Read Online Beautiful Music by Lisa DeVore - Free Book Online

conversation ended as Chase exited the truck to open Jena’s door.
    He couldn’t read her expression. Had he gone too far?
    ****
    Jena lowered to the ground with Chase’s hands around her waist. His face was inches from hers. She couldn’t breathe. He captured her eyes with his and she couldn’t move, couldn’t look away. . A shiver ran across her skin in the warm air.
    “Cold?” he asked throatily.
    “No, I…shouldn’t we go in?” Yeah, that was a great comeback, Jena. She was silently kicking herself.
    He didn’t move. “We should.”
    He made her nervous, always pushing. The shivering, the flip-flops in her stomach, and the blood rising toward her face was definitely not attraction. He was crowding her. Jena would show him she wasn’t going to cave. “I would rather not stand in the parking lot all evening.”
    Chase chuckled as he touched the small of her back to lead her toward the restaurant. The shivering was replaced by shaking. The prospect of sitting alone with him…here…petrified her—so many memories.
    They walked across the parking lot and the only sounds were Jena’s heels clicking on the pavement, the surf crashing to the beach, and her pounding heart. She stopped suddenly at the place where asphalt met sand.
    “Is something wrong?” the concern evident in his voice.
    “No,” she lied. The memories invaded her mind as soon as she saw the sand and smelled the familiar smells coming from the restaurant. She was happy then. The realization slammed into her and took her breath. Life was something she had awaited with excitement. She knew, now, Chase had been the reason. There was no way around the truth. Jena had been trudging through life without him, going through the motions. She wasn’t happy. Admitting this to herself was one thing, but admitting it to him? None of it changed the fact she had a job she loved, a home, and friends waiting back in Ohio. She had a comfortable life and wouldn’t sacrifice it for a temporary thing called love.
    She glanced at him quickly and focused on the waves she could barely see through the darkness. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath of the moist, salty air. The ocean had its own smell. She exhaled slowly with a smile unintentionally remembering happy times with Jasmine and Collin…and Chase. The damp ocean air caressed her skin, relaxing her tense muscles. She did love the beach.
    She opened her eyes in surprise as Chase took her hand gently into his, another familiar one-of-a-kind sensation. She wanted to remove her hand, but she couldn’t seem to move. His warm, strong hand gave Jena a sense of protection she hadn’t realized she needed. She had been self-sufficient for a very long time. This moment was an indulgence she wouldn’t allow herself to get used to.
    Her hand lifted to his lips as she watched, like an outsider, unable to stop the motion. She trembled at his touch. She couldn’t think, couldn’t look away. The moment mesmerized her. Barely above a whisper Chase said, “Are you remembering how much I loved you? How much we loved each other?”
    Jena’s lips quivered. How should she answer? There was no denying the electricity that passed between them.
    “Would you like to walk on the beach before we go in?”
    Jena shook her head. She needed to gain control. “I’d rather go in.” She struggled to keep her voice even as his thumb caressed her hand.
    “Are you hungry?”
    Grateful he was attempting to change the subject she replied with a smile, “Famished.”
    “Good.” He squeezed her hand. “Let’s go in.”

Chapter Eleven
    The hostess greeted them with batting eyelashes that immediately irritated Jena. “Your name, please?” she said with a sweetness that made Jena’s teeth ache.
    Chase wrapped an arm around Jena’s waist. She smiled smugly toward the hostess, surprised by her childish reaction.
    “Reiss. I have a reservation for two.”
    “Yes, Mr. Reiss,” the hostess purred, “I have the reservation