Aiden pointed to the kids playing and said, “Did you do that when you were young?”
“Of course. Every kid who grew up on the island probably did. What else are you going to do when your parents are canoodling at a table?”
He pressed his lips to hers and said, “I’d like to canoodle with you.”
They meandered in and out of shops, picking up a few gifts for Patrice and Olive. Abby flitted from one display to the next, commenting on how much she liked this or that. It didn’t seem to matter if they were in a candle shop, a boutique, or an art gallery. She found something to love in every one of the shops. She continued to amaze him. She’d spent days stressing over recipes, testing and tweaking, and planned to serve far too many dishes for the tasting with their friends this weekend. The judging of the competition, the biggest day of her life, was less than a week away, and here she was, fully present, carefree, and enjoying every moment. He could watch her all day, survive on her enthusiasm rather than oxygen. But what he really needed to do was learn from her. Learn her secrets to striking a balance before he went back to work full-time.
“Look, a musician.” Abby tugged Aiden out of an art gallery toward the courtyard, where a crowd had gathered around a young guy playing guitar by the fountain. He had shaggy dark hair and wore wire-framed glasses, hemp pants, and leather sandals. A dalmatian lay by his open guitar case. Inside the case was a sign that read DONATIONS FOR AUTISM ARTS APPRECIATED.
As a practice, Aiden donated twenty-five percent of his income to charity. He tossed a few twenties into the guitar case, making a mental note to look up the cause to see if he should add it to his annual donations list.
“That was nice of you,” Abby said as he drew her into his arms, swaying to the beat. “Nobody else is dancing.”
“That’s their loss.” He kissed her and said, “This place, this courtyard, reminds me of Salvador de Bahia in Brazil.”
Surprise sparked in her eyes. “You’ve been to Brazil?”
“Mm-hm.” He kissed her again. “I do a fair amount of international travel for work, so I bought a little villa there. Maybe sometime in the off-season, when the Bistro is closed, we can sneak away, and I’ll show you around. It’s gorgeous in February.” She was looking at him like she saw puppies again. “What is that adorable look for?”
“You just put us together months from now like we’re a given.”
“Is that too presumptuous?” They were great together, and while he would come back for the grand opening as he’d promised, he wanted more.
“No,” she said happily. “I want that, too. But you talk about Brazil like it’s Boston, right around the corner. I’ve never been anywhere besides New York.”
“Then maybe I can show you the world one week at a time, during your off-season, of course.”
“Aiden . . . ?” She laughed. “You’re crazy.”
“You should have a chat with my friend Runner Girl. She told me I was too romantic for my own good.”
“You are romantic. But you’re also crazy.”
“Crazy about you, that’s for sure.” He gave her a chaste kiss and motioned in the direction of a row of shops they hadn’t yet explored. “Let’s go check out the rest of the stores, see what we can find.”
“This store has Abby written all over it,” Aiden said as they approached a funky little shop with WHIMSICAL THINGS painted on the glass above the purple door and a mannequin out front wearing aviator sunglasses, a floppy woven hat with a pink flower on the front, a white shirt with WHIMSICAL THINGS printed across the chest, and bright yellow pants. Several elegant necklaces and a rainbow boa hung around the mannequin’s neck, and its arm was bent at the elbow, hand palm up, as if it were presenting the shopper with a gift. Three expensive-looking bracelets decorated its wrist, and a gold hanging light with pink fringe hung from its fingers.
“Aiden, look!” Abby went to the mannequin and touched the hanging light. “This is just like the kind of light my dad would have put up in the Bistro!” She looked at the price tag and exclaimed, “No way! It’s only fifteen dollars.” She snagged the light, clutching it against her chest, and said, “I’m getting this. I wasn’t sure where to buy lights, but this is perfect! Let’s see what else they have.”
She threw open the door, thrilled at the mix of chic and eclectic items before her. Colorful rugs were spread over hardwood floors, creating alcoves of funky chairs and interesting wall hangings. There were candles and pottery bowls, pillows and planters. Several funky lights of varying sizes, shapes, and colors hung from the ceiling, as if her father had sprinkled his magic all over the store.
She moved from one display to the next, checking out fancy wineglasses and rustic decorations. “Look at the prices. I can actually afford these things.” She found another great light and snatched it off the table. “Aiden, I think I’m in love.”
“You and me both.”
The depth of emotion in his voice drew her attention. He was standing a few feet away, holding the bag of gifts he’d bought for the girls in one hand and reaching for her with the other as he closed the distance between them. The emotions in his voice were nothing compared to the ones looking back at her. She clutched the lights against her chest to keep from dropping them as he slid his hand beneath her hair, drawing her closer, and said, “Only I don’t think, Abs. I know. And I’m not falling, baby. I fell. I’m there.”
She was breathing too hard, tears burning her eyes. “Aiden?” came out shaky and unsure, though there was nothing unsure about the way she felt, and that rattled her, but she could no sooner change her feelings than eke out another word.
“I fell in love with you like night takes over day—soaking up every little thing you did and said, until you were all I saw, all I wanted. Until you were so much a part of me, I no longer knew how to be me without you.”
A tear slipped down her cheek, and a nervous laugh tumbled out.
He brushed the tear away with the pad of his thumb and said, “I love you, Abigail de Messiéres. I love your determination and your vulnerabilities. I love the way you let your heart lead your decisions and how you put your whole beautiful self into everything you do.”
She gasped for air, her chest too full to speak. He lowered his lips to hers, kissing her slow and sweet, drawing the words out as their lips parted, and she said, “I fell, too.”
Someone sniffled, and they both looked in the direction of the sound. A kind-faced older woman with gray hair was wiping her eyes. “I’m sorry. That was so . . .” She sighed.
Abby laughed nervously and touched her forehead to Aiden’s chest.
“Thank you.” Aiden kissed the top of Abby’s head.
“I’m Beverly. Let me take those lights for you so you can seal those lovely words with a proper kiss.”
Aiden held Abby tighter and said, “Thank you, but would you mind taking a picture of us first?”
“Not at all. You want the lights in the picture?” Beverly asked.
“Yes, please.” He gazed into Abby’s eyes as he pulled his phone from his pocket and said, “I want to remember this moment just as it is.”
He navigated to the camera and handed Beverly his phone. Aiden gazed into Abby’s eyes as Beverly took the picture. He put his arm around Abby, and Beverly took another picture, both of them beaming at the camera.
“Thank you,” Aiden said, taking his phone. “I’ll text you copies, Abs.”
He sent the pictures as Abby handed the lights to Beverly and said, “Thank you. I definitely want to buy those.”
“Wonderful. Take your time looking around. I’ll be by the register if you need me.”
Abby was floating on cloud nine as they looked around the store, kissing, whispering I love yous, and holding hands. She wanted to dance, to sing, to shout her love from the rooftops. She wanted to call Deirdra, Cait, and Leni and share her happiness with the world! But all of that would have to wait, because as much as she wanted to gloat and celebrate with her friends, what she
wanted even more was to be with Aiden, reveling in their newly claimed love and the confessions she hadn’t seen coming and couldn’t have held back if she’d wanted to.
They found three more fun lights for the Bistro and two great pictures for the walls. When they finally made their way to the register, Beverly said, “You sure do like lights. I wonder if I can interest you in taking a few larger lights off my hands?”
“Larger lights?” Abby asked.
“These are beauties, but they’re big and much too heavy for me to get into the showroom. They’ve been collecting dust and taking up space in my stockroom for years.” Beverly glanced at Aiden and said, “Are you in a hurry, or can you take a moment to peek at them?”
“We’d love to take a look,” Aiden said.
Beverly came around the counter, and they followed her through a door in the back of the store, into a stockroom where a teenage girl was sitting on the floor texting and blowing a bubble with her gum.
“Honey, I thought you were doing inventory,” Beverly said, bringing the dark-haired girl’s eyes to them. “This is my granddaughter, Medina.”
Medina pushed to her feet and said, “Hi. I was doing inventory, but Chip and I broke up again. I was texting him to say we’re over for good this time, and don’t worry. I’m fine. This was my decision.”
“I’m glad you’re okay. If you want to talk—”
“I don’t. I’m fine.”
“Okay, great. I want to show this lovely couple a few things,” Beverly said. “Would you mind watching the store?”
“Sure.”
After Medina walked out, Beverly said, “I would not want to be sixteen again. Young love is like a Ping-Pong match.”
She led them toward the back of the stockroom, around a row of metal shelves, and stopped by something covered by a tarp. “Here they are.”
Beverly grabbed one side of the tarp and said, “Would you mind?”
Aiden took hold of the other side of the tarp, and together they pulled it off, revealing three enormous chandeliers.
Abby’s breath left her lungs in a whoosh. She grabbed Aiden’s hand, excitement bursting inside her. They were almost identical to the chandeliers her father had used at the Bistro, but each one had colored crystals hanging from the bottom rim instead of clear. One had green, another blue, and the third had pink. “They’re gorgeous. Where did you get them?”
“I don’t recall. I’m sorry. My brain is like the Bermuda Triangle these days,” Beverly said.
“Aiden, they’re so similar to the ones my dad used at the Bistro.” Abby walked around them, goose bumps rising on her flesh as she admired the gleaming crystals. Her father really had sprinkled his magic around that store. The café chairs had been delivered, and they definitely enhanced the ambience. The lights would pull it all together. They were the pièces de résistance.
She wanted to buy them, but it sure felt more like a need. The trouble was, she also needed two months of capital, and she’d spent thousands of dollars on unexpected renovations. She and Aiden had gone over the budget again this week. They’d rerun the staffing numbers and came up with a new estimate of monthly food costs since inclement weather wouldn’t necessarily mean fewer customers. She was already skating a very thin line of being able to keep her head above water. There was no way she could spend what she was sure would be thousands of dollars for each chandelier.
“Abs, you need these,” Aiden said.
Abby turned away from Beverly and whispered, “I can’t afford them.”
“I can help.” Before she could respond, he said, “Beverly, how much would you like for these?”
Abby glowered at him. She was not going to let him pay for the lights.
“Oh, I don’t know. I haven’t thought much about it.” Beverly cocked her head, looking at the chandeliers, and said, “I’d just like them out of here so I can have the storage space back. Do you think three hundred each is fair?”
Abby whirled around. “Yes! I’ll take them! All three!” She squealed and hugged Aiden. “I had a feeling when I walked in here that my dad was here with me, and I think he really must be!”
“Good things come to good people, Abs.” Aiden kissed her and said, “Thank you, Beverly. You’ve made my girlfriend very happy.”
“I think you made her even happier with three very special words a little while ago.” She winked and said, “Let’s go work out the details.”
They made arrangements for the chandeliers to be delivered and enjoyed a romantic dinner in Chaffee. As they sailed back toward the harbor, neither one wanted their perfect day to end. They anchored outside the harbor and made themselves a nest of blankets beneath the stars. They took off their shoes and got cozy with Abby’s back against Aiden’s chest, his hands over hers, their fingers interlaced. The gentle waves and the sounds of the sea lulled them into a peaceful silence.
“We should make a wish,” Aiden suggested. “It’s on our list.”
Abby’s heart was so full, she couldn’t imagine what she would wish for other than Aiden never leaving the island, but she played along. “Okay. You first.”
“Let’s make them together.”
“Mine can’t come true. The only thing I want isn’t realistic.”
“A very special woman once told me that dreams are made of what ifs.” He kissed her cheek and said, “So tell me, my love. What are wishes made of?”
“Miracles,” she said wistfully.
“Then I say we go big.” He took her hand in his and kissed the back of it. “Let’s shoot for miracles, Runner Girl.”
She tilted her face, smiling up at him. “This is a super-big one.”
“Then we’ll wish extra hard.” He kissed her and said, “Close your eyes.” When she did, he whispered in her ear, “Wish hard, baby, because I want all your dreams to come true.”
She wished as hard as she could, and then she relaxed again, trying not to think about his leaving. But that was like trying not to breathe. Their confessions of love had brought elation and a sense of peace that was stronger than the undercurrent of Abby’s worries about expectations and disappointments. But old habits die hard, and those worries refused to go away, lingering like a slow-moving creek, its babbling nearly imperceptible. A subtle reminder that if a storm hit, the creek would flood and upend everything in its path—a reminder of why she needed to be in complete control of her life at all times. She laughed softly. How could anyone be in control when love showed its all-powerful, beautiful face?
Aiden pressed a kiss to her head and said, “What’s funny, babe?”
“Life.” She tipped her chin up, shifting so her side was against his chest and she could see his handsome face. “I was a workaholic, dedicated to my job above all else. I dated a guy for almost a year and never gave much thought to when I’d see him again during the times we were apart. Then you come along and effortlessly change the way I live. I have spent more time enjoying life since meeting you than I have in almost twenty years. And somehow we also managed to give the Bistro a fabulous face-lift and get the entire business almost up and running. And still we had time to connect with my friends, clean out my mom’s house, get to know Cait, and for this. For us. How did we do it?”
He pulled one of the blankets around her shoulders and said, “I’m at as much of a loss as you are. Before you came into my life, time off was spent planning or analyzing work. But the truth is, I’ve barely even thought about work since our first breakfast together, and while that should scare the life out of me, it’s had the opposite effect. It’s made me appreciate all that I’ve been missing. And the best answer I can come up with as to how this happened is that we, two self-professed workaholics, have finally found someone, something—the love between us—that is more interesting, more meaningful, and more powerful than the work we’d been hiding behind.”
“I don’t think I’ve been hiding.”
He brushed his lips over her cheek and whispered, “Hiders never think they’re hiding
. Myself included.” He smiled and said, “I knew you’d become more important than work when I was at the road show. Nobody but Remi has ever come before work. But today, as I watched you getting excited about lights and knickknacks, I thought about all that I’ll be missing when I go back to work, and I felt it here.” He put his hand over his heart. “Like rocks stacking up, jagged and wrong. I’ve never been in love before, so I have no basis to compare my feelings to, but love like ours is scary, Abs. We found something in each other we’ve never found before, and it soothed the workaholic in us. We trusted each other early on, shared the details of the things we’ve kept locked inside or had told very few people. I think our connection brought us both out of hiding. You were afraid to believe in someone, and I was afraid to let anyone come ahead of Remi. And for the last two years, it was more comfortable to hide behind work than to go out and find the life I never felt I was lacking. But from the moment I met you, hiding and working were the last things I wanted to do.”
His words burrowed inside her, touching all the places she had no idea longed to be touched. Then again, Aiden had a way of reading her mind and fixing things before she even had a chance to voice her concerns. Last weekend she’d been silently lamenting their time together coming to an end. On their way to the hardware store to pick out paint colors for the living room, junk room, and her mother’s bedroom, he told her he’d made arrangements to come back to stay for the entire week of the grand opening. And just like that, she’d felt better.
Maybe We Will (Silver Harbor) Page 31