Seaside Kisses: A Sweet Romance (The Seaside Hunters Book 4) (5 page)

Brayden shrugged. "It wasn't my first choice, but Lana really wants to. She's never been on one."

"That would be perfect for dancing or going to one of the fancier restaurants."

"What about pants?" Brayden asked.

"Actually, I have a shipment coming in tomorrow that would go perfectly with those."

"Tomorrow's Sunday."

"Yeah?" Rafael asked, trying to figure out his point.

"The post office is closed on Sundays."

"Right. This is Kittle Falls. Well, as long as they don't try to stop the delivery truck, I should be fine."

They discussed clothes for a little longer before leaving to grab some lunch at a deli. After they sat with the sandwiches, they discussed Brayden's upcoming honeymoon. Rafael kept the questions coming because he knew the next logical step of the conversation would be his own love life. He didn't want to talk about it—neither Amara nor his ex, Kristine.

Brayden wiped his mouth with a napkin. "Thanks for all the fashion tips. I've always felt clueless when it comes to clothes."

"You don't have to tell me." Rafael grinned.

"I guess I wouldn't." Brayden laughed. "And now that you're back in town, you can help me spruce up my wardrobe. Lana liked that tie you gave me for my birthday. And a lot of others have complimented it, too."

"It's the height of fashion right now."

"Mind if I swing by to pick your brain some more?"

"Sure." Rafael told him his schedule.

Brayden set down his empty glass. "So, why are you starting completely over with your business? You were doing so well in LA."

Rafael groaned. A topic he didn't want to discuss—especially with Brayden. He'd moved back to Kittle Falls after having sold his successful cardiology practice. Rafael had essentially walked away from his failing business in order to avoid going into debt.

"Well?" Brayden gave him an expectant look.

Frowning, Rafael ran his hands through his hair. "If I tell you, do you promise not to bring it up again?"

His brother's face turned serious. "Sure. What happened?"

Rafael took a deep breath, preparing himself. He hated thinking about it, much less talking about it. "Tony had all these great ideas to grow the business. After seeing what he could do, I took him on as a partner. Stupidest decision of my life."

Brayden arched a brow.

"He made a bunch of decisions without talking to me. He made a major deal we had no way of completing. He promised a large company a huge order that would take at least twice our staff to complete, and he gave them a ridiculous discount on top of it. Tony swore we could do it. He convinced me it would bring in more money in the long run because the other company would continue business with us. We lost half of what I'd built and saved over that deal." Rafael took a deep breath, feeling the anger surfacing.

"What did you do?" Brayden asked softly.

"I panicked. We
barely
remained in the black. I've never lost so much sleep in my life. Not just worrying about everything, but spending every waking hour working to fulfill that order. And no, the other company did not return to us. Long story short, the mess trickled down and affected other accounts. Tony tried to fix his screw-up, but he made even more mistakes which finally dropped us into the red. He ruined everything I'd worked so hard for."

Brayden let out a low whistle and shook his head. "I'm so sorry. I had no idea."

Rafael shrugged. "It is what it is. Now all I can do is make the best of what I have left, and thankfully Mom and Dad have offered their help."

"Well, if I can do anything for you, just let me know."

"I've got it, but thanks. You ready to go?"

"Yeah." They threw their food away and headed out.

Just as they stepped outside, Amara and Janelle walked by.

Rafael froze. His heart raced again, just like it had when he'd kissed her.

He watched her for a moment before Janelle noticed them. They all exchanged hellos and went their own separate ways. Rafael tried to make eye contact with Amara, but she wouldn't look at him. His heart sank, but he knew it was for the best. Rafael couldn't risk getting heartbroken again, and he didn't want to hurt her, either.

"Who was that with Janelle Anderson?" Brayden asked.

"Amara Fowler."

Brayden gave his brother a double take. "Amara? As in, Alex's twin sister?"

"She grew up."

"Wow, I'd say," Brayden said. "I didn't even recognize her. Apparently I've missed a lot while I was in Dallas. So many things have changed around here."

"Yet so much hasn't," Rafael said.

"Isn't that the truth?" Brayden asked. "So, how do you know so much about Amara?"

Rafael had to be careful with his wording. He'd done a good job so far of keeping Brayden from asking any questions about his love life, and if he had an inkling for the feelings Rafael was trying to ignore toward Amara, he would want to know more.

"She runs her parents' candy shop," Rafael said, fighting to sound natural. Why was it so hard?

"Oh, right. It's just down the way from your new store."

"Yeah. We ran into each other the other day and caught up."
To say the least.

Five

"What was that all about?" Janelle asked, giving Amara a curious glance.

Amara's heart still pounded after seeing Rafael. On one hand, she was horrified that he regretted kissing her. On the other, she couldn't stop thinking about the kiss itself. She relived it in her mind over and over. His soft lips. The light scruff of his cheeks. The rugged smell of his cologne.

"Amara?" Janelle asked.

"What?" Amara blinked, trying to bring herself back to the present.

"Oh, don't give me that. You nearly jumped out of your skin when you saw the two Hunter brothers."

"You're imagining things." Amara hadn't even been able to look at Rafael, so she had no idea how he responded to her. Did he regret the kiss so much he never wanted to see her again?

"Wait a minute," Janelle said, stopping. She grabbed Amara's arm, forcing her to stop, also. "You used to have that huge crush on Rafael. Is
he
the mystery man?"

Amara turned away, her face burning. "His new shop is near mine. That's all."

"And that's why you're blushing?" Janelle's eyes lit up.

"It's like I told all last night, there's nothing to talk about." Amara tried to think of something else to talk about.

"Your old love is back in town." Janelle sighed dramatically. "No wonder you're so skittish. You'd better hurry."

Amara raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"Those Hunter brothers have been arriving in town and getting snatched up. One's married, and two are engaged. That only leaves two—and Rafael's one of them."

"How do you keep up on all that?" Amara asked.

Janelle rolled her eyes. "Everyone's talking about them, sweetie. How do you not hear it?"

She shrugged. Though she'd changed, she was still invisible, and no one wanted to share gossip with her—except Janelle. Funny how some things managed to stay the same after so many years. At their ten-year reunion, everyone had stayed in their old cliques. It didn't matter if people had left town for the entire decade or not. It was like the only things that had changed were the hairstyles and clothes.

"You know how it goes," Amara said. "Nobody sees me any differently than when we were kids." And that was why Rafael regretted kissing her.

"Rafael doesn't see you as you were," Janelle said.

"Shut up," Amara said harsher than she meant.

Janelle didn't seem to notice. "I'm serious. Did you see the way he looked at you?"

"He didn't look at me any special way." Or had he? Amara had been trying too hard
not
to look at him.

Janelle nodded. "He was surprised to see you. Brayden clearly didn't recognize you, but Rafael was flustered." She gave Amara a hopeful expression.

"He's probably just sick of seeing me," Amara said. "We keep running into each other. But it doesn't matter. Let's just get to the movie before we miss it."

"I want to talk more about Rafael."

Amara narrowed her eyes. "I don't."

"Okay, okay," Janelle said. "Maybe after the movie and popcorn, you'll feel chattier."

"Don't count on it." Amara thought about apologizing—she wasn't usually so defensive—but she really didn't want to talk about Rafael. It was like Janelle had said—he would probably get taken, anyway. And not by her. By someone who was sophisticated and had never lived life as a nerd.

Amara could hardly pay attention to the movie when they got to the theater. She kept thinking about Rafael—and it didn't help that they'd chosen a romantic comedy. Part of her still couldn't believe that he'd kissed her. All her life, she'd dreamed of the moment, and it had actually happened.

After the movie was over, and they stepped out into the bright outside light, Janelle smiled at Amara. "I adore a good love story, don't you?"

Amara tried to scowl at her friend, but couldn't quite get her face to cooperate. "I know what you're doing. I'm not in the mood to talk."

"Want to go back to my place and have a pillow fight?" Janelle asked. "Play MASH? Make prank calls?"

Amara couldn't help laughing. "I'd love to have another sleepover, but I really need to get online and take care of my other business."

"You have all day tomorrow," Janelle said. "Come on. When was the last time we had a girls' weekend?"

"Now it's a weekend?" Amara asked.

"If we make it one. What do you say?" Janelle begged Amara with her eyes.

"How can I say no to that?"

"Perfect." Janelle pulled her phone out and slid her finger around the screen. "I'm ordering pizza. It should be delivered just as we get there. How's that for timing?"

They made their way back to Janelle's car, which was a twenty minute walk from where they stood, and sure enough, the pizza delivery guy pulled up to the house just as they did.

Amara tried to pay, but the kid wouldn't take it.

"It was paid online," he said.

Amara gave her friend an exasperated look. "Why haven't you let me pay for anything all weekend?"

"You brought the magazines and ice cream." She unlocked the front door and they went inside. Amara put the pizza on the table and got out everything they needed.

Janelle got out a bottle of red wine and glasses from the cupboard. She brought them to the table.

"Wine and pizza?" Amara asked, unsure of the combination.

"Why not?" Janelle asked.

Amara shrugged. "Sure." She didn't drink often, and one glass wouldn't hurt. And it wouldn't help her to talk more openly about Rafael, if that was what Janelle was going for.

Janelle filled the glasses nearly to the top.

Amara shook her head. "You do know these are meant to be filled about halfway, right?" Amara asked.

"I don't care." Janelle ate some pizza and then drank about half her glass.

Amara watched her as they spoke, noticing she refilled twice. "Are you okay?" she asked, suddenly concerned.

"Of course I'm okay. Why wouldn't I be?" Janelle asked, her words slurring together slightly.

"Just asking." Amara reached for the bottle. "I think I'll just put this away. We've had enough."

"You mean me," Janelle said. It wasn't a question.

"I had plenty, too." Amara forced the cork back in and put the bottle back in the kitchen. She sat back down. "Sure you're okay?"

"Fine. It's just a little wine."

"Have some more pizza." Amara pulled a piece and put it on Janelle's plate.

"Thanks." Janelle sighed. "Did I tell you the kids said Kyle has a girlfriend?"

Now it made sense. Janelle's sudden interest in a girls' night. Wanting to focus on Amara's love life. The wine. Last night, she'd eaten nearly a carton of ice cream on her own. Her ex was moving on, not just moving out.

"When did they mention that?" Amara asked, careful to keep her voice even. She didn't want to further upset Janelle.

"Oh, a couple days ago. I was helping them pack for the weekend. Rex just let it slip out like it was no big deal." Janelle let out a long, slow breath. Her eyes shone with tears. "I mean, don't get me wrong. I knew this was coming. In fact, I was pretty sure there was probably someone else when he left."

Amara nodded. "I can see that."

"But now… actually finding out that it's true brings it to a whole new level." A tear fell to Janelle's face.

"Oh, I'm so sorry. I had no idea you were dealing with this."

Janelle wiped the tear away. "I hoped that focusing on something else would help, but it didn't. I was so happy to hear something was going your way in that department."

Amara got up, grabbed a box of tissues, and gave her friend a hug. "You wanna talk about it?"