he even felt his feet move Jonah was threading his way towards her.
Hull got to her first, curling around the base of her table and lying down as if he was expected.
“Hey!” Avery said, her face lighting up with surprised laughter. With sunshine.
Then he saw the moment she knew what Hull’s sudden appearance meant. Her head whipped up, her eyes locking onto his, lit by an instant and wild flicker of heat, before she tilted her chin as if to say, I refuse to admit my cheeks are flushed because of you.
Yeah, honey, he thought, right back at ya.
Then her eyes slid past him, to the empty doorway leading inside the hotel. And all sunshine fled to leave way for sad Bambi. What scrape had she gotten herself into now?
His vision expanded to notice her knife and fork were untouched. The bread basket mere crumbs.
And he knew.
Luke. She’d made plans to have lunch with Luke. And for whatever reason, the goose had clearly failed to show.
That was the moment Jonah should have walked away. Considering how much he owed Luke, how long a friendship they’d enjoyed, and the fact that being anywhere near Avery made him feel like a rubber band stretched at its limit, it was the only honourable option.
And yet he dragged out a chair and—blocking Ms Shaw’s view of the front door—sat down.
Luke not carving out time for a surf during his first time in the cove for years was one thing. But not knowing when a gorgeous woman wanted to get to know him better? Unforgivable.
And she was gorgeous. Her pale hair clipped neatly away from her face in some kind of fancy braid, eyes soft and sooty, lips slicked glossy pink, ropes of tiny beads draping over a black-and-white dress that made her look like a million bucks. If he ever needed a reminder she was not from here, that whatever spark was between them had no future...
Then she had to go and say, “Oh, you’re staying?”
And that was it. He was hunkered in. His voice was one notch above a growl as he said, “Nice to see you too, Miss Shaw.”
She pointed over his shoulder. “I’m actually—”
“Thrilled to see me?”
She swallowed, clearly undecided as to whether to admit why she was there alone. In the end she kept her mouth shut.
“Saw you sitting here all alone and figured it was the gentlemanly thing to rescue you from your lonesomeness,” he said, casually perusing the menu he already knew by heart. He put the menu down, and settled back in his chair, sliding a leg under the table, navigating Hull’s big body. Only to find himself knocking shoes with Avery. Her high-heel-clad foot slipped away.
“Really?”
“Hand to heart,” he said, action matching words.
Her eyes flickered to his hand, across his chest, over his shoulders, to his hair, pausing longest of all on his mouth, before skimming back to his eyes. And while he knew it was not smart, was traitorous even, he enjoyed every second of it.
“Is your dog even allowed in here?” she said, pointing under the table.
He lifted a shoulder, let it fall. “Not my dog.”
She leaned forward a little then. Her mouth kicked into a half-smile.
“Well, whoever’s dog he is,” that mouth said, “he’s sitting on my foot. And my toes are now officially numb. He’s enormous.”
“Huge,” said Jonah, lifting his eyes to hers to find them darkened, determined, as if making some kind of connection between man and beast. Enough that he had to fight the urge to adjust himself.
Wrapping her lips around her straw in a way that was entirely unfair, she asked, “So how did you and Hull meet?”
“Found him on the beach when he was a pup—a tiny, scrawny, shivery ball of mangy, matted fluff, near dead with exhaustion and hunger. Odds on he wasn’t the only one in the litter dumped. Probably tied up in a sack full of rocks and thrown overboard. He’s been crazy afraid of water ever since. Took him home, cleaned him up, fed him, and that was it.”
“You saved his life and that doesn’t make him your responsibility?”
“Never bought him, never sought him. Don’t get me wrong, he’s a great dog. And if he thinks you’re a threat to me, he’d like nothing better than to tear you limb from limb.”
“Me?” she said, flicking a quick glance at the now-snoring lump under the table. “A threat?”
Jonah shot her a flat look. She was the biggest threat he’d met in a long time.
By the rise and fall of her chest she got his meaning loud and clear.
Then, frowning, she slipped her fingers down the length of beads and stared at the little bits of pineapple bobbing on top of her drink. Most likely because of the elephant in the room. Or not in the room as he hadn’t showed up.
Rubbing a hand up the back of his neck, Jonah wished he’d simply called Luke and asked where the hell he was. Or at the very least what his intentions towards her were, if any. Hell, he’d done such a fine job avoiding the woman, for all Jonah knew she and Luke could have been dating for days.
That thought clouded his vision something mad, but didn’t put a dent in the attraction that rode over him like a rogue wave. The only right thing to do was leave. Walk away. Avoid more. At least until he knew where they all stood.
He quietly schooled his features, looked casually over the restaurant, towards the still-empty doorway. And set his feet to the floor as he made to leave her be.
When the waiter came shuffling up. “Oh, good, your company’s finally arrived. Are you ready to order now?”
Jonah glanced back at Avery to find her blushing madly now, nose buried in the menu.
“Um...he’s... I guess. Just... Can I have a second, please? Sorry!”
When she looked up at the waiter she shot him her sunshine smile, catching Jonah in its wake. The effect was like a smack to the back of the head, rattling his thoughts till he could no longer quite put them back in order.
“This is my first time here,” she said. “What would you recommend?”
Jonah jabbed a finger at the rump steak. “Rare.” Motioned to his friend under the table and said, “Two.”
“Make it three,” said Avery, picking out a pricey glass of red wine to go along with it.
When the waiter wandered off, she lowered the menu slowly, frowned at it a second, before taking a breath and looking up at him. Clearly bemused as to how they’d got there. Just the two of them. Having lunch.
He wished he knew himself.
Avery shuffled on her chair and said, “So, Jonah, did you always want to work with boats growing up?”
“Boats?
