Maggie nodded.
John’s gaze circled the room, settling once again on Ava and her friend, now surrounded by a group of people all laughing their hearts out. Never before had he ever wanted to be just one of the guys as much as he did right now. And right next to Ava.
* * *
“Forrest.” A woman on a mission, Maile strolled back in his direction. “Why don’t you show Magnolia the grounds? There’s a lovely koi pond just down the hill.”
Fortunately he’d been forewarned that he’d be the one designated to escort his sister outside before the fireworks and realized this was his cue. “It is a lovely night for a walk.”
Maggie smiled. “Certainly.”
This was his chance. Not far down the lawn, Ava and the guy were standing, obviously waiting for the fireworks to begin.
“So,” Maggie began, “what’s Maile up to?”
“What do you mean?” He kept his gaze on Ava.
“I live here. I know there’s a koi pond.”
John chuckled. “I would have thought the old lady was better than that.” Truth was, if he hadn’t been so distracted with keeping an eye on Ava, he would have realized that himself.
“So?”
“Patience, Miss Magnolia.” He ignored the way her face scrunched at the familiar use of her formal name and steered her over to the woman who had taken root in his mind. “Hello there.”
“Oh, hi.” Ava took a step away from her escort, and John held back a satisfied grin. “Kenny, this is the birthday girl, Magnolia Maplewood, and her brother, Forrest.”
“Nice to meet you.” Kenny extended a hand to John and then turned back to Maggie. “I was just on my way to refresh our drinks. Can I get you two something?”
“Oh, thank you.” Maggie took the last sip of her champagne and handed him the glass.
John shook his head, and Kenny gave a curt nod in response. Would it be too much to hope the guy would trip over his own two feet on his way up the hillside?
“Is he one of your brother’s navy friends?” Maggie asked.
“Yeah. He’s actually a SEAL, but his team worked with Billy’s EOD team often enough that they became good friends.”
The moment the word SEAL left her mouth, a knot fisted in John’s stomach. How the hell was an ordinary guy supposed to compete with a big bad navy SEAL? Some days being an average Joe wasn’t all it was cracked up to be.
The first crackle of activity sounded in the distance, and an explosion of color filled the sky.
“Oh, my.” Maggie looked up.
“Happy birthday, sis.”
Maggie beamed at her brother and, watching the sky, took a step forward. More blossoms of color exploded one after the other. John inched closer to Ava, taking in the childlike wonder in her eyes.
“Feels like the Fourth of July.” Ava kept her gaze upward. “I’ve always loved Independence Day. The food, the friends, the family. All of us sprawled on blankets, waiting for the sun to set and then finally the show. Don’t you love it?”
He did now. He could almost picture the little girl glowing with anticipation. For him, growing up, the holiday had always been a massive event on the family lawns with hundreds of people he didn’t even know. His father was a huge proponent of social business gatherings. The firework displays could rival New York City’s. The happy memories painted on Ava’s face made him want to stick around and share the summer holiday with her. Family style.
But standing so close, what he really wanted was to reach over and take her hand. For the first time in one hell of a lot of years, he felt like an awkward teen, bumbling through a first date, getting all worked up over a good-night kiss that might never happen. Except this wasn’t a date, and there was no chance of a good-night anything.
Everyone’s attention was on the colorful artistry in the sky, but John couldn’t take his eyes off Ava. The urge to lean in, to touch, to feel, was almost stronger than he was, and then, as though able to feel his thoughts, she turned. Eyes leveled with his, her gaze no longer playful, her lips parted in surprise, and he leaned forward.
“Here you go.” Kenny stopped beside Ava and handed her, then Maggie, a glass of champagne.
Ava kept her focus on the bubbly, and John had to wonder if she’d been as sucked into the moment as he’d been. What would she have done, if they hadn’t been interrupted?
Raising his own glass, Kenny smiled at a still distracted Ava. “To good friends and great fireworks.”
John drew in a calming breath and forced a grin. He didn’t like the emphasis this guy put on the word fireworks. It didn’t take a mind reader to know what was running through the man’s head. The way his gaze locked on Ava’s, he probably already had her stripped naked and halfway to bed. An odd urge to challenge the man to a duel bubbled to the surface. How bad could it be if, the next time Kenny went off for drinks, John gave him a little shove down the hill?
Chapter Thirteen
After late nights poring over the new designs and then celebrating Maggie’s birthday, Ava had never been happier to sleep in. When she rolled over and saw it was ten o’clock, she almost sprang out of bed in a panic. Then she quickly remembered she was no longer in Honolulu, no longer working for Emerson & Smythe, and was now her own boss.
A boss, who after one more look-see, would send her proposal off to California. Then all she’d have to do is bury the urge to squirm with excitement, until she got the news on the bid. Sitting up, she turned to sling her legs over the side of the bed and knocked into a lump of warm fur.
“Hey there, big boy.”
Gunny’s tail thumped on the hardwood floors.
“Yeah, I’m happy to see you too. It’s nice to wake up to a devoted man who doesn’t ask anything of me. I bet you believe in me, don’t you? You wouldn’t ask me to miss out on the chance of a lifetime to go sailing or make coffee, would you?” She scratched behind his ears and chuckled at the throaty groans the dog made. “You’re so easy to please. Can you keep a secret?”
The German shepherd thumped his tail again.
“I’m so excited I could just burst. I really, really want to get this job. But, even if I don’t, at least I was finally asked to the dance. Me, myself and I. Not Emerson & Smythe. Me, Everrett Architectural Design. Though I am curious as to how the heck that happened.”
She pushed to her feet, grabbed a robe and made her way to the kitchen with Gunny at her heels. Her mind still stuck on how the committee had discovered her, she wondered if, maybe now that Greg worked for SO&M, somehow he had recommended her. But that didn’t make any sense either. Besides, she could drive herself crazy, circling around the oddball ideas bouncing around in her head. She needed to stop overthinking and just enjoy the ride.
In the kitchen, she reached for a coffee packet to put in the pot and spotted the note from her mom. Off with Missy for the PTA bake sale. Won’t be home until late. Neither woman had had a child in grammar school for ages, and yet they both baked and supported the PTA’s bake sales the same as they had when all their kids were young. Ava supposed maybe they were just gearing up for when they had grandchildren in school. Though now she did fuss a lot over Nick’s son, Bradley. And soon she’d have Billy and Angela’s little girl to fawn over. Apparently life was looking up for all the Everretts.
Greek yogurt in one hand and hot coffee in the other, Ava made herself comfortable on the sofa, just as the front door opened.
“Morning, sunshine.” Billy walked through the door.
“Morning. Want some coffee?”
“Nope, already had more than my share for the day.”
“What brings you by? Shouldn’t you be on the boat?”
“No, only running one boat this morning. Nick and Doug have it covered.”
“Only one? That can’t be good, this time of year.”
Billy waved her off. “It’s the bigger Island Girl. This is fine for the beginning of the season. Besides, it freed me to pick up some cupcakes.”
“Cupcake
s?”
“Mom made an extra batch, just in case the bake sale went well, and asked me to come get them.”
“Really?” How had she not sniffed out cupcakes?
“They’re still in the oven.”
“Then they need to be iced.” Ava set the coffee mug on the table and shoved to her feet.
“Nope. All ready to go on a platter and wrapped in plastic.”
“Then why are they in the oven?” She followed her brother into the kitchen.
“Seriously?” he asked, opening the door and pulling out the large tray of lemon cupcakes with coconut icing.
“Oh, crap. Are those my favorite?”
Billy nodded.
“No wonder she hid them.” Ava laughed. “Sneaky woman.”
“If it helps any, Mom promised to bake more, when she gets home.”
“That’s all right. I don’t need the extra calories.”
“You look fine. You’re too damn young to be counting calories.”
“Tell that to my metabolism.”
He leaned forward and kissed her on the forehead. “You look fabulous. Everyone says so.”
“Everyone?”
“Anyone who matters.”
“Oh, yes, the pool grows quickly smaller.” She chuckled again. God, she loved her brother. Even if it meant living at home for a while, it was so worth it to be near family again. She’d forgotten how much she missed the day-to-day little stuff. Sure she’d come home often enough, but these playful little sibling chats weren’t the same when she lived on another island.
Billy set down the cupcake platter on the counter. “Do you have a minute?”
Ava glanced at her robe. “Do I look like I’m going anywhere?”
He chuckled and pulled out a kitchen chair. “I wanted to chat about Kenny.”
“Nothing happened.”
“I know that. I was just messing with you. But…”
She waited a beat. “But what?”
“I saw the look in his eyes.”
“And?”
“He’s hurting.”
“Looking at me made him hurt?” She’d noticed too but tried for a coy grin nonetheless.
Billy cast his eyes heavenward. “I’m serious.”
“Sorry.”
The tiny muscle at the base of his jaw twitched, and the intensity of his gaze darkened.
“Hey, you really are worried. What’s going on?”
“I don’t know. I might never know. But I recognize the looks, and I know Kenny. Something went down bad or wrong or whatever. He’s on extended leave. I don’t know whose idea it was. But that’s never a good sign. Something or someone is being investigated, and the team is standing down for a bit. Kenny chose to come here. I’m glad, but I’m worried.”
“I didn’t notice.”
“He’s a SEAL, Ava. They lock down their emotions very well. For a time. Eventually shit has to come to the surface. I don’t want you in the middle, when it does.”
“I’ll be careful.”
“It’s more than that. He’s looking for a safe harbor. A way to feel whole. Normal. But it wouldn’t be real.”
In other words, all he needed, like the old Linda Ronstadt song said, was someone to lay down beside him. She got it. And her brother’s warning. But she wasn’t going to turn away from a friend, if he needed her. She just hoped all he needed from her was a supportive little sister. Or maybe one to kick his ass.
* * *
While the idea of going diving this morning had sounded fabulous last night, by the time the party ended at two thirty, John knew enough to tell Billy to leave it for another day.
His sisters were already in bathing suits by the pool, soaking up the sun. He suspected, under the heavy sunglasses, they were probably sound asleep. After the fireworks had gone off, the music had turned up, and the dancing had begun. Rose and Heather had put all those years of dance lessons to good use. They’d done everything from the Lindy Hop with friends of the family as old as Methuselah to some line dancing that all the young kids seemed to know. There was even a chance for a Charleston contest that landed a couple people in the swimming pool.
John had barely gotten a chance to chat with Ava after the fireworks. The fellow she was with, Kenny, didn’t leave her side. And, under the circumstances, it was probably best John kept his distance anyhow. They came from two different worlds in two different places, and her free-spirited island ways would never fit in full time with his schedule. He worked all day and most nights. What woman would accept that in her life?
Unless, of course, all she wanted was his money. But Ava wasn’t any woman, and she had no clue how much he was worth. What he needed was to stop thinking about her so damn much. She wasn’t right for him. Or maybe he wasn’t right for her. Whatever. He had no business letting his mind linger on her infectious smile or the throaty laugh that made his every nerve ending hum with awareness. The electricity when she was near was so palpable it could power the entire neighborhood.
Using some of the leftovers Annette had insisted they bring to the guest cottage from the party, he slapped together a pulled pork sandwich with a little more gusto than was required for a pig that was already dead. So focused on not focusing on Ava, he was startled to hear his phone ring in the other room.
Not that it surprised him to hear the phone, but it was totally out of the ordinary for him to be up and about, and his cell phone not to be in his pocket or attached to his ear. Even more unusual was for him to let the call go to voice mail, while he finished making his sandwich. Maybe there was something in the water in Hawaii that forced everyone to be laid back. Or could that sweet old lady, Billy’s mother, be drugging him? That thought had him laugh out loud. Right. And Miss Marple was a sure-footed cat burglar.
Grabbing his plate and a small bag of chips, he walked to his room and looked at the phone. Evelyn. Making himself comfortable in the big armchair by the window, he took in the sweeping view of the Kona coast, as he hit Return Call.
“So you haven’t drowned?” Evelyn said with humor in her tone.
“Nope. Having an early lunch.”
“Drowning were the odds favorite. My money was on Maggie threw your phone in the ocean.”
“Ha, ha.”
“Well, I, for one, am glad you’re finally taking it easy.”
“That is what you wanted?” No need to tell Evelyn that he’d been working himself into a lather over one unavailable brunette. “What’s up?”
“You were right.”
“You doubted me? What was I right about?” He hoped to hell one of the jobs hadn’t imploded, because he wasn’t ready to hop on the next flight to Lord-knew-where.
“I heard from Howard. The drawings arrived in his email about an hour ago. He already forwarded them to all the committee members, and they’re exactly what the group had hoped for.”
He dropped his sandwich on the plate, his appetite giving way to a burst of satisfaction. “So she’s in?”
“Sounds like it. Board meets first thing in the morning to confirm. John, did she really do this in a few days?”
“I don’t know how long she’d been working on them.” Not that it mattered. Now he had a new dilemma to deal with.
“What happens now?”
Some days he’d swear that woman could read his mind. “I don’t know.”
The reality of being awarded the contract collided with simply knowing she was that good. He wanted to work with Ava Everrett’s designs almost as much as he’d wanted to kiss her senseless last night. The woman was fascinating. Smart, beautiful and one hell of a talent, she was irresistible. Which brought him back to his current dilemma. How well would they mix business with pleasure? Because there would be an abundance of pleasure. Of that much he was dead sure. And, for that matter, how well would she handle finding out Forrest Maplewood was one and the same as F. John Maplewood, CEO and President of FJM Global? Currently the head honcho on the South Bay Aquarium project.
“Did I lo
se you?”
“No. Just thinking.”
“Well, don’t think too hard. You’re supposed to be on vacation. Resting. Relaxing. Enjoying your sisters.”
“I am.” Though the person he’d most been inclined to rest and relax with was most definitely not a sister.
“And no thinking about business. You leave this project to us. Any changes you want to make can be done when you return to work. Next month.”
“Yes, boss.” Evelyn might as well have had his job. She always kept him and his business on an even keel. And maybe she was right again. For now he’d continue to be Forrest Maplewood, Magnolia’s vacationing construction-working brother. Once Ava was settled in on the Bay Area project, it would be much easier to break the news that her new friend was her new contractor. Or at least he hoped the hell so.
Chapter Fourteen
“If you look at that phone one more time, I swear I’m going to toss it in the ocean.” Maile Everrett stood with hands on her hips in front of her daughter.
Ava set down the phone and took a sip of her morning tea. Even though she didn’t really expect the design committee to reach out to her in less than three days since sending in the project, she’d still spent all day the last couple of days double-checking her phone to ensure she hadn’t missed a call.
“I’m tempted to make you leave the phone here. Heaven knows you won’t be using it much on the boat.”
Maggie and her siblings were doing a dive this morning, and Billy had asked Ava to tag along. Both boats would be running full, and, on principle, Nick and Billy preferred having smaller groups with a dive leader. The insurance company seemed to agree with that philosophy. Ava would be in charge of the Maplewoods.
Despite her nerves over the design submission, she’d found herself almost as excited at the idea of spending the morning diving with Maggie and her clan. Well, actually it was Forrest she was most interested in spending time with. She’d spent as much of the last few days hoping to run into him again as she had waiting for the submission results. There was so much more to Forrest Maplewood than what showed on the surface. She was sure of it. If Kenny hadn’t shown up with the drinks when he did at the birthday party, there was no telling what would have happened, but she certainly wanted to find out.
Love by Design Page 9
