by Olivia Miles
He pushed out of his chair and came to step behind hers, leaning down until his chin was near her shoulder, his breath in her ear, his cheek so close to hers that she felt her entire body stiffen. He reached down and took her hand softly in his, lifting it as he dragged it ever so slightly to the right and then stopped.
“Do you see that white spot, between the two pines?”
She swallowed hard, feeling the scratch of his stubble on her skin. She wasn’t sure what she was looking at, and she no longer cared so much about seeing the house, not with the heat of Billy’s body so close to hers, making her barely even trust herself to speak. “Yes.”
“That’s my house.” He could have dropped her hand then, stood, and took a few steps over to his chair, but instead, he stayed that way for what felt like an immeasurable about of time. She wondered if he was thinking what she was, that they were so close, all she had to do was turn her head ever so slightly and…
Their eyes locked, briefly, but long enough for her to know that she wasn’t imagining any of this. His mouth found hers before she could come up with a good excuse, and she didn’t resist. Instead, she kissed him back, savoring the sensation of his lips on hers, the excitement of being this close to the one person who had made every trip to the island so worthwhile.
“I was wondering if we would ever get a chance to do that,” Billy said, giving her a lazy grin.
She was too, not that she’d be saying so directly. “Well, up until recently I was married.”
“You know that was the biggest regret of my life,” Billy admitted, forcing Heather to look at him in surprise. “I mean, I wanted you to be happy, if you were happy, but I couldn’t help but kick myself for not taking a chance, seeing if there might have been more between us than just friends.”
Her heart was beating fast when she considered what might have been if she and Billy had kissed all those years ago and made her girlish dreams come true. She’d never have gotten together with Daniel. Never would have known the pain of their arguments, the depth of their mutual loss, and eventually the sadness of watching him walk out of the home they’d built together, leaving nothing but bare walls.
She’d loved Daniel, but in the end, that hadn’t been enough for her. Would it have been different with Billy?
“So what do you think?” He looked at her. “Is there a chance for us to be more than just friends?”
She swallowed hard, unable to answer his question even though she knew the answer in her heart of hearts. There wasn’t a chance, not for happiness, not with what he wanted and what she could give. But she wasn’t ready to tell him that just yet. She wasn’t ready to lose the magic of this one perfect moment.
“Oh now, you’re asking for a lot from just one kiss,” she said nervously, but that didn’t seem to deter Billy. His eyes sparkled with the challenge and he leaned down and kissed her again, softer this time, and deeper.
She finally pulled back when she knew that it was the last thing she wanted to do, but that it was best that she did. She needed to get home, clear her head, think things through. Because the only person she didn’t want to hurt any more than herself was Billy.
21
Andrea
Since they had run into each other at the coffeehouse, Andrea had spent the last two days with John, riding bikes, tasting fudge at his insistence, and doing all the things usually reserved for tourists, even though she was starting to feel like one herself. Today she was meeting him at his inn to hear some ideas he had for the next phase of redevelopment. She could see the suspicion in her youngest sister’s eyes when she stepped outside dressed and ready.
Kim arched an eyebrow from her perch on the patio chair. “No laptop again today?”
Andrea gave a little smile. “Nope. It feels sort of nice to be free of it.” She looked at the notebook and pen that Kim held in her hands, something she seemed to be frowning over. “Wedding details?”
“Seating plans,” Kim said. “I’m sure that Lynette already has it figured out, but there might be some additional guests.”
“Oh?” Andrea flushed, wondering for a moment if Kim was going to tease her about John, but both of her sisters had been strangely quiet about his arrival at the house on the weekend, instead choosing to exchange small smiles and knowing glances, which was preferable to a full interrogation. There was nothing to hide, but she wasn’t exactly sure that there was anything to share, either. And as for bringing him as a date to her sister’s wedding, well, for once, she couldn’t think that far out. By then she would be back in Chicago, the partnership would be determined. Life would be back to normal.
For some reason, this depressed her.
Kim, however, licked her lower lip: a sure sign that she was holding something back. “Well, you’ve seen how much time Heather and Billy have spent together on this trip. And I didn’t have Gemma and Leo or Hope and her husband on the list. That was a huge oversight. It’s a shame we haven’t made more of an effort with them while they were living in Chicago.”
Andrea nodded her agreement. It was difficult for her to make time for anyone in the city, including herself. Other than the gym, which was to burn off stress more than anything, and monthly highlights and trims at the salon, which was to maintain her appearance for client meetings, she couldn’t remember the last time she’d made time for fun, much less a social life.
“I could always add someone for you…” Kim’s smile was suggestive, but Andrea wasn’t going to take the bait. “You know, there’s something different about you. Something lighter. You laugh more now, ever since the party. It suits you.”
Andrea pulled in a breath. There was something lighter. Her shoulders felt less heavy. Her mind wasn’t so busy. She felt like she was able to think clearly for the first time in months, maybe years. Able to see for the first time in longer than that.
Still, she couldn’t pin it all on John. No, it was more than that. It was this house. The island. And the company.
“I’m not so sure that anything is going on with Heather and Billy,” she warned her sister. She was still perplexed by Heather’s refusal to see him on Saturday. They’d gotten along so well the night before at the party. There was a spark there—always had been. But Heather had been closed off and distant for a while now. “She’s just coming off a divorce. I wouldn’t press it.”
Kim seemed to consider this. “I’d just like to see her happy.”
“I think every bride says that.” Andrea laughed. She’d heard it said around the office enough times. Any time one of the women finally had that ring on her finger, she was suddenly eager to see everyone else matched up and as content as she was. Andrea had been on the receiving end of suggestions of setups one too many times, until she’d finally earned the reputation of being “married to her work.”
But it wasn’t true, not according to Pamela, and not in her own opinion, either. She had lost her passion along the way. Had stopped remembering why she loved it, why she cared, and why she was even doing it.
“Where is Heather, by the way?” she asked.
“Don’t know. Maybe she went to the market. You know how much she loves to cook, not that I’m complaining.”
“Me either,” Andrea grinned. She didn’t miss her take-out sandwiches or energy bars or soggy bowls of cereal before climbing into bed any more than she missed her empty apartment.
Kim closed the notebook firmly. “I think I’ll take a bike ride if you care to join me.”
“I’m meeting John,” Andrea said after a hesitation.
“Again?” Kim gave her a coy look that Andrea brushed away.
“We have a lot in common,” she insisted, even though she couldn’t convince herself that was all that it was. Like her, John was hard working and, contrary to her initial opinion of him, he understood the pressure of corporate life, and city life, too. And like her, he loved this island. “We’re friends. It’s nothing more than that.”
She could tell by her sister’s expression that she did
n’t believe that any more than Andrea did, and she began walking down the porch steps before she protested or explained further.
“Seeing as you’re meeting a friend,” Kim called out, “why don’t you at least let me lend you one of my outfits? For your date with your friend.”
Andrea rolled her eyes but then, looking down at her linen pants, wondered if her sister was right. She was still young, John was handsome…and she was dressed for a summer business lunch.
“You don’t expect me to wear those cut-off shorts, do you?”
Kim just smirked.
Three minutes later, they were standing in Kim’s bedroom at the back of the house, her belongings spread out before her on the four-poster bed covered in the same blue quilt that had been there long before Kim had even been born, back when this was just a spare room. Most of the clothes were too youthful or casual for Andrea’s comfort, but she couldn’t find an excuse for the cotton sundress Kim held out to her in a light shade of blue that she knew would look just as nice with her shade of auburn hair as it did with Kim’s slightly darker waves.
“You always did have a knack for dress-up,” she recalled fondly as she slipped into the dress and admired herself in the mirror, catching her sister’s wide smile over her shoulder.
It was strange to see an older image of that little girl staring back at her in the reflection. It had been so long since she and Kim had spent time like this, long enough for her to forget that Kim wasn’t a kid anymore. She was a grown woman, soon to be married, and maybe, in some areas, she even knew more than Andrea did.
“Now, let’s do something with this hair,” Kim said, pulling out a brush.
Andrea hurried up the path to the Lakeside Inn, the borrowed sundress swishing at her knees, her hair pulled back in a ponytail that Kim said showed off her “swanlike neck” and gave her a “playful appearance.” Andrea laughed now just thinking about it, but still, a part of her almost hoped that Kim was right. And she suspected that she was.
Today, she’d offered to look over some of John’s ideas for a new pool house at the inn. As arranged, John was waiting for her on the back porch, with the long, uninhibited view of the lake. He rose when she appeared in the doorway, pulling out a chair for her.
She couldn’t hide her smile as she sat down and scooted into the table, where he leaned in across from her, his eyes gleaming and unwavering. She wasn’t used to being under the focus like this.
“My sister did my hair, in case you’re wondering,” she said.
“It looks nice.” He grinned. “This is the second time I get to see you in a dress. Although, I’m not sure anything tops that wedding gown.”
She felt her cheeks flame. He had kindly not teased her about that embarrassing moment yet, but it would seem that the time had come.
“Just sisters being sisters,” she said, thinking of how much it was true.
He tipped his head. “Have you ever been married?”
She sipped the glass of lemonade that had already been set in front of her place. “No.” Pausing, she wondered if the same could be said for him. “You?”
He nodded. “I was married once before.”
Andrea knew she did a poor job of hiding her surprise. “Is that what brought you here?”
He shrugged. “In a way. I’m afraid I wasn’t a very good husband, at least according to my ex-wife. I worked too much. I was married to the job. Eventually, I realized that she was right, but by then our relationship was long over.” He dragged out a sigh. “We never had kids. I would have liked to have kids, but…again, I just never made the time.”
Andrea understood. She could be accused of the same herself, never making time for anything that she couldn’t pull up on a computer screen or deposit into her bank account. She didn’t even take vacations, other than this, didn’t enjoy the city restaurants or theatre scene or even take in a movie. She did well, she worked hard, but now she had started to question what it was all for if she didn’t get that partnership. Or even…if she did.
“And you never met anyone after that?” She found that hard to believe, with his looks and charm.
“I dated, but to answer your question, no. I did meet a special woman, last summer, actually, but it wasn’t meant to be, and that was okay. She went back to her home and I stayed here. This is where I belong, but I’d be lying if I said something wasn’t still missing.”
He’d tapped into something she couldn’t bring herself to admit—that something was missing from her life, too. That she’d managed to fill her time with work to stop from even thinking about anything else, but here, now, with this beautiful view all around her and this handsome man at her side, she dared to imagine how things might have been, if she’d taken a different path.
She’d thought her life was full. But now she realized, it wasn’t.
“I don’t remember seeing you on the island last summer,” John said, grinning at her.
Andrea pulled in a sigh. “I haven’t been back in a few years. My sisters have, but it’s been too difficult with my workload.” She gave him a knowing smile. “We’d planned to come back last summer with my mother, but we weren’t able to make that happen.”
Her heart felt heavy when she looked down at her hands, hating the tears that burned the back of her eyes and threatened to spill.
“All the more reason it’s good that you and your sisters are here now,” John said gently. “Were you close with your mother?”
Andrea nodded, managing to look up. “I’ve always been closer to my father, but yes, my mother was wonderful. I haven’t thought about her much. I’ve tried to think of anything but it, really. But now that I’m here… Well, it’s like you said. Sometimes you don’t realize what matters in life until it’s too late.”
Her phone buzzed, and she blinked in surprise, because it had been days since she’d checked for cell reception or searched for Wi-Fi.
“Work?” John just gave her a knowing look.
She looked down at her screen, seeing the text from Nicole, asking if everything was okay, expressing concern that she hadn’t heard from her all week, even though it was only Tuesday.
She smiled at John and turned off the phone before slipping it into her bag. “The office checking in.”
“I don’t miss those days,” he said.
No, she didn’t get the impression that he did. Still, the transition couldn’t have been without a few internal struggles or at least some doubt. “You don’t get lonely here then? Or…”
He cocked an eyebrow. “Bored?”
Her grin was rueful. “It’s hardly the pace of city life.”
“And that’s why I prefer it. All that business in the city…” He shook his head and looked out over the water. “It didn’t mean anything at the end of the day. It was empty, and this is so much more satisfying. Here, I feel like I’m able to do what I love, watch people enjoy it, and carry down some traditions that I’m only just now lucky enough to be a part of every day. But as for being lonely.” He gave her a long look. “I’m fine on my own, I’m used to being on my own, but I welcome the opportunity to share all this with someone special.”
Andrea’s heart began to pound as he continued to look at her across the table and she broke his gaze, looking instead at the blueprints he had, eager to steer this back to territory that was in her comfort zone, even if right now she wouldn’t mind another bike ride like yesterday.
She gave her thoughts on the plans, and he nodded at her suggestions, jotting down notes as she pointed out how he might change the windows to match the large, arched one near the grand staircase in the main building, and a portico to give guests some shade.
“I wasn’t going to mention this,” John said when they’d set aside the papers and he’d ordered a bottle of wine for them to share. “But when I was over at the mayor’s office this morning, I mentioned that I had a brilliant architect with connections to the island looking over my plans.”
She shook her head ruefully. “Flatter
y will get you anywhere, huh?”
“I’m only telling you what I see,” he said, sliding her a glass of wine before pouring his own. “Anyway, they mentioned that they’d be open to talking to you if you were ever looking to take on some projects on the island.”
She blinked, unsure of how to even respond. “I’m always happy to lend a helping hand,” she said slowly.
He nodded and leaned back in his chair, letting the sun hit his face. “I know. But if you were ever looking for a bigger stake in things, they could use someone like you, from what I understand.”
Her mind was racing when she considered what he was implying. A job, even a career, here on the island, overseeing and approving renovation and design permits, preserving the history of the architecture which was slowly being phased out by everyone else in the world, it seemed.
They shifted topics, thankfully, and John pressed her for more stories about her childhood days on the island until she was feeling downright nostalgic and the afternoon had started to wane.
“Maybe tomorrow we could head down to the harbor,” he said as he walked her around to the front of the inn. “I’m thinking of investing in a boat, and I wouldn’t mind the company or your opinion.”
She hesitated only long enough to consider that he was either making an excuse to see her again or that he did value her opinion. Either way, she was flattered, and interested.
“Okay, then.” She smiled, feeling suddenly shy at the growing fact that she too, was showing that she wanted to spend more time with him.
“Meet here? On the pool deck? And about the thing I mentioned earlier,” he said before should go. “Consider it, Andrea. You have a real appreciation for these old buildings that not everyone else does. You have a legacy here.”
A legacy. He was referring to the house, she knew. The house that her mother had passed down to them. And the memories that she had, too.
