“Wine,” he muttered under his breath. “I don’t normally serve wine with this dish.”

She followed him in, but when he discovered her trailing down the aisle after him, he gripped her by the shoulders and directed her back outside. “I am an artist, and I insist upon working alone.”

Janine had a difficult time not laughing outright.

“In order to make this dinner as perfect as possible, I must concentrate completely on the selection of ingredients. You, my dear wife,” he said, pressing his index finger to the tip of her nose, “are too much of a distraction. A lovely one, but nevertheless a distraction.”

Janine smiled, her heart singing. Zach wasn’t free with his compliments, and she found herself prizing each one.

While Zach was busy in the grocery store, Janine wandered around town. She bought a lifelike ceramic sea gull, which she promptly named Chester, and a bag of saltwater taffy. Then on impulse, she purchased a bottle of sun lotion in case they decided to lie outside, tempting a tan.

When she returned to the car, Zach was already there, waiting for her. She was licking a double-decker chocolate ice-cream cone and feeling incredibly happy.

“Did the master chef find everything he needed?” she asked. Two brown paper bags were sitting on the floor and she restrained herself from peeking inside.

“Our meal tonight will be one you’ll long remember, I promise you.”

“I’m glad to hear it.” Holding out her ice-cream cone, she asked. “Do you want a taste?”

“Please.” He rejected the offer of the cone itself and instead bent forward and lowered his mouth to hers. As she gazed into his dark heavy-lidded eyes her heartbeat accelerated and she was filled with a sudden intense longing. Janine wasn’t sure what was happening between them, but it felt, quite simply, right.

Although the kiss was fleeting, a shiver of awareness twisted its way through her. Neither of them spoke or moved. He’d meant the kiss to be gentle and teasing, but it had quickly assumed another purpose. For a breathless second, the smile faded from his eyes. He continued to hold her, his breathing rapid.

After nearly two full days alone together, Janine found it amusing that when he finally chose to kiss her, he’d do it in a crowded parking lot.

“I don’t remember chocolate being quite that rich,” he murmured. He strove for a casual tone, but Janine wasn’t fooled. He was as affected by their kiss as she was, and struggling just as hard to disguise it.

They were uncharacteristically quiet on the short drive back to the house. Until the kiss, they’d spent companionable days together, enjoying each other’s company. Then, in the space of no more than a few seconds, all that had changed.

“Am I banished from the kitchen?” Janine asked once they were inside the house, forcing an airy note into her voice.

“Not entirely,” Zach surprised her by saying. “I’ll need you later to wash the dishes.”