“Brain freeze,” she said with a grimace. Once it had passed, her smile returned. “But totally worth it. Those salted pecans are perfect. I forgot how much I miss those.”
Bree laughed. “I’ll see if my parents can send some more over.”
She polished off the rest of her own ice cream and headed up to bed, but her brain didn’t want to shut off quite yet.
Bree hated that no one seemed to think her capable—both Adeline, who knew her better than anyone else, and those who didn’t know her at all. What were they seeing that she didn’t?
She supposed it didn’t matter, because whatever it was, Bree was going to prove them wrong.
9
Bree glanced at her new phone as Adeline tied up her shoes, ready to head to Starlight Chocolate Confections. Bree had needed to drive to a town forty-five minutes away to buy it, but after the initial freeing moment when she’d disposed of her old phone, she’d felt anxious without that connection to the outside world.
“Are you sure it’s not too early to head over?” Bree asked. She had already been dressed for an hour, having woken up early to catch the sunrise, as she had every morning since arriving in Starlight Ridge. “It’s not like Caleb has as much to prepare as you do. And the shop doesn’t open until ten o’clock.”
“Which is why you should go now, before he opens, so his attention isn’t divided between you and the shop.”
Adeline had a point.
“So, you’re sure he’ll be there?”
Adeline laughed. “Yes. It’s not like you’re showing up at the crack of dawn; it’s already eight o’clock. And he lives there.”
“And you texted him and told him I’d be coming by, right? He’s expecting me?”
“Yes.”
Bree followed Adeline out the door. “He shouldn’t have been so vague when he told me to show up first thing in the morning,” she grumbled.
“He knows you’ll show up closer to breakfast than lunch, and that’s all that matters,” Adeline said as they walked across her yard and toward the boardwalk.
Bree sucked in a long, slow breath, savoring the salty ocean smell that permeated everything around her. She was even starting to enjoy the fishy scent that tinged the air. Just because she didn’t like eating fish didn’t mean she couldn’t enjoy what it added to the small coastal town.
“I’ll walk you to the back door,” Adeline said. “It has a doorbell that will ring in his apartment.”
Bree knew her friend was trying to be helpful, but the way Adeline had said it, it was like a mother who was taking her nervous child to their first day of school. “Thanks, but I think I can handle it.”
Adeline’s lips quirked up. “Suit yourself. Come by the shop when you’re done.” She lowered her voice as they approached the shops that lined the boardwalk. “If you give me all the juicy details, I’ll give you a box of truffles. And they won’t even be the messed-up ones.”
“I don’t know what kind of info you’re expecting; I doubt it will be anything exciting,” Bree said. “For a box of truffles, though, I’ll tell you anything you want.”
Adeline’s eyes shone. “You got yourself a deal.” And then she hurried away, looking way too pleased with herself as she unlocked the door to her store. Bree wondered if it was too late to change her mind.
After her roommate disappeared inside and the lights began to flicker on, Bree turned her attention to the dive shop next door. The sun now illuminated the town, but it was still sleepy, not quite awake. She breathed in another long breath. As it filled her lungs, the ocean breeze gave Bree the courage she needed. Adeline had said there was a back door, so she walked past the shop and continued until she found a small alley that ran alongside a laundromat. Bree turned down the alley and picked her way past some empty crates.
She emerged on the other side and found herself on the path she and Adeline had followed on her first evening in town. It didn’t take long for her to double-back the way she had come, but the backsides of all of the shops looked identical to her. Bree was unsure how she’d be able to tell which one belonged to Caleb, and she didn’t want to ring the wrong doorbell by mistake. It would be embarrassing at the best of times, but it was still early, which would make it that much worse.
Bree hadn’t needed to worry. Several doors down was a large sign that read Dive Shop. There was even a welcome mat in front of the door that had a scuba diver on it. And just as Adeline had said there would be, there was the doorbell.
She hesitated, her finger hovering just over the button. What was she doing there? Bree had been in Starlight Ridge for less than a week, and she was about to apply for a job at a dive shop?
But yes, Bree was going to ring that doorbell. She needed this.
Which said a lot about how badly her life had fallen apart over the last few months.
Bree steeled herself and pressed down on the doorbell.
No dinging was heard within the walls of the building. She pressed again.
Silence.
One more time.
Nothing.
The bell must be broken. She raised her knuckles to rap on the door, unsure if Caleb would even be able to hear it from all the way up there. Just as she moved to knock, however, the door swung open, and there stood Caleb.
Bree’s breath caught, and she averted her eyes. Caleb was shirtless, his hair standing on end, looking like she’d woken him. His sleep-rimmed eyes widened in surprise when he saw Bree standing before him.
“What’s wrong?” he asked quickly, looking past Bree, as if searching for someone else.
“N-nothing,” Bree said, lifting her gaze and desperately trying to keep eye contact. And not look at Caleb’s bare chest. And his defined muscles. “Adeline told you I was coming. You said to come by first thing this morning.”
Caleb blinked twice before his features relaxed, seemingly convinced that no one was in trouble. He gave a low laugh as he bent his head and rubbed his eyes. “With the way you were ringing that bell, I thought someone had died.”
Oops. Guess the doorbell worked.
“What time is it?” he asked, his gaze returning to her. He still wore a slight smile.
Bree pulled her phone out and glanced at the screen. “Eight-twenty.”
“Aww, man.” He groaned and ran a hand through his bedhead. “I don’t remember the last time I slept through my alarm.”
Bree shifted uncomfortably. She should have listened to her own instincts and not shown up so early. “I’m sorry. When you said to show up first thing, I didn’t know when you expected me. And Adeline said—”
Caleb held up a hand. “No need for apologies. I’m usually up by seven at the latest.”
The air was still a bit crisp, and Bree pulled her cardigan tighter around her. “Would you like me to come back in an hour?”
He seemed surprised at the question, but then must have seen the shiver that ran up Bree at that moment because he opened the door wider, motioning for her to come in. “I have terrible manners and left you out in the cold this whole time. Come in where it’s warm and I’ll change really quick.”
Invited in by a shirtless man first thing in the morning. And by her potential boss, no less. Bree didn’t know if she should be flattered Caleb was this comfortable with her, or if she should be worried.
Caleb must have seen the hesitation she felt. Pink tinged his cheeks, and he spluttered, “I didn’t mean… I just thought… Y-you can browse around the shop and get a feel for the layout. That’s all.”
He was adorable when he was all flustered.
“Okay,” she said, trying to appear nonchalant. Like she didn’t want to go up those stairs and see Caleb’s place. Was he the typical messy bachelor, or did he actually clean up after himself? Would there be neon signs and a stocked bar, or famous works of art and organic fruits and vegetables?
Caleb led Bree through a second door and into the back of the shop, seemingly unperturbed that he was still shirtless and apparently also withou
t shoes. “Feel free to grab a wetsuit and gear when you’re done checking things out,” he said.
“I was not checking you out,” Bree said, her words exploding past her lips. But she realized just as fast that she had misheard him. Her face burned with embarrassment, and she wanted to crawl behind the mannequin that stood next to her—which happened to be clad in a skimpy bikini. Okay, maybe not that mannequin. The one on the next aisle, then, the one that wore swim trunks and a swimming shirt of some kind. “Of course I knew you weren’t thinking that,” she said, attempting to find a way to gracefully recover. “But just in case you were. Even though I never gave you any reason to. I just like to be thorough. Cover all my bases.”
Nope. She was a lost cause.
Maybe Adeline had had good reason to be concerned for her friend. Bree didn’t have a clue what she was doing here.
Caleb stared for a moment, seemingly trying to decipher what was happening. Then he laughed. Hard. And Bree was unsure if she should be offended. Was he making fun of her? It didn’t seem like it, but it was difficult to interpret his reaction any other way. He shook his head, still laughing, and said, “I’ll go get dressed so you don’t have to make any more clarifications.”
If it were possible for Bree’s embarrassment to burn more intensely, it did. And it continued to burn as she heard Caleb’s chuckles echoing as he climbed the stairs to his apartment.
Bree double-checked to make sure her cardigan was buttoned up all the way—no need to give Caleb any more ammunition than he already had—and then walked the aisles of the small dive shop. It didn’t take long, as there wasn’t much to it. Or so she thought. But then she stumbled upon a back room that seemed to hold all the equipment one would need to go diving. Snorkels and masks, wetsuits and fins adorned the walls.
Bree stepped toward a wetsuit that hung on the wall next to her. It looked smooth, like a seal’s skin, and her fingers itched to touch it. She wondered what it was like, being able to swim with the fish and turtles and—
Her fingers retracted. No sense in imagining what couldn’t be.
Bree backed away and returned to the main area of the dive shop. Caleb still hadn’t returned, and she wandered over to the checkout counter. It was actually more like four small counters that formed a square in the middle of the room, though there was only one cash register. Surprisingly, she could imagine herself standing in the middle of that square, helping customers when they had questions or needed to purchase a new swimsuit because they’d forgotten to pack theirs. Bree would wear a smile, and it would be genuine, because she’d be happy here. At least for a little while.
That was when she noticed a cell phone sitting on the counter to her right. At first, Bree wondered if Caleb had left it. The phone looked almost identical to the one she had thrown into the ocean, though. And it appeared to be broken. It was almost like someone had taken it apart and then tried to put it all back together again, but had failed.
And there was a butterfly sticker on the back. Bree smiled at the memory. Her sister, Melinda, had stuck it there, and Bree had left it, despite complaining that it was childish and no one at work would be able to take her seriously. It had been her sister’s wedding day, though, and Bree hadn’t been able to bring herself to remove it.
This piece of crap that sat on the counter didn’t just look like her phone.
It was her phone.
“Did you find everything you’ll need?” Caleb asked, striding into the room.
Bree’s hand snapped back to her side and away from the phone. She didn’t know why, because it was hers. But the last time she’d seen the phone, it had been flying into the Pacific Ocean. And, strangely, that made it seem like she no longer had a right to own it. She’d given it up.
And yet, she couldn’t help but be curious about how it had ended up on Caleb’s counter.
He was staring at Bree expectantly, and she remembered that he had asked a question. It took a moment to recall what it had been. It seemed a strange thing for the owner of a store to ask an interviewee. “Yeah, your store is great. Everything looks up to date, with just the right amount of classic touch to help your visitors feel like they’ve stepped out of their own lives for a little while.” Just what Bree needed.
Caleb tilted his head to the side, like he wasn’t sure what to make of her. “You seem to know a thing or two about interior design.”
“Just something I picked up while studying at school. I don’t know much.” Her gaze flitted to her phone and back to Caleb.
If he noticed, he didn’t say anything. “Either way, I’m glad you approve. It’s nice to get an outsider’s opinion once in a while, make sure I haven’t completely lost touch with reality.” He took a few steps toward her so there was only about a foot separating them, and then leaned against the counter. “But you didn’t answer my question.”
With Caleb’s close proximity, a strong scent hit her, and Bree had to take a step back. He must have put on some cologne upstairs, because that man smelled better than he should. Way better. She needed to have a clear head while she figured things out, and that cologne was messing with her mind.
What had Caleb said? Oh, yeah, he thought she hadn’t answered his question. Was this part of the interview—a test? Because if it was, Bree was going to fail. He had asked if his store had everything she needed, and she had said yes. What more could the guy want?
Bree’s confusion must have been obvious because Caleb nodded toward the back of the store, where the small room with the dive equipment was. “Did you pick out what you need? I assume, considering where you’re from, that you always rent when you visit the coast. Employees get to use it at no cost, of course.”
“Oh, no thanks. I don’t need any equipment,” she said quickly. Bree was sure that most people would love to be able to dive for free in their time off, but she was not one of them. She loved being by the ocean, but she had no desire to become a part of it. Her parents had made Bree take swimming lessons when she was young, and that had been more than enough for her.
Caleb gave her an appreciative nod. “You brought your own? I’m impressed, considering you probably don’t get to dive as often as you’d like. Where did you go to do your training and get your certifications?”
Maybe enjoying scuba diving was a requirement of the job. That would explain Adeline’s reaction to Bree taking the job. But if he was desperate enough, maybe he would make an exception for her.
Bree grimaced at her own thoughts. She was hoping the guy was desperate enough to hire her as a cashier? It was official, she’d hit rock bottom.
“Look, I have to be honest with you,” she said. “I’m probably not your ideal candidate for the job. It sounds like you need someone, though. Maybe you could hire me until you find someone you like better. Or not. Because I don’t know a thing about—”
“Look, it’s not that I don’t think you’d be good at it,” Caleb said, interrupting her. “Let’s make that clear. I just have to verify your credentials and make sure you aren’t rusty or anything like that. Why don’t you grab your gear from Adeline’s, and then we’ll go out, and you can run me through some exercises. Treat me as if I’m your student.”
Bree blinked. A lot. More than was natural. Caleb probably thought she had a tick or something.
He couldn’t be saying what she thought he was saying. Could he?
“You want me to treat you like…” She trailed off, not daring to voice the thought out loud.
“Like you’re my diving instructor,” he said.
Bree held up one finger, indicating she needed him to hold on for just a moment, and she crossed the store to the front window where she’d seen the Help Wanted sign. She picked it up and turned it. Diving inst./Cashier.
She closed her eyes, clutching the sign harder than necessary. When she’d first read the sign, it hadn’t been more than a passing glance on her first day there. She’d read it as Diving Cashier. It made no sense now, but at the time, she’d assumed it was a
cashier for a dive shop. Bree had been lost and overwhelmed at being in a new place. And Caleb had been standing in the doorway, watching her.
Bree opened her eyes and replaced the sign.
“You’re hiring a diving instructor who works the cash register when you need it,” she said.
“That’s the idea.”
Now would be a good time to tell Caleb that she wasn’t certified for anything under the sea. As an instructor or otherwise.
Though she was unsure how to tell him that it was for the same reason she could sit on the sand for hours, or dip her toes in the ocean, but never go swimming.
She was terrified of water.
10
Caleb watched as Bree slowly turned toward him, her complexion paler than just a moment before. He couldn’t understand it. She had said she’d wanted the job—assured him that she could handle it. And yet she seemed almost afraid of his store.
“Is everything all right?” he asked.
Bree started to nod, but then stopped and shifted direction so she was now slowly shaking her head. “I’m afraid there has been a misunderstanding. I won’t be able to take the job after all.” She lowered her gaze as she quickly walked past him. “Sorry for wasting your time.” She murmured the words so he barely heard them.
“Hey, wait.” Caleb reached out and grabbed her hand, pulling her to a stop. “Did I do something wrong?”
Bree turned, her gaze on the hand he held, almost like she was in shock that he’d dare touch her. She pulled it out of his grasp and folded her arms, tucking them into her. “No. I promise, this has nothing to do with you.”
“It’s not you, it’s me, huh?”
Bree gave him a brief smile. “Something like that.”
None of this made sense. Bree had said she’d seen the Help Wanted sign. She knew what the job entailed. But this wasn’t how an avid diver acted in a dive shop. They didn’t huddle by the counter, afraid to touch anything. They didn’t stall, when they knew the longer they waited to get suited up, the longer it would be before they’d be in the water.
Diving into Love Page 7