“It is fruity. A little smoky too. Very nice.”
Over an hour later Maddy took her last bite of raspberry cheesecake and dabbed her mouth with the linen. The service had been spot-on and the food delicious, from her perfectly seasoned salmon to the delightful sweet potato casserole. The chef at Harbormaster knew his business.
Nora had drunk a whole glass of champagne. Before her sister had a chance to refill her glass, Maddy asked the server to recork the bottle so they could take it home.
Connor and his date had left as the sisters were served their desserts. He merely waved good-bye, then placed his hand at the small of the woman’s back as he’d ushered her from the restaurant.
“I’m stuffed,” Emma said. “The pastries were delicious.”
“Which was your favorite?” Maddy asked.
“The apple turnover, I think. Although the raspberry one was really unique.”
“I liked the chocolate,” Nora said.
“Me too,” Maddy said. “But I liked the cheesecake best of all.” It had come with a single flickering candle, which she pretended to make a wish on.
The server stopped by the table, making sure desserts had been perfect. She left the bill folder and recorked champagne on the table and left with their empty plates.
Nora opened the bill folder and reached into her purse. She’d seemed a little off tonight. Quiet. Maybe it was the pregnancy hormones.
Emma set her napkin on the table and reapplied her lip gloss. “Expensive, but worth every penny. Of course, that’s easy for me to say since I’m not picking up the tab.”
“It really was delicious,” Maddy said. “Thank you, Nora, for the meal.”
“Of course. I’m glad you enjoyed it.” Nora stuck her credit card in the bill folder, and the server snapped it up almost immediately.
Emma checked her watch. “It’s still early. Do you want to do anything else?”
“I’m so full I can hardly move,” Maddy said.
Emma put her hand on her stomach. “I’m right there with you. I ate way too much.”
“We still have almost two hours of daylight left. I wouldn’t mind getting some work done on the house.”
“But it’s your birthday!” Emma said. “We should do something fun.”
“It’s Sunday night,” Maddy said. “The town’s pretty much shut down. Besides, the sooner we get the house done, the sooner we can all go back to our lives, right?”
She balked at her own words. What life? She had no job, no boyfriend waiting for her. Only an empty apartment.
“That’s true, I guess.” Emma probably wasn’t eager to get back to her problematic relationship with Ethan.
Nora, who hadn’t weighed in, was the only one who really had a life to get back to, but she seemed in no hurry either.
They decided they’d do some of the smaller jobs around the house tonight and save the painting for later.
The server approached the table and set the bill folder down by Nora and spoke in a hushed voice. “Um, I’m sorry, ma’am, but the credit card wouldn’t go through.”
“Oh no.” Nora pulled out her purse and removed her wallet. “I’ll have to call home later and see what’s going on. Maybe there was a fraudulent charge.”
“I hate when that happens,” Maddy said, trying to smooth things over. “Your card gets canceled abruptly, and then you have to change all your auto-pay bills over to the new card. Such a hassle.”
“Oh dear.” Nora was visibly rattled. “I only brought the one card on this trip. And I don’t have enough cash on me.”
“No worries.” Maddy reached for her purse. “I’ll get it.”
“You will not,” Emma said. “It’s your birthday. I’ve got this.”
“I’m so sorry,” Nora said, her creamy skin now mottled with pink. “I can’t believe this is happening.”
The server hovered awkwardly, waiting for Emma to withdraw her credit card.
Maddy thought it odd that Nora had only the one card with her. Even she traveled with three credit cards, and she hardly had Nora’s amassed wealth.
Other things had tweaked her curiosity lately too. Nora, who normally enjoyed life’s finest, was buying a lot of generics at the grocery. Her contact with home had been infrequent. Maddy overheard her on the phone with Chloe sometimes, but she hadn’t noticed any calls between her and Jonathan at all. Could there be trouble in paradise?
“I’ll pay you back,” Nora told Emma as the server scurried away with the bill.
“You’d better,” Emma said, her laughter breaking the tension. “That was my entire grocery bill for a month!”
Chapter 18
When Connor got home he changed from his date clothes into his khaki shorts and T-shirt. He headed to his desk, grabbed his bills, and sat down at the kitchen table.
The date had been a disappointment. It wasn’t Johanna’s fault. She was nice enough and very attractive. She seemed like a nice Christian woman. She didn’t talk too much or have an annoying laugh or complain about her ex—even though, according to Lexie, she had reason to.
They shared a love of boats and spent quite a while on that topic. She talked freely about her faith, spoke kindly about the people in her life—including Lexie—and found her work as an advisor at the university fulfilling.
And though he’d enjoyed their conversation, he couldn’t seem to dredge up any romantic interest in her. Especially once he’d noticed Maddy and her sisters across the dining room. From that point on, his mind had wandered often. Mostly toward Maddy.
He’d only just yesterday told her he hadn’t dated in years, and here he was out on a date. He hadn’t missed her guarded greeting and the absence of that infectious smile he’d witnessed on their walk back to the marina. Given that she’d recently been burned where men were concerned, her reaction wasn’t surprising. He felt bad about the misunderstanding, especially since it was her birthday.
He also felt guilty for not giving Johanna his undivided attention, even though she hadn’t seemed to notice. Their good-bye at her door had consisted of a platonic hug. She thanked him for the evening, and though he thought she’d probably go out with him again if he asked, he made no offer. Because of that the date had ended awkwardly.
Maybe he hadn’t given her enough of a chance. His dating experience was limited, as Annie had been his first love, but he remembered what a connection was supposed to feel like.
And with Johanna it just wasn’t there. He hadn’t hung on to her every word the way he had with Maddy the day before. He hadn’t been tempted to touch her hand, just to see how soft her skin was. He hadn’t even noticed the shape of her lips, much less wondered what they might taste like.
He ripped a finished check out of the checkbook and placed it in the envelope. Johanna had already texted to thank him again for the nice evening. He’d texted back something polite and noncommittal. He wasn’t sure what he was supposed to do next. He didn’t want to hurt her feelings.
A repetitive sound was drifting through the open windows, like someone was trying to pull-start a lawn mower. Connor got up to look.
Maddy was in her backyard bent over her grandma’s old Toro. That thing hadn’t been run in heaven knew how long. Connor usually did their grandma’s mowing after he finished his own, but lately he’d neglected it.
He slid on his flip-flops and left his house by way of the back deck. It was a pretty evening, the temperature mild, a light breeze blowing in off the sea. An egret, poised between their properties, took flight at his approach, its legs extending behind him like long black sticks.
The sputtering motor drew his attention. Maddy was giving the pull-start renewed effort, one tennis-shoe-clad foot braced on the mower’s frame. She wore a pair of yoga shorts and a long gray tank top that crisscrossed in the back, exposing sun-kissed shoulders. Her ponytail bobbed with her efforts.
The smell of gasoline wafted his way. “You’re flooding it,” he called.
Maddy didn’t seem to hear
him over the noise.
“Maddy!” he called again.
She turned, breathing hard, a sheen of perspiration glistening on her forehead. A frown pulled at her brows, tugged at her lips. “You scared me.”
“Sorry ’bout that. You’ve flooded the engine. You need to let it rest awhile.”
Maddy let go of the pull cord, and it whipped back into the mower. “Stupid thing.”
He took a closer look at the mower. The throttle was open, and the spark plug was attached. He checked the oil and found it full. “Did you prime it?”
“Of course.”
“Put gas in?”
She gave him a look.
“Okay, well, I don’t think this thing’s been used in years. It probably needs some work done.”
He hadn’t imagined her guardedness at the restaurant. She was downright prickly. “I usually just run my mower over your grandma’s lawn when I finish mine. I’ve let it go the past couple of weeks, but I can do it tomorrow after work.”
“That won’t be necessary.” She wheeled the mower and pushed it up the grassy slope and onto the concrete walkway alongside the house.
“You can let it rest fifteen minutes or so and see if you have better luck, or I can lend you mine. It’s a lot newer and easier to maneuver.”
She brushed off her hands. “Thanks, but I’ll wait.”
Connor studied her face—the tightness at the corner of her eyes, the persistent frown, the stubborn set of her chin. “Suit yourself then.”
He found himself missing the way she’d looked at him yesterday, tilting a smile up at him, those amber flecks sparkling in her eyes. He hated that they’d had a misunderstanding.
“Listen, Maddy, I wanted to explain about tonight. I know how that had to look after what I said yesterday—”
“You don’t owe me an explanation, Connor.”
With two sisters and a mother, he was pretty good at reading women. “Is that a fact? Because you seem a little cross with me.”
She gave her head a shake, and the quick hitch of her shoulder said, I have no idea what you’re talking about. But her bland smile was too carefully arranged, her couldn’t-care-less countenance forced. He’d seen this look before on every woman in his life.
* * *
Maddy wiped a hand across her sweaty forehead, wishing Connor would just leave. His persistence to explain made her feel foolish for caring so much. Probably made her look jealous. And she wasn’t. She had no reason to be jealous.
“My sister set me up with a friend,” Connor continued.
“That’s fine.” Maddy waved away his words. “Really. None of my business. She seemed great. Did you have a good time?”
The planes of his face hardened, a shadow flickering in his jaw. He looked toward the crashing surf. His profile was striking, she had to admit. A strong forehead, perfectly proportioned nose, and that wavy hair stirring in the wind.
When he looked back at her, his gray eyes were like storm clouds, threatening rain. “Obviously it’s not fine. Please hear me out. I don’t want you to think I lied to you; it’s true that I haven’t gone on a date in years. That was my first since my wife passed away. Lexie thought it was high time I get back out there, and she set me up with a friend. That’s all.”
A fist tightened around Maddy’s heart at the raw honesty on Connor’s face. A flood of warmth spread through her limbs. If she’d felt foolish before, she felt like a complete idiot now. Her eyes fell to the mower.
“After what you’ve been through recently I just wanted to clear the air with you.” He bent his knees until he made eye contact.
There was something earnest and searching in his gaze. As if he wanted to see clear down to her soul. It drew her like a magnet, and she was helpless against its pull.
“Are we okay?” he asked. “You believe me?”
She let out a breath she didn’t know she was holding. “Sorry I was a little edgy with you.”
His mouth relaxed in a rueful smile. “I get it, Maddy. You’re just learning to trust again—both yourself and others. That can make a person wary. You don’t really know me, but I don’t make a habit of lying. If you hang around long enough, you’ll see that’s true.”
“Fair enough.” Her heart was palpitating at his focused attention. She pulled her gaze away from his and shifted the topic. “Thank you for the champagne tonight. That was thoughtful.”
“You’re welcome.”
“I’d only ever had the cheap stuff you get at New Year’s Eve celebrations. There’s a big difference.”
“Glad you liked it. I hope you had a nice birthday.”
“I did. The meal was delicious and my sisters behaved. That’s about as much as I can ask for.”
“The least they could do for your birthday.”
“And your date?” Maddy hated herself a little for asking, but she had a perverse desire to know. “It seemed to be going well.”
“Yeah . . . She was nice.” He nodded slowly, but there was uncertainty in his tone.
“She’s a friend of Lexie’s? She looked older than your sister.”
“Not really a friend. Johanna is her advisor at the university.” His lips turned up in a wry grin. “They got to talking, and Lexie became convinced she’d met my perfect match.”
“Well, you never know. Maybe she is.”
“I don’t think so. But how do you go about getting that point across to a perfectly nice woman after only one date, huh? Help a guy out. I’m a little out of practice here.”
“Not a match made in heaven then?”
“She’s great, really she is. Just not for me, you know? Is it all right to just let it end a quiet death, or do I have to tell her that? Please say I don’t have to tell her that.”
Maddy chuckled at the obvious dread on his face. “You’re just a big softie, aren’t you?”
“Don’t you be telling anyone now,” he said, all Southern charm.
“Are you sure you’ve given her a fair chance? It was only one date. Maybe it was just an off night.”
“No, she was great, but there was just—no connection. We could be friends, I think. Except I got the feeling she might want more than that.”
Maddy winced. “Awkward.”
“Very.”
They shared a commiserating smile.
“In that case, I think you can just let it die quietly unless she persists. At that point you really should say something.”
He made a face, sticking his hands into his back pockets. “Ugh.”
“Hey, I didn’t say it’d be fun. But the only other option would be ducking her calls, and that’s unkind. It’s not really fair to let her waste her time and energy if you’re not interested.”
“You’re right, you’re right.” He tucked in the corner of his mouth, shaking his head. “Why exactly did I jump back into the dating pool again? I’m having trouble remembering.”
“I’d say the water’s warm, but that’d be a big fat lie.”
His low chuckle stirred something inside her, as did the way his eyes warmed as they studied her for a long, breath-stealing moment. His gaze drifted over her face with a flicker of male appreciation.
“I enjoyed talking to you yesterday, Maddy,” he said softly.
“Me too.” She kept a casual tone, though her pulse fluttered at his words.
She was attracted to him, she’d admit that much to herself. She thought he was a good guy. And she believed him when he said he hadn’t lied to her.
But this couldn’t go anywhere. The misunderstanding tonight had brought it all back, a stark reminder of her recent heartbreak and all the reasons she had boundaries in place. She wasn’t ready to go there again just yet.
“Maybe we should set up a time to go sailing soon. I think it’d be a lot of fun.”
She reached for an excuse. “I don’t know when we’d go, with our schedules.”
A look of surprise came over his face. “Oh. I meant to tell you. Cheryl called this afternoon. H
er dad is faring better than expected, so she’s planning to come back later this week. Sorry . . . I should’ve called you right away.”
She deflated a little at the thought of losing the job at the Landing. “Oh. No, that’s fine. I’m glad he’s going to be all right.”
The restaurant had kept her mind off of what had happened back home and given her a break from the tension here at the beach cottage. It was fun to do something she was skilled at. It gave her purpose. She was going to miss that.
Maddy forced a smile. “I’m sure you’ll be glad to have her back.”
“You’ve done a great job; Cheryl’s going to be thrilled to see it all in one piece when she gets back. It was falling apart under my leadership, I can tell you that much.”
Maddy hitched a shoulder. “We all have our gifts. I’m sure your marina would be a disaster under my direction.”
“Speaking of the marina . . .” He gave her a charming smile. “How about that sail?”
She laughed. “Nice segue.”
“Wasn’t it? I can finagle a Saturday off with a little advance notice. The boat belongs to a friend of mine, but he doesn’t use it much.”
Maddy was more tempted than she wanted to admit. She made the mistake of meeting his gaze. The storm clouds were gone. Now the gray looked as soft as kitten’s fur, and that bracketed smile coerced.
Darn her fickle heart.
“No pressure, Maddy. It doesn’t have to be a date . . . just a man and a woman going out for a sail.”
Maddy lifted a brow. “Don’t you have enough women in your life already?”
He chuckled. “You’d think, wouldn’t you? I’ve always had great women in my life—don’t tell my sisters. I like them to think they’re a burden.”
She smiled at the warmth in his tone.
“Fact is, I’m probably more comfortable with women than most guys are.” He looked at her through lashes that looked golden in the light of the setting sun. “So what do you say? You could bring your sisters along if you like.”
“Um, no. I would not like.”
He looked at her askance. “Okay . . .”
“All that tension between them can be very uncomfortable.”
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