Sea Glass Castle (The Carolina Coast Series Book 3)

by T. I. Lowe

  Sophia sat straighter and popped his leg. “Wes!”

  He shrugged, taking on the air of innocence. “You asked, and I’m just being honest. But it’s more that I miss the intimacy of it. The closeness that was privately shared just between Claire and me. It was the two of us, but it felt like we were one, you know?”

  Sophia did know. She and Ty had that for a brief time in their marriage, and it created the most precious gift of her life. She was blessed with Collin during the beautiful part of their time together. She would live the bad a thousand times over for his sake.

  Wes cleared his throat, bringing her attention back to him. “It’s been so lonely without Claire. I still miss her touch. Her comfort. Her steadfastness.” He leaned back and spread an arm along the back of the couch, appearing weighed down by that loneliness. “What about you? Do you miss anything about your marriage?”

  She thought it over until glimpses of happiness flickered past the painful memories. “Ty is an amazing man, until he’s not. He can be the sweetest when the mood strikes him. One time he decided he wanted to make me a chocolate cake like my momma makes, because I was homesick. I had my doubts and voiced them.” A quiet laugh released on an exhale. “That only spurred him on. Said if he could handle a three-hundred-pound lineman, then he could tackle a little ole cake. He thought he could cut the sugar and balance it by adding more cocoa powder.”

  “And?” Wes nudged her shoulder as he settled his arm around her.

  “It was awful. But Ty being the stubborn man that he is, he was determined to eat it even when I refused. Three bites in, he said, ‘Okay, that’s the worst cake I’ve ever eaten.’ We laughed it off, and the next day I received a delivery from a fancy bakery in Charlotte. And that was the best cake I’ve ever eaten.” Sophia shook her head and leaned into Wes’s side. “As I said, Ty can be the best. I just wish he could have thrown away his worst as easy as he did that cake.”

  They grew silent for a while with Wes rubbing warmth into her shoulder. Her thumb kept time by rubbing the back of the new ring.

  “Tell me something else about Claire,” she whispered.

  His hand stopped moving, but a smile worked one side of his lips up just enough that the dimple made its presence known. It was dark, but Sophia could still see the humor cast in his eyes. “She couldn’t bake either.”

  They both snickered, but Wes’s held an edge of sadness.

  “Claire was too free-spirited to measure her ingredients. Unfortunately, that didn’t work in her favor when it came to baking.”

  A loud boom sounded off in the distance, followed by a fiery streak. A burst of glitter lit the sky near the Ferris wheel. Their gaze moved to the sky and they quietly watched the fireworks show.

  “You and your friends have a strange way of celebrating Labor Day,” Wes mused.

  “Yeah, well, you guys were party poopers, so you missed hearing us recount the fun we had this summer and discussing upcoming plans.”

  “That sounds like a New Year’s Eve tradition.” Wes gave her an incredulous look.

  “You’ve noticed by now we girls march to the beat of our own drums.”

  Wes tipped his head back and chuckled. “Yes, I have. What was your favorite summer memory?” Each time Wes talked, he drew her closer, but she had a feeling he didn’t even realize he was doing it. The tingle heating her body sure noticed it, though. “It has to include me,” he teased.

  “Hmm . . . Probably finding you being chased around your kitchen by that crazy woman while she tried getting ahold of that towel you were wearing.”

  Wes growled while she laughed, but he pulled her closer until she was almost in his lap, effectively ending her laughter. Their breath mingled and their eyes locked. His flitted to her lips before closing. She stiffened, worried he was going to ruin the moment by trying to kiss her. But after what felt like a great deal of hesitance, Wes did the sweetest thing. Leaning forward, he rested his forehead against hers.

  As Wes held her, Sophia realized they were sharing something pure and right. Even with her heart strumming at a considerable rate, there was no denying the fact that Weston Sawyer added a calm to her. Perhaps a better time for them both was on the horizon. Sophia didn’t know what it could possibly be, but she could only hope it would be a more peaceful season than what they had both endured in the recent past.

  12

  October was the worst month of the year and it held the worst memories ever made. Not just one part of the month, but the entire thing. The beginning was supposed to be set aside for last-minute preparations, the middle a time of celebration, and the end a time to marvel in the wonderment of it. Regrettably, none of that came to be.

  For the past three years, Wes had dealt with the vile time by hunkering down at his remote cabin in the mountains of Tennessee where no cell phone or Internet signal could find him. He longed to take off and go hide this year, but the responsibility of the new practice wouldn’t allow him to up and disappear for an entire month, so he would have to cope the best way he knew how. Run. And when he had exhausted running, he’d run some more.

  October 1 fell on Wednesday, thankfully a half day, and by the time he locked up, Wes was itching to run. As long as he kept in motion, grief couldn’t catch up with him.

  But if he ever got still . . .

  I just need to outrun this. With that mantra on a steady repeat, he walked toward his car with purpose. Of course, his plan was interrupted by the ringing of his cell phone. He swiped a finger across the screen and said, “Hey.”

  “Hey, yourself,” Seth answered in a whisper. “I need you to come get me.” He sounded distracted.

  Wes stopped walking and looked heavenward, but the cloudless blue sky did nothing to settle him. “You better not be in jail again.”

  “No, man. I promise that was a onetime mistake. Just come get me.”

  Wes began moving again. “What’s going on?”

  “I met this chick at the airport. She said she’d give me a lift to your place, but she brought me to hers instead. Said she wanted to play doctor. . . . Dude, I’m feeling delicate. Hurry up.”

  Wes didn’t know whether to laugh or lecture his brother, but then something occurred to him. “Why doctor?”

  Seth snorted. “She thought I was good ole Dr. Weston Sawyer for some reason. What are you, Sunset Cove’s most eligible bachelor or something?”

  “Or something. I’m not a bachelor. I’m a widower.” Wes cranked the car and debated just hanging up the phone and letting his brother lie in whatever dumb bed he’d made for himself.

  “Whatever. Please pick me up and I’ll never try pretending to be you again.”

  I’ve heard that before. “Text me the address. And you better clear up with that woman who you are by the time I get there.” He didn’t wait for a reply before ending the call and pulling out of the parking lot.

  An hour later, the brothers arrived at the beach house, one chagrined and the other acting like he wasn’t the cause of it.

  “Wes—”

  “We must never speak of it again.” Wes sliced a hand through the air to stop the conversation before it got started. He dropped his briefcase by the door and headed into the kitchen.

  “But—”

  “Hello!” a sweet, raspy voice interrupted before Seth could spit out another outlandish excuse. “The front door was left open, so . . .”

  Both brothers turned, standing shoulder to shoulder, and found Sophia frozen in place, cradling a giant watermelon in her arms. Her eyes volleyed back and forth between them.

  “She carried a watermelon,” Seth blurted, thinking he was so cute. They both stared at the petite brunette in purple workout gear with her hair pulled back in a neat ponytail as she stared back. “I don’t think she caught my movie reference.”

  “No . . . I did. Great movie. Just . . .” She blinked slowly and then squinted like she was trying to focus. “There are two of you?”

  “I’m older and wiser,” Wes admitted. />
  “Only by three minutes, and the jury’s still out on you being wiser,” Seth interjected.

  “But you’re identical.”

  “Yeah. And thank our heavenly stars Ma didn’t give us dorky twin names that rhymed. Like Dan and Stan or Wayne and Shane.” He tipped his invisible hat. “Nice to make your acquaintance, ma’am.”

  “Oh. My. Word.” Sophia pointed to Seth and nearly lost her grip on the watermelon. “He’s the country-hick version of your city slicker.” She giggled freely, and if Wes wasn’t so upset about the situation he had just encountered that one must never speak of again, he would have reveled in the beauty of it. “How did I not know this?”

  Seth waved both hands toward her. “And how did I not know about you, darlin’?”

  His brother was laying it on thick, so Wes popped him in the gut with the back of his hand. “Knock it off. . . . This is my office manager, Sophia. Sophia, my idiot brother, Seth.”

  “An office manager that delivers watermelons in cute running shorts?” Seth questioned but harrumphed when Wes delivered another warning smack to the gut.

  Wes took the watermelon out of her arms. “Stop staring, Sophia. It’s rude,” he chided.

  She twisted her lips and shook her head. “Humph. I guess this is what you would look like if you’d take that pretentious stick out of your backside and loosen up.”

  Seth chuckled. “I think I’m in love.”

  Wes disregarded both of them, walked around the kitchen island, and placed the watermelon in the sink.

  Sophia answered his unspoken questions. “Daddy dropped off several by the condo. I thought I would bring you one and maybe ride along with you to pick up Collin.”

  Wes and Sophia had teamed up and gotten the little guy potty trained within a month’s time. This month’s challenge was to get him to stay all day at preschool. Last week was a bust, so Wes resorted to bribing him with a ride in his “race caw,” as Collin liked to call the BMW, on Wednesdays. It was the only day his schedule would allow him to pick up Collin and he was already close to messing it up due to his reckless brother.

  Wes hitched a thumb at his irritating brother. “My schedule is all off due to him.” He studied his watch. “I was hoping to get in a run before I left, but that’s out of the question now, I guess.” He didn’t have to turn around and look to know Seth was grinning like a schoolgirl eavesdropping on juicy gossip.

  Sophia looked between the brothers again. “I don’t want to impose on your time with your brother. I’ll pick up Collin.”

  “No. I made a promise and I intend on keeping it.” He loosened his tie and untucked his dress shirt. “I’m going to go change first.” He rushed upstairs with his brother close behind him.

  “Who is that and what’s really going on here?” Seth asked as soon as he shut the bedroom door.

  “I already told you.” Wes stepped inside his walk-in closet and hurried out of his suit. “Plus . . .” He rolled his neck a few times before admitting, “We’re fake dating.”

  “Why?” Seth shoved open the closet door and crossed his arms over his wrinkled tee.

  Wes pulled on a perfectly pressed one, being mindful to pick a different color than the one his twin wore. “To help keep unwanted advances at bay. She’s just coming out of a disastrous marriage and you already know why I don’t want to date, so we’re pretending to date so everyone else will leave us alone.”

  “How long have y’all been dating?” Seth leaned against the doorframe.

  “Fake dating,” Wes emphasized. “A couple of months.”

  “A couple months? Is that necessary?”

  Wes cut him the sharpest look he could produce. “Clearly. Today is a perfect example of why I need the front of a fake girlfriend.”

  Seth raised both palms and took a step back. “Man, I said I was sorry. How was I supposed to know she’d—?”

  “Not another word about it.” Wes jabbed a finger into Seth’s chest before moving to the back of the closet for a pair of jeans. He pulled them on and shoved his feet into a pair of Chucks.

  “Since when do you wear Converse?” Seth stared at the shoes like they were offensive, even though he was wearing a scuffed-up pair himself.

  Wes studied their shoes, how much they were alike yet so very different. He really didn’t want to answer but did anyway. “I took Collin shoe shopping. He wanted us to have matching shoes.” He thought Seth would laugh and taunt him about it, but his brother did neither. Just stood there with a concerned expression on his face.

  “Collin is Sophia’s kid?”

  “Yes.” Wes went to move past him, but Seth latched on to his arm.

  The brothers’ matching hazel eyes locked for a split second before he shifted his focus to his tidy room, with the color scheme of soft beiges and grays. Nothing like the room he’d shared with his wife back in Alabama. Claire loved any shade of blue and had decorated their entire stately colonial to suit her tastes. He didn’t mind it as long as she was happy, but here in the new house Wes simply couldn’t bear any blue resemblance of the life that was no more. When Lincoln Cole had asked for his preferences, Wes said anything but blue.

  “How old is Collin?” Seth asked, still holding Wes’s arm, trying to reel him back into a conversation he wanted no part in.

  Wes looked anywhere but at his brother, already knowing what he was thinking. “Three.”

  “Weston,” Seth said on a long drawl that was just above a whisper. So much sorrow was peppered in his name, but Wes stiffened his backbone to it and refused to give in to the emotional war starting to rage within him.

  Wes yanked free. “It’s not like that.”

  “You gonna get still so we can talk about this?” Seth’s eyes filled with tears, and it was starting to unravel Wes’s carefully constructed composure. That’s how it had always been: when one hurt, the other hurt worse.

  “If I stop, it’ll catch up with me. I just can’t face it right yet.” He shoved his wallet and keys into his pockets and hurried downstairs before Seth could set in on a lecture.

  Sophia stood at the kitchen island with a butcher knife in her hand, slicing the watermelon. She glanced up at him. “You want me to ride with you?”

  Wes contemplated whether it was safe for her to be left alone with his brother. Seth knew all of his history, while Sophia knew only the parts he’d shared. Not wanting to chance it, he nodded. “Seth, we’ll be back in soon. Don’t burn the place down while I’m gone.”

  “I’ll do my best not to,” Seth replied, but his tone had no tease. He eyed Sophia too seriously and then Wes. Luckily, she was finishing up the watermelon and didn’t catch it.

  Wes shook his head at his brother, warning him to let it go.

  Seth shook his head back, clearly not willing to.

  “Not now,” Wes said to him quietly before addressing the tiny brunette looking way too comfortable in his kitchen. “I promised Collin I would be early, so we need to go, Sophia.”

  “I’m off the clock, Mr. Bossy Pants. Hold your horses,” she sassed but washed her hands and obeyed anyway. It was one of her quirks that he secretly enjoyed. Sassy yet submissive.

  Wes heard Seth cough out a laugh and mutter, “You have some more explaining to do.”

  Trying to shrug off his brother’s accusations, Wes stormed out the front door to hold up his end of the promise. There wasn’t much he could control at the moment, but picking up that little boy he could do. God willing.

  They picked up Collin and returned to the beach house, and Collin had a similar reaction to seeing Seth as his mother had.

  After staring for a while, Collin nodded his head and declared, “I like Sef. He can pay caws, too.” The little guy unearthed a bevy of toy cars from his backpack and the three guys set out driving a course around the living room.

  All the while, the boy talked Seth’s ears off. Collin questioned Seth about his underwear, whether it had superheroes like his and Wes’s did. Actually, Wes’s didn’t, but for som
e reason Collin believed it did. He further questioned Seth about whether he liked to sit or stand when he peepeed. Seth cackled at all the little guy’s blunt inquiries, but Collin remained serious and that only added fuel to Seth’s laughing fire.

  “I’m in love with this kid, too.” Seth held his side while trying to rein in his laughter after Collin told him about Wes hosing him down outside when he accidentally pooped his pants.

  “I not do dat again.” Collin shook his head with his eyes rounded.

  Sophia put together a pasta bake while Collin entertained them. After they shared the meal and took a walk on the beach, the two of them called it a night and headed out.

  Wes cleaned the kitchen, enjoying the sounds of the ocean filtering in through the open windows, while Seth showered. He thought back over the last month, trying to see it from Seth’s perspective, but only felt a sense of accomplishment over it. Sophia had finally relented and gone out on a few more dates with him, but they no longer felt forced. And more times than not, on the weekends she and Collin ended up over at his house after visiting next door.

  He felt a great bit of pride over the fact that Sophia’s appetite had been restored and that Collin giggled more than he frowned. He’d prayed for them and then put legs to his prayers and had witnessed the mother and son come to life right before his very eyes. It was the first time in years he’d been hopeful about anything.

  In that instant, the memory of how he’d almost ruined it pinched the back of his neck. Rotating his shoulders a few times, he reassured himself for the hundredth time that he had stopped himself just before kissing Sophia that night on his deck. He blamed it on all of the talk about Claire. He blamed it on his loneliness. He blamed it on a lot of things since then, but the truth of the matter . . . he liked having her in his arms. Liked having her company. He simply liked her, and he had no idea what to do with all that liking.

  A barstool scraped against the floor from behind him. “So are you ready to talk about it?”