Read Online Seaside Kisses: A Sweet Romance (The Seaside Hunters Book 4) by Stacy Claflin - Free Book Online

get all traces of Max out of here."
    Rafael just stared at her, and with his eyes swollen, she couldn't read his expression.
    "Sure you're okay?"
    "Yeah, but you don't have to stay and clean up."
    "I can't let you be alone," Amara said. "You're allergy could get worse."
    He raised his jacket sleeve and rubbed his arm. There was a long scrape on his arm, and it, too, was red and swollen.
    "Is that where Max scratched you?"
    Rafael looked down and his swollen eyes grew wide. "It didn't look like that before."
    "I'm no doctor, but I'd say you definitely have a cat allergy."
    "It's beginning to look that way. I wonder why it didn't start when I first picked him up?"
    Amara shrugged. "Probably just took a while. Doesn't matter. Just get cleaned up, okay? If the swelling doesn't go down, I'm going to insist on taking you the urgent care clinic."
    "I have allergy medicine I can take."
    "Good. Take that, too. Maybe we should call your brother, too."
    "Brayden? He's a cardiologist."
    "Right." Amara's face burned. "Well, try the medicine, then."
    Rafael mumbled something as he left the room. Amara wondered if he could be embarrassed about the allergy. Though, she still thought he looked fantastic, even with a little redness. She picked up the box full of sand and took it outside, dumping out the sand and stuffing the box into the recycle.
    Once inside, she opened the cupboard doors under the sink only to find them empty. She wanted to scrub everything with a cleaner, but wasn't sure where he kept the cleaning supplies. Then she remembered how he thought elbow grease was in a bottle. She smiled, but lost hope that she'd find any cleaners in his house.
    She opened a linen closet next to the bathroom and found a few bottles. Those would probably do. She took a rag and got to work. A few minutes later, she heard the shower upstairs. Not wanting to think about Rafael in there, she sang her favorite song to distract herself. That didn't work, so she scrubbed the floor even harder, making her arm sore.
    The water turned off overhead, and she let out a sigh of relief. After a couple more minutes of cleaning, she was done. The solvent was really strong, so she closed the bathroom door, hoping it would dissipate by the next time he went in.
    Amara paced the lower level, not daring to go upstairs. She'd hardly been invited, and who knew what he'd be wearing? It was too much to think about. She had a hard enough time taking her eyes off him when he wore long-sleeved shirts. And when he'd answered the door with no shirt under his coat, she'd nearly stopped breathing.
    Footsteps sounded on the stairs.
    "Are you still here, Amara?"
    Her heart raced. "Yes." She hurried over to the staircase.
    Rafael stood on the middle, wearing a long red and royal blue robe that wasn't revealing in the slightest.
    Amara let out a sigh of relief. "How do you feel?"
    "Itchy, but all right. I took the allergy pill when I first got up here, and I think it's already working."
    She walked up the steps and stood next to him, only inches away. She could smell his shampoo and soap—it was a heavenly combination. Amara reached up to feel his face, but he backed up.
    "I washed my hands—I swear. No traces of cat. I wouldn't do that to you."
    He laughed nervously. "Okay. What about your clothes?"
    "The only thing that touched Max was my coat, and I left it downstairs."
    Rafael didn't look convinced.
    "If you start to feel itchy again, I'll go home and change."
    "Okay."
    She pushed on his face gently. "It still seems swollen to me."
    "I'm sure I'll be fine after some sleep."
    Her eyes widened. "But what if it gets worse while you're sleeping?"
    Rafael leaned against the railing, folding his arms. "You aren't going to try to force me to go to the urgent care, are you? I'm fine."
    "Or prideful?" she teased.
    He chuckled. "That's not the first time I've been accused of that."
    "How about I stay for a little longer?" she asked. "Just to be sure."
    "I can take care of myself, you