Page 30 of Mine to Keep

A man without a shirt jogged in her direction.

She was about to turn her head when she realized that it was Jamison. She blinked. His muscles flexed every time his bare feet hit the sand.

His gaze locked with hers, and he slowed. “Good morning,” he said with a bright smile. “I didn’t expect to see you out here, though it’s a nice surprise.”

“It’s good to see you, too,” she managed with a dry throat. She blamed it on the salt and the sand. Not the man looking like a Greek god, standing in front of her as the sun’s rays began to show themselves where the ocean kissed the sky. There was no denying Jamison’s sex appeal or the fact that she was attracted to him, but that didn’t mean she had to act on it or allow him access to that knowledge.

“Did you come to catch the sunrise?”

“I’ve never seen one over the ocean before.”

“Oh, my. It’s beautiful,” he said. “May I join you?”

“Sure.” Who was she to deny him? It was a public beach, and the ocean and the sun belonged to everyone. She scooted over, giving up some of her towel so he didn’t have to sit his ass all the way on the sand.

He glanced at his watch. “It will be about another ten minutes before the sun really shows.”

“Do you jog on the beach every morning?” Perhaps this would become a morning ritual. She told herself that she was just looking, and as two more hard bodies ran past, she realized it wasn’t a lie. She wouldn’t only be gawking at him.

No one could blame a girl for checking out a nice-looking man.

“When I’m not working or being lazy. But I have to admit, sometimes the latter happens.” He leaned back on his hands and stretched out his long legs.

Never in her life had she ever described a man as beautiful.

But he was.

They sat in silence, listening to the birds and the ocean as the sky grew brighter. Zadie wiggled against Bryn’s chest as if she wanted to be a part of it all.

A piece of the sun hit the blue sky. It was only a tiny sliver, but it slowly grew in size. All the beach walkers, joggers, and yoga people stopped, covered their eyes, and stared at the ball appearing in an array of blues, pinks, and oranges as if something magical were happening.

Her heart beat a little faster.

“That’s amazing,” she whispered.

“Takes my breath away every time, and I’ve lived here for my entire life.”

“A girl could get used to this.”

He took her hand and squeezed. “How about I take you for some breakfast? There’s a great place right over there on the beach. Best coffee blend in town, and the French toast is to die for.”

Her stomach growled. “Okay,” she said before her brain thought better of it. She blinked. “But don’t you need a shirt and some shoes?”

“Not if we’re going to eat it outside on the picnic tables.” He furrowed his forehead. “Or will that bother you? Because if it does, we can always have breakfast another day. It’s not like we’ll never see each other again.”

Don’t do it. You’re not that hungry.“I don’t care if you don’t,” she said. “But for the record, I’m just in it for the coffee.”

He laughed. “Duly noted.” He hopped to his feet faster than a jet racing down a runway.

She took the hand he offered, but only because standing with a five-pound baby strapped to her belly was about as hard as it was when she’d been pregnant.

If not harder.

“Thank you,” she said, making sure she took her hand back as they strolled toward a big, blue building with a sign that read:Safe Harbor Café. It was a quaint place nestled between palm trees and overlooking the ocean. A park sat in front of it that had everything imaginable from tennis and pickleball courts, to shuffle ball, cornhole, and volleyball. They even had outdoor showers to rise off after a long day in the sand and sun. The park had dozens of tables as well as grills if you didn’t want to eat at the restaurant.

Of course, she quickly found out that theSafe Harbor Caféwas only open for breakfast and lunch.

Jamison ordered two number five specials to go at the outdoor window where it didn’t matter that he wasn’t dressed.

---