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“You would?”

“Yes! Cory, I never wanted your store to fail. It’s just that I had researched the area and knew there was potential there. Even after I met you, as much as I would’ve liked to, I couldn’t back away. I’ve never backed off from anything.”

Cory set the last box on top of the others and looked at Vi. “You know what that tells me?”

Vi shrugged.

“Our brains got in the way of our hearts. I could’ve just as easily gone about my business, but I was determined to make you talk to me. You could’ve backed away and gone to another area, but you didn’t.”

“Our hearts weren’t having it,” Vi said with a smile.

“That’s right.” Cory grinned and shook her head. Her heart was happy in this moment and she knew it was because she was with Vi.

She wheeled the dolly inside the restaurant and Vi helped her unload it.

“I thought we heard someone out here,” Krista said, walking in with a picnic basket. “This basket is full of sandwiches and other treats perfect for the beach.”

Cory turned around and her eyes widened. “You did this yourself?”

“Our chef is off because we didn’t have a group this week,” Krista replied.

“We enjoyed preparing this for you, together,” Melanie said. “I put a surprise in there for y’all. One of our favorites is pimento cheese.”

Vi gasped. “My mom used to make pimento cheese for me when I was a little girl.”

Cory saw Krista and Melanie exchange a look. “Well, this is made with a little Lovers Landing magic, so be sure and have a taste,” Melanie said.

“We’re so happy to see you two together. I knew you’d figure out a way to work together,” Krista said.

Cory looked at Vi and chuckled. “I’m glad you did because it took us a while.”

“None of that matters now,” Melanie said.

“We want you to go down to the private beach by the first cabin instead of the big beach right here,” Krista said.

“There’s no one here but us, but you’ll have more fun there.”

“Okay,” Cory replied. “Thank you.”

“Oh, and I unlocked the cabin if you need to go inside for anything,” Melanie said.

Cory saw Melanie grin at Krista and wink. When she glanced at Vi she could see her cheeks were pinkening just like her own.

“This is so nice of you both. Thank you,” Vi said gratefully.

“You’re more than welcome. Have a wonderful time.”

Cory grabbed the picnic basket and Vi took the cooler with the drinks.

It didn’t take them long to set up their towels and hit the water. They swam and splashed each other as they enjoyed being together.

A little later they plopped down on their towels.

“Are you cold?” Cory asked.

“Nope,” Vi replied, pulling another towel around her shoulders. “I’m ready to try this pimento cheese.”

Cory took the sandwich Vi handed her and passed Vi a beer. “Mmm,” Cory mumbled between bites. “This is good.”