Love on Beach Avenue(53)
Bella sighed. “Mom always said she had a nasty temper. She really wants to be an artist, but she won’t admit it.”
“Probably afraid,” Avery said thoughtfully. “At least she felt comfortable enough to give one to Pierce.”
“Well, you know how close those two are. I always wanted a male friend like that. Preferably gay.”
“Remember when you thought Gabe was gay?” Avery asked with a grin. “I’ve never seen him so upset.”
“Well, I didn’t know! I rarely see a male working full-time in the wedding industry, and then he wore those leather pants. I feel terrible about how I judged him. I don’t think he’s ever really forgiven me for that assumption.”
“He never wore those pants again,” she said.
They giggled. Bella shook her head. “Okay, I’m going. Hopefully, you’ll sleep with Carter and give me every dirty detail. I’m tired of having celibate, boring sisters. Even Taylor is all talk and no action.”
Avery stuck out her tongue. “Just make sure to have Zoe ready bright and early Monday morning for our beach trip.”
Her sister gave a thumbs-up, and the door closed. Even though privacy was sometimes a problem in a town like Cape May, Avery loved having her sisters on the same block, and since they shared a house, it was the perfect way to see both in one visit.
She washed and recycled the wine bottle, cleaned her glass, and tidied the counter. Then she headed home to plan for her big date.
Chapter Thirteen
When Carter saw the two females tripping over the sand—pushing a large stroller filled with endless towels, buckets, shovels, toys, and an umbrella—he realized he’d been had.
His first date included a preschooler.
God, she was ruthless.
Still, as he walked over to meet them, he couldn’t help his gaze from roving over Avery’s flash of naked leg, or the luscious curves beneath her filmy red cover-up. Her curly hair was pinned up tight, but already the wind tugged a few honey-colored strands free and whipped them at her face. She seemed to be chattering away with her niece, but once Zoe saw him, she squealed and took off running over the sand, throwing a tide of grains at her aunt in a flurry.
He knelt down and swung her around, enjoying the high-pitched giggles. She wore a ruffled hot-pink bathing suit, a pink hat, and glittery pink sandals encrusted with jewels. Bangle bracelets filled up a wrist. Amusement skittered through him. “I didn’t know we were supposed to wear our jewels to the beach,” he said, feigning frustration. “I left my tiara at home.”
“You don’t have a tiara,” she said with a toothy grin. “Boys don’t wear those, silly.”
“Oh, then it’s a good thing I didn’t. Wouldn’t want anyone to laugh at me.”
Her face pulled into a serious frown. “That’s bullying, and it’s very bad,” she whispered. “I won’t let anyone do that to you, Carter.”
His heart melted into a pile of goo. “Thanks, princess. But you may have to watch your aunt. Sometimes she can say mean things.”
“I’ll make sure Aunt Avery is nice to you.”
The woman in question rolled her eyes, huffing slightly from pushing the stroller over the sand. He reached around and gently nudged her out of the way to take over. “Already brainwashing her, robot man?” she asked.
“Just looking for a little protection.” He leaned in, out of Zoe’s earshot. “After all, you brought her to be your guardian, right? So you wouldn’t have to be alone with me?”
She sputtered in outrage, and he grinned in delight, pushing the stroller ahead. “Bella needed some help, so I offered to bring Zoe. You promised her, remember?”
“That I did.”
“See, we bang out the bet and the promise in one shot.”
“Not the bang I’d hoped for,” he muttered. He stopped at the wide-open spot he’d picked to settle in for the day and began tugging things from the stroller. Zoe immediately plopped in the sand and started burying her legs, ignoring them.
Avery’s lips pursed into a tiny little O. “What did you say?”
His gaze raked over her slowly, deliberately, and he heard her catch of breath as the attraction between them caught fire and sizzled to life. “A different bang from what I’d hoped,” he repeated slowly. He admired the rosy color in her cheeks as his meaning sank in. “I’m fine having Zoe here today. We’ll have a lot of fun. It’s just going to be more difficult for us.”
She blinked. “Difficult how? Watching her? She’s very good.”
He gave her a lazy grin. “No, stealing another kiss. But don’t worry. I’m a pretty smart guy. I’ll work it out.”
He ignored her gasp, peeled off his shirt, and knelt in front of Zoe. “Race you to the water?”
“Yeah!” She jumped up, grabbing his hand, and they ran past the lifeguard into the waves.
He didn’t have to look back to see the simmering heat in Avery’s hazel eyes, or the frustration emanating from her gorgeous body. The image was clearly outlined in his imagination, so he focused on playing with Zoe and ignoring the woman who was wrecking his peaceful vacation.
He hadn’t experienced this much fun in a long, long time.