by Kaira Rouda
“Thanks so much. I love this place,” Lily said, and she meant it. “I will see you tonight.”
“Count on it,” Cole said and walked her to the golf cart. He watched her until she drove around the bend of the road and into the forest.
Chapter Four
‡
As she pulled up to the Putnams’, Avery barreled down the front porch stairs, barely waiting for her golf cart to stop before she squealed.
“You met somebody!”
“Shhhh,” Lily said. “What are you talking about? I just got sprinkles. See?” She held them up.
Lily pulled her out of the golf cart.
“Oh, my God. He’s perfect. Single. Beyond handsome. And in the restaurant business!” she said.
“Are you psychic or a spy?” Lily demanded. “Where are you getting all this info?” She followed her excited friend up the stairs and into the grand foyer.
“When you didn’t come back home in forever, I drove over to the General Store and asked a few questions. I wonder if he would be better for you, in the long run, than James. You know how wrapped up in work my oldest brother is.”
“Avery, Bob just broke off our engagement. I’m not ready to date anyone,” she said. “And I don’t want to date James. I may never date again.”
Avery waved that pronouncement off as if it were a fly.
“You never know when you’re going to meet the one,” Avery said. “So did you feel anything? Sparks? Fireworks?”
Lily stared at her best friend, embarrassed and amused. Avery was a mind reader.
“More sparks than James?”
“I love James as a brother, Avery,” Lily faced her friend. “We kissed once in high school and we both realized we were wrong for each other. Neither of us wants to repeat that mistake.”
“I don’t know if neither of you does,” Avery said softly. “But still, James has no time for fun and is not at all interested in starting a family anytime soon, so as much as I’d like to have you as a real sister, I want your happiness most, so I could settle for this new guy.”
“That guy’s name is Cole and you haven’t even met him,” Lily said, “And I was engaged a week ago. Nobody jumps back in the dating scene so soon.”
Avery cocked her hip and raised her brows.
“Well, I don’t anyway,” Lily shrugged out of Cole’s jacket and hung it up, hoping Avery wouldn’t notice. Still she had to laugh at her friend enthusiasm and optimism, which was always contagious.
“I hear he’s gorgeous, looks like Brad Pitt but better. Donny, the clerk at the General Store, said he bought the Smith cottage and lives in the place all by himself. No family, no wife, and that he also bought something called Marshside Mama’s but someone named Sally actually runs it.”
Lily smiled. “Sally Ann, actually. And I was just at the restaurant getting your sprinkles.”
Lily walked with the sprinkles into the kitchen.
Avery, right behind her, squealed again. “So it’s true. I hear you two were blocking the door to the store, flirting up a storm.”
“There were no storms brewing,” she said.
“Not what I heard. I want to meet him.”
“You can tonight. I invited him for cocktails. I hope that’s okay. I know your mom always…”
“Perfect,” Avery squeezed her arm. “Smart girl, Miss-I’ll-Never-Date-Again. See, I knew you were interested in him.”
“I’m not,” Lily didn’t dare meet Avery’s intense stare. “Well, I am, but it’s more his culinary dilemma than him.”
Avery rolled her eyes and shook her head. “Right,” she mouthed.
Lily’s cheeks reddened. Avery knew her too well. “Okay. He is amazing looking.”
“Really like Brad Pitt?”
“Better.”
Avery sighed. “I knew dragging you here would perk you up.”
“Avery, I just got dumped. I’m not ready to date anyone, and who moves to Indigo Island alone, at his age? There must be something wrong with him.”
“Or very, very right,” Avery said. “You’ve always wanted to live on the island full time. You even talked to Bob about opening your bakery here.”
Lily frowned. Avery might feel like it would be easy for her to jump back into the dating pool, but Lily still felt shattered. Something must be wrong with her. Her dad had left her and her mom for another woman. Bob had left her for another woman. Lily lined up the sprinkles on the counter barely seeing them through the sheen of tears.
“Let’s go to the inn and see if Jack is around. He’s the new manager. He’ll probably be able to tell us all about Cole. Besides, you didn’t bring any of those shiny silver balls,” Avery said. “The inn will have sprinkles and balls. That way, we don’t need to use up all of your new boyfriend’s supplies.”
“He’s not my boyfriend,” Lily denied, but spoke to Avery’s back.
“Just planning ahead,” she said. “You know me, I’m a planner.”
*
Avery parked the golf cart along the edge of the drive, in what was clearly marked “no parking”.
“Come on,” she said and hopped out. Lily smiled. Her friend acted like she owned the place. Probably because she did, Lily reminded herself. As they climbed the stairs to the inn, Lily was enchanted by the lights wrapped around the hand railing, and the pots overflowing with poinsettias hung with shiny red balls. Her heart felt lighter. She felt happy, not just because of the Christmas decorations. It was being with Avery. It was meeting Cole. It was feeling as if someday she would be herself again, not always a lonely, grieving person.
Inside, the inn had been decorated in an explosion of sparkling silver and gold. Large, shiny gold bows decorated the massive grand staircase, while smaller silver and gold bows adorned the check-in desk and the concierge desk. The smell of eucalyptus filled the air, blending with the fresh pine. The center of the large lobby was filled with a twelve foot, live pine tree, decorated with white lights and silver and gold ornaments and balls. A gold angel with a golden trumpet graced the top of the tree.
A group of kids ran past them, followed by a pretty young woman with strawberry blonde hair and a freckled face. She was laughing and holding hands with the youngest of the kids.
“Hey, Dorsey!” Avery said.
“Hey, Avery! When did you get here?” she asked and picked the toddler up in her arms.
“Just today. Meet my friend, Lily. Dorsey is head of the Kids’ Club for the inn. Looks like you have a bumper crop of kiddos,” Avery said as they watched the children cross the lobby, headed toward the back doors and the Kids’ Club.
“We do. It has been an amazing season. We’ve been booked from the beginning of November. We’re so blessed to have your dad and brother helping with everything,” Dorsey said, as the toddler in her arms tucked his head onto her shoulder and started sucking his thumb.
“They can’t speak highly enough about you two,” Avery said.
“Dorsey, come on,” a blonde-haired boy of about ten called from across the lobby.
“Tade, I’m coming,” Dorsey said. “I’ve got to go. Sorry.”
“No worries. Is Jack around?” Avery asked.
“He’s probably having his food service meeting about now. In the kitchen. You know your way. Nice meeting you, Lily,” Dorsey said and then she kissed Avery on the cheek and hurried out toward the back doors of the inn, where the kids waited.
Lily followed Avery down the long hallway of guest rooms past the ballroom and into an unmarked swinging door. Suddenly, they were inside a commercial kitchen and Lily felt right at home. “Now this is a kitchen,” Lily said admiring the gleaming stainless steel countertops and the industrial appliances.
“Wonder where everybody is?” Avery asked and pushed through another set of doors where instantly, they were at the front of a meeting with more than two-dozen sets of eyes focused on them. “Oops.”
“Avery?” Jack said and quickly gave her a hug.
“Sorry to interrupt
, we’ll come back later,” Avery said as a murmur swept through the crowd. Lily was frozen in embarrassment. They’d suddenly appeared in front of the entire kitchen and wait staff of the inn.
“Everyone, this is Avery Putnam, of the Putnam family and her friend?”
“Lily,” Avery said and smiled widely at the assembled crowd.
“Thank you for dropping by,” Jack said, continuing to talk as if their appearance had been expected. “You’ll see Avery and her family here a lot over the holidays and you should be thankful every time you see them. This is the family that saved the Melrose Inn from foreclosure when Top Club pulled out, making your employment possible.”
As a round of applause burst from the audience, Avery kissed Jack on the cheek and pulled Lily behind her back into the kitchen. “We’ll find sprinkles later,” she said.
And Lily realized for once, Avery was embarrassed, too. On the drive back to the Putnams, Avery pointed out Cole’s house to Lily. It was huge, too large for just one man to live in. It was white with black shutters just like the Putnams, with big windows overlooking the golf course and the sound.
But, unlike the Putnams, Cole’s house didn’t look ready for the holidays.
“Do you guys have any extra Christmas decorations?” Lily asked, suddenly wanting to share the holiday spirit that was lifting her out of her sorrow.
“I’m sure we do. Mom changes themes all the time, you know. Remember her awful purple and white years?”
Lily winced and nodded. Definitely, she remembered that phase.
Clouds had blown in and there was a bigger chill in the air. It was almost time to drop the plastic flaps of the golf cart and turn on the heater. Lily hugged herself.
“What are you thinking? A little surprise decorating for the second most eligible bachelor on the island?”
Lily smiled. “Exactly. Every other house along here has at least a wreath. He must be sad when he comes home.”
“We can’t have that, now, can we,” Avery said as a light mist began to fall.
*
COLE
Why was it the friendly, beautiful girls were always taken, he thought as he drove his golf cart home from the restaurant? The clouds had begun to spit rain, and he was wondering why he’d agreed to go to have cocktails with a bunch of happy, wealthy couples. Those were the type of people he’d left behind when he’d left Boston, the type of people who ruined other people’s lives. People like him when he worked and lived in Boston. Only difference here was the Southern accents.
So why was he going? The girl was taken. Still, it was good for business, he reminded himself. Old habits died hard and while Marshside Mama’s wasn’t Wall Street, the beautiful brunette chef hadn’t even heard of the place. That was a problem, especially since Lily has been coming to the island with the Putnams for years.
Cole knew the family owned a large part of the island, and he would love to find a way to partner with them for his future project, which he hoped would finally give meaning to his life and make amends for his years of focusing on money, not people, for becoming someone he didn’t want to be. Cole had come to Indigo Island lost, but trying to help Sally Ann had also given him a new idea. He now wanted to start the island’s first food bank to help out the hungry people he had met on the backside of the island. He had a lot of ideas, but no one to share them with besides Sally Ann, who firmly suggested he should stick to getting the restaurant out of the Christmas trouble he has created. Meeting the Putnams might be a great chance to start working on both concerns.
He slowed his cart so he could look at the mist rising off the water. It was so beautiful and peaceful here. He thought about tonight, but realized he was more fired up to see Lily again, her perfect pink lips, shy smile, dark shiny hair tumbling around her shoulders, and her melting brown eyes, than he was discussing business. He still remembered the floral fragrance of her hair teasing his senses.
Taken. He reminded himself of the enormous rock on her finger. He sped up his cart again. Focus on business, not a woman.
He needed to erase his sins of the past until he thought of enjoying himself. He didn’t really think he was worthy of a woman’s affection, not after what he and his company had done. It was safer to stay single right now. Besides, his younger brother was married with twin boys, which kept his mom from nagging him too often. Taking a deep breath, he pulled up to his house and tried to shake off the problems of his restaurant. It had been slow this evening, only one turn of the dining room. Meanwhile, Sally Ann grumbled about the lack of storage space in the kitchen, now that she had some of the supplies for Christmas coming in. She needed to start prepping, but she was out of space, she’d told him on his way out the door. Being at the restaurant was supposed to fill him with a sense of purpose and renewal. Instead it magnified his failures.
All in all, he wasn’t in the mood for a party, but he could have a cocktail. And he certainly welcomed the excuse to escape Sally Ann’s judging eyes. He had excused himself, promising her he was meeting with the most important people on the island, which was not a lie. He took the stairs two at a time and hoped that a steaming hot shower would lead to an attitude adjustment.
As the warm water hit his tension-filled shoulders, Cole smiled at the thought that at least he would see Lily again. After toweling off, he surveyed his small wardrobe with chagrin and for the first time wished he hadn’t donated all his designer suits and clothes to charity, but it had been part of his atonement, and he wasn’t going back, so khakis and navy blue button down it was. This was now as good as it could get.
*
Cole hadn’t been this close to the Putnam Plantation before. It was even bigger than it appeared from the beach. There was an entire wing he couldn’t see during his morning jogs. The beauty of the Christmas decorations was overwhelming. Wreaths, garlands, ribbons, lights—name it and they’d decorated with it, he realized, and he was just on the front porch. He dropped the large brass knocker and appreciated the loud metallic thud but with a house so large he wondered whether anyone inside could hear it.
Just then, the huge black door swung open and Avery Putnam introduced herself and welcomed him inside. She was a beautiful woman. Cole was surprised by her simple black sheath dress and minimum of make-up. He would have expected a rich, recently married society woman to scream more money than understated elegance.
“Cole, so glad you could make it,” she said and led him into a foyer that boasted the largest live pine tree he has ever seen inside a private home. It was decorated as if it were appearing in a movie. Perfection.
“Sure, um, I forgot to bring wine but I did find some more green sprinkles,” he said and reached into his pocket, taken aback by how socially awkward he felt. “It’s all we had. No silver beads. I’m going to go over to Savannah for supplies tomorrow, I’ll get you whatever you need.”
“Forget the sprinkles. We’re just so glad you’re here,” she said, a warm smile lighting her face. “Lily’s been my best friend since first grade!”
“Ah, that’s great,” Cole said, feeling his palms sweating just being in this wealth infused environment, which brought back painful memories. Probably, he should have followed his instincts and stayed home tonight.
“Avery? Is Cole here?”
Lily appeared in the foyer standing next to the huge Christmas tree. To Cole, she looked like an angel. She was wearing a soft white sweater with a rounded neckline that hinted at the swell of her breasts. Her black skirt was fitted and hugged her shape and suddenly it was hard to breathe. He forced his eyes north, but even her dark hair, flowing in waves over her shoulders, begged to be touched. Her brown eyes sparkled in the light from the tree and her cheeks were flushed. Cole swallowed hard, words caught in his throat. Lily was the embodiment of every feminine fantasy he had as a kid and as a man, and she was so off limits it hurt.
“Hey, Lils, just showing Cole the other tree,” Avery said, laughing. “The real tree is in the library, that’s the one the two of
us decorated.”
“There is more than one tree?” Cole asked, smiling at Lily until she blushed and looked down. She’s so shy, so beautiful.
“Actually, we have four live, decorated trees, this one, the one in the library, one in the corner of the dining room and one in the master bedroom,” Avery threaded her arm through Cole’s and then through Lily’s. “My mom’s a Christmas nut!”
Avery escorted them into a glorious room. It was paneled in dark wood and lined with a bookshelf on one wall and a full bar on another. A large fireplace with a roaring fire popped and hissed, pouring warmth and light into the room. The brick mantel was decorated, of course, with huge red bows at each end and fresh garland stretched across the length of it. Candles glowed on the coffee table. The scene was so warm and comfortable that Cole’s heart ached for home even though he was the one who left and settled here in an attempt to remake his life and his work.
“James, meet Cole Stanton. Cole, this is my oldest brother James,” Avery said as the two men shook hands. Cole noticed James held the shake a minute longer than necessary, and squeezed tighter than most firm shakes. Is he warning me off? Cole wondered. Maybe James was protecting his sister or Lily? It occurred to him then that maybe James and Lily were engaged. His heart settled in his stomach although he knew he shouldn’t care.
“Nice to meet you,” James said, finally freeing his hand.
Cole saw the tree Lily and Avery had decorated and added, “You’re right. This tree is even more beautiful.”
Avery beamed. “And this is Jessica, James’s date,” Avery added.
Lily was not engaged to James. Cole silently rejoiced and quickly shook Jessica’s hand. She had the largest breasts Cole had ever seen. They appeared to strain against the top of her tight red shirt. She smiled, and Cole managed to return the gesture.
“What can I get you to drink?” James asked.
“Whatever you’re having,” Cole said, amenably as he caught Lily’s eye.