Leaning back on the rickety desk chair she’d inherited along with the pier office, Autumn took off her reading glasses, and rubbed her eyes with the heels of her hands. She’d spent most of the morning on her laptop, researching her idea of holding weddings and events on the pier. The afternoon was filled with writing up costs and investigating all the boring things like insurance and permits that made her want to pull her eyelashes out one by one.
And of course her gaze kept flicking up to the window that looked out over the end of the pier. Griff’s boat had been gone when she’d arrived at work that morning, making for an early start on a corporate team building event. Her chest felt all fluttery every time she looked to see if the boat was back, and when it wasn’t, she felt a strange sense of disappointment wash over her.
She was being stupid. She’d told him she didn’t want anything serious, and he’d made it clear he felt the same when he left her last night to sleep in his own bed. It was supposed to be fun, with a little sprinkling of friendship on the side. Yet here she was, staring at a bit of empty dock like a lovesick teenager.
At five o’clock she walked down the pier to the beach, and headed over to Déjà Brew to order a coffee, just to give herself something else to think about. Ally smiled and waved as soon as she walked through the door, pointing at the medium sized cup. “Your usual?” she asked.
“I’ll have a large one,” Autumn told her. “I think I need it.”
“Late night?” Ally asked, as she filled the filter with coffee then banged it against the machine.”
For a moment, Autumn thought about spilling her guts and telling her everything. But what was there to tell? She’d had hot sex with the guy she hadn’t been able to get out of her mind, then he went home and she hadn’t heard from him since.
It wasn’t exactly a fairy tale.
“More of a long day at the office,” Autumn told her, smiling when Ally passed her the latte. “I need to buy a new chair.” She rolled her neck to loosen the muscles, but it did noth
ing to relieve the aches in the rest of her body. Her thighs felt sore, as though she’d put them through a workout.
“I’ve got just the thing for that,” Ally said, pulling a chocolate covered slice from the glass cabinet on top of the counter. “It’s got oats and cherries, which means it’s fruit. Great for achy bodies, and practically calorie free.” She slid it into a paper bag and passed it to Autumn, along with her latte. “It’s on the house.”
“Stop it.” Autumn laid a ten on the counter. “You’re running a business.”
“You can pay for the latte, but the cake is on me,” Ally told her, pulling some change from the register. “We made too many.”
Autumn sipped at her coffee as she made her way back to the office, the golden sun warming her bare arms. There was a group of kids playing softball on the beach, and she had to duck as a ball came flying in her direction. It passed over her head before landing heavily on the sand.
“Sorry, ma’am!” a boy shouted as he ran to retrieve the ball.
“It’s okay.” She grinned. “You missed.” She pulled the chocolate slice out of the bag and sunk her teeth into it, groaning as the taste radiated in her mouth. Ally was right. It was full of fruit and oats, and dark-as-sin chocolate. It was a shame it wasn’t really calorie free.
She was almost at her office before she realized Griff’s boat was back. Mike had just set up the metal gangplank, and a horde of passengers wearing company logoed polo shirts and tan pants disembarked, shouting out their thanks before they passed Autumn and walked up the pier. She tried to ignore the way her chest felt all tight at the thought of seeing Griff, and instead, took a deep mouthful of coffee before opening her office door.
“Hey!”
She looked up to see Griff walking down the gangplank, and let the door close again.
“Hey.” She composed what she hoped looked like a casual smile on her face. One that didn’t give away how much she was thinking about last night. About him between her thighs. “How was the ocean today?”
“It was good.” He pushed his hands into the pockets of his jeans. For a second, her eyes flickered down to look at his jeans, before she resolutely pulled them back up. “We saw a couple of dolphins, they started following us around. And only half of the guests got seasick. How was your day?” he asked her.
She reached up to rub her aching neck. “Long. I spent most of it pricing ideas for the charity event.” She realized she hadn’t told him about the wedding plan. “I had a couple of other ideas, too, for the longer term future of the pier. Maybe I could run them past you some time. See how you think they’ll go down with the tenants.”
His eyes caught hers. “Any time.”
“I guess I should get back to work,” she said, inclining her head at the door to her office.
“Do you have any plans for tonight?”
She looked up, surprised at his abrupt change of subject. “Nothing apart from a glass of wine and some pasta.”
“Let me cook you dinner this time. Repay the favor.”
“You’re inviting me to your place?”
He shrugged. “It’s only fair.”
“In that case, I’d be delighted to accept.” She couldn’t hide her huge grin. It felt like the sun had just gotten a little brighter.