Page 56 of Second Chance at Sunshine Inn

Curiosity propelled him down the stairs and out the door. As he approached Everleigh, he found her eyes were trained on the water. She seemed deep in thought, as if the weight of the worldwas balanced on her slight shoulders. He couldn’t take his eyes off her. She was beautiful with the fading light illuminating her ivory skin, the same light also stoking her red hair like a blaze.

He stopped moving forward and jammed his hands into the pockets of his shorts. For a moment he felt ridiculous for longing to talk to her about the mysterious Declan Hewitt. Why would Everleigh care about his life? She seemed to be burdened with her own thoughts, and he didn’t want to bother her with his nervousness about meeting the stranger tomorrow.

He started back toward his apartment. He was better off just finding something to watch on television and putting his confusion and concerns about Declan out of his head.

“Are you spying on me?”

Cade paused and faced her again. Everleigh was looking over her shoulder at him from the swing, the sunset still lighting up her features. “Not exactly,” he said, kicking a pebble with the toe of his shoe. “But you look stressed. Wanna talk about it?”

Everleigh pushed her swing back into gentle motion. “I was just thinking about Alana and how she meant so much to so many people.” Her lip wobbled, but she tried to smile anyway. “What’s onyourmind?”

He walked over to stand next to her. “I called that Declan guy.”

Her expression brightened. “And?” As her swing moved and a warm evening breeze drifted over him, her scent—something flowery mixed with vanilla—wafted over him as well. His pulse blipped and stumbled, and the corners of her mouth quirked upward. “Did you win a sweepstakes?”

He tried to shake off his confusing feelings for her. “No, but I agreed to meet him for lunch tomorrow.”

“What does he want?”

“Don’t know.”

She scrunched her nose. “Hmm... Maybe heissketchy. Do you want me to go with you?”

He shook his head. “Thanks, but I can handle it.”

“Humph. Suit yourself then.” She patted the swing next to her. “Want to join me?”

He was tempted. Enjoying the warm evening beside her sounded like heaven, but he was afraid to get too close. He already was growing more attached to her than he cared to admit, which was only putting his heart in danger. “No, but thanks for the offer.”

Her face seemed to fall slightly, but then her smile returned. “Well then, good night, partner.”

“Night.” He stood still for a moment, then started back toward his apartment. As he approached the garage, he pondered how sad Everleigh had seemed when he first spotted her by the pond. He longed to know what she wasreallythinking, but he couldn’t allow himself to open up.

Then a thought hit him. He could design a memorial gift—something special that would remind Everleigh of Alana. Instead of going up to his apartment, he unlocked the garage and crossed to his workbench. Before long, all sorts of creative ideas had engulfed his mind.

Chapter 14

Cade strolled to Slice of Heaven and pulled open the front door. The savory aromas that hit him normally would have caused his stomach to gurgle, but anxiety had tied his insides into knots. He’s spent a sleepless night puzzling over who Declan Hewitt was and what he wanted.

He’d managed to keep the conversation to a minimum with Everleigh while they made breakfast for the inn guests, and he’d agreed to let her tidy up the kitchen when breakfast was over. He’d spent the remainder of the morning in his shop, tinkering with a project he’d started for Everleigh until it was time to drive into town.

Cade scanned the walls of the pizzeria, which were lined with photos of mouthwatering pizzas, breadsticks, and calzones as well as beach landscapes. The black-and-white tile floor was worn, evidence of the family-owned restaurant’s longevity—here since Cade was a child. His folks had always bought pizzas from this place, and it was still his favorite.

He searched the dining room as he made his way to the line, finding several families gathered around tables and sitting in booths.

Pulling his phone from the back pocket of his jeans, he scrolled through his text messages, looking for one from Declan. He wished he’d asked Declan how to identify him. Meeting a stranger was so awkward. He had a flashback of the blind date he’d been set up on when he met Serena, and he bit back a groan. The two of them had had instant chemistry, and before the end of the night, he’d been certain he’d found “the one.” He almost laughed at himself out loud at the naïveté of it all. He’d been such a hopeless romantic back then, but he’d learned his lesson—the hard way.

“Cade?”

His head popped up just as a man approached him with his hand outstretched. “I’m Declan.”

“Hey.” Cade shook his hand.

Declan pointed to a corner booth in the back. “I took the liberty of getting you a gigantic piece of pepperoni and a Coke. Sound okay?”

“Yeah.” Cade followed him to the booth and sat across from him. Although the pizza smelled delicious, his appetite was nonexistent. He took a sip of Coke and then waited for the stranger to speak.

“You’re probably wondering why I’ve been determined to track you down.”

---