She Loves Him...Not

by Elana Johnson

  “Just to be clear,” he said. “I also didn’t appreciate you challenging my ability to make a meal for your parents, right in front of them.”

  Misery combined with Gwen’s guilt, and she looked at the ground. “I didn’t mean to do that.”

  He slipped his hand in hers. “I know you didn’t.” He nudged her toward a corner and they turned it together. He stepped in front of her, making her stop and look up at him. “You want to be back together with me, don’t you?”

  “Absolutely, I do,” she said, hoping he could hear the absolute truth in those words. “I don’t know. I got nervous, and I wasn’t thinking, and my sister is wrong. We get along fine.”

  His eyebrows went up again, this time laced with surprise. “She said we didn’t?”

  “Something like that,” Gwen mumbled.

  Teagan drew in a deep breath. “I think the reason we didn’t work out last time was because of me, Gwen. All me. I didn’t allow myself to open up to you and really talk to you. Tell you things you needed to know.” He took both of her hands in his. “But I did that this time. Or I’m willing to do that. And I think we get along great. Cooking with you, talking to you, working with you, it’s all fun for me.”

  “For me too,” she said.

  “Then forget about what Olympia said, and tell me I’m your boyfriend.”

  Gwen grinned at him and said, “You’re my boyfriend.”

  He smiled back, his hands coming up to cradle her face. “I’m going to kiss my girlfriend now.” And he did, and Gwen’s anxiety decreased. Her nerves quieted. And she felt safe in the arms of this man who clearly liked her.

  “So no kind of,” she whispered when he pulled away.

  “No kind of, Gwenny,” he said. “We’re either both in this, or we’re not.”

  “I can live with that.” She tipped up on her toes and kissed him again, glad he could forgive her when she said two stupid words.

  Gwen’s heart trembled as she made her way down the hall in the administrative wing of the hotel. Olympia would surely be back in her office by now. That, or she’d taken the afternoon off to spend time with Chet.

  Her oldest sister had been loosening up the last couple of months or so. She used to walk through the kitchen each morning with Gwen, and she hadn’t done so for a few days now.

  Gwen knocked on her sister’s office door and then opened it.

  “Heya, sissy,” Olympia said, turning from the coffee maker on the counter. “I’m so sorry about what I said about Teagan.”

  Gwen entered the office and closed the door, grateful for the quick apology. “I know he asked you out once, and you weren’t interested.”

  “But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t go out with him if you like him.” She stirred her coffee and sat down at her desk. “He’s a great guy. Just not my type.”

  “Who’s not your type?”

  Gwen swung around to see Olympia’s boyfriend, Chet, entering the office. “Hey, Gwen,” he said with a smile. He moved over to O and leaned down to kiss her. “I hope you weren’t talking about me. I feel awkward now.”

  She laughed, and Gwen smiled as she sat in the comfy chair across from her sister. “We were talking about Gwen’s boyfriend,” she said. “Do either of you want coffee?”

  “None for me,” Gwen said, and Chet stepped over to the maker and started making himself a cup.

  “Nice guy,” Chet said. “Very detailed at what he does. Skilled in the kitchen.”

  Gwen blinked at Chet. Had Olympia given him a script?

  “Chet consults for us,” Olympia said. “He knows Teagan well enough.”

  Chet turned back to the women and lifted his mug to his lips. “Word on the street is that Gwen knows Teagan really well.”

  “What does that mean?” Gwen asked, suddenly horrified.

  Chet chuckled. “You two are dating, right?”

  “Yes,” Gwen said. “And we get along fine.” She glared at her sister.

  “I shouldn’t have said that.”

  “You told her they don’t get along?” Chet asked.

  “I said it seemed like they didn’t get along,” O said, glancing at her boyfriend. “It wasn’t my place.”

  “Yeah, because we shouldn’t talk,” Chet said.

  Olympia giggled and leaned back in her chair, must more at-ease than Gwen had ever seen her. “I suppose you’re right.”

  “You guys didn’t get along?” she asked.

  “Oh, we bicker like an old married couple,” Chet said. “Everything doesn’t have to be perfect in a relationship. You just have to be committed to making it work, and you have to forgive.”

  Gwen nodded, because she thought that was probably true. “Opposites attract and all that,” she said.

  “Exactly,” Olympia said. “So forget I said anything. You obviously like Teagan, and he seems quite enamored with you.” Her eyes sparkled with mischief. “Now, do you have anything business related? It’s my break, and I want to kiss my boyfriend.” She grinned at Gwen, who stood quickly.

  “Nothing business related. I just wanted…talk to you later.” She got out of the office before the kissing started, because she did not need to see that. Hope filled her steps as she went back to the kitchen. Hope for her and Teagan. And hope that she could catch a nap on the couch in her office.

  Chapter Ten

  Almost a week later, Teagan wiped his hands on his towel and said, “I’ll be back in a minute.” They were twenty minutes away from finishing breakfast service, and there were no orders.

  “Yep,” Gordon said, wiping the counter.

  Gwen had asked him to come see her when he had a minute, and he had about five right now. He walked over to her open office door and knocked as he said, “You wanted to see me?”

  She looked up from the long piece of paper she taped together every week to make their schedule. Pure exhaustion lived in her expression, and Teagan’s idea to take her to lunch withered instantly. She needed to go home and take a nap—not that he’d ever tell her that.

  “Come in,” she said. “And close the door behind you.”

  Teagan did as she said, his pulse bouncing in anticipation of what this little meeting would be. She had two straight-backed chairs in front of the desk, and he sat in one of them.

  “Look at this, would you?” she turned the complex schedule toward him. “I want to make sure everything is covered.”

  “Covered for what?” he asked. She’d never asked for his input in making the schedule. Or reviewing it. Nothing.

  “I’m taking a trip,” she said. “I need a vacation.”

  Teagan looked up from the spreadsheet, surprised. “A vacation?”

  She giggled and shook her head. “You say that like you don’t know what one is.”

  “Well, I mean, I’ve heard of them.” He grinned at her. “Good for you. Where are you going?”

  “I haven’t decided yet,” she said. “It’s not until next weekend, and I want to make sure everything is set here before I go.”

  “How long will you be gone?” He peered at the chart again, looking through room service assignments, catering jobs, the bakery, and Redfin.

  “Ten days,” she said.

  He almost always found his name on the catering events, the breakfast orders for the bakery, and Redfin in the evenings. In fact, that was always where he worked.

  But his name wasn’t on this schedule at all. His eyebrows drew down, and he started looking more earnestly. “I’m sure I’ll be able to help….” His voice faded as he continued to study the paper in front of him.

  “You’re not going to be here to help,” she said, and Teagan lifted his eyes to hers. “At least, I hope not.”

  “You hope not?”

  “You’re really cute when you’re confused.” She gave him a coy smile, but Teagan could see the brimming fear in her eyes.

  He sat back, ready to wait for her to clue him in. He folded his arms and cocked his eyebrows at her when she remained silent.
>
  Her throat moved as she swallowed once, and then twice. Her nerves filled the whole office. “I’m hoping you’ll come to Whistlestop Shores. With me. For ten days.”

  Surprise hit him like an explosion, suddenly there one moment when it hadn’t been before. His mind whirred, and a strangled noise came from his throat, because he felt like he should say something, but he didn’t know what.

  “Take some time to think about it,” Gwen said, her fun, flirty smiles gone. “I already have a couple of things planned. Tickets and such.”

  “For me?” he asked.

  She shrugged, which meant yes.

  “Accommodations?” he asked. They could be very hard to get on Whistlestop, as if there was any island as busy as Carter’s Cove, it was Whistlestop Shores.

  “Secured,” she said.

  Teagan drew in a breath and employed his bravery too. “Okay, I need to know specifics about that one,” he said. “Like, you have one room for us to share? Or two, and we’ll spend the day together but sleep separately?”

  “I have a phone call out,” she said. “I’m waiting to book the room or rooms until I know how many guests there will be.” She slid the schedule back in front of her. “But if you wanted to come, there would be two rooms. I like you, but I don’t think we’re ready for…that.”

  Relief hit Teagan, because he agreed wholeheartedly. Whatever her “that” was, Teagan agreed. He had some “that’s” of his own.

  “Can I get back to you?”

  “Of course.” She sounded cool and professional, and Teagan hated that he couldn’t just say yes. This invitation simply felt…sudden, and he’d just barely figured out how to tell Gwen about his daughter. They’d only been back together for ten days, and now she wanted to take a trip together that would last that long.

  “I do need to post this by tomorrow evening,” she said. “If you’d let me know by then.”

  “I can do that,” Teagan said, standing up. “I better go see what Gordon needs.” But he knew Gordon didn’t need anything. He still felt like he was escaping from Gwen’s office, only to find the kitchen nearly clean and Gordon hangin up his apron for the day.

  “Done?” he asked his friend.

  “Yep. Margo said they cut off orders for hot food.” Gordon smiled at him. “What were you doing in there?”

  “Uh.” Teagan looked over his shoulder. “You know I’m seeing Gwen, right?”

  “The whole kitchen knows.”

  Teagan didn’t know what that meant. He and Gwen hadn’t kept their relationship a secret, and she didn’t favor him. He’d earned the head chef position before she’d even taken over control of the dining services at the inn.

  “So she calls you in there so you can kiss her?” Gordon grinned like he had the entire universe figured out.

  “I wish.” Teagan scoffed. “What are you doing right now? I need to ask you a question.” And call his mother. His sister. His daughter. Maybe with four other opinions, he’d be able to come up with the right answer to Gwen’s invitation.

  “Let’s go get lunch,” Gordon said, and he swiped his keys from the peg by the metal door that led out to the parking lot.

  Teagan felt out of sorts as he followed Gordon down the coast a bit, the group of food stands on the beach finally coming into view. They each went to the one they wanted and met at a picnic table in full sun.

  “So what’s up?” Gordon asked, biting into his breakfast crepe. Teagan had opted for a box of mini doughnuts and a cappuccino.

  “She asked me to go on a trip with her,” he said. “To Whistlestop Shores.”

  “Oh, okay, so we’re far along in our relationship.” Gordon’s eyes widened, and Teagan felt validated in his concerns just from that simple action.

  “Not really,” Teagan said. “That’s the thing. We dated for a few weeks about six months ago. And I messed up and did something stupid. Then I fixed it, and we’ve been seeing each other for just over a week now.”

  “One room or two?”

  “Two.”

  “Oh, so she wants a vacation, and she wants some company.” Gordon shrugged and folded over his crepe. “That’s different, I think.”

  “Is it?”

  “I don’t know,” Gordon said. “Once, a woman I went out with broke up with me after three dates because I ordered wrong at a restaurant.” He took another bite of his food, and Teagan lifted a chocolate mini doughnut out of the box.

  “How do you order wrong at a restaurant?” Teagan asked, and Gordon started laughing. Teagan joined in, because he seriously didn’t understand women sometimes.

  “I have no idea,” Gordon said between chuckles. “My best advice—and I have no idea what I’m talking about—is to go with your gut. You like Gwen, obviously. Do you want to take a trip with her?”

  Teagan didn’t answer, because he didn’t know what his gut was saying. He was supremely glad he hadn’t asked a female for advice about this first, and he nixed the idea to call the women in his life and ask them.

  He and Gordon finished their food and talked about the upcoming football season as easily as if they went to breakfast after work every week. They didn’t, but their friendship was easy, even with time going by in between the things they did do.

  As he drove back to his apartment, he realized his relationship with Gwen was the same way. They’d seemingly picked up right where they’d left off, even though there had been six painful, long, trying months in between the time he’d walked her to her door and broken up with her, and the day he’d showed up to take her to lunch and confess a few things about his past.

  And his gut knew—he wanted to go on vacation with her. He grabbed his phone and typed out a message. I’d love to go to Whistlestop Shores with you. Want me to play tour guide, or is that not on the agenda?

  Why else do you think I asked you? ;)

  Teagan chuckled at Gwen’s response and went out onto the balcony that overlooked the water on the eastern side of the island. He looked north, as if he’d be able to see his home island from here. He couldn’t, but he knew he’d need to call his mother and sister and let them know he was coming—and bringing a woman—home.

  He had a fine relationship with his sister, but his relationship with his mother had been up and down over the years. He’d thought that was what he wanted. He had people he talked to. An amazing job he’d always wanted. Money. A great apartment.

  He didn’t need to go home for Thanksgiving or Christmas, and he was fine with sending a birthday cards to his loved ones when the occasion required it.

  But he couldn’t go to Whistlestop Shores without even telling them. He might be able to get away with just having one nice dinner with them and calling it good, but he wouldn’t know until he called.

  So he picked up his phone and dialed his mother, hoping his day wasn’t about to get astronomically worse.

  “Teagan,” his mother said, and he imagined her sitting on her back deck, a bowl of trail mix beside her. She loved the stuff, and she loved watching people, and she loved evening walks.

  “Hello, Mother,” he said, drawing on his Southern manners and upbringing. “How are you?”

  “Just fine, dear. What has you calling?”

  “I’m coming back to the Shores for a bit,” he said, wishing she wasn’t quite so formal with him. But she always had been, even when he was a child. “Wondered if you and the family might want to get together for dinner.” He breathed in deeply, sure Tilly would want to see him. She had twin ten-year-old girls, and Teagan sent them money on their birthday.

  “Why, I’m sure we would,” she said. “When are you coming?”

  He pressed his eyes closed and took another deep breath. “I’ll have to check with my girlfriend on that one, Mom, but not until next weekend. Sometime after that.”

  “Girlfriend?”

  Teagan smiled, because he did like calling Gwen that, whether she was present or not. “That’s right, Mom. Her name is Gwen.”

  “This isn’t g
oing to end like the last one, is it?” she asked, and all of the reasons Teagan just sent cards on holidays came rushing back.

  “The last one was twenty years ago, Mother,” he said with maybe a little more bite than he intended. “People change, you know.”

  Of course, she hadn’t, so she probably thought he was that same irresponsible, hot-headed nineteen-year-old that had gotten married on a whim.

  “It’s been so long since you came home,” his mom said next, as if Teagan hadn’t spoken at all.

  “I know,” he said. “I’ll call Tilly and set everything up, okay?”

  “Yes,” his mother said. “Call Tilly. She’ll know what to do.”

  Teagan said his formal goodbyes and got off the phone quickly. “You should’ve known to call Tilly first,” he muttered to himself, because now he had one more phone call to make. And for a man who hated to make phone calls, he’d already reached his limit with the last one.

  So he decided to start with a text instead. Hey, Tilly. Coming to the Shores next weekend with my girlfriend. What do you think of dinner with everyone?

  His thoughts felt laced with poison, and he wondered if he could convince Gwen to take their vacation somewhere else.

  Nope, he told himself. You’re not running from this. He’d promised himself he wouldn’t do that again, and he was going to stick with that. He’d have to introduce Gwen to his family sooner or later.

  “Might as well be sooner,” he said as his phone chimed with Tilly’s response. Even if he was dreading the visit.

  Sure, his sister had said. Tell me about this girlfriend…. She must be something if you’re willing to bring her to the Shores.

  Chapter Eleven

  Gwen looked up from the pile of clothes on her bed when her sister walked into the room. “Packing?” Celeste said, leaning over to remove her high heels.

  “Yep.” Gwen popped the P on the word, telling herself not to call Teagan and back out. Not that she’d actually call. Oh, no. She’d text. Then there wouldn’t be any awkward silences while she tried to figure out why she was so dang nervous.