A troubling thought occurred to her. “And then what? Seaview Key probably doesn’t need two doctors.”
“It might, if one of them specialized in pediatrics,” he said thoughtfully. “Sure, Luke handles all of it now, but I think the island could use a specialist. I don’t need to get rich from medicine. As long as I’m making a decent living, it’s all good.” He studied her. “What do you think, honestly?”
“I think if it’s something you really, really want, you should go for it,” she said without hesitation. “But, Seth, if you’re doing this for some other reason, then you need to give it more thought. It’s a big commitment. You’d need med school, an internship, a residency. All of that takes time.”
“I know how long it would take,” he said irritably. “I still think it makes sense for me. What other reason could there be?”
Abby was terrified of voicing her real concern, that he was doing it because he thought it would put the two of them on a more equal footing. “Does it have anything to do with me?” she asked carefully.
“Absolutely not,” he insisted. “I’ve been giving this some thought for a while now. Even before you came to town, I was considering doing something more with my training.”
Relieved, she nodded. “Then go for it.”
“It would mean being away at medical school for a long time,” he said. “I’d try to get into Florida or Florida State.”
“They’re not so far away,” she said. “It might be kind of fun to go to college football games again.”
“So you’re with me on this?” he asked, studying her closely.
“A hundred percent. We can make it work, Seth, at least if you want to make it work. If you’re looking for an excuse to take off on me, just say the word.”
He looked genuinely shocked by her words. “Not a chance,” he said at once. “In fact, one of the reasons I’ve been struggling with the idea recently is because I don’t want to walk away from what we have.”
“You’re sure?” she pressed.
He caressed her cheek. “I can’t deny that meeting you got me to thinking more seriously about all of this. I want to be the kind of man who makes you proud.”
Her heart sank at that. “But Seth you do make me proud. You’re a wonderful man already. Otherwise, I would never have fallen for you.”
A spark lit his eyes. “You’ve fallen for me?”
“Oh, don’t act so surprised. Didn’t I kiss the stuffing out of you on the day we met?”
“Maybe a little,” he said with a grin. “But there were extenuating circumstances.”
She stood on tiptoe and kissed him again, thoroughly enough that he couldn’t mistake her enthusiasm. When she finally stepped back, a little breathless, she said, “No extenuating circumstances that time.”
“So it’s okay if I start believing this just might get serious?” he asked.
“I think it’s definitely a safe bet,” she admitted. “It’s probably time to stop denying what everyone else can plainly see. Casual’s not really working for us.”
Amazingly, the admission didn’t give her a single qualm. They might not know exactly where they were headed yet, but she was almost a hundred percent sure they were going in the same direction. And whatever might lie ahead, she didn’t feel any sense of urgency to get there, not when the route itself was so thoroughly intriguing.
* * *
Abby slept late the morning after the fish fry. Seth had crawled out of bed at dawn to go for a run and then take his shift with the rescue squad.
After her shower, she poured herself a cup of the coffee he’d made before he left the house and went onto the porch to enjoy the morning. She was smiling when Luke came around the corner of the house, a frown on his face.
“You look gloomy,” she told him. “What’s up? I thought you’d be thrilled at how well yesterday’s fish fry went. The next one will bring in enough to pay off the last installment on that rescue boat.”
“I know. That’s great,” he said.
“Such enthusiasm. I’m all aglow.”
He scowled. “I’m not here about the blasted boat. I’m worried about you.”
“About me? Why? My life is just about perfect these days.”
“Is it really?”
“Sure. I’m pretty confident Sandra’s going to vote in favor of Blue Heron Cove. The work to get that boat is almost done. I’ve been reconnecting with old friends.”
“And Seth? Where does he fit in?”
“We’re good,” she said, aware of where he was headed. “But if that scowl on your face is anything to go by, you disagree.”
She listened patiently to Luke as he stumbled through what appeared to be a lecture on the way she was mistreating Seth. She couldn’t believe there was any truth to what he was telling her, that Seth needed a real commitment from her, not some kind of game. She was pretty sure they’d already resolved all of that.
“Excuse me? You don’t know what you’re talking about. Seth and I have been totally honest with each other.”
“Do you know that he’s considering going away to medical school?”
“We talked about it,” she said. “If it’s something he wants, I’m all for it.”
“He never once mentioned medical school until you turned up. He’s using it as an excuse to get away from this crazy situation you all are in.”
“I worried about the same thing at first,” she said, clearly surprising Luke. “He says that’s not the case and I believe him. He told me he was considering it before I even turned up here. I think it may have more to do with his admiration for you than it does with me.”
Luke looked skeptical. “That’s certainly a convenient theory for you. You don’t have to take responsibility for driving him away.”
She stared at Luke incredulously. “Exactly how am I driving him away?”
“Because you won’t commit to the future we both know he wants. The same future I suspect you
