EXCERPT FROM WALKING ON SEA GLASS:

Beau gestured with his fork to the petit plat on the table displaying various starters. “Bone marrow?” he offered.

Liddy scrunched her nose. “I believe I’ll stick with the artichoke. Thank you, though.”

He laughed and speared some for himself. She was cute and laughed easily. Any stress over whether this French country bistro was the right choice for their first official date had dissipated. The food was fancy, but the atmosphere was not. He hated stuffy. Something told him she did, too.

“It’s beautiful in here,” she said.

Those big brown eyes captivated him. You’re beautiful. “I’m glad you think so,” he said. “I’ve always thought this place had character without being over the top.”

“Always thought so, huh? You come here often, then?”

Beau held back a smirk. She left off “with other women.” She was tricky, that one. He appreciated that. Not that he’d let her get away with it. He pointed toward the appetizers. “Try the escargot.”

She ignored his invitation, and instead watched him with a wide-open expression while demurely eating her artichoke. Not an easy task.

The waiter arrived with their salads, and Beau poured them each some wine. They discussed their favorite movies—chick flicks for her, dramas for him—and the types of music they preferred—eclectic offerings of country and pop for her, mostly jazz for him (he’d have to show her the light). So far they had both avoided talk about their previous relationships. At least he did, and he suspected her of doing so as well. Then again, they had pretty well covered those topics previously. Tonight, he hoped, could be about them—what they wanted, who they each were.

Sometimes he wondered if he still knew the answers to those questions about himself.

Their salad plates were cleared and for a moment a lull fell between them. But it wasn’t an uncomfortable one. They immersed themselves in the silence, sneaking glances at each other in between sips of their drinks. He enjoyed taking it slow.

Then her chin tilted slightly, and her lips parted as if in a question. Her eyes smiled before her mouth did. Actually, those eyes of hers were dancing and she appeared to be watching something over his shoulder.

“Sir?” Beau turned to find a waiter standing by his side, something large and plastic in his outstretched arms. A bib. The waiter was holding a bib. “For you, sir.” He proceeded to lean around Beau and tie the monstrosity around his neck.

Liddy placed both of her hands on the table and leaned forward, the laughter in her face taunting him. He put on his best winning smile, but he could feel the heat of redness stretching all the way to his ears. The trouble with light skin. Who was he kidding? This moment would have made anyone turn red.

The waiter left, and Beau sat back, cognizant of the sound of thin strips of plastic rubbing together with every move he made. Liddy, for her part, hadn’t stopped laughing.

“You really have been here before,” she said, cracking herself up.

“Meaning?”

“Um”—she pointed to his bib—“obviously, they know you’re sloppy.”

Beau shook his head, laughing back at her. He didn’t dare look around to any of the other white-clothed tables. Hopefully, they weren’t drawing attention. “You’re kidding, I hope. It’s for the bouillabaisse I ordered.” He felt almost certain that this was the case. The waiter hadn’t exactly said.

She shrugged, that laughter lingering on her full lips. “Sure. For the seafood soup. Whatever.”

“You’re too much.”

“If it helps—it’s really hot. The bib, I mean. It’s a hot … bib.”

Beau rolled his eyes and groaned just in time for the server to appear with her prawns and his bouillabaisse. What a tease. He found himself cracking up, too, though—while also making a mental note to avoid all foods that required bibs on future dates.

After dinner, Beau drove Liddy back to her apartment, their conversation never stopping to refuel. Their banter was unabashed and easy, and to his mind, he and Liddy were quickly moving from tentative to what time should I pick you up tomorrow? The thought awed him in myriad ways—both thrilling and frightening. Perhaps it was time to slow things down.

Once inside, Liddy kept her hat on but kicked off her shoes. He willed himself to avoid looking at the line of buttons running down the center of her dress, and at the way the silky black fabric hugged her body.

She padded over to the kitchen. “Can I get you some water?”

Beau told her no and slipped out of his coat to hang it over the back of one of the chairs around her dining table. He watched as she stepped over to the fireplace in her bare feet and flipped a switch.

Voilà. A fire was born.

Liddy curled up on the couch, and he sat beside her. They continued to talk about nothing much until she reached for some silly little book on her coffee table. She flipped through it then, and he realized there were no words on the pages. It was a children’s book about a big black dog that was both funny and wry and it amazed him how much the illustrations tickled her.

As naturally as the sun had set on his way over to pick her up that night, Beau reached toward Liddy. He found himself sliding one hand behind her back and pulling her toward him, kissing her softly at first, then without holding back. The hard spine of a book landed on top of one of his loafers. The fake fire crackled. He drew her closer, reveling in the sound of her breath on his skin, and how her body folded into his embrace.

Reluctantly, he slowed himself. Her eyes fluttered open, throwing him flashes of yearning, of affection. She didn’t pull away. He took her in, then. Those eyes, the shape of her face, the short tendrils of dark hair peeking out from beneath that hat. Without a word, he gently lifted the hat from her head … and let it fall behind the couch.

In this 11-book bundle, you'll receive three complete series and a BONUS novella by Julie Carobini, bestselling author of inspirational beach romance.

Here is what you will find in the Sweet Romance Ultimate Ebook Bundle:

The Sea Glass Inn series - 5 titles

The Hollywood by the Sea series - 2 titles

The Otter Bay Novel series - 3 titles

Dreaming of You (novella) - a fun and romantic outtake of the Sea Glass Inn series.

That's 11 romantic women's fiction titles, all set in coastal areas. Enjoy!

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