The Best Friend Bargain (Kisses in the Sand) Read online

  Danny Ellis

  Re: All yours

  December 6, 8:43 PM

  Ask me anything, Liv, but first you need to answer my question.

  Where are you?

  Olivia Lincoln

  Re: Can’t

  December 6, 8:46 PM

  Not yet. Good night, Danny. Thank you for emailing.

  Liv’s formality felt like a hundred shards of glass to the chest, but he had no plans to give up. She’d flirted with him, whether she meant to or not, and that gave him hope even though she refused to tell him where she was.

  Two days later…

  Danny Ellis

  Re: Knock-knock

  December 8, 7:31 PM

  Olivia Lincoln

  Re: Who’s there?

  December 8, 7:33 PM

  Danny Ellis

  Re: Al

  December 8, 7:33 PM

  Olivia Lincoln

  Re: Al who?

  December 8, 7:33 PM

  Danny Ellis

  Re: Al…

  December 8, 7:34 PM

  …bring you something sweet to eat if you tell me where you are.

  Olivia Lincoln

  Re: Bribery

  December 8, 7:34 PM

  Taking advantage of my sweet tooth is playing dirty, Mr. Ellis.

  What are we talking?

  Danny Ellis

  Re: Bait

  December 8, 7:35 PM

  Now, Miss Lincoln, you think I’d offer that up without an address?

  I will say I’ve got Baby Lincoln in mind, too. How is she doing tonight?

  Olivia Lincoln

  Re: She/He

  December 8, 7:36 PM

  Is doing well, thanks. I feel like I’ve popped all of a sudden. Like I’m carrying a basketball.

  Danny Ellis

  Re: I bet…

  December 8, 7:36 PM

  …you look beautiful. I should probably confirm that, though.

  In person.

  Olivia Lincoln

  Re: Danny

  December 8, 7:37 PM

  You and I… I thought… I’m not sure what I’m thinking, so I need more time by myself. I’ve realized I’m okay on my own. More than okay. Always best friends, though, right?

  Danny Ellis

  Re: Knock-knock

  December 8, 7:39 PM

  Olivia Lincoln

  Re: Who’s there?

  December 8, 7:39 PM

  Danny Ellis

  Re: Cynthia

  December 8, 7:39 PM

  Olivia Lincoln

  Re: Cynthia who?

  December 8, 7:40 PM

  Danny Ellis

  Re:

  December 8, 7:40 PM

  Cynthia been away, I’ve missed you.

  Good night, Liv.

  Danny closed his laptop and leaned back against his chair at the kitchen table. He eyed the box of chocolate butternut squash cupcakes with a honey buttercream frosting that Rachel at the Beach Café had made special for him. If Liv needed more time, he’d give it to her.

  He had no idea if his corny jokes lightened the tension, and maybe it made him a jerk to hide behind them to convey his feelings, but he thought it safer for now. For both of them.

  One week later…

  Danny Ellis

  Re: Advice

  December 15, 10:01 PM

  Heading to L.A. tomorrow. Green or brown shirt for my headshot?

  When no reply came after half an hour, he logged off and hit the light switch. She’s probably asleep. It wasn’t that he was too impersonal or too abrupt. Right? Or waited too long to email again. Jesus, it was like he didn’t know how to act around her anymore.

  And, like a lovesick fool, he fired up his computer first thing in the morning. Not that he expected an email from her this early, but a guy could hope.

  Olivia Lincoln

  Re: Shirt color

  December 16, 7:03 AM

  Do not smile at this early email. For some reason I woke up at the crack of dawn today. Could be my early bedtime. Anyway, I think you should wear green. It brings out the olive in your eyes.

  Danny Ellis

  Re: Scruff

  December 16, 7:05 AM

  Or no scruff?

  Olivia Lincoln

  Re: Depends

  December 16, 7:05 AM

  What image are you trying to convey? Wholesome, my furniture is classic and traditional, or edgy, my furniture is unlike anything else out there. I’d say you’re a really great combination of both, but I’m not your target audience.

  Danny Ellis

  Re: Bulls-eye

  December 16, 7:06 AM

  You’re the one that matters most. In the market for a new piece of furniture? Or maybe the classic, edgy guy that makes it? Both are available.

  Olivia Lincoln

  Re: Tried that

  December 16, 7:08 AM

  The guy, anyway. Things didn’t turn out all that great, but I think I’m ready to have my best friend back.

  Danny Ellis

  Re: Hooky

  December 16, 7:08 AM

  What are you doing today? Come with me to L.A. I’ll make it worth your while.

  Olivia Lincoln

  Re: Wish I could

  December 16, 7:09 AM

  But… I’m in San Francisco. Thanks for asking, though. Don’t forget to say “cheese.”

  Olivia Lincoln

  Re: Danny?

  December 16, 7:14 AM

  You still there?

  Danny Ellis

  Re: I’m here

  December 16, 7:15 AM

  Sorry. So the Bay area, huh?

  Olivia Lincoln

  Re: Yes

  December 16, 7:15 AM

  My old boss has started her own business and is living up here. I’m staying with her and thinking about an offer to work together. She’s pretty persuasive so it’s looking like I’ll cave soon.

  Danny Ellis

  Re: Congrats, Maybug

  December 16, 7:16 AM

  Sounds like a great opportunity. What’s holding you back?

  Danny Ellis

  Re: Liv?

  December 16, 7:19 AM

  Olivia Lincoln

  Re: Still here

  December 16, 7:20 AM

  Just…thinking. Sometimes what you don’t say means more than what you do say, and I’m trying to figure out what’s best for me and my baby.

  Our baby, Danny wanted to correct. Fuck, this was hard. Was he supposed to declare his undying love in a damn email? Over the phone? Olivia was five hundred miles away and it physically hurt to find that out. So yeah, he’d been fishing with his congrats, curious about her feelings. But she hadn’t taken the bait.

  What they needed to say to each other had to be said in person and she’d put miles between them because she wanted time. Well, time was up.

  Danny Ellis

  Re: Love Game

  December 16, 7:21 AM

  Play with me this weekend, Maybug. I miss you.

  Olivia Lincoln

  Re: Lost

  December 16, 7:21 AM

  And I don’t mean the TV series. What are you talking about?

  Danny Ellis

  Re: Trust me

  December 16, 7:21 AM

  Text me your address. Be ready at 8am, Saturday. Pack a weekend bag. Let me help you make your decision.

  It’s what best friends are for.

  Olivia Lincoln

  Re: Up your sleeve

  December 16, 7:22 AM

  Whatever you’ve got there, please don’t make this any harder, okay? Promise me. But I make no promises in return.

  Danny Ellis

  Re: Deal

  December 16, 7:22 AM

  See you soon.

  Danny quickly quit out of mail. He had four days to come up with a plan to get her back to White Strand. In the back of his mind, an idea took shape.

  He picked up his phone to call Honor. He needed her help if he was g
oing to pull this off. Next, he called Jennifer. The L.A. interior designer had connections all over the place and, for the first time, he wasn’t too proud to ask for help. Lastly, he dialed Zane and Bryce. He needed his wingmen to help make sure he didn’t screw up.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Olivia stared up at the ceiling. When she was little and couldn’t sleep she’d had glow-in-the-dark stars to count and connect with imaginary lines to make pretty geometric shapes. They’d been a gift from her nana and the two of them had stuck them to the ceiling on one of nana’s rare visits. The best thing about them was that Olivia felt like she had a piece of her grandmother with her every time she crawled into bed.

  Since leaving White Strand, the only person filling her head before she fell asleep was Danny. Tonight, more than ever, because she had no idea what to say to him when he showed up tomorrow morning.

  Danny had left her. Just like Will. And just like her other boyfriends before him. But Danny’s leaving hurt a million times worse, and she didn’t know if she could be around him and not be resentful. She’d try, of course. Because no matter how many times she had a talk with herself, she couldn’t turn off any of her feelings for him.

  His making the trip to San Francisco made her anxious and happy. It stirred up hope on the one hand and hate on the other. Could she see him again and not fall apart if things were weird between them?

  Time and distance were of little consolation if being together hurt more than it healed. Two weeks ago, with nowhere else to go, Liv had gratefully accepted her old boss’s offer to stay with her for a little while and contemplate a job offer. If Liv didn’t want a full-time position with the new company, an offer to work freelance was on the table. This morning Liv had decided independence worked best for her and her baby, and the two women had struck a self-employment deal. Maybe Danny would help her find her own apartment this weekend, somewhere close enough to the city that she could drive in to the office when needed.

  Which meant Liv had to tell him about the promise she’d made to Mrs. L. That sweet, little old woman could talk a vegetarian into eating an all-beef patty with special sauce. She’d gotten Liv to agree to consider renting the guesthouse from Danny for her place of business. Liv knew Mrs. L. was playing matchmaker and, at the time, Liv hadn’t known how much she’d like living in San Francisco. She owed a phone call to Mrs. L. now that she’d decided to stay up north.

  A buzzing noise broke into the silence in the dark room. Happy for the interruption, she reached under the covers for her cell phone. “Honor, hi!”

  “Hey, Olivia. I hope I’m not calling too late, but I have a quick question.”

  “Is everything okay?” She and Honor had kept in touch over the past couple of weeks, Honor sworn to secrecy about Liv’s whereabouts.

  “Everything’s fine, but Bryce is no help whatsoever.”

  “Linc knows I’m helpful,” Bryce called out, his voice easy to hear in the background.

  “We’ll just let him think that,” Honor said under her breath. “So, outside evening party. Would you rather have candles or hurricane lamps?”

  Liv wasn’t sure why Honor needed her opinion instead of the hosts of the party. “Candles.”

  “That’s what I thought, too. Thanks.”

  “You’re… Oh,” she said, feeling little flutters from Baby Lincoln. She put her hand on her stomach, hoping to feel the movement again.

  “Did the baby just kick?” Honor asked excitedly.

  “How did you know?”

  “The sound of your voice,” Honor said.

  “I just started feeling little twitches this week.”

  “That’s amazing. I can’t imagine how that must feel. Not yet anyway.”

  “You’re doing it the right way,” Liv said. “Fall in love, get married, then have a baby.”

  “Hey, there is nothing wrong with the way you’re doing it, girlfriend. Sometimes life throws us curveballs and there is no such thing as a right order. Normally, I’m a totally fly by the seat of my pants kind of girl.”

  “You’re also a good friend,” Liv said as her phone beeped with another incoming call. She glanced at the screen. “Hey, I’ve got to go, but we’ll talk soon.” She couldn’t ignore her mother’s call, no matter how much she wanted to.

  “For sure. Bye!” Honor said quickly before disconnecting.

  “Hi, Mom.”

  “Hi, Olivia.”

  Liv paused. Her mom hadn’t said “hello” but “hi.” She couldn’t remember the last time her mom had offered the more casual greeting. Quiet lingered over the phone waves.

  “I called to wish you a Merry Christmas next week.”

  “Thanks. You, too.” Her mom and Jim were traveling out of town again, seemingly content to avoid Liv for all family holidays. Liv had foolishly hoped that when she’d told her mother the truth about the baby and that the wedding was off, her mom would find some decency and extend an invite to spend the holiday with her and Jim. It hadn’t happened. Probably never would.

  “How is San Francisco?”

  “It’s good,” Liv answered with extra enthusiasm to counter the dour tone of her mother’s voice. There would be no steps back for womankind because her mother didn’t approve of her choices. Single women had babies. They adopted babies. They worked and ran businesses at the same time they had babies. Olivia no longer needed anyone to fill the void she’d felt three months ago.

  “Jim and I thought we’d drive up next month.”

  Liv’s heart stopped. From hope or worry that her mother would let her down, she didn’t know. Her mom had “thought” things before and not followed through. Stop. Take this olive branch and think the best of it. She had to accept she’d never have a close relationship with her mom, but this gesture meant something.

  “I’d like that.”

  Another awkward silence followed before they said their goodbyes and hung up. Liv tossed her phone onto the pillow beside her, rolled to her side, and tucked her hands under her cheek. She finally fell asleep around midnight.

  The next morning she took one more glance at herself in the bathroom mirror before flipping off the light switch. The ivory shift dress fit comfortably with her new curves, the stretch corded lace overlay and scalloped hem classic and pretty. Her loose up-do looked effortless even though it had taken her twenty frustrating minutes to get it right. And her new Burt’s Bees lip gloss made her lips look a little plumper.

  She was ready for whatever Danny threw at her today.

  Glancing around her bedroom for her cell, she found it next to her overnight bag on the unmade bed. She picked up both and stepped over the clothes strewn about the floor on her way to the living room. A chirp alerted her to a text. She glanced down.

  Expect a knock on the door in sixty seconds. Danny’s text said.

  Okay, she texted back. Perfect timing. She quickly scribbled a note to her sleeping roommate to wish her a good weekend and left it on the kitchen counter.

  When the soft knock sounded at the door, Liv’s legs trembled. Her nerves went all shaky and shy. He’s just a guy, she reminded herself. Chill out.

  The quick pep talk lasted all of five seconds, though, because the man standing on the other side of her door when she opened it wasn’t Danny.

  “Miss Lincoln?” Tall, dark, and mysterious asked.

  “Yes.”

  “I’m Derek. I’ll be your driver today. You ready to go?”

  Those quivery nerves of hers weren’t ready at all. She didn’t like surprises. Danny knew she didn’t like surprises. She held up her pointer finger. “Just a minute, please.” What’s going on? she texted. Where are you?

  I’m waiting for you, he texted back. Like that told her anything. But the bubbles on her phone screen said he wasn’t finished. I’ve planned a scavenger hunt for you. Now stop wasting time and go with Derek.

  She didn’t know whether to run back into her bedroom and hide or order Derek to make this fast so she could get her hands on Danny. Love
game, his email had said the other day, but she hadn’t expected this. Was this about friendship…or more? She’d accepted feeling some worry about her future and had quit feeling regret about her past, but Danny still held power over both.

  She looked up. Derek raised his brows in question. “I’m ready,” she said.

  He took her bag and led her to a sleek, black town car where he made sure she was comfortable in the backseat before driving away from her building.

  She eyed a Starbucks cup in the cup holder and paper bag on the seat. Lifting the cup, she inhaled the scent of hot chocolate before taking a sip. She’d eaten a bowl of Honey Nut Cheerios earlier so she left the baked treat in the bag for later. A tiny cream-colored notecard sat atop it, though. She opened it.

  You really get my engine running.

  She grinned at the sentiment. Was that her first clue? If so, she guessed they weren’t just driving around the block. “Can you give me a hint where we’re headed first?”

  “I could. But then I’d be a dead man.” Derek’s friendly eyes briefly met hers in the rearview mirror. He turned on the radio, but Liv didn’t really hear the music over the musings in her head.

  All too soon they left the city and continued heading south. This morning’s skies were blue, the leaves on the trees swayed in the cold breeze. A half hour passed, then an hour. Liv fidgeted. She’d anticipated the whole hunt taking an hour or so and being with Danny by now. Instead, she watched the ocean out her passenger window and debated on whether to text him.

  He beat her to the punch. Enjoy your view until the next clue.

  She settled against the leather seat and tried to relax. They had to be close to their destination. Maybe Danny had planned a stay in Carmel for the two of them. That was it, she thought, happy with her theory.

  Sure enough, they parked in front of a cute little café in the small, stylish beach town. Derek opened her door, gave her his hand. “The code word is honey,” he said.

  Liv wrinkled her nose. Derek did that chin lift thing guys do to indicate she should walk toward the entrance and presumably go inside, so she did. The hostess at the counter greeted her with a friendly “hello.”

  “Hi. I think I’m supposed to give you the code word honey?”

  “Oh, Olivia!” The woman’s face broke into a giant smile. “It’s nice to meet you.” She bent down, vanishing from sight for a moment, and popped back up holding an iced bundt cake beautifully wrapped in cellophane with a small card tied to the gold ribbon. “For you,” the hostess said.