Read Must Be Love: (Nicole and Ryan) (A Jetty Beach Romance Book 1) for Free Online Page A

keeping track of details. I can do those things from anywhere."
    "What exactly do you do?"
    "We do event planning and PR stuff mostly," I say.
    "Do you like your job?" he asks.
    Such an innocent, reasonable question. Yet it sends a surge of fear worming its way through my belly. Of course I like my job. It makes me look properly successful. My new title will look fabulous on my resume. But I still don’t believe my own words when I say, "Yeah, I love my job. It's an amazing opportunity."
    I’m not sure if Ryan believes me either.
    "Why are we having the festival here, anyway?" I ask, wanting to change the subject. "This place is a mess. Maybe with some funding it could be nice again. But it's so dingy and sad. An art festival is supposed to be lively and full of energy."
    "Sure, but it's tradition," Ryan says. "This is like, the hub of Jetty Beach's art scene."
    "Art scene?" I say. "This is Jetty Beach, not some hip city with an artist's quarter."
    "I know, it isn't much," he says. "But the locals love this place, and so do visitors. It's quirky."
    I put my hands on my hips and look around again. I don’t know if quirky is the word I would use. Shabby, maybe? Definitely without the chic.
    "No one is really running the gallery right now, so I think we can make a few changes," Ryan says. "We could move things around, maybe even put a fresh coat of paint on the walls. And I have some lighting that will help a lot. It's too dim in here, and so much of displaying a piece of art is getting the lighting right."
    I’m still skeptical, but Ryan sounds like he knows what he’s doing. "All right, I suppose we can try to spruce the place up a bit."
    "I have the lights up at my place," he says. "If you want to follow me out there, I could give them to you."
    I blink in surprise. Strictly speaking, we don’t need the lights today. Ryan can bring them the next time he comes into town. But for reasons I cannot fathom, I find myself saying, "Sure, that sounds great," before I have a chance to even think.
    He looks a little stunned himself. Is he surprised I said yes, or surprised he just asked me to come to his house? I follow him outside into the wind. The rain has slacked off a little, but my hair blows around my face. I get into my car and try to smooth it down, but it isn’t going to cooperate. I grab a clip from my purse, twist my hair a bit, and pin it up. Ryan glances over at me from the driver's seat of his car. I nod and give him a thumbs up.
    Oh my god, Nicole, what was that? I'm so lame.

    I follow him through the town entrance, to the highway that leads north. My heart beats a little too quickly and butterflies dance in my belly.
    This is fine. Today wasn't a date, and he isn't inviting you up to his place. You're just going to pick up some lights.

    I’m not sure if I want that to be true, or not.

The old church is set well away from the road, down a long gravel driveway. I can hear the waves crashing as soon as I open the car door. The building itself is weathered gray with white trim. A covered front porch leads to double doors in front, and the roof slopes to a high peak in the center. There’s no longer a cross or any sort of religious adornment on the outside. It hasn’t been used as a church since well before my lifetime. Yet it still retains its character, a quaintness that speaks of a simpler time.
    Ryan gets out of his car and pauses, looking up at the old building. He clearly has an affection for the place—the half-smile on his face tells me that. The wind blows, chilling me to the bone. It’s cold this close to the beach. I wrap my cardigan tighter and follow Ryan to the front door.
    "Well, this is it," he says, ushering me in.
    Light streams in through tall windows with detailed wood trim. Their pointed tops make them almost look medieval, at least to my eyes. Hardwood floors gleam and the room is filled with a haphazard arrangement of furniture. A burgundy velvet chaise sits next to a lush leather