page. But that was Chloe, wasn’t it? Creating memories of a happy life for the little sister she protected from so many harsh realities. Once again he wished he could go back in time and give her the childhood she’d deserved.
He put that album back and pulled out another, and again was met with elaborately decorated pages and happy stories, only these pictures had their friends in them as well. As he flipped through the pages, he found a picture of himself in his bathing suit, sitting on a towel by the water with Gavin, Rick, and Dean. In the distance, more of their friends were throwing a Frisbee. Justin’s knees were pulled up, his arms resting on them, and his hair was hanging in his eyes. The page was decorated with stickers of driftwood, starfish, and shells. Chloe’s handwriting came down at an angle from the left corner of the page. Labor Day weekend with the gang. Beach time, sunburn, and s’mores.
On the next page was a picture of Drake with Serena on his shoulders and Dean with Emery on his shoulders, and in between them was Justin running into the water with Chloe hanging over his back like a sack of potatoes. Her mouth was open like she was yelling, but her eyes were laughing. The page was decorated with a faded tan-and-blue background that looked like wallpaper and had Beach, Sea, and Coast written around images of a dolphin, a seahorse, and shells. Chloe had drawn swirls and pretty designs down the left side of the page. Next to the picture, she’d written Wicked troublemaker with an arrow pointing to him. A red heart dotted the i. He remembered that afternoon well. They’d had a blast with their friends, and Chloe had driven him crazy in that sexy blue bikini. But what really stood out in his mind was what had come after he’d tossed her into the waves. He’d gone after her and had held her up so she could catch her breath. Her unbridled laughter had stolen his heart. He could count on one hand the number of times he’d heard Chloe cut loose like that, and it was glorious. But then their eyes had locked, and as quickly as it had come, her laughter had silenced. She’d been in his arms, her wet body pressed against his, and for the space of a second, they’d both leaned in like two ships colliding, but just as she had during the storm, she’d hesitated. Then she’d wiggled out of his arms and splashed him as she stalked off.
“Hey.”
Chloe’s voice startled him from the memory. He closed the album, and his body heated at the sight of her wearing a black tank top with a neckline made from a zipper, open just enough to show a hint of cleavage. She wore a pair of tight distressed jeans that had a hole on one thigh and another just above her knee. They were tucked into knee-high black leather boots with silver buckles.
“Wow, babe. You look smokin’ hot.”
“Thank you, and you look nosy,” she teased as she came to his side.
He was so taken with her, it took a moment for him to realize what she meant. “Sorry. I was just checking out your albums. Did you do all these decorations yourself?”
“Yes.” She took the album from him and set it back on the shelf. “You know I make scrapbooks. I told you I made one for Gavin and Harper.”
“I know, but I’ve never seen them. You’re really talented.”
“Thanks. It’s just a hobby. Nothing special. Let me grab their album and then we can go.”
She took a step away, and he pulled her into his arms, earning a sweet smile.
“You put your heart into every one of those pages, which makes them all special. I’m sorry I was nosy, but I’m glad I got to see that part of your life.” He pressed his lips to hers. “And I saw a very telling little heart used to dot the ‘i’ in my name. It made me wonder how many more pictures of me you have and what other telling things you drew around them.”
She twisted free and headed into the dining room as she said, “It was just a decoration.”
“You didn’t just decorate any of those pages, sweetness. They were all very well thought out. Maybe we need to have a scrapbook-reading party one night. Just the two of us looking through all your albums, so I can see