whispers they obviously thought she couldn’t hear.
‘She seems nice, and Ida likes her,’ said the first one. ‘That’s a point in her favour.’
Sandy held her breath when she realised they were talking about her.
‘It might be a good thing. Ben’s been in mourning for too long. His mother’s worried about him,’ said the other.
‘I wonder what Jodi’s parents will think.’ The first lady sighed. ‘Such a sweet girl. What a loss. No wonder Ben’s stayed on his own all this time.’
Sandy slammed her hand over her mouth so the ladies wouldn’t hear her gasp. Jodi. Ben’s late wife. The gentle woman Ben had loved enough to marry and have a child with.
She stared ahead without seeing. Noticed a poster promoting a bestselling new celebrity biography had come adrift at one corner. But she felt too shaken to do anything about it. Would there always be the memory of another woman coming between her and Ben? Could she cope with coming second? With being just a disposable fling while his wife always held first place in his heart?
She couldn’t meet the ladies’ eyes when they scurried out through the door without buying a book.
An old familiar panic had started to overwhelm her—the same panic she’d used to feel when she’d been faced with those big waves rearing up so aggressively as she’d stood dry-mouthed with terror on the beach. Ben had helped her conquer that fear and discover the joy of riding the waves—and she’d used the memory to help her deal with any number of challenges she’d faced in her career. But now what she’d thought would be smooth water ahead might be filled with swirling undercurrents. Did she have the strength to battle through the rough water?
Was it worth it for a four-day fling?
The bell on the top of the door jangled again. She jumped. More ladies to check her out and assess her suitability?
Ben shouldered his way through the door, carrying two large take-away coffee containers. The smile he gave her made her heart do the flippy thing—backwards, forwards and tumbling over itself. Her breath seemed to accelerate, making her feel light-headed, giddy.
Her surf god. In the flesh and hotter than ever.
He was back in shorts, and a blue polo shirt that hugged the breadth of his shoulders and brought out the blue of his eyes. She preferred the semi-naked beach look, but in true surf god manner he looked wonderful in anything he wore.
She smiled back in her joy at seeing him again. It was four hours and thirty-five minutes since she’d said goodbye to him on the beach.
She prayed no customers would intrude. More than ever she needed to be alone with Ben. To be reassured that the thing between them was worth taking the risks of which she’d been so blithely ignorant.
Kate’s words had hit home. Made her all too aware of the power she had to wound Ben. After all, she was the one who had left him all those years ago. Then he’d been young and untroubled, and still she had hurt him. Now he was anything but untroubled.
Could he deal with a walk-away-from-it fling?
Could she?
The expectations of her were frightening. But what if the reality of Ben didn’t match up to her memories? What if they didn’t have a thing in common and she wanted to run after the first twenty-four hours? What if he wanted her to stay and she hurt him all over again? Or if she fell hard for him again but couldn’t match up to his wife? Then it would be her with her heart broken again.
She caught her breath in what felt dangerously like a sob.
Could she do this?
‘You okay?’
His marvellous blue eyes were warm with concern for her. That sexy, sexy mouth was set in a serious line that just made her want to kiss it into a smile. Wordlessly, she nodded.
Could she not do it?
‘Apparently we were seen on the beach this morning,’ she said.
‘Seen and duly noted. Makes you wonder what else people have to do with their time.’
‘You’re big news in Dolphin Bay.’
He put the coffee down on the counter. ‘You’re bigger news.’
‘Tell me about it. The predatory city slicker hunting down the town’s favourite son.’
She’d meant that to sound like a joke. But as soon as it came out she knew it was anything but funny.
Ben frowned. ‘Did someone say that?’
‘Yes. Well, not in so many words. Kate dropped in.’ She couldn’t help the wobble in her voice.
Why had Kate and those women come in and ruined everything? Made her feel suddenly so self-conscious with Ben?
She just wanted to fall back into his arms and continue where they’d left off this morning. But the exchange she’d overheard had unsettled her.
She bit down on her lower lip and looked up at Ben, not certain what to do next. How could she tell him she was having cold feet because she was so terrified of hurting him? Could she find the courage to ask him about Jodi?
TO BEN, SANDY looked as if she’d always stood behind the counter of Bay Books. The short hair he was still getting used to was tucked behind her ears. Just below her left shoulder she had pinned a round metal badge that urged people to get involved with a local literacy campaign. She looked smart, efficient—every inch the professional salesperson. Yet her yellow dress seemed to bring the sunlight right into the corners of the dark wooden carvings so favoured by Aunt Ida, and her vanilla scent brought a sweet new warmth.
She fitted right in.
Ida would be delighted.
But Sandy looked anything but happy—she was wary, guarded, with a shadow behind her eyes. She was chewing her lip so hard she was in danger of drawing blood.
Fear gripped him deep in his gut. What gave here?
‘Hey,’ he said, and went around the counter to pull her into his arms, expecting her warm curves to relax against him. Instead she stiffened and resisted his embrace.
Why the sudden cold change? Hell, he’d worked damn hard to pull down a chink in those barriers he’d built up. Had she now decided to put up a few of her own?
It didn’t figure.
‘What’s going on?’ he asked.
Sandy took a step back, her struggle to decide what to tell him etched on her face. She picked up a waxed paper coffee cup, took a sip. Her hand wasn’t quite steady and the froth on the top wobbled dangerously. She put it down and the foam slid over the lid of the cup and dribbled down its side.
‘Leave it,’ he said as
