Promise Cove (A Pelican Pointe Novel Book 1) (21 page)

S
t
andi
n
g
there
at
w
at
e
r
’
s
edge
he
wondered
how
ma
n
y tim
e
s
Sc
o
t
t
had
w
a
l
k
ed
th
i
s
same
beac
h
.
H
i
s
hea
r
t
clu
t
ched
a
t
th
e
though
t
.

T
o
get
h
i
s
ba
l
ance
bac
k
,
he
t
ook
s
eve
r
al
g
ul
p
s
of
ocean ai
r
,
f
il
li
n
g
h
i
s
lu
n
g
s
w
ith
the
sal
t
y
s
me
l
l
s
of
the
s
ea
and
reluc
t
antly
admit
t
ed
t
o
him
s
elf
the
p
l
ace
w
as
as
beauti
f
ul
and peace
f
ul
as
Sc
o
t
t
had
d
e
s
c
r
ibed.
H
e
’
d
t
a
l
k
ed
a
bout
th
i
s
p
l
ace
s
o
much
it
made
N
ick
feel
l
i
ke
an
imp
o
s
t
e
r
,
which
he
w
as.
H
e
k
new
h
e
’
d
h
a
ve
t
o
p
a
y
for
p
os
i
n
g
as
a
ca
r
pen
t
er
s
l
ash
handyman.
Ma
ybe
he
needed
t
o
come
clean.
T
h
at
idea
c
rashed
and bu
r
ned
when
he
looked
over
at
J
or
d
an.
S
he
w
as
ob
v
iously off
in
her
own
world.
I
t
w
a
s
n
’t
unt
i
l
the
w
ind
whipped
her hair
f
rom
her
face
that
he
realized
she
w
as
poli
t
ely
w
aiti
n
g for
him
t
o
recover
enough
for
the
trek
back
u
p
.
H
e
shook
off h
i
s
me
l
ancholy
mood,
g
a
ve
her
a
b
r
ief
nod
t
o
let
her
k
now
he
w
as
read
y
,
and
t
u
r
ned
t
o
head
back
up
the
clif
f
.

Onc
e
the
y
g
o
t
bac
k
to
th
e
t
o
p
,
h
e
fo
l
lowe
d
he
r
alo
ng
an
o
the
r
pat
h
tha
t
t
oo
k
the
m
pas
t
a
vege
ta
bl
e
g
arden
,
where
sh
e
ins
t
in
c
tivel
y
checke
d
o
n
he
r
neatl
y
p
l
an
t
e
d
ro
w
s
of
f
r
a
g
r
an
t
onion
,
t
h
ym
e
an
d
ba
s
i
l
.
“
I
’
v
e
g
o
t
r
a
b
b
i
ts
.
T
r
y
i
ng to
kee
p
the
m
ou
t
i
s
l
i
k
e
t
r
y
i
ng
to
kee
p
a
v
am
p
ir
e
a
w
a
y
f
rom
blood
.
”

“
W
h
y
would
a
r
a
b
b
it
s
t
a
y
a
w
a
y
f
rom
a
readymade
s
mor
g
asbord
l
i
ke
th
i
s
?”

S
h
e
l
aughed
.
“
E
xa
c
tl
y
.
B
u
t
ther
e
ha
s
to
b
e
a
w
a
y
.
I
’
ve
t
r
ie
d
a
l
l
th
e
na
t
ur
a
l
remedi
e
s
,
m
o
thba
l
l
s
,
ma
r
igol
d
s
.
I
’
m
do
w
n
to
t
r
y
i
ng
v
ine
g
a
r
.
”
S
h
e
s
t
oo
d
u
p
to
con
tinu
e
th
e
t
ou
r
.

“T
h
at
exp
l
ains
the
p
ickle
s
me
l
l
.
”

H
e
con
t
inued
t
o
t
a
g
behind
as
she
led
him
past
s
til
l
more we
l
l-
t
ended
flower
be
d
s
f
il
led
w
ith
p
ink
bl
o
s
s
omed
hy
drangeas,
pu
r
ple
delphinium,
and
n
a
tive
bloomi
n
g
y
e
l
low
and whi
t
e
ice
p
l
ants.
They
pa
s
s
ed
buddi
n
g
m
a
g
nol
i
as,
an
c
ient
p
i
n
e
s,
and
an
o
t
her
row
of
c
y
pr
es
s
where
a
couple
of
rope
s
w
i
n
g
s
s
w
a
y
ed
in
the
breez
e
.
T
o
N
ick
the
entire
fif
t
een
a
c
r
e
s looked
l
i
ke
s
omethi
n
g
out
of
a
tr
a
vel
g
uide,
an
idy
l
lic
s
n
a
p
sh
o
t
of
coas
t
al li
v
i
n
g
.
I
t
sure
w
a
s
n
’t
s
mog-inf
e
s
t
ed
L
.
A
.