Cathryn Parry - Summer By The Sea

Sometimes even lifeguards need saving...

Lifeguard Sam Logan is always cool under pressure. But his laid-back nature is put to the test when his daughter begrudgingly comes to live with him for the summer. Luckily, his new neighbor, Silicon Valley tech guru Sarah Buckley, agrees to mentor her. In return, Sam teaches Sarah some much-needed meditation.

Brash and self-centered, Sarah is not the best influence for eleven-year-old Lucy. Yet Sam can’t deny he’s attracted to Sarah’s drive—and the vulnerability she starts to show him. It’s no secret that at the end of her sabbatical, Sarah is heading back to California. So why does this feel like more than just a summer fling?

CATHRYN PARRY is the author of ten Harlequin Superromances. Her books have received such honors as the Booksellers’ Best Award, HOLT Medallion Awards of Merit and several Readers’ Choice Award nominations. She lives in Massachusetts with her husband and their entertaining cat, Otis. Please see Cathryn’s website, cathrynparry.com, for information about upcoming releases and to sign up for her reader newsletter.

Books by Cathryn Parry

HARLEQUIN SUPERROMANCE

The Undercover Affair The Good Mom The Secret Between Them Secret GardenScotland for Christmas The Sweetest Hours Out of His League The Long Way Home Something to Prove

Other titles by this author available in ebook format.

Discover more at millsandboon.co.uk

Summer by the Sea

Cathryn Parry

www.millsandboon.co.uk

ISBN: 978-1-474-08109-2

SUMMER BY THE SEA

© 2018 Cathryn Parry

Published in Great Britain 2018

by Mills & Boon, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF

All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. This edition is published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, locations and incidents are purely fictional and bear no relationship to any real life individuals, living or dead, or to any actual places, business establishments, locations, events or incidents. Any resemblance is entirely coincidental.

By payment of the required fees, you are granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right and licence to download and install this e-book on your personal computer, tablet computer, smart phone or other electronic reading device only (each a “Licensed Device”) and to access, display and read the text of this e-book on-screen on your Licensed Device. Except to the extent any of these acts shall be permitted pursuant to any mandatory provision of applicable law but no further, no part of this e-book or its text or images may be reproduced, transmitted, distributed, translated, converted or adapted for use on another file format, communicated to the public, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of publisher.

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www.millsandboon.co.uk

For Megan Long. Every book that you edit you make better. Thank you for being a blessing in my life!

“Do you mind if I ask you a favor?” Sarah said impulsively. “May I bring over a steak for you to grill for me?”

Sam shook his head, appearing as if he was trying hard not to laugh. “How do you know I’m up to your fine standards?” he teased.

She eyed the steaks he was putting onto a plate. “Because I know quality when I see it.”

He barked out a laugh.

“And I was so determined not to like you.” He shook his head as he set the plate down and sank into an Adirondack chair beside her. He laughed again.

“Excellent,” she said cheerfully. “Let me go get the steak I bought.” She rose. “I can bring over a salad for you and Lucy to share with me.”

“Already taken care of. Plus, grilled corn on the cob will be coming later. But tell me.” He leveled his gaze at her, suddenly serious. “Why should I even do this? All you seem to do is insult people, and frankly, I’m not up for that when it comes to my family.”

“But...I apologized to you,” Sarah said.

“Oh, boy!” He gave her a mock cheer.

“Look, I never apologize, Sam! Apologies admit weakness. So this is a first in the history of the world for me—be flattered.”

“You’re quite self-centered.” Sam paused and grinned at her wickedly. “And I never insult people—be flattered.”

Were they flirting?

Dear Reader,

Welcome to Summer by the Sea, a new Wallis Point, New Hampshire, story set in the fictional seaside town first described in The Long Way Home and continued with The Secret Between Them and The Undercover Affair.

Sarah Buckley is a driven type A tech entrepreneur who is at first enraged to be banished to a rustic beach cottage for a quiet summer sabbatical.

All Sarah wants is to return home to her busy Silicon Valley company, where she can continue her quest to conquer the tech world. First, though, she needs to prove that she’s learned to relax and “become more Zen” in her relations with others.

So, is her beach neighbor Sam Logan, a laid-back lifeguard without any apparent life goals—and his genius eleven-year-old daughter, whose future he and Sarah conflict over—the person to teach her?

A summer by the sea can work wonders and heal any wounded hearts. I hope you enjoy Sarah and Sam’s spark-filled romance!

All the best,

Cathryn Parry

Acknowledgment

A special thank-you to Cape Cod lifeguard Sarah P. for answering my questions and teaching me about torps, rip currents and—in an unplanned encounter—how to treat a jellyfish sting.

Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text

About the Author

Booklist

Title Page

Copyright

Dedication

Introduction

Dear Reader

Acknowledgment

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

CHAPTER TWELVE

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

CHAPTER NINETEEN

EPILOGUE

Extract

CHAPTER ONE

SAM LOGAN’S SUMMER plans were turned upside-down in a single phone call.

Twenty-four hours later, his eleven-year-old daughter, Lucy, stood in his tiny bachelor kitchen, surrounded by her suitcase, her iPad, and a ragged and well-loved stuffed bear that he hadn’t even known she still slept with.

Sam stared at it—and her—in shock. Seeing that teddy bear made him realize he really had no idea what was going on with his daughter. He felt completely inadequate to the task of being Lucy’s full-time dad.

Ironic, considering Sam worked with kids her age every day. He taught environmental science to middle school students. Sam was known as a laid-back teacher. A guy who could handle whatever came his way without getting his feathers ruffled or ruffling feathers. It was his great strength, his inner Zen.