Page 50

“I’m fine,” I say.
She puts down the book and lowers her shades.
“I am,” I insist.
Charlotte’s gaze travels down the beach to where Caden’s figure looms.
“At least he hasn’t taken his shirt off,” she mutters.
My laugh is a little too high-pitched for my liking. “Stop it,” I say. I sit up and feel a wave of lightheadedness. “Can you pass me the baby carrots?”
She does and then Joni calls out to her from the water.
“Charlotte, come on, we’re gonna play Chicken!”
Cody ducks under the waves and emerges with Joni perched on his shoulders. She screams with delight and Noah beckons for Charlotte to join them. Charlotte looks at me.
“Is it safe to leave you two alone together?”
I roll my eyes. “What do you think is going to happen exactly?”
“I don’t want Mike spreading rumors.”
“Mike Schmike,” I say, glancing over to where Mike and Emily are throwing a frisbee again. “I’mfine.” I hold up my ring finger where the diamond glitters in the sun. “I’m happy. I’m engaged. Caden is no threat to that. Got it?”
A grin tugs at Charlotte’s lips. “Got it.”
“Now go have fun with Joni and the boys,” I say.
“Okay, okay,” Charlotte says, standing and brushing the sand off her knees before heading into the water. I lay back down again, trying to soothe the churning in my stomach.
A few moments later, a shadow passes over me, blocking out the sun. I open my eyes and see Caden standing there.
“Can I sit?” he asks, pointing to the empty towel next to me.
“Sure,” I say.
He turns and, in one devastating motion, yanks his shirt over his head.
The volume of the world fades—the cries of children, the screech of gulls, the rush of waves, it all turns to a dull hum in my ears. Caden iseverywhere. His abs ripple as he sits, his tattoo reaching across one shoulder and spreading down over his left pec. I see a hummingbird perched among the vines on his chest. I quickly grab my sunglasses and jam them over my eyes, staring up at the cloudless sky.
But I can’t help peeking at him again as he stretches out on the towel, leaning back against his elbows and watching Charlotte and Joni try and knock each other off the boys’ shoulders. The planes of his chest are smooth—I have a sudden, vivid memory of raking my fingers over his skin that night we spent together. Feeling the hard dents of muscle. The pressure of his palm against my thigh. The heat of his mouth on my sex.
I squeeze my eyes shut and take a measured breath.
“Where’s Luke today?” Caden asks. His voice is equally measured, but his question makes me jump.
“He’s at a bachelor party this weekend,” I say.
“Oh,” he says. He stretches out one hand to draw shapes in the sand. “So…how long have you two been together?”
I crook an eyebrow at him. “Do you really want to know?”
He looks at me with muted intensity. “Yes.”
“Nine months,” I say.
He seems to have prepared himself not to react at all. He nods, turning his eyes to the ocean. “How did it start?”