Total pages in book: 89
Estimated words: 82940 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 415(@200wpm)___ 332(@250wpm)___ 276(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 82940 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 415(@200wpm)___ 332(@250wpm)___ 276(@300wpm)
On her lunch break, she took the dogs for a long walk on the beach and was surprised to spot her brother Damien jogging down the sand. He was quite far away, but she’d recognize his longish, curly dark brown hair and lean silhouette at any distance. Damien wasn’t always good at communicating when he was back home. His schedule with his band was so hectic that it gave Erin vertigo just thinking about it, but Damien seemed pretty happy with his rock-star lifestyle.
As he came into view, she waved hello and Damien grinned, his dark eyes sparkling. “You got another dog?” he asked in lieu of a greeting, looking at the two friends as they played in the sand.
She shook her head and introduced Nelson, who sniffed Damien briefly and then quickly returned to playing with Buzzy. Erin smiled. Emilia had been right—Nelson definitely wasn’t as affectionate with other men as he was with Jay. Buzzy, on the other hand, was super happy to see one of the Davenport men and rolled on the sand, offering his belly to Damien for patting.
When she told her brother that she was house- and dog-sitting for Jay Malone, he seemed surprised—and a little suspicious. “I didn’t know you guys were that friendly.”
Erin had to will herself not to blush. “We’re not. I went to his new house to do an interview for the paper.”
Damien told her he’d just read it and thought it was great. She thanked him and then said, “Anyway, I’m just doing him a favor.” She shrugged, like it was no big deal, although the idea of sleeping in his house that evening was filling her with a delicious kind of dread at where her mind might wander as day turned into night.
“Didn’t you always love that house?” Damien asked.
“Ever since I can remember. It’s my favorite house in Carmel.”
“Then that’s a nice gig for you. Hope it won’t be too hard to leave, though.”
She shook her head. “I’m perfectly happy in my apartment. But I won’t deny it’s fun to hang out in in such a gorgeous home for a couple of days.”
Damien squinted against the sun and gazed across the beach to admire its lines. “Sure is nice. I think Crystal organized a wedding for the daughter of the people who used to own it.”
At the mention of Crystal Lopez, the wedding planner, she realized she hadn’t seen her high school friend in too long. They were overdue for a girls’ night and Erin couldn’t imagine a better location than Jay’s house.
She said good-bye to Damien, who she’d see at the family home for breakfast on Saturday, and then sent a quick text to Crystal to see if she’d like to come over to catch up. The reply came back instantly.
Would love to. See you at 7.
Erin grinned and then called the dogs. It was turning out to be a perfect day.
* * *
Crystal arrived at seven fifteen, full of apologies for being late. She looked around and then whistled through her teeth. “Wow, Jay Malone has done a great job furnishing this place. It looks even better than I remember.”
Erin had to agree. Although she’d never seen inside before, she instinctively felt that Jay had brought something special to the house.
“I hate being late, but I was dealing with a nightmare father of the bride,” Crystal explained, flipping her glossy dark hair over her shoulders.
“Father of the bride?” Erin’s eyes widened. “I’ve never heard of a nightmare dad during wedding planning. I thought they liked to keep out of it and just show up with tears in their eyes to give their daughters away on the big day.” She showed Crystal through to the sumptuous kitchen and opened a cold bottle of Italian Pino Grigio she’d bought from a nice wine shop earlier that day.
Crystal laughed. “If only. This one kept telling me, in no uncertain terms, that since he was paying for the wedding, he expected everything to be perfect.” She explained that the man was very high up in the military and barked orders at her like she was a green recruit. “I genuinely thought that if he didn’t approve of the menu, he’d make me drop and give him fifty.”
Erin burst out laughing and poured Crystal a large glass of the crisp white wine. Since she could never truly switch off from reporter mode, she asked, “Are there any upcoming weddings the Sea Shell should know about?”
Crystal took a seat as Erin put together dinner and shook her head. “I don’t think so. I’m sure the colonel would be only too happy to have his daughter’s wedding featured in the newspaper, but I can’t think what they’ve done to deserve it. I’ll definitely drop you an email, though, if I come across anything really good.”