Page 40 of Second Chance at Sunshine Inn

“Completely understand. I’ll text you all the details.”

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“Cade?” Everleigh hollered from somewhere out in the hallway. “You up here?”

“In here!” he called. He consulted the instructions on his phone one last time, then climbed up a stepladder. He pulled out the filter from the mini-split heating and air unit in the Sunrise Suite.

“Where?” she called, sounding closer this time.

“In the Sunrise Suite,” he announced.

“Oh!” He heard her footfalls before she appeared in the doorway.

He angled his body to face the door and tried not to stare. She wore a short, lemon-yellow sundress that flaunted her slim thighs and long legs. Her red hair was pulled into a messy bun on top of her head, and ties from a pink swimsuit peeked out from under the dress at the nape of her elegant neck. A large bright-purple beach bag was draped over her arm, and a floppy green sun hat dangled from her hand. She was the perfect mix of stunning and cute.

He winced slightly as he took her in. Why did she have to be so pretty?

“Heading to the beach?” he managed to ask.

Her smile was radiant. “Yes.” She jammed her thumb toward the end of the hallway. “I thought Alana kept a couple of collapsible beach chairs in the utility room, but I can’t find them. Do you know where they might be?”

“In the shed.” He hopped down from the stepladder.

She appeared befuddled. “We have a shed?”

“Alana put it up a couple of years ago during her decluttering phase.”

“Huh.” She spun the hat in her hands. “So, uh, where’s the shed?”

“I’ll show you.”

“No, it’s okay.” She pointed to the mini-split. “I don’t mean to interrupt your work. I’ll find it.”

“It’s not a problem.” He met her in the hallway and made a sweeping gesture toward the stairwell for her to go first.

They traipsed downstairs, and he retrieved the shed key from the utility room before they continued outside. The afternoon sky was clear, and the air was heavy with humidity. Bryant met them on the path and trotted alongside them.

“What sparked your beach day?” Cade asked.

“I met my mom at the boardwalk earlier and then stopped by the library to see Quinn. She convinced me to join her and some of our old friends.” Her smile dimmed slightly. “The Newtons won’t be here before eight, right?”

“Right.”

“I’ll only be gone a few hours. I can help finish any last-minute chores when I get back.”

“I’ve got it handled.” He led her behind the garage to the large white shed with a gray roof.

She clucked her tongue. “I had no idea this was back here.”

He unlocked it and pushed up the door. “One or two chairs?” he asked, climbing in and using his phone as a flashlight.

“One.” She paused. “Unless you want to join me.”

He turned to face Everleigh, and her smile seemed almost coy. How... confusing.

“You want me to go?” he asked.

“When was the last time you did something fun, Cade Witherspoon?” Her brown eyes glittered.

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