt lucky to have spent a memorable night with a memorable man.

As if he sensed her staring, Liam looked up. He paused for a second before changing direction and walking towards her.

‘Hi.’ God, her mouth was dry, her heart pounding so hard he must be able to hear it. ‘Used any bad chat-up lines today?’

She watched as he slotted his free hand into the pocket of his trousers. His face was hard to read anyway, but especially now with those expensive-looking shades covering his eyes. ‘Is it hot out here? Or is it just you?’

It’s a joke. ‘Well, I did come outside for some fresh air, but you took my breath away.’

He smiled, wrenching the breath from her lungs and turning her joke into a reality.

‘Thank you for last night.’ She’d forgotten how deep his voice was, a low sexy rumble that sent a shiver of awareness down her spine. ‘I enjoyed it.’

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