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Hope reached out to squeeze his hand before pouring the rest of the bottle and standing up. “Let’s go sit on the porch. It’s a lovely evening.”
She opened the slider and stepped out, hearing a soft whine as she caught movement near the stairs. “Hi there, Cruz.”
When Alex appeared behind her, the dog started barking. “Oh, hush. Alex is a good one.” She turned to Alex, smiling. “I think he’s mad there’s some competition now.” Cruz barked one final time and scurried down the steps into the nearby jungle.
“I didn’t know you had a dog.”
“Well, I don’t, exactly. He started coming around soon after I moved in. I think he’s a stray—he’s very skittish. He’s slowly warming up to me, though he still won’t let me touch him.”
Alex wrapped his arms around her shoulders, murmuring in her ear, “I have the advantage then. I’ll let you touch me, you know.”
They settled on the couch, Hope’s head in the hollow of his shoulder and his arm draped around her. A nearby jasmine was in bloom, the warm floral fragrance bathing her in its scent, and there was a nearly full moon on display. Both complemented her now-euphoric mood. “I’ll try to be a little more awake than the last time we snuggled up under the moon. Oh, that insurance guy! How long were we down on the pier before you finally gave up on me waking?”
“It was about 1 a.m., I think.”
“What? That’s hours later than I thought—I’m sorry. Alex, you should have woken me up.”
He smiled, brushing a lock of hair behind her ear. “I was sitting there on a beautiful night with you wrapped up in my arms and sound asleep against my chest. I could have stayed like that all night. The only reason I got up was because I was afraid you’d get stiff and sore after so long in that position. I was in heaven.” He kissed her forehead.
“Oh,” she whispered. “Let’s go inside. This time you don’t have to sleep on the couch.”
CHAPTER 41
Consciousness returned to Hope in layers the next morning. First, a general awareness of contentment and warmth. A dove outside cooed gently, and a wonderfully sore Hope stretched, snuggling deeper into the covers. She hadn’t thought anything could top their idyll on Horseshoe Key, but they’d surpassed it last night.
Several times.
Her mind flashed to her conversation with Sara on the Frederiksted pier and she broke into a wide, satisfied smile. If what they had experienced wasn’t an A, she couldn’t imagine what was.
Reaching out one hand across the bed, she was met with only cold air. Hope spun around. The other side of the bed was empty, the covers thrown back. He left already? She relaxed—Alex wasn’t going anywhere.
Just then, the delicious scent of freshly brewed coffee drifted to her, and she smiled, inhaling the scent.
“Oh good, you’re awake.” Alex walked into the bedroom, dressed only in shorts and carrying a cup of coffee. “I found creamer in your fridge, so I assume you’re a coffee with cream kind of girl, but I don’t know about the sugar. I need to know how you like your coffee, baby.”
She sat up, feeling like her smile might break her face.
Oh, stop acting like a teenager.
“No sugar, just cream.” She took the mug and drank. “It’s exactly how I like it. “Thank you.”
Alex sat on the bed, and his kiss brought back delicious reminders of the previous night. “You getting up? I need to get the new boat ready for today’s trip.”
She put the mug on her nightstand, checking the clock and snuggling back down into her pillow. “No, I’ve still got some time before I need to be up. Besides, I’m not sure I can walk just yet.”
Alex rewarded her with a wide smile. And was that a gleam of pride in his eyes? Oh yes, definitely. “Careful now. There’s more where that came from.”
* * *
Hope went to the lobby office and tried to work, though her thoughts kept returning to the whirlwind of the day before. To a man she’d done her best to scare off. Alex refused to be scared. Instead, he’d shared his own deepest trauma with her, asking her to help.
A flush of guilt came over her. She needed to share the rest of her story. Tonight. And she thought Alex hadn’t told his fully either.
They were both people who didn’t like to talk about their pasts, but it was time for that to end—completely.
There was a full dive schedule that day, including an afternoon trip. She’d popped down to the boat prior to the afternoon departure, inviting Alex to dinner afterward. A warmth spread through her at his delighted acceptance.
They shared a long dinner full of the expectant glances of a newly formed couple. When given the choice of chicken or steak, Alex hadn’t hesitated at choosing steak, and she got a small thrill at learning something new about him.
