Swan Point

by Sherryl Woods

  He leaned across the counter and tucked a finger under her chin, his eyes locked with hers. “But if we want to change our minds, to maybe reassess, that’s up to us, too.”

  Hope spread through her. “Is that what you want, to reassess?”

  He drew in a deep breath, then nodded. “To be honest, this separation hasn’t been working as well as I’d hoped it would. If anything, it’s just made me think about you more. I can’t seem to get you out of my head.”

  “Me, too,” Adelia said softly.

  Gabe studied her, then nodded. “Okay then. Dinner tonight?”

  She took a deep breath. “Sure, why not. I left another casserole with Selena,” she said. “There’s plenty for one more.”

  Gabe shook his head. “Not this time. I think maybe you and I need to go on an actual date, just the two of us.”

  “Not Rosalina’s,” she said at once. “There seems to be a direct pipeline from that place to gossip central. And, of course, Wharton’s is gossip central.”

  “I’ve been hearing a lot about Sullivan’s since I got back to town,” Gabe said. “Everybody says it’s the place to go for a nice meal.”

  “The food’s amazing,” Adelia confirmed, then thought of the implications of the two of them being seen in the town’s best restaurant together on what couldn’t possibly be mistaken for anything other than a date. “It’ll be like tossing a teaser morsel to a lion, though. Everyone’s going to pounce. It might be even worse than Rosalina’s.”

  “But at least we’ll have had an excellent meal.” He grinned. “Or we can always hope they’ll be too busy congratulating each other to bother messing with us.”

  She thought about it and laughed. Since Dana Sue, who owned the place, would probably have the news of their arrival all over town within seconds, that’s probably exactly what they’d be doing.

  “Either way,” she told him, grinning herself, “I don’t think I care.”

  “That’s the spirit.”

  Of course by the time tomorrow morning rolled around, she might be facing all sorts of regrets. Come to think of it, though, they couldn’t be any more uncomfortable than the regrets she’d had this morning after drinking all those margaritas. She glanced at Gabe and allowed herself a brief moment of pure feminine satisfaction. And just look at how well today was turning out.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  “Mommy, Gabe left again!” Tomas complained when Adelia arrived home from work. “I liked it when he was staying for dinner. I asked him to stay, but he said no.”

  “Gabe has plans for tonight,” Adelia told him.

  “What about tomorrow night?” Tomas persisted. “Can he stay then?”

  “You’ll have to ask him,” Adelia said. “Selena, could I speak to you upstairs?”

  Her daughter regarded her with suspicion but followed Adelia up to her room. It was still filled with boxes from the move. She’d seen no point in unpacking until her room had been painted. She’d told Gabe to leave it for last, so the kids would start to feel better about their new home by having their rooms decorated just the way they wanted them to be.

  “What’s going on?” Selena asked her, sitting on the edge of the bed as Adelia opened her closet door and looked at the few outfits she’d pressed and hung up, mostly for work.

  “I’m going out for dinner tonight,” she announced, keeping her tone casual. “I won’t be late, but do you mind being here alone with your sisters and brother, or would you prefer me to call someone to come over?”

  Selena regarded her suspiciously. “Where are you going? You were just out last night.”

  “I’m having dinner at Sullivan’s.”

  Selena’s eyes narrowed even more. “But that’s for special occasions,” she said slowly, clearly trying to make sense of her mother’s unusual behavior. “Is this a special occasion?”

  “It’s just dinner with a friend,” Adelia said evasively.

  Selena looked even more skeptical. Then her eyes widened. “You’re having dinner with Gabe tonight, that’s why he’s busy, too. It’s a date, isn’t it?”

  “It’s just dinner,” Adelia repeated.

  “It’s a date with Gabe,” Selena said again. She didn’t seem that unhappy about her conclusion, just puzzled. “I thought you weren’t gonna see him anymore, not like that, anyway. I thought that’s why he’d made such a big deal about leaving before you got home.”

  “Well, tonight’s an exception,” Adelia said, then sat down beside her daughter, clinging to a simple black dress. She met Selena’s gaze and sighed. “It’s a date. How do you feel about that?”

  Selena was silent for a long time. “Do you really need to date somebody?”

  Adelia held back a smile at the plaintive question. “I don’t have to,” she said. “But I do enjoy Gabe’s company. It’s nice to have another grown-up to talk to.”

  “You have Abuela,” Selena said, then sighed. “That’s not the same, though, is it?”

  “No. Someday you’ll understand the difference. You’ll much prefer being out with a boy instead of home with your sisters, brother and me.”

  “First, I’d have to not be grounded,” Selena replied ruefully.

  Adelia laughed. “Yes, that would be a requirement.” She brushed a strand of hair from her daughter’s face. “So, can you accept it if I go on this one date with Gabe?”

  “I suppose,” Selena said grudgingly, then glanced at the dress Adelia was holding. “But you can’t wear that! No way. Mom, you’ll look like a nun.”

  Adelia studied the simple dress and saw her daughter’s point. “Maybe that’s not such a bad idea.”

  “No, no, no,” Selena protested, jumping up and diving into the closet. “Here,” she said, tossing a filmy flowered skirt at Adelia. “And this,” she said, adding a low-cut sleeveless top. “You look fantastic in this.”

  Adelia studied her with increasing surprise. “You sound like you’re okay with this, after all.”

  Selena shrugged. “I told you a while back that I’d decided Gabe wasn’t so bad. I guess if you have to go out with a guy, he’s okay. I liked it better, though, when you were avoiding each other.” She gave Adelia a very grown-up look. “But you weren’t happy. Neither was he. It was nice when he made you laugh. You and Dad hadn’t laughed in a long time.”

  “I liked that, too,” Adelia confided. “But this is just one date, sweetie. Don’t say anything to your sisters or brother. I don’t want them to make too much of it. You shouldn’t, either.”

  “I won’t ask him if I can call him Daddy, if that’s what you’re worried about,” Selena said.

  Adelia regarded her with stunned silence. When she could find her voice, she said, “I certainly hope not.”

  Selena laughed. “I was just kidding.”

  Adelia caught the sparkle in her daughter’s eyes and realized that maybe she wasn’t the only one in the house who was better off with Gabe being in their lives. It seemed he was having much the same effect on Selena, at least when it came to brightening her mood. And that had to be a good thing, worth every one of the butterflies that were currently fluttering crazily in Adelia’s stomach.

  * * *

  “What did the kids say when you told them we were having dinner?” Gabe asked when they were settled in a quiet booth at Sullivan’s, albeit under Dana Sue’s speculative, delighted gaze. She’d been darting out of the kitchen, peering in their direction every few minutes, a cell phone pressed to her ear. There was little doubt every Sweet Magnolia in town knew about this date by now.

  “I just said I was having dinner with a friend,” Adelia replied. “Selena knows it’s you, though.”

  “And?”

  “She approves.”

  Gabe looked as surprised as she’d been. “Really?” he said.

/>   “Don’t count it as a ringing endorsement,” Adelia warned. “She doesn’t actually want me to date at all, but if I have to go out with someone, she seems okay with it being you. It was a nice change of heart on her part. It was especially nice to have her teasing me rather than berating me.”

  “But you’re still worried about how the others will react,” he guessed. “That’s why you insisted on meeting me here instead of letting me pick you up. You didn’t want Tomas, Natalia and Juanita getting any ideas.”

  Adelia nodded. “I still believe we need to be very cautious, at least until we know how this is going to go. You should know, though, that Tomas intends to ask you to stay for dinner again tomorrow.”

  Gabe studied her. “What should I tell him?”

  “That’s up to you.”

  He held her gaze. “Not entirely. What do you want me to tell him?”

  Flustered under his penetrating look, she could barely manage a whisper. “That you’ll stay.”

  A smile spread across his face. “Okay, then. And, Adelia, we need to be clear about one thing.”

  “What’s that?” she asked, worried about his suddenly serious tone.

  “When it comes to how much time I spend with your kids or what we tell them, you’re in charge. I don’t want to mess with their heads any more than you want me to.”

  “You’re good for them,” she admitted. “You treat them like real people. I can see them blossoming under all that attention, Tomas especially. I don’t want to take that away from them. I just don’t want them to get too far ahead of themselves when it comes to us. I don’t want them to be hurt.”

  Gabe nodded. “It’s a fine line,” he agreed. “But we’ll figure it out.” He reached under the table, laced his fingers with hers and gave her hand a squeeze. “Could we focus on us now?”

  She shivered under the intensity of his gaze. “I guess so,” she said, not sounding very certain.

  He smiled. “You’re not used to having the attention focused on you, are you?”

  She shook her head. “Not like this.”

  “Did you and Ernesto ever have date nights?” he asked.

  Adelia knew that was something a lot of married couples did. It was a way to solidify their relationship and keep the romance alive without all the demands of being parents, at least for an evening. She knew it was something Elliott and Karen credited with getting their marriage back on track after a rough patch. She’d suggested it once to Ernesto and he’d looked at her as if she were nuts.

  She shook her head. “Never.”

  “Why not?”

  “He didn’t see the point,” she said, then shrugged. “I suppose he figured he’d already paid for the rings and the fancy house. Why bother courting me?” She winced at the bitterness in her voice. “Sorry.”

  Gabe frowned. “Why are you apologizing? The man should have been down on his knees every night thanking you for making a nice home and taking such great care of his kids.”

  “He was too busy chasing other women to bother with that.”

  Her reply seemed to anger Gabe.

  “You do know that reflects badly on him, not you, right?” Gabe said. “I may not think I’m a good candidate for marriage, but I do know that a husband should treat his wife with more respect than that. He shouldn’t be taking her for granted.”

  “Maybe it was me,” she ventured, voicing the fear that she still hadn’t totally overcome.

  Now there was no mistaking the heat in Gabe’s eyes. “Absolutely not,” he told her.

  “You don’t know. You didn’t know me then. I’ve gotten myself together in the past year or so.”

  “Meaning what?”

  “I did what I thought Ernesto wanted. I went to the spa and lost weight. I tried to compete with those other women.”

  “You shouldn’t have had to compete with anyone,” Gabe told her. “And in a matchup with any woman who’d get involved with a married father of four, you’d come out way, way ahead in all the areas that matter.”

  He said it with such conviction that Adelia sat a little taller. “You really mean that, don’t you?”

  “I really mean it,” he said quietly. “And if you doubt me, let me tell you that everyone I’ve met since I got back to town feels the same way. If your name comes up, it’s always said with respect. Don’t let one idiot make you question yourself.”

  “Even if that one idiot was my husband, who knew me better than anyone?” she said wryly.

  “Not even then. It just shows what poor judgment he has.”

  He’d just carved another big chunk out of her wall of defenses. “You know something, Gabe Franklin?” she said lightly.

  “What?”

  “The kids aren’t the only ones you’re good for.”

  Now it was his turn to blush. “Just calling it like I see it,” he said. Then, clearly flustered, he opened the menu. “Maybe we should order. Any suggestions?”

  His sudden nervousness actually served to calm her own nerves. “Everything I’ve ever had here is great,” Adelia said, more than willing to go along with the change in topic. “The meat loaf is a specialty. So is the fried catfish.”

  Gabe’s expression turned nostalgic. “My mom used to make meat loaf. It was terrible, but it was the one thing she thought she could cook, so she made it for special occasions.”

  “Well, Dana Sue’s version takes it to a whole new level,” Adelia told him.

  “Then I think I’ll have that, for old times’ sake.”

  Adelia studied him closely. “There were good times with your mom, weren’t there? Mostly you make it sound as if it was all bad.”

  For a moment, she thought he might not answer. He looked as if he’d gone someplace far away, or more likely just back in time.

  “There were good times,” he said eventually. “Christmas, my birthday. Those were the occasions when she tried to do something special. Of course, at Christmas she went crazy with decorations and a big meal, not because the holiday meant much to her, but to take her mind off the fact that whatever man was in her life was home with his own family that day.”

  Adelia winced at the stark pain in his voice. “I’m sorry things weren’t better for you.”

  “Hey, I survived it, didn’t I? I just wish her life had been better, but I was way too young to know how to help.”

  “That didn’t stop you from trying, though. Remember that.”

  “I went about it in all the wrong ways,” he said. “At least that’s what a lot of people in town would have said back then, including my aunts and uncles and grandparents. They just lumped me in with her and considered us both a lost cause.”

  “Mitch, too?” she asked, shocked.

  “Mitch was just a kid himself. I don’t blame him or any of the other cousins. He’s more than made up for it now by giving me a fresh start.”

  Dana Sue arrived at the table just then, clearly in search of hot new information to impart. “Have you all ordered yet?” she asked, studying them with amusement. “Or have you been too engrossed with each other?”

  Ronnie Sullivan appeared at her side almost immediately and tucked his wife’s arm through his. “Leave them alone,” he told her firmly.

  “I’m just checking on my customers,” Dana Sue protested, though she flushed guiltily.

  “No, you’re being nosy,” Ronnie said, giving them an apologetic look. “Sorry. She can’t help herself.”

  Gabe chuckled. “Maybe you can send over our waitress,” he suggested.

  “Now there’s a thought,” Ronnie said. “Darlin’, as the owner of this fine establishment, why didn’t you think of that? Go get their waitress, then get back in the kitchen and make something delicious.”

  Dana Sue gave Ronnie a mock scowl, then kissed his cheek.
“You stay and ask questions,” she suggested.

  Ronnie looked after her with tolerant amusement, then called out, “Nobody’s asking questions.” He winked at Gabe and Adelia. “You should be safe for an hour or so, but I’d suggest you get dessert to go. I’m not sure how long I can keep her in the kitchen. I’m sure she’s back there texting half the town right now, even though she has very little to report.”

  Adelia chuckled. “Thanks for the tip.”

  “Maybe we should get the whole meal to go,” Gabe said.

  Ronnie shook his head at once. “And have the whole town speculating about where you went to eat it?”

  “They would, too,” Adelia confirmed with a resigned sigh.

  “Then let’s just wolf down our meal and take off,” Gabe said.

  “Wolf down one of Dana Sue’s meals?” Adelia asked. “That’s practically sacrilegious.”

  “She’s right,” Ronnie said. “The only thing worse than keeping my wife in the dark about your relationship would be insulting her food.”

  Gabe shook his head. “Who knew that eating out in Serenity could get this complicated?” He turned to Adelia. “Next time we’re going to Charleston.”

  Ronnie chuckled, but one look into Gabe’s eyes told Adelia he was 100 percent serious. Since the thought of a night on the town in Charleston sent a shiver of anticipation straight down Adelia’s spine, she didn’t find anything even moderately amusing about the prospect.

  * * *

  “You went awfully quiet when I mentioned going to Charleston,” Gabe said to Adelia after they’d savored every bite of their dinner and even shared a dessert.

  “It’s a long way to go just to have dinner,” Adelia said carefully.

  “Might be worth it, though, to avoid all these prying eyes in Serenity.”

  She gave him a long look. “And it would just be about dinner?”

  He regarded her with confusion. “That’s what I said, isn’t it?” Understanding dawned. “Oh, I see. You thought I meant, well, something more than dinner.”