Hold Me Now: Hope Harbor

by Harrison, Ann B

  “It happens every year. A foodie’s paradise. I’ve been asked by one chef I greatly admire to help him set up something special. I was hoping to use that event to promote the oysters, if at all possible.”

  Atticus looked between Hilary and Arlo. “And if Arlo says no?”

  “I guess I’ll have to think of something else. But it’s a golden opportunity to showcase your shellfish to the best food critics in Seattle.” She chewed on her lip. “No pressure. Just something to think about.”

  Gigi took that moment to wander over and butt into the conversation. “Atticus, stop hounding the poor girl. Arlo can decide later.” She gave her nephew a beaming smile as she grabbed her brother’s arm. “I’ve wrapped the fish. Come and put it on the grill for me and leave these young ones alone.”

  Bryce laughed as Gigi dragged him away. “Atticus has a fair point, though. Hey, I’m in favor of signing, Arlo, because that would save me the job of worrying about buyers and sourcing new contacts. I’d rather put all of my time into the actual work because we are getting busier with the expansion. But I do wonder how long it will be before someone comes knocking on the door trying to get us to sell fresh out of the ocean to them.”

  Hilary opened her mouth to answer but stopped when a dark-haired woman bounded over and threw her arms around Arlo from behind. “Hey brother, introduce me to your lady.” She gave Hilary a saucy smile, her inquisitive eyes raking her body.

  Arlo swallowed and gave her a stare Hilary couldn’t decipher. “Hilary, meet my crazy sister, Agnes. Agnes, this is Hilary, as you well know because you’ve all been talking about her.”

  “Call me Aggie, please. Everyone does!” She glared at her brother. “I can’t stay long. My turn to start the baking today, and I have paperwork to do beforehand.”

  “You bake?” Hilary shook her hand and felt instantly drawn to her despite the scrutiny.

  “Yes, I own the island bakery. I brought a loaf of artisan sourdough for lunch. New recipe I wanted to try. Olive and sea salt.” She kissed the tips of her fingers. “I think it’s a winner but I’d like to hear what you think.”

  Hilary’s mouth watered. “Oh my goodness. Sourdough is my weakness.” Too much of it could only be a good thing in her book. Sourdough for breakfast, lunch and dinner was never enough.

  Arlo put his arm around her shoulders and she snuggled into him. “You’re in luck then. Aggie is the best baker I know.”

  Aggie slapped him on the shoulder. “You’re biased, big brother. But you have to be.”

  He feigned pain. “No, I don’t. You’re seriously good at what you do so admit it and take the praise for once. You’re always blowing off compliments when you should be shining with pride and puffing out your chest. That bakery was on its last legs when you took it over and now look at it.”

  There was an undercurrent running between brother and sister. “Back at you.” Aggie sniffed, turned her nose up, and walked away.

  “That was weird. Is she always like that?” Hilary watched her leave and felt confused.

  “Afraid so. You can’t tell her how good she is because she doesn’t believe it. Always doubts herself more than anyone should. But you wait until you taste her bread. It’s unbelievable. Considering she only brought the bakery a few years ago and had never cooked anything before that, she’s got an amazing talent.”

  “I can’t wait to try it.”

  Bryce spoke up. “You were going to tell us how we could avoid people dropping in, Hilary.”

  * * *

  She seemed to squirm under Bryce’s stare.

  “I can’t guarantee anything, Bryce—nobody can. All I can do is promise not to make it obvious where you are. Arlo has to make the decision whether or not to go with me based on that possibly happening.”

  Bryce raised an eyebrow. Hilary looked as though her world was crumbling around her as Arlo and Bryce shared a glance, then Arlo stepped up to have his say. “I guess that’s all we can hope for then. We’ve survived so far with only the odd person dropping in on the farm. Guess we can survive more if we have to.”

  Her face lit up. “Really? You’ll take a chance on me?”

  “Why not? You’ve put together a great plan. Bryce liked it from the beginning and so did my father. Guess you won us all over, Hilary.”

  She grabbed his face in her hands and planted a kiss on his lips. All the lonely hours he’d spent since Hilary had left the island came up in that moment, emotions sweeping him away with their intensity. Arlo ignored everyone around them as he slid his arms around her back and held her close. All he could think of was getting rid of the family so they could be alone.

  Her eyes shone when he broke the kiss. “Thank you, Arlo. You have no idea how much this means to me.”

  He dropped his voice so only she could hear him. “I hope it means I’ll see more of you from now on. Is that going to work for you, Hilary?” He could see his father watching them from the grill. He’d no doubt be worried Arlo was going to get his heart broken.

  A smile broke out across her lips and she touched his mouth with a fingertip. “I told you I wouldn’t get business and pleasure mixed up and I meant it. Gratitude from me is usually a handshake and a bottle of wine. I wanted this deal for the right reasons, Arlo, and I want to find out if we have something as well. That’s if you’re keen to explore that with me.” She chewed on her bottom lip. “I don’t want to rush in if it’s not a possibility. You need to tell me if you want me to back off. Nothing like getting my hopes up and then dashed all in one day.”

  After so many years without someone, was he doing the right thing getting involved with Hilary? He had no idea if he was, but he wanted to find out what being in love was like. Something about that woman made him want to take the chance. “Will you stay after everyone goes home so we can talk about it?”

  The light dimmed in her eyes, and he thought he’d phrased it wrong. “Arlo, if you want to say no, say it now and get it over with. I can’t handle the suspense of waiting if I’m going to get a rejection from you.”

  He licked his lips. There would be no taking this back once it was out of his mouth. “It won’t be a no, but you may want to really think about it. I’m not the same as every other guy, Hilary. I don’t like the whole dating scene and going out much. I’m more the stay-at-home kind of guy. I don’t…”

  “Like people. Yeah, I get that. I understand, Arlo. You’re different and I think that’s a good thing. I wasn’t looking for same, same. I can find that anywhere.” She laughed. “To be honest, I wasn’t looking, period.”

  “Me either. Please stay after the family goes this afternoon. We can talk about it then, okay?”

  In answer, Hilary put a hand around his neck and brought his face down for another kiss. This one rocked him to the core and blocked out almost everything but Hilary. Sadly, he could still hear the giggles and whistles coming from his nosy but well-meaning family.

  Wow. This was moving fast, but Arlo had no plans to put on the brakes. When he moved his lips from hers, Arlo gave her a grin and flipped his family the bird. “Ignore them.”

  Later that afternoon after everyone had gone home, Arlo and Hilary lay back on the couch with her computer between them. She had the proposed website up and walked him through it. “This is what I’ve done so far. Just let me load those photos up so I can show you how it will look with them in the right position. I think you’ll be pretty pleased with it.”

  He played with her hair while she worked, twisting the silky softness around his fingers. He was still amazed that she wasn’t scared off by his lack of enthusiasm for going out among the living.

  Hilary clicked away at the keys while he sat in quiet repose. Eventually she nudged him. “Here. What do you think?” She turned the laptop around so he could see the photos.

  Arlo looked at them, his mouth open. How on earth had she managed to capture the way he saw his farm? For years he’d thought he was the only one who saw the breathtaking beauty surrounding him. He
thought he exaggerated how perfect the farm was, but those photos proved him right. Hilary had managed to capture the ideal gallery of the place like nobody else had.

  “What I was thinking was, if we use these photos”—she pointed out a few others—“I doubt anyone would be able to say, ‘hey, that’s Arlo’s place’, or ‘that must be a shellfish farm we’ve driven past’ unless they were family or already knew the farm. Nobody from the city is going to see these and end up on your doorstep unless it’s an accident and they happen. Let’s face it, you’re always going to get someone who takes the wrong turnoff looking for someone else and ends up on your doorstep. Fact of life. If you were to take down the sign from the front gate, that’d help.” She scrolled up a bit. “Especially if I put this photo in, people are going to be looking for it.”

  She was a devious little thing. Fancy thinking of it like that. The front gate with his old worn sign stared back at him. “So, you put this photo up on the website and by being so obvious, nobody will find the place because I’m going to take it down?”

  Hilary grinned and gave a giggle. “It’s one way to look at it. What do you think?” She tucked her feet up under her butt and leaned into him. “I reckon they’d go right past this place and not give it a second thought.”

  “I think you’re very clever and I like it.”

  “So you’re going to sign the contact then?” The doubt still hovered in her eyes and he wanted nothing more than to brush it away.

  “Yes, I am. And I’m going to ask you something that has nothing to do with the deal between us too.” He put the computer to one side and cupped her cheeks in his hands.

  Her mouth opened but no words came out. “I want you to stay tonight. Don’t go back to Matt’s. Stay here with me and we can get to know each other better. No strings, no sex, if that’s what you want. Just the two of us here alone. What do you say?”

  Hilary pulled his mouth to hers and Arlo had his answer.

  Chapter 17

  His offer of no sex rang in her ears as she got ready for bed. They’d slept together before when she was injured and managed to keep their hands to themselves but she hadn’t been in any fit state to think about anything but her pain. The magnetism between them couldn’t be ignored. Hilary felt it every time they made eye contact or touched each other. It was the kiss that did it. The one for which his family ribbed him mercilessly before lunch.

  She slid between the sheets and waited nervously for him to come back into the room. Last time she was there, she hadn’t taken more than a curious glance of her surroundings to realize it was his room, but now she had a chance to see Arlo in a more personal space.

  The shower shut off and Hilary tensed. You know you want to do this, Hilary. Stop being a wuss and grow up.

  The door opened and her heart pounded. Arlo walked in with a towel around his hips and a grin on his face. “Hey.”

  “Hey yourself.” Her gaze raked his chest. A light smattering of hair trailed from his beard down to his belly button but it was the lean muscles on his belly that caught her attention.

  Arlo leaned over and placed a kiss on her lips, stealing her breath. Hilary wound her arms around his neck and pulled him down onto the bed. She was so ready for this despite her earlier nerves. Arlo was the man she wanted to be with and that meant in every single way. Sex was definitely on the table.

  * * *

  When it was time for Hilary to get up and catch the ferry the following morning, Arlo didn’t want to let her go. “I feel as though we’re just getting to know each other.”

  Their slow lovemaking last night had left him breathless and wanting more time with her. She was perfect for him in every way. There had been no moments of panic or indecision. Quiet, gentle touches on his face and body woke feelings of love for Hilary that he’d never expected to experience. Everything had fallen into place as though they were meant to be. After she’d fallen asleep with her hand on his chest, Arlo had watched her face relax and her eyelids flicker with dreams.

  The idea that he might have contributed to those images in her mind awakened him to the possibilities if he confessed his feelings. Not wanting to scare her away with such an early admission kept him awake long into the night before he finally succumbed to dreams of his own.

  Greeting the new day with her in his bed, her arms wound around him, had been the best wake up call ever. If he could’ve kept her there forever, he’d have done it.

  Hilary stretched her arms over her head and rolled toward him. “Thank you for a perfect night.”

  Those words calmed his nerves. Arlo stroked his finger down her cheek. “Thank you. I wish the weekend would drag out for another few days. I like having you here.”

  She smiled. “Not half as much as I like being here. Going back to Seattle isn’t the most inviting idea but I have work to do.”

  “Is it possible to work from the island?” The words were out before he could think. Why couldn’t she stay more often?

  Doubt clouded her eyes. “But we don’t know each other.”

  “I know enough about you that I want you to stay with me, Hilary. If you want to take some time to think about it and make up your mind, I’m cool with that too. But”—he kissed the palm of her hand, making her squirm—“I’d like nothing more than for you to make your home here with me.”

  “Won’t your family think that’s strange? I mean, we’ve only just met.”

  Arlo laughed. “I always figured that when love came calling, I’d know. I know in my heart and that’s all that matters. They want me to be happy and you, Hilary French, make me very happy.”

  “You make me happy too but I have so much going on in Seattle. I have an apartment, contacts and friends. I’d have to be very sure before I made the move.”

  He stroked his fingers down her cheek. “Do you want to make the move or am I rushing you?”

  “To be honest, I’m a little bit scared. I know I want to be with you but taking that step is huge. Cutting my ties and packing up my life is going to take a massive leap of faith on my part. I don’t know if I’m ready yet.” She kissed his lips as he opened them to speak. “Don’t get me wrong; I want to be with you. But you’ve lived here all your life while my life has always been somewhere else. I have to be sure I want to let that go.”

  He lay back on the pillow trying not to let the disappointment hurt. Perhaps he should’ve taken more time before he said the “love” word. “I do understand. I really do.” He grabbed her hand and wound his fingers through hers. “Go home, take stock of the situation. Make sure you want to do this, and when you’re ready, I’ll be waiting.”

  Hilary slipped her leg over his. “Are you sure you don’t mind?”

  He smiled. “I’d be lying if I said I won’t miss you, but you have to be sure in your own mind that this is what you want. I don’t want to be the one pushing you to make the move and have you pack up and go because you can’t stand the quiet life. As you rightly pointed out, I’m used to it.”

  “I want this to work between us. I’ve never felt so at ease as I do around you.” She put her head on his chest and Arlo wrapped his arms around her hoping like hell that she would come to the same conclusion that he had. They were meant to be together. “Promise me one thing. Call me often. I love lying in bed listening to your voice. If I can’t have you here in person until you make up your mind, we can at least talk all the time.”

  She toyed with the hair at his throat. “I could come over most weekends. That way we can see how well we get on living together on a part-time basis. It’s a start.”

  He did a mental fist pump. Yes! “Good thought. I like that idea. I get to see you, you get used to the island and being with me. Very sensible.”

  “I think it’s a great idea. I have an agent who handles most of the produce when it comes into the market but I do have to be around for meetings and any issues the buyers have. Considering most of that happens mid-week, I doubt I’d get disturbed too much on the weekend.”

/>   Arlo grinned like a little kid. “It’s a plan. . Now I’ll get you some coffee so you can wake up properly.” He threw back the covers and crawled out of bed.

  Chapter 18

  Hilary sat on the edge of the jetty with Bear by her side watching the seagulls dip and dive after the small baitfish while Bryce, Sam and Arlo put the final touches on the new trays ready for the upcoming harvest. She’d been back most weekends over the last few months, though she’d stayed one weekend with her parents to seek their advice before she made up her mind to make the move. They’d been happy for her but concerned she was moving too fast, not taking the time to get to know Arlo better before leaving her city life behind. But Hilary was convinced it would work between them.

  She’d set up his website, blogged about his produce and now they were just waiting for the first crop of oysters to be ready to go to market. Excitement was building amongst her chefs and she’d had more restaurants come on board wanting his produce. She’d taken on a couple of favorite cooks, but some were turned away for various reasons. Preference was given to existing customers, and she’d promised some they could go on the waiting list. No point in over-extending her customer base if she didn’t have the produce to supply them. If everything went to plan, Arlo would just be able to keep up with demand, and that was how she liked it.

  The chug of an outboard motor broke the silence. Arlo pulled himself up on the jetty and stood to watch the boat come toward them. He held up his hand to try and stop the boat but it kept on coming.

  Bryce and Sam joined him on the jetty waving their arms to try and stop the boat coming closer. “Hey, hey. Stop! Doesn’t he see the buoys? He’s going to run over the oyster bags the way he’s going. He shouldn’t be in water this shallow.”

  It was like watching a horror film unfold. The boat kept coming closer, motoring precariously close to one of the oyster frames where mature shellfish hung for their final few weeks to plump up and fill out.