Return to Glebe Point

by Patricia Paris

  “You might be hot, bro, but I send my woman to heaven.” Blake gave his twin a superior look.

  Cooper just stood there smiling at Charlie. His Johnny Depp eyes burned into her, his sensuously curved lips twitched, and she had to force herself to look away. She could hear the older children barreling down the stairs, and it wouldn’t be appropriate for her to be melting onto the floor into a puddle of liquid desire and moaning when they arrived.

  “Did you bring finger cakes for dessert, Aunt Charlie?” Ben shouted across the room as he burst into the kitchen and kept right on running until he got to the table.

  “You bet I did, buddy.” She reached out and ruffled his silky black curls.

  “I already knew she did,” Chloe informed her cousin. “I saw them when she got here. There’s a bunch of different ones.”

  “Cool!” Ben pulled out his chair and sat down. “Let’s hurry up and eat so we can have some.”

  “You have to wait until everyone’s done eating to have dessert, Ben,” Delaney reminded him, “so no rushing, sweetheart.”

  When Cooper sat down beside Charlie a few minutes later, he reached under the table and took her hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. She didn’t look at him, just smiled, warmth infusing her body, and squeezed his right back.

  Justin called just as Charlie was closing up the store on Tuesday to tell her the will that had been found in Joseph’s safe had been determined to be the final will and had been filed for probate.

  Phillip had actually tried to contest it, calling it a plant, but the signatures had been analyzed and validated, both Joseph’s and his, which made the case against him even stronger. For a man who was supposed to be so smart it had been a very stupid thing to do. Had he thought no one would try to authenticate it?

  According to the new terms, Phillip was still the primary beneficiary, but Joseph had also left a sizable bequest to Deirdre. His home in Connecticut he’d bequeathed to Charlie, along with half a million dollars, an amount that staggered her.

  She’d never understand the kind of greed that drove a man like Phillip. If he’d been honest and honored his uncle’s wishes, under the new will he still inherited millions to add to the millions he already had.

  Charlie shook her head. A lot of fun he’ll have spending it behind bars.

  She’d never imagined Joseph might leave her a bequest when she was living with him. She certainly didn’t feel like he owed her anything. In many ways it made her uncomfortable.

  She had no idea what she might do about the house in Connecticut. She wasn’t going to move there. She belonged right where she was, in Glebe Point. This was home and she hoped to never leave it again.

  Certainly some of the money would give her a cushion until Finger Cakes became more established. She could pay her cousins back, and maybe buy a small place to call her own. There probably wouldn’t be much left after that, but it would definitely give her more security, and really, she didn’t need much more than that.

  The bell on the front door jangled out to announce Cooper’s arrival.

  “Hey, gorgeous.” He turned the deadbolt behind him. “It’s past quitting time.”

  “I know. I was just about to lock up and close out the register.”

  He joined her at the counter and waited while she settled. They were going to drive to St. Michaels for dinner and then Cooper would probably end up spending the night at the cottage, as he’d done almost every weekend for the last month.

  Tomorrow they were going to the Fall Festival. It had always been one of her favorite events of the year, and she was looking forward to sharing the experience with him.

  They’d known each other almost five months now. A short time to some, she supposed, but long enough for her to know she loved him, wanted to settle down with him, have a family of their own. She wanted to grow old with him, and when they got there, look back and know it had been a good life, together, as them.

  “Are you hungry?” Cooper asked as they walked to his car a few minutes later.

  “Hungry for you,” she said, and smiled because she knew her comment had made him smile, too.

  They held hands across the front seat of the car on the drive to St. Michaels. Cooper told her about a new listing he’d gotten a few days earlier, a big old Victorian on three acres that was only a mile and a half from Justin and Gabriella’s.

  “It needs a little work, but it could be the perfect home for someone who wanted to put down roots and raise a family there. The property’s beautiful, sits right on the river, with lots of room for kids to roam and explore.”

  “It sounds nice.” She imagined it was just the kind of place she’d envisioned having one day. “Do you have a client in mind?”

  “I do, but I haven’t approached her about it yet.”

  “She’s not single, is she? It sounds like a lot of house for one person, especially if it needs work. I know some women would be okay with that, but if they’re anything like me, it might seem too overwhelming to take on by themselves.”

  “She is single.” He shot her a quick glance before looking back at the road. “But her situation might be changing soon, and I’m hoping she’ll fall in love with it.”

  Charlie chuckled. “Well, good luck with that, and for your sake, I hope she does, too.”

  They had a wonderful dinner. She ordered rockfish stuffed with crab and thought she would die after the first bite, it was that good!

  Cooper went with a steak, done medium-rare, which she’d noticed he usually did on the occasions when they’d gone to a nice restaurant.

  They lingered over their meal, their conversation easy and light, chatting about everything and nothing, and all of it comfortable.

  Afterward, they walked the street, looking in the store windows, stopping here and there to comment on something that caught their eye. As the evening drew on, she felt as if they’d walked right into a new dimension of their relationship where things had shifted.

  Things had been shifting for weeks, though. They’d moved to a different place—a good place—a place she hoped wasn’t just in her imagination because she very much wanted it to be real. It was a place she’d be very happy spending the rest of her life.

  The fairgrounds throbbed with a swell of people, young and old alike who’d come to the festival to enjoy the food, the festivities, and soak up the gift of a warm and golden, late-autumn day.

  The air, redolent with the mingling scents from food booths, tempted the hungry, reeling them in to sample the fare like hooked fish.

  Charlie and Cooper strolled the grounds, stopping here and there to check out the various vendors’ wares, or talk to friends they encountered along the way. Cooper tried his hand at the beanbag toss and won a large, stuffed pillow shaped like a blue crab, which he promptly presented to Charlie. It didn’t exactly fit her decorating style, but he looked so proud of his accomplishment she knew she’d find a place for it somewhere.

  They ran into Blake and Delaney on their way to the food tents.

  “We were looking for you two,” Blake said. “Justin and Gab are saving a table for everyone for lunch. It’s in the big tent near the pond.”

  They followed them over to join the rest of the family. Everyone took turns getting food so they wouldn’t lose their table. Charlie and Cooper each got oysters on the half shell and some barbecued wings to share. Justin bought a pitcher of beer for the adults to share and lemonade for the kids.

  Everyone seemed to be in a good mood, enjoying the day, and as Charlie looked around the table, she realized there was nowhere in the world she’d rather be than right there in Glebe Point with the people she loved.

  As they were finishing up with lunch, an announcement came over the loudspeakers that the Ducks and Drakes contest would start in thirty minutes.

  “Did you sign up this year, Charlie?” Blake asked.

  “Of course I did. I’ve got to defend my title.”

  Blake leaned forward and looked down the table at his brot
her. “Should we try to rustle up a pool, Jus?”

  “We could try, but who’s going to bet against her?”

  “There are always a few who think they’ll be able to beat her.”

  “I’ll take your bets,” Cooper said, and everyone turned to look at him in surprise.

  “You want to bet against me?” Charlie asked.

  Cooper stuck his tongue in his cheek and nodded. “That’s right. I’m putting my money on someone else.”

  She opened her mouth and stared at him, unable to believe he’d want to root for someone other than her. Even if he did think there was someone who could beat her, he should be pulling for her. And the fact that he would go so far as to bet money against her, well…hurt.

  The awkwardness and her surprised reaction to Cooper’s declaration didn’t escape her four cousins, their own reactions varying between averted glances and clearing throats.

  “You, umm, probably don’t want to take that bet, Coop,” Justin said, looking slightly worried. Charlie wasn’t sure if her cousin was trying to save Cooper a few bucks or the argument they’d be having later tonight if he bet against her.

  “Yeah, Coop, bad idea,” Blake put in, giving Cooper a couple of eye warnings that made it clear he wasn’t talking about the contest. “Nobody’s going to beat Charlie.”

  “I think there’s someone who can.” Apparently Cooper wasn’t picking up on her cousins’ warnings, or he didn’t care.

  “Really,” Charlie said tightly, trying to cover her hurt with a little bravado. “Who are you putting your money on if not me?”

  Cooper looked down at her and smiled. “Me.”

  “What?” several voices asked in unison.

  Charlie started laughing. “Good one, Cooper. You got me. I thought you were serious there for a minute.”

  “I am serious.” He kept watching her, with an odd look in his eyes that seemed to be a mixture of confidence and amusement. “I’ve been practicing.”

  She stared at him again and then shook her head. Her hurt had dissipated, but she still couldn’t believe he actually wanted to compete against her. He had to know he didn’t stand a chance, and if he thought she’d let him win, he didn’t know her very well. She’d never throw a contest just to soothe his male ego.

  “Okay, you’re on,” she said, “but don’t think I’ll go easy on you.”

  “I want to raise the stakes.”

  She started to laugh again. “A private bet?”

  “That’s right.” His eyes burned into hers, and she wondered what could possibly be driving him. There was a good chance he’d be taking a lot of ribbing from her cousins and some of his friends when she beat him. She could try to talk him out of it and save him the embarrassment, but he seemed determined to see this through.

  “It’s your reputation, Cooper. Let’s hear it.”

  He drew in a breath, and his expression turned more serious, but his eyes never left hers. “If I win, you have to marry me.”

  Charlie didn’t move. There was noise around her but none of it registered. It felt as if her world had stopped spinning and everything stood still for that moment, a vacuum in time. She came out of the fog slowly.

  “You…you want to marry me?”

  “That’s the bet.”

  She looked down at her hands. “And if I win?”

  Cooper sighed. “Then I guess we go on as we are.”

  A LARGE crowd had gathered around the pond to watch the stone-throwing competition. There were eight other contestants in addition to them. Each contestant got two turns. At the end of the two rounds the scores were tallied, and the one with the highest score would be the winner.

  In the event of a tie for top score, another round, or rounds, would be played until someone won. This year, there were three contestants with a total of fifteen points after the two rounds were tallied: Charlie, Ed Barr, who’d always given her a run for the money, and Cooper.

  Clearly, he’d been practicing behind her back. Charlie still didn’t think he could beat her, but he had definitely improved since the night they’d met and thrown oyster shells across the marsh behind Mary’s Inn.

  After the first tiebreaker, Ed was eliminated, leaving her and Cooper with seven points each. She probably could have scored higher, but she’d gotten distracted when Cooper had walked behind her, patted her on the butt, and whispered good luck in her ear.

  They lined up for the next round.

  “Come on, Cooper!” Charlie heard a couple of her family members cheering him on. They all seemed to have switched sides. She tried not to let it bother her.

  Cooper was up first. He threw his stone and it flew flat and even, skipping six times before going down. Charlie’s heart sank with it.

  It was a decent throw, but not good enough. She could beat six skips with her eyes closed. She glanced over at Cooper.

  He stuffed his hands into his pockets and looked down at his feet, shaking his head as he kicked the sand with his toe. His disappointment was obvious. He’d really thought he could beat her, which must mean he was serious about wanting to marry her.

  Cooper loved her. She’d suspected it before he’d ever told her the words; he’d been saying it in other ways, even before they’d made love.

  “You’re up, Charlie,” Ralph, the score keeper called over to her.

  Cooper looked over at her and their eyes met, fused, black on gold, and she felt as if she were looking into his soul.

  “Charlie,” Ralph said again.

  She sucked in a breath and nodded, walking up to the mark. She fingered her rock, turning it over and over in her hand to test its weight. Luck was on her side; she couldn’t have gotten a more perfect specimen.

  Wrapping her index finger around the edge, she placed her thumb on top of the rock and looked out over the water—and then she sent it flying.

  Where are you taking me?” Charlie asked when Cooper turned onto Sassafras Lane, a gravel road that ran parallel with the river not far from Justin’s house.

  “We’re almost there.”

  “Where’s there?”

  He shot her an amused glance and chuckled. “I told you, it’s a surprise. Don’t be so impatient.”

  “Are you going to be this secretive when we get married?”

  He grinned broadly, still celebrating his victory in the Ducks and Drakes contest yesterday.

  Charlie turned her head toward the window and pretended to watch the landscape. She bit her bottom lip to keep her own smile from giving her away.

  “Here we are.” Cooper turned onto a dirt driveway lined with loblollies and holly trees. About two hundred feet ahead was a big Victorian house with a wraparound porch.

  It looked like it could use a little tender loving care, but if someone was willing to invest some time, they’d have a real beauty on their hands.

  The house backed up to the river. Just above the roofline, the sun was beginning to set. Streaks of orange, gold, and pink marched across the sky and bathed the Victorian in a wash of soft light.

  Cooper parked and they got out of the car.

  “Come on, girl.” Charlie opened the back door and Whitney jumped out. She was so well behaved that she sat down and looked up, waiting for a sign. Charlie flung her hand out. “Go ahead,” she said with a laugh, and the dog took off running around the property, anxious to explore someplace new.

  “It’s gorgeous here.” Charlie glanced around as they walked toward the porch, taking everything in. There were woods on both sides, but the house sat on a clearing about four hundred feet wide.

  At one time someone had landscaped the grounds. It looked like no one had lived here for a while, though, and the gardens had since become overgrown with weeds.

  She caught a movement out of the corner of her eye and turned toward the woods in time to see a bushy red fox scurry into the underbrush.

  As she continued to look around, she remembered a conversation they’d had a couple of days earlier, and it dawned on her why they must
have come out here.

  “This is the listing you were telling me about, isn’t it?” She turned and looked back at the house. “The Victorian house you wanted to show to that single woman.”

  Cooper slipped his arm around her shoulder. “This is the one.”

  “Is that why we’re here? Are you going to be showing it to her this afternoon?”

  He nodded. “Yes.”

  “Well, you were right, it does need a little work, but it could be a fabulous home for the right person. Do you think she’s going to like it?”

  “I hope so. What do you think?”

  Charlie glanced back toward the house. “It’s hard to say. I mean, I don’t know your client’s situation, or what she likes. If it were me...well…” She shrugged.

  Cooper turned her toward him and lifted her chin with his finger. “If it were you, what?”

  There was something about the way he looked at her that gave her pause. She angled her head, studying his expression. A smile began to take form in her heart. It spread to her face, then to his.

  “Oh, Cooper! I love it!” She threw her arms around his neck.

  He lifted her up and spun her around. “It’s in better shape than it looks. A lot of it’s just cosmetic.”

  “I don’t care about any of that. I’m not afraid of a project. We’ll hire Blake to do the work. It’ll be gorgeous!”

  “I’d like to put a hot tub in the backyard. We can sit out there at night, have some wine, and watch the sun set.”

  “I’d like to fill it with kids. I want at least three.”

  “Two,” he said. “A boy and a girl.”

  “Three,” she countered. “And we’ll take what we get.”

  “Of course we will, but one of each would be nice, and two’s a nice even number.”

  “Three. And I think we should have them no more than a year or so apart so they’ll all be close.”

  Cooper frowned. “I’ll skip you for it.”

  Charlie took a step back from him and put her hands on her hips.