Brides of Penhally Bay - Vol 1. Sarah Morgan

He was just nervous saying it, and that was understandable. However, that was the only thing she could figure out about him. The kindness he’d bestowed upon her was a mystery.

      “Well, I have to get going.” He gathered his clothes from the chaise and placed them in his gym bag. “Just relax and take it easy today.” He swung the bag over his shoulder and grabbed his keys and cell phone from the dresser.

      She slid over to the other side of the bed to grab his watch and reached out to hand it to him. She glanced at it and was surprised to see it was a Movado similar to the one she’d bought for her dad and not an overly expensive watch like she’d expected him to wear.

      “Thank you,” he said, moving to take it from her hand. He then slid the watch on his wrist. “Remember to just chill out today.”

      “I promise I will. I have kickboxing in an hour and weight training at noon, which always relaxes me.”

      “Kickboxing and weight training is relaxing?” he asked with a scrunched brow.

      “It relieves stress.” She placed the bowl on the nightstand. “I’ll walk you out.”

      She followed him in silence to the garage door. Sydney was never at a loss for words, especially with him, but she didn’t know what to say. For some reason she was disappointed he was leaving so early, but she’d taken him away from his life for long enough. It had never occurred to her to find out if he’d made plans on Valentine’s Day. She knew he wasn’t in a serious relationship only because Megan had mentioned recently that Bryce was juggling women. But that didn’t mean he didn’t have a date for February 14.

      She opened the door and turned to him. “Thank you so much for everything you’ve done for me. I hope I didn’t take you away from any plans you may have had.”

      He released a heartwarming smile, and her breathing stifled. Had he always smiled like that? She tried to look elsewhere but couldn’t tear her eyes from him.

      “You’re very welcome.” He paused as he stepped into the garage and unlocked his car with the remote. “And even if I had plans, I would’ve canceled them for you. Family first.”

      “Well, I sincerely appreciate it.” She pushed the button to let up the garage door.

      He glanced at her motorcycle before opening his car door. “Remember what I said about you needing a vacation.”

      “I’ll keep it in mind.”

      She watched as he backed out of the garage and into the driveway. He blew the horn as she shut the garage door.

      “Yeah, right. When will I have time to take a vacation?”