Seaside Kisses: A Sweet Romance (The Seaside Hunters Book 4) by Stacy Claflin Read Free Book Online Page B

afraid to work hard?" asked Zachary.
    "No. I just have enough on my plate, and once you start writing full time, I'm on my own."
    "Nah. By then, you'll have enough to hire several people."
    Rafael frowned. "I don't know about that."
    "You have to sell online," Zachary said. "You don't want to limit yourself to Kittle Falls. This isn't LA where foot traffic alone will keep you afloat."
    "Not that it worked there, either," Rafael muttered.
    "But it would have if Tony hadn't messed up that one account. It was his fault, not yours. He promised them that you guys could deliver more than you could and—"
    Rafael frowned. "I really don't want to talk about that. I'm in a good mood."
    "That's why we need to focus on your website. I think there's an app or something you can install to set up a store. Or you can join an online retailer where they rent out stores in a virtual mall. Then, like with a real mall, their traffic will have the opportunity to find you because of the location."
    "When did you learn so much about this?" Rafael asked.
    "I've been studying online marketing. I thought about trying to sell paperbacks in one of them, but I wasn't sure I could actually make money. If it were profitable, I would have found other booksellers there, which I didn't. But I did see a lot of clothing retailers."
    Rafael thought about it. "But then it wouldn't be part of my website, would it?"
    "You could connect it easily enough."
    "Tell you what," Rafael said, "I'll think about it."
    "Just say the word, and I'll see what I can do. I'm no expert, but I can probably figure it out for you."
    Rafael smiled. "Why do I have a feeling you'll have everything figured out by tomorrow?"
    "Don't hold your breath. I have a ton of writing to cram in before I help you out in the afternoon."
    "Well, get to it." Rafael said his goodbyes and then headed home. It was great to spend time with his family again—it always seemed to recharge his batteries. He was ready to climb into bed and have a nice, long night's sleep.
    He pulled into the driveway and put his hand on the remote to open the garage door. Instead of pushing it, he paused. Something caught his attention on the door itself.
    Rafael narrowed his eyes, his finger hovering over the button. It was already dusk, so it made it difficult to see anything since whatever he was trying to look at wasn't where the headlights shone.
    Leaving the car running, Rafael got out and looked. At first, it looked like something black had been spread across the bottom corner of the garage door, except there were other colors, too. He took out his phone and turned on the flashlight app. Instead of seeing something black, he saw the contents of his garage.
    Someone had busted a hole into the door.
    Rafael swore under his breath and moved closer. The hole was large enough for a skinny person to get through. There was no way he could fit with as muscular as he was, but other people definitely could. Like a scrawny high school punk who egged store windows. The bridal shop owner was wiry, so it stood to reason that her brats were, too.
    Anger burned in the pit of his stomach. He had to hold himself back from running inside to see if the jerk was still there, and then pounding the living daylights out of him.
    No. His parents had already had one son booked the county jail. They didn't need the stress of another.
    He turned off the flashlight app and called the police. He reported the break-in, and the operator ordered him to stay outside until the officers arrived. She wanted him to stay on the line, but Rafael faked a bad connection and hung up. He walked around the house, watching and listening for anything suspicious.
    Everything appeared normal, except for the hole in his garage.

Seven
     
    Rafael thanked the officers as they left, and he closed the door, making sure to set the deadbolt and the alarm. Brayden had insisted that he have the security system installed, but Rafael hadn't bothered using it, thinking he