The Cinnamon Bun Book Store (Dream Harbor, #2)(23)

It was huge and flopped over one eye. ‘Why would I wear this?’

Noah peered under the brim. ‘To protect you from sunburn.’

She wanted to protest. The hat was big and ugly but ... it was casting a nice wide shadow around her. There was no way the sun was getting through this thing. And then there was the way Noah was looking at her, waiting for her approval.

‘Do you like it?’

‘I like the shade it provides.’

‘Great!’ His smile grew as he tapped the hat further down on her head, adjusting the strap beneath her chin. ‘My grandfather always used to say, there’s no such thing as bad weather, just bad equipment.’

Hazel huffed a small laugh. Only for her was a sunny day ‘bad weather’ but this big, dumb hat, did seem to be working.

‘Okay, next thing.’ He clapped his hands and started rummaging through a backpack he’d placed next to the cooler. He pulled out a spray can and shook it.

‘What’s that?’

‘Bug spray.’

‘You brought bug spray?’

‘Yep, close your mouth.’ She held her breath as he sprayed the bug repellent over her legs and arms. ‘I noticed you had a lot of bug bites.’

‘Uh, yeah...’

Pink had washed over Noah’s cheeks as he said it. He’d noticed her legs. He’d noticed an awful lot about her and he’d brought all these things to make her beach trip comfortable. A new sensation settled in Hazel’s stomach. It was warm and happy.

‘Thanks.’

‘Sure.’ He shrugged, tossing the canister back in the bag. ‘Okay, now for the fun part.’

Hazel raised an eyebrow although she was sure he couldn’t see it from under the brim of her hat. ‘The fun part?’

‘Well, there’s multiple fun parts, so I’ll let you pick what you want to do first.’

‘Okay.’ A smile was working its way across her face, the one she couldn’t seem to tamp down whenever Noah was around.

‘We can build a sandcastle.’

Hazel glanced down the beach at where the toddler was now crying because the waves had knocked his creation down. ‘Um, what else you got?’

‘We could play frisbee.’

She scoffed. ‘Do I look like a frisbee on the beach kinda girl?’

Noah laughed. ‘Okay, how about a treasure-hunting walk?’

‘Treasure hunting?’

‘Yep.’ He winked. ‘Come on.’ He twined his fingers with hers again and tugged her along the sand.

‘So what kind of treasure are we looking for exactly?’ she asked as they strolled. The waves washed over her feet, the shock of the cold water leaving her toes numb. But in a way that she didn’t seem to mind.

Small rocks that lined the shore rolled in and out with the surf creating a soft shushing sound and even the squawking of sea birds in the distance was peaceful. Now that she was here it seemed rather insane that she didn’t come more often. How lucky that something so beautiful existed mere blocks from her house.

Her hand was still in Noah’s and he swung their arms gently as they walked. ‘We won’t know it’s treasure until we see it.’

‘Hmm.’ Hazel tugged him to a stop. ‘How about this?’ She squatted to pick up her find. A tiny, pure white shell that she placed in the palm of her hand.

‘A bay scallop. One of my favorites.’

‘So ... treasure?’

‘Definitely.’ He grinned and she tucked the shell into the pocket of her sweatshirt.

They kept walking with Noah stopping every few feet to pick up a ‘perfectly round rock’ or any pebble that looked like a jelly bean or the white shells with purple inside. She added it all to her pouch until it was sandy and damp and sagging. The shells and rocks clicked against each other as they walked.

‘I kinda thought the treasure was going to be like the experience of being here or something metaphorical like that.’

Noah glanced at her, a smirk teasing around his mouth. ‘I’m not that deep, Haze. And I like treasure.’

Hazel huffed a laugh and Noah’s smile grew. The day was slowly warming up but that wasn’t what had Hazel’s cheeks heating. It was him. It was that smile directed right at her. She dipped her head so the brim of her enormous hat blocked Noah from her view.

‘Look!’ The tiniest crab she’d ever seen had emerged from the wet sand and was scuttling past her feet. As soon as her shadow passed over it, it froze.

‘He thinks you’re going to eat him.’

Hazel scrunched up her nose. ‘You’re safe little guy.’ She moved to the side and once he was back in the sunlight the little crab skittered off between the rocks.

‘And too tiny for lunch, anyway,’ Noah said and Hazel could imagine him talking to his tour customers that way, too. Too small, guys. Throw it back.

‘Speaking of lunch...’

‘You hungry?’

‘Well, I am curious what you packed in that cooler but I’m still not trusting of these seagulls.’ She glanced up to find several of the large birds circling overhead. Good thing her little crab friend had found shelter among the rocks.

Noah slung an arm over her shoulder as they turned back to the blanket. ‘Trust me. I promised you no harm would come to your lunch, remember?’