“Maybe you’re right. Hey, have you heard from Jake? He left two days ago for that plane crash out in Colorado, and I haven’t heard from him since. I’m getting worried.” Jake was their youngest sibling. He’d followed in their father’s footsteps as a search and rescue professional and traveled often. He always kept in close contact with family, and with Duke in particular. As the eldest, Duke tended to keep closer track of his siblings than the rest of them did, though they were all close.
“No, but they’re still dealing with the aftermath out that way. He’ll get in touch when he can.” Blue made a mental note to text Jake after they got off the phone. He stood back and admired the cottage. “You should see the cottage. Man, does it look great.”
“I can’t wait to see it. Did you decide what you’re going to do with the lighthouse?”
“Not yet. One thing at a time.”
“One thing at a time?” Duke laughed. “B, you’ve been talking about the lighthouse since the day you first saw it. Why the sudden halt?”
“I’ve got something else on my mind right now. Guess who I have a date with tonight?” Blue grinned just thinking about Lizzie. He and Duke had both spotted Lizzie at the same time at the wedding. All of the Ryder men were six three or six four and blessed with athletic builds and smart minds. Blue had to admit that when they’d first met Lizzie, he’d felt a stroke of competition with his older, very successful brother. And it felt damn good to come out on top.
“No shit? Lizzie finally agreed to go out with you?”
“Yes, although she’s not calling it a date. I hope to change her mind on that point, though.”
“You’ve been courting her for a year. I haven’t heard you sound so sure about a woman since you know who.”
Blue’s family had the decency not to speak of Sarah Jane often, and when they did, it was rarely by name, which he appreciated. “I know. Let’s not bring her up, okay?”
“That was more than a decade ago. That woman’s probably got five kids by five different guys and tits that sag to the ground by now.”
“Duke.” Blue winced. “No need to slam her like that.”
“You really did get Mom’s genes, didn’t you? I’m telling you, you should have slept with every one of her friends back then. It would have made you feel a hell of a lot better.”
Blue had never been a vengeful person. He’d walked out of Sarah Jane’s apartment without a word after catching her with that asshole, and he’d never looked back or taken revenge.
He and Duke talked for a few more minutes, and when they ended the call, Blue sent a text to Jake, trying to elicit at least a smart-ass response.
Dude, you still alive?
Knowing Jake, he was probably holed up in a hotel room with a woman—his form of stress relief.
Blue locked up the cottage and headed back to his house, thinking about Lizzie and how glad he was that she’d agreed to go out with him again. He’d tried to distract himself from thinking about her too much today, which was why he’d worked at his cottage instead of on her kitchen, but with every board he’d installed, the hope that she’d want to go on another date, and another, and another, grew. Now he couldn’t shake the mounting desire that she’d want even more than that. When it came to sweet and sultry Lizzie Barber, one kiss was definitely not enough.
***
LIZZIE LOVED EVERYTHING about owning her own flower shop, from meeting new people every day to being surrounded by the scents of nature and the glorious colors of the plants and flowers. But by far, the best thing about owning P-town Petals was the location. Provincetown was an eclectic town that was home to about three thousand people in the off-season and nearly burst at the seams with upward of fifty thousand tourists over the summers, and it had always been Lizzie’s favorite place on earth. Provincetown was known for its harbor and beaches and the extensive diversity of artists and the community. Excitement vibrated through the town each week with an onslaught of tourists and a variety of shows and street entertainers. Even now, in October, there were still a large number of tourists. But Lizzie knew that in another month, the streets would be nearly empty and the buzz of excitement that made the town come alive would be tamped down to the gentle hum of residents reclaiming their quiet streets.