Page 46 of Summer Refresh

He shook his head. “You don’t have to do that.”

“I know I don’t, but I want to. Cari needs the place. Don’t worry. She’ll pay me back when she gets home.” She trusted her sister. They used to be so close. She wanted to regain that closeness once more.

Kent picked up a rolled-up throw rug and slung it over his shoulder. “You don’t have to do that. You said she’ll be home by the end of the month, right?” When she nodded, he said, “We can wait until then.”

“Really?”

When he nodded, she rushed to him. It wasn’t until she was there with her arms wrapped around him and his body stiff that she realized she’d overstepped. They’d been tiptoeing around this thing between them. And it was obvious Kent wasn’t ready to take things any further than that one kiss.

Just as she was about to pull away, his free arm wrapped around her, pulling her closer. Her heart pitter-pattered. Maybe he did feel something for her.

When his arm fell away, she grudgingly backed away. His gaze met hers and held long enough for her pulse to hit triple digits. His gaze dipped to her lips. With all of her might, she willed him to kiss her.

In that moment, she didn’t think about all of the reasons it was a bad idea. Time seemed to be suspended as they gazed at each other. Perhaps she should make the first move. Maybe he wasn’t sure how she felt about him. Though how could that be? She felt as though her emotions were evident on her face.

His gaze fell away, breaking the moment. Disappointment engulfed her as an awkward silence ensued. She should say something—anything—but her mouth wouldn’t work. Kent turned away and moved the rug into place.

He’d almost kissed her.

What had he been thinking?

The next day, Kent had a hard time concentrating. He kept thinking about how close he’d come to pulling Sara close and pressing his lips to hers. Even though he’d reminded himself of all the reasons he needed to keep his distance, it didn’t make him want to kiss her any less.

There was something about Sara that had him wanting things he knew should be off limits. After all, he was in the process of making plans to leave the island in the near future. It would be wrong to start anything at this point.

Maybe that was why he was so tempted—because he knew nothing serious could come of it. He wouldn’t have to worry about strings and commitments. The only thing holding him back was the fact he wouldn’t intentionally do anything to hurt Sara. And that was why he would keep a respectable distance between them.

His thoughts were interrupted when Birdie Neill and Agnes Dewey stopped by to check out the updates to the lobby. Birdie was full of compliments while Agnes was quiet and only spoke up when she found a small flaw. Birdie promised to spread the word around town about the amazing job he’d done. He wondered if it would generate much interest among the islanders.

The lobby would be completed today. It would have been finished yesterday but Sara had come up with an idea for some additional trim work on the walls to highlight the framed photos.

The trim work wasn’t hard. It just took time because the carved pieces of wood had to be painted white, making sure not to miss any of the crevices. And then Sara thought some gold highlights would give the trim a more impressive look.

He didn’t think it needed the gold paint. The truth was that he didn’t want to take the time. The more time he spent with Sara, the more confused he became about his future.

That morning he’d had his second video interview. It had gone well. At least he thought it had gone well. And he’d heard back on a phone interview that he’d done at the beginning of the week. They asked him to come in for an in-person interview.

He was pumped about the position. It was the right salary, and the position sounded interesting. The only catch was that he had to work in Hartford, Connecticut. That was a bit farther from Bluestar than he’d hoped. But he was getting ahead of himself. He didn’t even have the job yet.

He’d been outside, cutting one of the painted pieces of trim. It was a half an inch too long. When he stepped into the lobby, he saw Sara on her phone. She wasn’t saying anything, but the frown on her face was quite evident.

When she slipped the phone into her pocket, he asked, “Is everything all right?”

She nodded. “I was trying to reach Cari. With the time difference, it’s hard to get a hold of each other. I just wanted to see if she’d gotten the lease signed and to find out when she’s flying in. I can’t believe she’ll be here in just a couple of weeks.”

He could hear the excitement in her voice. He was happy for Sara. She’d be so busy catching up on things with her sister that she wouldn’t notice when he moved away. At least that was what he told himself to feel better about his plans. After all, it wasn’t like they were in a relationship or anything.

Knock-knock.

He glanced to the doorway to find a middle-aged couple standing there. He approached them. “Sorry. The lobby is under renovations right now. If you go down one door, it’ll lead you to the temporary check-in desk.”

“Oh. We’re not here to check in,” the woman with a short brown bob haircut said. Her gaze moved to Sara. “We’re here to see her.”

“Me?” Sara pressed a hand to her chest as her eyes momentarily widened. It appeared she hadn’t been expecting them. “I’m Sara Chen. What can I do for you?”

The woman glanced down at the protective covering on the floor. “Can we step inside?”

“Sure.” Sara stepped forward. Kent decided to follow just to make sure everything was okay.

---