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Chapter 48
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Seasmoke Friends Chapter 49
MattI rubbed my lips with my fingers and stared at the water. "Why do you only date tourists? Don't you want long-term someday? Marriage?"Her spine stiffened. "I'm not exactly the kind of girl a guy takes home to meet the family."My gaze jerked to hers, anger pounding my temples. Her profile offered me no insight to that bullshit answer. "What the hell does that mean? I've taken you home countless times. Explain."Pulling her knees to her chest, she rested her chin and wrapped her arms around her calves. Everything about her posture screamed defensive, even her avoidance of my eyes. "We never dated, though, and your view of me is skewed." The hesitant, reserved tone had my stomach knotting. And how I viewed her was not skewed, distorted, or any other effing thing. "Jenny, start talking."She rubbed her forehead in clear frustration. "When you grow up with next to nothing, people treat you like you're nothing. After my mom died and I went to live with Grampy, I was in a better
Seasmoke Friends Chapter 50
MattJuly-Two Years AgoStill shocked at my behavior, I followed Cara's directions to the pier and parked my car. She'd said very little since we'd left the nightclub together, and it was wringing my nerves raw. I was a bit of a good guy, a safe bet. Ergo, I'd never associated with the likes of a woman resembling Cara. I'd been instantly attracted to her and still didn't know why. Without a word, she climbed out of the car and headed toward the dunes. I followed, stepping under the stairs to the massive pier jutting out at least two hundred feet into the ocean. I'd never been down this way, but by the look of it, the pier was used by fisherman. This area was relatively deserted. No one wandered the beach. A few restaurants dotted both directions, but they were closed for the night.Staying under the canopy of the pier, she walked the width of beach until her toes dipped in the ocean. I came up beside her, glancing up at the dark brown painted planks and beams overhead. It offered
Seasmoke Friends Chapter 51
JennyMatt's bedroom door opened with a quiet snitch of a hinge, and I stilled. I'd left my door open because I hated enclosed spaces, especially while asleep and defenseless. I hoped the light or my movements hadn't woken him. He didn't move for several beats, and then his footsteps padded on the hardwood floor.As he came into view, my heart pounded. Stupid, but it was my visceral reaction to him every time. Twelve years and it hadn't evaporated. Especially when he wore nothing but a pair of black nylon shorts and an uncertain expression. He stopped in the hallway outside my door and sighed, not meeting my gaze. He gripped both sides of the doorframe, leaning into his hands. Head hung, he stared at his feet. I took in his lean, athletic build while he wasn't paying attention. My panties grew damp, but that wasn't unusual around him either. He was so damn beautiful. Not rugged or built. No edges or bulges. He was subtly sculpted as if created from stone. Slight ridges of a six pac
Seasmoke Friends Chapter 52
MattCoffee in hand, I stared out the patio door, watching tumultuous waves pound the shore. The weather matched my crappy mood. Sleet poured down in horizontal ugliness and the wind was brutal, bending palm trees nearly in half. The temp was only in the lower fifties, too. I hoped to hell Jenny didn't drive her motorcycle today. The thought of her on that deathtrap during ideal conditions gave me shudders.I shook my head. For the first time in my twenty-eight years, I understood Ian's insane alpha protectiveness he'd always possessed around Summer. Sure, I'd been defensive of my friends and family, cared about them a great deal. Honestly, though, I tended to bite back a smirk at the lengths Ian went to for Summer. The guy could go from zero to batshit in point five seconds if anyone so much as narrowed their eyes at her.After last night, I was thinking of writing him sonnets as an apology for ever questioning his devotion. Because...yeah. I got it now. Without. A. Doubt.From
Seasmoke Friends Chapter 53
JennyDecember-Six Years AgoI've never been so scared in all my life. Not even the time Jared had hurt me, nor the day I'd discovered my mother dead on the bathroom floor with a needle in her arm. Worry twisted in my belly and my hands wouldn't quit shaking. Pacing in the apartment over the bar, I took a few deep breaths, but my attempt at calm wasn't working.The past year, I'd been noticing subtle changes in Grampy. Little things. Him forgetting where he'd left his keys, putting milk in the cabinet instead of the fridge, and once he'd called me my mom's name. I'd chalked them up to him being distracted or just normal aging, but the other day had been an eye opener.He'd driven to the liquor supplier and had forgotten how to get home. If it hadn't been for one of our distributors finding him in the parking lot, lost, Lord knew what might've happened. Thinking he had a virus or something, I'd taken him to the ER. But when our doctor had called today with the results they'd run and
Seasmoke Friends Chapter 54
JennyI headed downstairs and the scent of roasted chicken hit me. God, I was hungry and it smelled so good. I couldn't cook to save my life, so I think the last time I'd had a home-cooked meal that didn't involve a microwave was when I'd visited Matt in Greensboro last Easter. Before his mind had vacated, Grampy had been a great cook.Rounding the corner, I stopped inside the kitchen doorway and smiled. A roasting pan was on the stovetop and the small table was set with actual plates instead of paper. Matt was leaning over the island, phone in hand, brow pinched as he stared at the screen. He wore a fitted gray tee that conformed to his lean, muscular biceps and torso, and a pair of jeans that emphasized his perfect ass. He ran his fingers over his lips like he did when deep in thought. The movement never failed to make my girly bits weep.For a moment, I let myself get lost in the domestic scene. Him making me dinner. Homey scents wafting through the house and him waiting for me t
Seasmoke Friends Chapter 55
MattI lay in bed, the quiet so loud it was an entity. Jenny and I had connected my electronics, but I wasn't interested in what played on my flat screen on the dresser across the room. My gaze skimmed over what she'd referred to as an accent wall. Painted burgundy, it held two large black and white prints of exterior park staircases. She'd left the rest of the walls white, like we'd done in the living room. Color without being obtrusive. Hell, she'd even found a dark red bedspread to match. Brown candles for the dresser.Rising, I padded into the adjoining bathroom and surveyed my surroundings. She'd been a little work horse. I'd seen her changes when I'd showered after she'd left, but I couldn't stop wandering around. Partly because of the changes and mostly because her absence from my house after a week in close proximity felt like a void. I'd gotten used to having her here. A few hours, and I missed her something fierce.She'd turned my parents' summer vacation house into my home.
Seasmoke Friends Chapter 56
MattPresentI spent the week getting crap in order. Mundane, tedious, but necessary. DMV. Suits dry-cleaned. Bills transferred over. A monthly maid service set up for basics. Insurance papers. I'd even had lunch with Ian's folks next door when they'd spotted me in the driveway to say hello. I'd tried to visit Jenny's grandfather, but I wasn't on the list. She'd texted to say she'd add me and was sorry the attempt had been a bust.A call to my parents had settled plans for Thanksgiving here at Seasmoke, and I'd fiddled with invites and dates for a housewarming, but hadn't cemented them yet. Figured I'd ask Jenny her thoughts later.This morning, I'd stood staring at my reliable white sedan, and then thought of all the changes I'd made to my life. The car had to go. Out with the old, in with the new. Ergo, I researched cars and SUVs. A truck wasn't for me, and I wasn't looking for flashy. Just different. Maybe something not so...boring?Anyway, I'd come home this afternoon with a Jeep W
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