Page 90 of The Spirit of Love
I stiffen, realizing my brain just trip-wired.Sam. Sam is the one I’m kissing. Sam is the one turning me on enough to make me want to take him to bed.
Jude is far away, asking me to get my act together. Telling me that kiss last night was more than a kiss.
Sam very gently pulls away from me. “You okay?” he murmurs against my neck. “You still here?”
“I’m here,” I breathe.
He tips his head toward the door of his cabin. “Will you come inside? It’ll make my decade.”
I smile and tug him toward the door. This is going to get easy. Look how gorgeous he is. Look how happy he is to see me.
Inside, Sam’s wondrous cabin smells familiar—hickory, cloves…and a hint of something savory cooking. It feels like time stands still here. Everything is just as it was when I left, down to the placement of the logs in the carved Blake-inspired fireplace and the geometric heirloom quilt folded over the back of the couch.
“I like what you’ve done to the place,” I say.
“Really? Oh, you mean, because it’s the same?”
“If it ain’t broke…”
“It’s so crazy that you’re here—”
“Is that”—I sniff the air—“boeuf bourguignon on thestove?” My eyes widen, and I would laugh except my mouth is already watering.
“It ain’t broke!” Sam says, heading to his custom bar. “Highball?”
“You remembered.”
“Shoot, I’m out of honey,” he says, rummaging through the bar.
“You were out of honey last time, too,” I remind him. “It was still just right.”
He hands me a drink, then clinks his glass to mine. “Cheers! Hey, I have incredible news for you.”
“Really?” I’m surprised. “In addition to this cocktail?”
“After you left,” Sam calls from across the room where he’s facing his bookshelf. “I found your camera.”
“My Panasonic AG-DVC30?” I practically shout as Sam puts my first, best video camera back in my hands. It’s salt-stained and probably ruined, but I don’t care. I close my eyes and let a tear squeeze out. I’m so glad I came back. I’m so glad he found it. He saved it for me. “Where did you…how did you…”
“I found it on the beach,” he says. “I kept it over there with your viewfinder thing. My mementos.”
I touch the adder stone. “I still wear this every day.”
He smiles. “Camera still works, I think. It’s kind of a miracle, right? I tested it out. Filmed some dumb stuff.” His voice lowers a little. “I didn’t think you’d come back, but that shows what I know!”
“Thank you,” I say, hugging the camcorder to me. “You were born to Search and Rescue.”
“Just let me delete what I filmed,” Sam says and takes the camera. He furrows his brow and fiddles with the controls.
“You don’t need to erase anything,” I say, curious.
“I can’t figure out how to anyway.” He sighs and hands it back to me. “Don’t judge.”
“Oh, I’ll judge,” I say. “That’s how I repay kindness.”
Sam laughs. “So the stew won’t be ready for a bit…. Do you want to go for a hike? Or we could swim—the water’s still warm enough. Do you want to do the zip line again? If you’re bored with all that, just tell me. I could also take you to a part of the island you’ve never seen before. We can have a totally new adventure—”
“Sam?”
