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Did I feel boxed up? Maybe a little. It’s just that Linc was still so young and more important to me than anything in the world. I couldn’t—wouldn’t—be impulsive or reckless (even if my body was screaming to stop thinking already.)

“It’s too soon to know anything yet. Like I said, we only met the once.” And it was unforgettable.

“Well what’s he like? What got the engine roaring back to life?” Her hands waved through the air, trying to physically coax details out of me.

“His body is smokin’ hot, but I think it’s his eyes that did me in.” Just remembering the way his eyes smiled and twinkled sent a shiver down my whole body.

You’re single.Eye twinkle.

“Where’d you meet, what’s he do? Come on, woman!”

I winced because I had a feeling Berlin wasn’t going to be so enthusiastic once I confessed the truth. “Uh, you actually know him.”

She frowned. “Ugh, someone we grew up with? No.” She made spitting sounds.

The island was so small that everyone we grew up with was essentially a sibling. “Well, we didn’t technically grow up with him.”

She waved her hands in front of her face. “Speak plainly.”

“You remember Chris Kaine?”

Her eyes went wide. “The fuckingpitcher?No. We swore off athletes, Olivia. You can’t be serious right now! You have a kid!”

I tried to swallow the laugh that burst from inside me and mostly succeeded. “Oh, now having a kid is a reason to stay on the shelf?”

“No! Yes! I mean...anyone but a fucking ballplayer. They’re all narcissistic alpha jerks. You know it. I know it.”

To be fair, Jack really was all those things until Berlin left him, and Beau had many of those tendencies, but he was also a kind and a good father. But I suspected Chris did not fall into this one-size-fits-all box. He was different somehow.

“I don’t know it. Not yet. Shouldn’t I give him a chance to prove he’s a narcissistic ass before I send myself back out to pasture?”

Berlin frowned. “This sounds like a terrible idea...but so is denying yourself some fun. Fine! I will withhold judgement...for now.”

6

Well that escalated quickly

Olivia

He appeared like a ghost—a daytime ghost—just after three, holding a bait bucket and fishing rod. “Hello Olivia Saldana.” The smile was back. Eyes crinkling, almost dimples flashing. Had it been a week since we stood here awkward and confused? I counted the days, curiosity practically killing me, to see if the weird lightning strike of desire would strike again.

Boom.There it was. All it took was seeing him and hearing my name on his lips. Electricity crackled between us.

“Hello Chris Kaine.” I sat under the shade of a tree watching Linc snorkel around the dock.

Chris set his stuff down and sat in the chair beside me. “How’ve you been?”

I held my breath hoping it would somehow slow the eruption of butterflies in my chest. It did not. “We’re good. Hell of a game last night.”

His grin remained intact, but his eyes began to dance as he stared at me. “Thank you. It was fun.”

His smile was fun. “Really? You seemed almost mad.”

He bit his lower lip, pulling it through his teeth as he gazed at me. “Not mad. Fired up. I get...passionateabout my work.”

I wondered what it was like when Chris waspassionateabout people. Me, specifically. I wondered what it would be like if he was that passionate about me. If it was anything like what I glimpsed last night it would be a heady, intense experience. “I almost didn’t recognize you.”

“But you watched me?”