I flinched. I’d never heard him talk like that before.
“Look, Skye…” He hung his head. “…can we not right now? I’m in the middle of something, and talking to you always makes me remember all the reasons I left LA in the first place.”
Dread settled in my stomach, and then I told myself not to be stupid. Did I really think he was going to just woo me for a week and stay? Offer to be Braden, Sarah, and Amelia’s stepdad? I almost laughed aloud. Yeah, that wasn’t happening. He promised fun, he promised kissing, he promised he’d help me get my groove back, whatever that meant.
He never promised himself.
Or his heart.
And in that moment, I swore to myself I wouldn’t fall. I wouldn’t be the starry-eyed teenager who had fallen head-over-heels for my ex at fifteen and said yes to unprotected sex because it “felt” better to him.
Stupid, so stupid. I wouldn’t ever be stupid again, and I knew my heart wouldn’t handle being broken by someone like Drew, someone who so easily could steal it away when I was least expecting it.
Besides, I had Amelia to think about — worry about We had results that could mean more chemo or freedom, depending on which way they swayed. I didn’t have the emotional energy to waste on Drew. I didn’t have space in my head, let alone my heart.
So why did it still make me physically flinch?
“Later.” He hung up the phone, did a little circle, and then eyed me, his smile slow, a bit tentative. “You ready?”
“Yup.” I forced a bright smile and lifted my heavy basket. “Things okay?”
He cursed under his breath and took my load, his eyebrows furrowed together, giving him a heavy look that had me stressed out on his behalf.
“Yeah, let’s just say LA is the absolute worst, the people are fake, and any sort of unnecessary contact puts me in a bad mood. Not your fault. It’s my baggage.”
“Baggage?” I asked as we both started putting our supplies on the belt.
He reached inside the basket, froze, and then slowly continued pulling things out. “That’s probably the wrong word. Not really baggage — more like my own stupid mistakes have a way of constantly haunting me, this time by way of a woman. I’ve literally had to change my number five times because of her.”
I winced. I couldn’t even imagine that level of fame, and I saw my fair share with Braden. The only reason I’d even agreed to let him take that first trip to LA was because of Drew. Ugh, why did it always come back to Drew? “That bad?”
He let out a heavy sigh that I felt in my soul. “That bad.”
“Sorry.” I don’t know why it, but I put my hand on his shoulder and squeezed, and it was like all the tension that was in his body just dissipated.
It was what I did when Amelia was worried.
It was what I’d done for years when Braden doubted himself.
It was my go-to, to imagine myself pulling all that sadness and anger into my soul and letting my heart hurt, so the person I love doesn’t.
Not that I loved Drew.
He locked eyes with me. “Thanks.”
“Any time.” I almost did the most idiotic thing and said, “That’s what moms are for!”
Kill me now. I looked down to keep from showing my embarrassment and laughed when I saw half the store’s goods on the belt, thankful for the distraction. “Um, do we really need all of this?”
He’d grabbed a tent, a blanket, sticks, firewood, fire starter, matches — the list went on and on as if he’d either never done a campout or was afraid that we would somehow do it wrong.
“Absolutely.” He flashed a toothy grin, and before I knew what was happening, he was sliding a black AmEx card through the machine, and I was helping him carry the bags back to the car.
“This is a lot for just one campout,” I teased.
“Just one campout?” he repeated. “What if I want more than one?”
“We may just have to have more than one with all this stuff.” I laughed.
“Exactly.” He winked, sending my stomach flutter into overdrive. “I think we can actually keep the car parked here, so why don’t you hand me some of those bags, and pick a spot on the beach.”
I turned toward the huge shoreline that was Seaside, Oregon, with its crystal white sand and blue ocean. It was absolutely gorgeous outside, not raining, which was a miracle, and there were only a few campfires dotted around the two-mile coast.
Giddiness built up inside as I kicked off my flat sandals, tucked them in my tote, and started hiking through the deep, still-warm sand.
Typically, Amelia and her friends stayed closer to where the beach house was, so I decided to walk in the opposite direction, away from the huge swing set in front of the aquarium and near one of the larger of the bluffs.
I stopped on the other side since I knew the wind picked up later. This would, at least, offer us some protection when it did.
“Ah, she picks the best spot on the beach. I’m impressed.” Drew’s deep voice sounded behind me as he set everything on the sand and then went to work digging through one of the first bags, only to come back with a can of wine. “Shhh.” His smile was dangerous. “I won’t tell if you won’t.”
I laughed and held out my hands to catch it. “Really? Wine in a can?”
“It’s totally a thing now. Trust me, I know all the cool trends. I’m famous like that.” He tossed it to me. “And it’s a red since someone doesn’t like white.”
I caught it midair. “What about you?”
“Me? Oh, I have some impromptu date prepping to do, so let me make you a spot where you can watch me work. Oh and—” He held up another finger, dug around, and then tossed me a historical romance novel and two fashion
