A sigh escaped her, but just as she was about to lose herself to him, he pulled away. Her eyes searched his face. "You had a bite," he said.
That grin did funny things to her insides and made her feel like a kid on Christmas morning all over again. "I had a what?"
He gestured toward the pole in her hand. "A bite."
"Oh, oh," she said again as she finally felt the tug on her pole. She had completely forgotten about it. She lifted it and began reeling it in again, but whatever was there didn't pursue the lure.
The boat shifted; she looked back to see Stefan and Isabelle climbing on board. Isabelle frowned as she studied the two of them, but she turned away when Stefan put his hand on her elbow. She gave a brief nod before slipping into the lower cabin of the boat. Jill and Mandy climbed on next, Jill grabbed two towels off one of the seats and then handed Mandy her prosthetic leg.
Isabelle reappeared and tossed another towel to Stefan. She toweled her hair off as she made her way toward them. "We're going to head back, Mandy and Jill are hungry."
"Sounds good," Ethan said and began to reel in his line. Emma frowned as Isabelle continued to stand there, staring back and forth between them. She gave Emma a tremulous smile before turning and walking back to Stefan. Though she didn't get the feeling Isabelle disliked her, there was something standoffish about her that Emma didn't understand, and it made her a little uneasy.
Gathering their poles, they walked to the back to join the others. Black clouds began rolling in over the island as they drove back to the dock in silence. The ozone aroma of impending rain hung heavily in the air as the wind started to kick up and blew hair around her face. She brushed it back and kept hold of it as Stefan slid the boat into its spot at the dock.
Emma accepted Ethan's hand, and he helped her to climb off the boat. Their footsteps resonated on the wooden boards beneath their feet as they walked up the dock with her hand in his. Emma studied the people hurriedly gathering their things on the beach. Some die-hard beachgoers looked as if they would stay and ride out the storm, but others were already running for cover.
"Would you like to go to dinner tonight?" Ethan asked. "Just the two of us."
She smiled as she tilted her head back to look at him. "I would."
Taking comfort in his solid presence, she rested her head against his bicep. Emma lifted her head from Ethan's arm when a man separated himself from the crowd on the beach. A shiver ran down her spine as she watched the man stroll down the sand with an easy grace. His broad shoulders were hunched forward against the rising wind, and he had his hands shoved into the pockets of his jeans.
He looked so out of place on a beach full of barely dressed people, but he moved as if he fit in amongst them. The thick clouds, turning day into early night, made his hair appear darker, but she knew it was a light reddish-brown color.
Emma's heart slammed against her ribs, tremors racked her body, and despite the heat of the day, she was suddenly freezing. Closing her eyes, she shook her head and took a deep breath before opening them again. Her gaze ran frantically over the beach, but she didn't see the man amongst the crowd again.
"Are you okay?" Ethan inquired.
Emma reluctantly tore her attention away from the beach and back to him. She realized she must look ridiculous standing there gawking at the beach. He was staring at her with concern as she’d abruptly stopped walking in the middle of the dock.
"I'm fine,” she replied. “I thought I saw someone I knew, but I was wrong."
She had to be mistaken because there was absolutely no way Tristan could be here. No way he could know she was here. He'd been out of her life for a year now. Surely her mind was playing tricks on her, and she’d imagined things. Still, she couldn't shake the icy chill settling into her bones.
Chapter Eight
Ethan pulled the chair out for Emma and settled in across from her as the waiter placed their menus on the table and filled their water glasses. It was their fifth date this week. They had spent most of the days with his family and her friends, but dinner was just them, and he liked it. They would meet up again with the others for drinks afterward, but these couple of hours alone had become his favorite hours of the day.
Her hazel eyes danced in the candlelight as he settled in across from her. Over the past few days, he'd come to enjoy spending time with her more and more. Her smile could light up a room, and her laugh was so buoyant and carefree, just hearing it made him smile too.
He'd always believed humans were only good for blood, and even then he only used blood bags. Though he knew his brothers and The Stooges had sex with humans, he never trusted himself enough to, just as he'd never trusted himself to feed directly from one. He wasn't sure if the others knew those two things about him, he'd never told them, and he tried to play it off that he was like them. They never asked about his habits, but they knew he didn't go to the clubs as often as they
