Seaside Dreams (Love in Bloom: Seaside Summers, Book One) Contemporary Romance Read Online Free PDF

that had somehow avoided becoming prey to the seals that had claimed the New England surf. It struck her how different her life would be if she lived on the Cape full-time. Would she make the time to sit on the beach on chilly March evenings or walk by the edge of the water in a parka, midwinter?
    “Are you bummed that Kurt stayed with Jamie tonight?” Bella asked Leanna. Jamie Reed was another Seaside resident. His grandmother, Vera, owned the cottage next to Leanna’s, and Jamie had grown up spending summers with Bella and the girls.
    “Oh, gosh no. But Amy’s gonna be mad, because when Tony found out that Kurt was staying, I heard him tell Kurt he’d stay, too.” Leanna pulled her blanket up in front of her face. “Don’t kill the messenger.”
    Amy rolled her eyes. “You guys act like something between me and Tony is even a possibility. I told you. I tried to sail that ship and he turned me down. I’m not a glutton for punishment.”
    “Oh, please. You know damn well that if he asked you out you’d jump at the chance.” Jenna bumped Amy with her shoulder.
    “Of course. I’m realistic, not stupid,” Amy said. “But I won’t make the mistake of coming on to him again.”
    Jenna nudged a rock with her toe, then leaned forward to pick it up.
    “Here we go,” Amy said. Jenna had been a rock collector for as long as Bella could remember. Each summer she zeroed in on a different type of rock. This summer her fascination was on heart-shaped rocks.
    Jenna shot to her feet with her hands on her hips. “Who’s coming with me to look for rocks?” She bounced on her toes like an excited kid.
    “I thought you had a self-imposed moratorium on rock collecting,” Bella reminded her. “Last summer you said your cottage runneth over , and that you weren’t going to be collecting for a while.” Runneth over might be an understatement. Every flat surface in Jen’s cottage was adorned with rocks, including various corners of the hardwood floor and the rails of her deck.
    Jenna lowered her eyes and twisted from side to side with her hands clasped behind her back. “I know. But I’ll only take them if they’re absolutely perfect.” She tucked her hair behind her ear and her eyes widened with mischief. “And you know how picky I am.” She pulled Bella to her feet, then bounced up and down again. “Please, please, please? Just until it’s dark?”
    Bella rolled her eyes. “Fine. But you owe me big-time.”
    Jenna threw herself into Bella’s arms. “Yay!”
    “You’re such a fool.” Bella laughed and laid her blanket over Amy’s lap. “Here you go, princess. Don’t drink all the wine without me.”
    The wet sand was cold beneath Bella’s bare feet. She didn’t mind walking with Jenna, and she didn’t even care that Jenna owned more rocks than any mountain this side of Utah. She couldn’t put her finger on why, but she was edgy tonight. She’d told her friends she was giving herself until Monday to start working on the program for the school. She’d also told them that she wasn’t interested in sexy-as-hell Caden Grant in that blue uniform that hugged his broad chest and exposed well-muscled forearms and eyes that seemed to look right through her. But the job and Caden were all she could think about.
    Jenna looped her arm through Bella’s. “Thanks for walking with me. I know I won’t find any good rocks, but I still like to look.”
    “I know you do.” She loved everything about Jenna, from her obsessive-compulsive need for organization to her flip-flop fetish and her love of rocks. Jenna was always happy. Even when something pissed her off, she had the ability to spin a situation in her mind so her good mood wasn’t sucked away.
    Jen picked up a rock and washed it off in the surf. She ran her fingers over the rounded edges, then scrunched her nose and tossed it into the ocean.
    “Are you nervous about your whole job, house situation?” she asked, bending down to inspect another