Free Barefoot Bay: Castle in the Sand (Kindle Worlds Novella) by Jeannie Moon Page A

to.”
    Josie wanted to say they had the chance to make things right, but she wasn’t sure if they could. “You should have trusted me. Instead, you let me down.”
    “I can’t imagine how you’ve felt with me being here. I should have left the first day.”
    There was no good way to respond to him. So she went from the heart. “It’s been a blessing and a curse,” she sniffled. “I love having you close again. I love hearing your voice, seeing you in the mornings. I love the smell of you when you’ve first showered…”
    He smiled. “Seeing you when you’re first up, staggering for the coffee pot, makes my day.”
    Slipping her arms around his waist, Josie rested her head on Tony’s chest and the world felt right. For the first time in three years, she was home, but it wasn’t going to last. “It’s funny how the little things are what we miss.”
    “It’s true.” He was holding her head against his chest, allowing her to hear the steady beat of his heart. “I miss a thousand little things about you, Josie.”
    They settled into silence, a quiet, thoughtful moment that required no words, but allowed their feelings to settle and the words to sink in.
    “I should go to bed. Try to sleep.”
    “I’m glad we talked,” he said quietly, releasing her. “You can always talk to me.”
    Josie stared into Tony’s fathomless blue eyes, and wondered how he would react if she kissed him. Obligations, broken hearts, none of it mattered. She just wanted to feel her lips on his. Soft, firm, loving. “Do you want to hear why you’re a curse?” she asked.
    “What?” It seemed to take him a second to realize what she was asking, and then he shook his head. “I don’t know—”
    “I ache for you. My body, my soul. Everything. Having to see you again just makes me more aware of it.”
    He closed his eyes, and she could see her words had hit a nerve. Good or bad, he felt something for her. The feelings hadn’t died. But just like all those years when the two of them denied their feelings because he was her brother’s best friend, they would deny them now.
    When Tony opened his eyes, Josie sucked in a breath. No longer sweet and tender, Anton’s gaze had caught fire. “Don’t hate me for this, Josie. Please.”
    Before she could say a word, he claimed her mouth with his. His lips moved over hers with urgency, desperation. This kiss was about loss, about the years apart, about missing each other so desperately that one touch ignited them both.
    He sat on the couch, pulling her into his lap, and the two of them dove into the kiss with the passion only lost lovers could know.
    His hands slid into her hair, holding her head steady as he continued his assault on her mouth. She could feel his arousal, his need, and she was burning up inside. No one had ever made her burn like Anton. Her prince in all the ways that mattered.
    “This isn’t going to last, is it?” she whispered in his ear as he trailed kisses down her neck.
    “I don’t know.”
    It wasn’t the answer she wanted to hear, but he’d given her the honesty she’d asked for. Being with her meant changing his whole life, his whole existence. Anton used the word duty . That’s who he was, what he was all about. Duty. To his family and his country.
    Now it was time for Josie to think about what she wanted. Was she willing to take the risk? They might only have a few weeks together, but now that she knew the stakes, knew their time was finite, was it worth the emptiness after he was gone?
    “What if I told you that I’d rather have these few weeks with you than try to keep my distance?” she said, as his teeth grazed her earlobe. “That I just want to be with you. Even if you leave, I want this to end without any regrets. Without the hurt. I know where I stand now.”
    He kissed her with new enthusiasm, and the longing Josie felt pooling low in her belly intensified with each touch. He owned her, body and soul.
    “I would say I don’t deserve