BooksBarbecue
Back The Summer Cottage
Chapters (75)
  1. Cover
  2. Back Cover Text
  3. Praise
  4. Booklist
  5. About the Author
  6. Dedication
  7. Quote
  8. Prologue
  9. Part One
  10. ONE
  11. TWO
  12. THREE
  13. Part Two
  14. FOUR
  15. FIVE
  16. SIX
  17. Part Three
  18. SEVEN
  19. EIGHT
  20. NINE
  21. TEN
  22. Part Four
  23. ELEVEN
  24. TWELVE
  25. THIRTEEN
  26. Part Five
  27. FOURTEEN
  28. FIFTEEN
  29. SIXTEEN
  30. SEVENTEEN
  31. Part Six
  32. EIGHTEEN
  33. NINETEEN
  34. TWENTY
  35. TWENTY-ONE
  36. Part Seven
  37. TWENTY-TWO
  38. TWENTY-THREE
  39. TWENTY-FOUR
  40. TWENTY-FIVE
  41. Part Eight
  42. TWENTY-SIX
  43. TWENTY-SEVEN
  44. TWENTY-EIGHT
  45. TWENTY-NINE
  46. Part Nine
  47. THIRTY
  48. THIRTY-ONE
  49. THIRTY-TWO
  50. THIRTY-THREE
  51. THIRTY-FOUR
  52. Part Ten
  53. THIRTY-FIVE
  54. THIRTY-SIX
  55. THIRTY-SEVEN
  56. THIRTY-EIGHT
  57. Part Eleven
  58. THIRTY-NINE
  59. FORTY
  60. FORTY-ONE
  61. Part Twelve
  62. FORTY-TWO
  63. FORTY-THREE
  64. FORTY-FOUR
  65. Part Thirteen
  66. FORTY-FIVE
  67. FORTY-SIX
  68. FORTY-SEVEN
  69. EPILOGUE
  70. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
  71. AUTHOR NOTE
  72. Reader’s Guide
  73. Questions for Discussion
  74. The Heirloom Garden
  75. Abby

“You thought of everything,” I say, until I see the suit, a one-piece with mesh panels on the sides. “Leave it to a man to pick out the skimpiest swimsuit I own. Which, by the way, I haven’t worn in ages. Nor will I be wearing today.”

“What? I’m sure it will still look great on you. You do yoga.”

“Let me explain something to you,” I say, my sweet smile not matching the tone of my voice. “I’ve had a child. I’ve raised a child. I’ve worked long hours at a job, chauffeured my son around for eighteen years, cared for a family, gotten divorced, started an inn, eaten way too much pizza, drank way too much wine and life hasn’t afforded me the luxury time to head to the gym or do yoga whenever I felt like it. So—” I stop and toss the swimsuit back at him “—what you see is what you get. And what you don’t see is not what you think it is.”

I look at Scooter. I have no idea how he will react to my little speech. If he thinks he’s getting involved with Christie Brinkley when she was a Sports Illustrated cover model, he has another think coming. In fact, if you’d have bet me a few months ago on whether I’d be dating again, much less ever be having sex with a man again in my life, or if I would be joining a nunnery, I would’ve put three-to-one odds on the nunnery.

“Adie Lou,” Scooter says, taking a seat next to me, “I understand. And I’m not the same guy either. My six-pack has been replaced by a six-pack of beer.” He stops. “But I still see you as the girl you once were. To me, the years haven’t changed you at all.”

I exhale, relieved.

“Flattery will get you everywhere,” I say. “And it might be time for an eye test.”

He laughs and pulls me close, kissing me, his stubble grazing my lips. He holds my face, and the green of his eyes set against the blue of the sky and the lake takes my breath away. This time, I lean in and kiss him, exploring his mouth. He runs his hands through my hair, over my shoulders, down my back and rests them on my waist. My body explodes in goose bumps.

“Get a room!” someone yells.

We look up, startled, and a man is watching us with binoculars while perched in the driver’s seat of a Chris-Craft boat going by close to the shore.

“Derek,” he says with a laugh. “He works with me. I asked him to keep an eye on my picnic until we got here since he said he’d have his boat out today.”