Page 4 of The Beachside Rental

A cool breeze rushed over her skin.It was soothing after the heat of the day.When she reached the porch, she found the boxes were indeed gone.Her gaze moved to the neighbor’s place.The blinds were drawn, and she didn’t hear anything.

She smiled.Things were looking up.They may have gotten off to a bumpy start, but it looked like the cute guy next door was going to be a good neighbor after all.

She rushed inside.She had her evening planned out.It included putting on an old comfy pair of shorts and a T-shirt.Then she was going to grab the thriller she had to read for her book club and curl up on the couch.

There might even be some ice cream involved.A grin pulled at her lips.It was going to be the perfect evening.And after her brother brushed off her attempt to tell him about some changes she had in mind for the Island Market, she needed a way to relax.

She grabbed the paperback from next to her bed and headed downstairs.Her foot hadn’t even touched the bottom step when her stomach let out a loud growl.She hadn’t eaten much during her break at the market so she made a detour to the kitchen.She grabbed a bag of popcorn and tossed it into the microwave.

Ninety-five seconds later, she had hot buttered popcorn, and it smelled amazing.The trick was to open the bag without the steam burning her fingers.It took her a moment, but she achieved it.

With a bag of popcorn, a can of soda, and her paperback, she headed for the couch.She turned on a lamp, grabbed the throw blanket from the back of the couch, and made herself comfortable.

The book she was reading was supposed to be amazing.It was at the top of all of the bestseller lists.And she’d had it on pre-order for months.

She’d started reading it the night before, but it had been late, and she was so tired she’d fallen asleep before she even made it through the first chapter.However, it was much earlier tonight.She could read quite a bit of it, which was a good thing because her book club meeting was in a couple of days.

And so, she began devouring word after word as the author built a charming world, but Jenna had read enough of this genre to know that looks could be deceiving.The heroine’s car had broken down, and she walked to the closest house.She had just knocked on the door and—

Thump!

The unexpected noise startled Jenna right out of the fictional world.What was that?

She waited and listened, but she didn’t hear it again.She shrugged it off and went back to her book.Where was she?

Her gaze skimmed the page until she found the right paragraph.The heroine had just approached an unassuming house, but Jenna already expected this house, or rather its inhabitants, had secrets.The heroine knocked—

Thump...

Thump...

Thump...

What was that sound?Jenna set aside the book and got up.Was the noise coming from a pipe in the wall?But that made no sense.She wasn’t running any water.

The sound started again.She walked around the room to determine where the sound was coming from.And then she realized it was coming from the shared wall.

She pressed her ear to the wall.The thumping grew louder.It was coming from her neighbor’s place.What was the man doing?

Well, this had to stop.There was no way she was going to listen to that noise for the rest of the evening.It hadn’t been her best shift at work after dealing with some unruly teenage tourists.

She headed for the door, and in her bare feet she walked across the porch to the neighbor’s place.She rapped her knuckles on the door, perhaps with a little more force than was necessary.And then she waited.

Even though the door hadn’t opened, she sensed someone was looking at her.She glanced around, but didn’t see anyone in the moonlight.As she turned around, she noticed the peephole in the door.Her door had one, too, but she’d never used it.After all, this was Bluestar Island.She felt completely safe here.

She was about to knock again, when the door opened.There was her neighbor in a pair of red basketball shorts and a white T-shirt with some sort of sports logo printed on it.

She didn’t remember his shoulders being quite so broad when they first met or that he was so tall she had to tilt her chin upward in order to look into his eyes.Without his sunglasses, she was able to see that he had blue eyes that reminded her of the summer sky.She swallowed hard.

For a moment, she’d forgotten why she’d knocked on his door.Her mind and her tongue were at a complete disconnect.All she could think about was his piercing blue eyes.

His dark brows were scrunched together.“Can I help you?”

Oh, yeah.It took her a moment to remember what she wanted to say to him.“Did you hear that noise?”When his brow scrunched up and confusion shone in his eyes, she said, “The strange noise in the wall?”

He arched a brow.“I’ve been here all day.I didn’t notice any strange noises.Is there anything else?”

“Um, no.”