Love at High Tide (13 page)

“That sounds fascinating. Integrating them back into normal school culture has to be tough all the way around.” Gangs were so much like tribes, with their own language, customs, and initiation rites. Darcy spent a semester when she worked on her master’s degree studying the decades-old blood feud between rival Los Angeles gangs.

He nodded. “Exactly. The district’s got a grant for it, but they’re on the brink of forfeiting it. It’s been tough to find someone to do the work. They finally had a candidate all lined up, but her husband’s getting transferred out of state. So they’ve got to fill that spot in the next two weeks...”

Darcy followed his thought to the logical conclusion. Even, or especially, in education it always came down to one thing. “Or they lose all the money.”

“Mmm-hmm.”

“Rough. And it’ll be twice as hard to apply a second time for that grant.” She stared out at the water, spotting for dolphins. Not a single sighting yet this week, but dawn seemed like a good time to at least eye the horizon.

“Yup. This first year is all research, just watching the kids and identifying trouble spots. Then the second year, after writing up a big-ass recommendation of where to go next, they’d start to implement the changes. Whoever does the research would be a shoo-in to stay and run the program.”

Was he saying what she thought he might be? Coop didn’t ramble. This story had a purpose. It sure sounded like a job offer dropping directly into her lap. Or was desperate hope fueling her assumption? “Don’t tease me.”

“No tease. I told Candace your qualifications. She even did a web search on you and pulled your thesis. As long as you don’t tank the interview next week, the job’s yours. If you want it.”

“Are you kidding? It’s everything I didn’t know I wanted!” Darcy threw her arms around Coop. He picked her up and twirled her in a circle, her feet flying out behind.

Coop set her down carefully, smoothing his hands down her arms. “Let me be clear. There are no strings attached.”

Huh? “Did I think there were?”

“I just, I mean—”

Odd to see him at a loss for words. And unable to meet her eyes. Darcy cupped the scruffy line of his jaw covered in dawn o’clock shadow. “What is it?”

“Look, you don’t have to date me to get the job. Candace made me swear to tell you that.” His feet shifted up and down on the damp sand.

“Okay.” The practical side of her coolly accepted his statement. But why couldn’t she have it all? Was it tempting Fate? Being too greedy? Or was this her karmic reward for being held up at gunpoint? She had to at least try. “What if I
want
to date you?” Darcy held her breath. Beach fling, remember? He could easily buy her breakfast and send her on her way.

His hand came up to cup hers. And his eyes brightened, like she’d just turned on the pilot light on a furnace. “Not just here at the beach, but once we get back home?”

“I don’t have a home,” she said lightly. Funny how little that scared her right now. “Not yet. I guess I’ll be crashing with Trina until I find a place of my own.”

“Baltimore, I mean.” He dragged her hands down in a white-knuckled grip at her waist. “As opposed to you being in Africa, or us hanging out here on the shore.”

“Yes, in Baltimore.” Darcy squeezed right back, trying to convey how much her simple attraction to him had spiraled into a deeper yearning. Something that neither of them had expected. “I know you’ll be busy. Getting back into the swing of things with your squad. Hanging out with your enormous family. If they call you this much when you’re gone, I can only imagine how often they pop in on you at home.”

Coop barked out a laugh. “Whatever you imagine, triple it. Work’s work. I put my life on hold for work for too long. I walked away empty-handed. Now I want to try grabbing with both hands for what I want. Work, family, fun, and a frisky brunette who drives me wild.” He drew a line in the toe with his sand, not meeting her eyes. “You’ll be busy too, you know. Packing, moving, starting a brand new job.”

“So what?” she said recklessly. “I put what I wanted on hold for a long time. Put my parents’ expectations first, the expectations of my professors, and then my colleagues. Starting today, I’ve got to make new plans, new expectations. But we’re both tiptoeing around the fact this was just supposed to be a beach fling. Coop, if you still want that, I understand.”

Now that sky-colored gaze latched onto hers with the strength of a tractor beam. “I want you. I didn’t know how to compete with Africa. I knew I didn’t have the right to ask you to stay. Not for a guy you’ve known for three days. But I’m crazy about you so far. I’ve fallen harder and faster than a bullet through a stack of feathers. All I want to do is keep getting to know you better. Your favorite pizza toppings, what sort of movies you like, how you feel coming apart beneath my lips, how many times I can make you orgasm in one night—all the important stuff.”

“Oh. I want to find out all of that about you, too.” She couldn’t say it out loud, though, not without her cheeks heating up more than the noonday sand. Cooper Hudson was a sex god to her. Brave, dedicated, funny—finding him was a gift, like a treasure from the sea Poseidon had tossed up at her feet. “I can’t believe how strong my feelings are for you. How much I hated the thought of never seeing you again. It scared me more than seeing that gun in Pavel’s hand.”

“So no more beach fling. We’re going to jump into this dating thing with both feet?”

“You caught me the first day we met. I’ll jump as long as you promise to keep catching me.”

“And you’ll come back to the beach with me for the Fourth of July? It’ll be crazy with my family, but fun.”

“Are there fireworks?”

“Babe, you don’t have to wait for a holiday for that.” Cooper drew her into his arms, lowering his mouth to hover at her lips. Behind him, the sun shot past the horizon in the fireball of a new day, a fresh start. “I’ll make you see fireworks anytime you want.” He kissed her, a fiery kiss that ran liquid gold through her veins. Darcy had no doubt she would indeed be seeing stars by the time he was done. The beach would now and always be her favorite vacation.

* * * * *

Can’t get enough of Christi Barth?

Look for the first two releases in her popular Aisle Bound series, available now!

Planning for Love

Wedding planner Ivy Rhodes is the best in the business, and she’s not about to let a personal problem stop her from getting ahead. So when she’s asked to star in the reality TV show
Planning for Love
, it doesn’t matter that the show’s videographer happens to be a recent—and heartbreaking—one-night stand.

Bennett Westcott admits he didn’t handle his encounter with Ivy very well. But looking at her beautiful smile—and great body—through a camera lens every day? He can’t be faulted for suggesting they have some no-strings fun.

The more time they spend together, the more Ben realizes Ivy isn’t the wedding-crazed bridezilla he’d imagined. But if he doesn’t trust himself to make a relationship last, how can he convince Ivy to give him another chance?

A Fine Romance

They say you form your first impression of someone within thirty seconds of meeting them. Or, in Mira Parrish’s case, within thirty
minutes
of
not
meeting them, when said person is supposed to pick you up from the airport and never shows. This is not a perfect start to her new life. Her friend Ivy is depending on her to run a new romance store, and Mira can’t afford to let her down.

Sam Lyons should probably apologize. But every time he sees Mira—which is often, since his family owns the bakery next to her shop—he can’t resist antagonizing her. He can’t get involved, though. He has too much
baggage to be any good in a serious relationship.

Despite his teasing attitude, Mira finds Sam too sweet to resist. (His hot body
may
be a factor.) But if there’s going to be anything permanent between them, they’ll need to let go of their pasts and look to the future...

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About the Author

Christi Barth spent years performing in musicals. She snared
a husband, sang about love and gave people a happy ending at every performance.
Then, as a wedding planner, she still spent every day immersed in romance. Now
she writes it! She happily inhabits the beach in this book every summer, and
thanks Ocean City for a wealth of happy memories (the sunburns, not so much).
Christi lives in Maryland with the absolute best husband in the world (sorry,
ladies, but it’s true!).

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ISBN: 978-14268-9579-1

Copyright © 2013 by Christi Barth

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