Page 27 of A Beach House Beginning

She wanted to wrap her arms around him and taste and explore that mouth that often looked so stern.

She held her breath, waiting, aching. For a long moment, they gazed at each other, the only sound in her apartment their combined breathing.

Before she could do something foolish like reach up and instigate the kiss, take what she suddenly wanted, Jenna came to her senses.

No. She couldn’t do that. She was not in the market for a relationship, and she was certainly not in the market for a relationship with a hard, dangerous man like Wes Calhoun.

She quickly stepped away, pulling her hands together so that he did not see them trembling. “Thank you. I’m not quite sure what happened there. Maybe there is something slippery on the floor.”

If she didn’t know better, she would almost think Theo had tried to trip her on purpose. She could not say that, of course. It sounded ridiculous. Anyway, why would her sweet puppy do such a thing?

That muscle flexed in his jaw again. “I’m glad you didn’t fall,” he said.

“So am I. Thanks for catching me. I really don’t need any broken bones to start out the summer.”

“Watch out for wandering puppies.”

“I’ll do that. I’ll let Carly’s mom know I’m taking Brielle home, but she might want to text you to make sure it’s okay.”

“Sounds good. Thanks. I guess I’ll see you tonight, then.”

Anticipation curled through her, sharply sweet. “Yes. See you then.”

By then, she would try to have a much better hold on this burgeoning attraction to a man she knew she shouldn’t want.

He had to stop doing this.

Wes hurried up the steps toward his apartment, for the first time feeling the chill of his damp clothing.

He was a glutton for punishment. Jenna Haynes was not the woman for him. He knew that. She was sweet, warm, nurturing. Innocent.

They couldn’t have been more different. He possessed exactly none of those qualities.

That didn’t stop him from wanting her anyway.

Some part of him had responded instinctively when she stumbled. He had reached for her and had wanted to pull her tightly against him and keep her safe from any harm.

He had almost kissed her. The urge had almost overwhelmed him.

Fortunately, he came to his senses in time, seconds before he would have pressed his mouth to hers.

Kissing her, unleashing his hunger, would have changed everything.

They were forging a fragile friendship, one he was beginning to cherish. He liked talking with her. She was smart, funny, kind.

While he might yearn for much more than a friendship, he knew it was impossible between them. He had to get over it.

She seemed to have lost her outright fear of him, but that didn’t make her less wary. She jumped if he accidentally touched her and she still watched him as if not sure how he would react to any given situation.

Why was she so nervous? Okay, yes, he looked tough. He could see himself in the mirror every morning when he shaved. He knew he appeared intimidating and fierce. He had put on muscle in prison, not really as protection or defense but mainly as a distraction.

He might have hoped Jenna would know him enough by now to understand he would not hurt her—or any woman, for that matter.

Maybe her unease didn’t have anything to do with him.

If she had not spoken of her husband in such affectionate terms, he might have thought she had been a victim of domestic abuse. That could still be the case, though somehow he doubted it.

Her secrets were her own, he reminded himself. Everyone had them and if Jenna was not interested in sharing hers, he could not fault her for that.

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