My Colby.
And I’d never regret a day with Marvin because I now had Colby.
I let go of the wheel and let out a slow and steady breath. Everything was going to be just fine.
Sniffling, I straightened in my seat and made sure it didn’t look like a few tears had escaped.
When I felt like I could actually enjoy myself, I got out of the car and trundled into Sophie Bristol Designs. The moment I stepped inside, the intoxicating smells of cinnamon and vanilla washed through the air. I spotted several things I wanted right away and had to tamp down my excitement. If I could transport this entire store into my apartment, I would.
Between the ivory velour couches, silver and grey knitted throws thicker than most comforters, and beautiful embroidered throw pillows, I was in heaven. Not to mention the cute artwork hanging on the walls and the fun candleholders and pretty lamps dotting tables throughout the store.
“Is there something I can help you with?” A woman with long brown hair appeared in the aisle across the way. She had on an oversized pink sweater dress, white tights, and a pair of knee-high boots.
She set down a pair of candlestick holders and made her way toward me.
“I’m just browsing.” I smiled, noticing how kind her eyes were. “My son and I just moved here from Oregon, and I’m trying to get my apartment together, one paycheck at a time.”
The woman’s laugh was friendly, and she nodded. “I hear ya. I try to stock my store with affordable items and a few that are extravagant. If you follow me over here, you’ll find a lot of things that we’ve had made specifically for the store, and they fit most budgets.”
“Oh, my. You’re Sophie Bristol?” I asked, glancing around the beautiful space. “Your style is incredible. If I could fill my entire apartment up, I would.”
Pride filled Sophie’s gaze, and she grinned. “Thank you. It’s been a labor of love. I’m just grateful I finally got the courage to follow my dream.”
I nodded quietly and followed her toward the section she spoke about.
There were beautiful throws draped over racks, rustic wall décor to match anyone’s taste, and several quilts I’d love to call my own, but I didn’t own enough beds.
“I’m not sure this is quite in my budget.” I glanced around and touched a pale lavender throw that would look beautiful on my grey corduroy couch at home.
She winked at me. “You’d be surprised. We source the yarn from a local island close to here.”
“Really? Which one?” I asked, trying to familiarize myself with my new home.
“Hound Island. It’s a fun place to go if you’ve never been. There’s a lavender farm, hotel, amazing restaurants, and lots of little animal farms. How old is your son?”
I smiled, surprised she remembered that I’d said I had a son. “He’s six. His name is Colby.”
“Such a great name.” Sophie smiled. “Well, we source the wool from Hound Island, and then several of my employees are stay-at-home moms, and they either knit or crochet items for our store.”
I spotted a great sign that read My heart is full with you and thought about Colby. The letters were burned into a piece of driftwood, and I knew it was a must-have. I glanced at the price tag and was more than pleasantly surprised, but I felt sheepish looking at the number in front of the store owner.
“I’d love to have this piece.” I pointed at the sign, and Sophie beamed.
“Perfect.” She walked over and unhooked the sign from the wall and brought it over to the cash register as I continued to look. “I’ll let you continue to browse. If there’s anything I can help with, let me know.” Her eyes connected with mine. “And if there’s anything you see that might not fit your budget, let me know, and maybe we can work something out.”
My cheeks blushed, and I nodded.
The one thing I was good at was sticking to a budget. If I saw something I couldn’t afford, I wasn’t going to buy it or mention it. I’d stick strictly to things I could afford. I flipped the tag on the lavender throw and almost couldn’t believe it. I picked it up and draped it over my arm as I stumbled upon a couple of bookends shaped as seashells I had to have.
By the time I made my way to the counter, I knew I was right at the limit of how much I’d planned on spending, but I’d somehow managed to skim right under.
“Great choices.” Sophie nodded as she began scanning items and wrapping them in tissue paper.
“You have such a lovely store.” I grinned, hearing a couple of male voices in the back. “I know I’ve said it a million times, but there was nothing like this in Portland.”
“You are so sweet. I hope you love it here on Fireweed.” She grinned, continuing to bag my merchandise.
“Well, if you hadn’t been driving like a maniac, I wouldn’t have had to give you that ticket.”
I froze, realizing who one of the voices belonged to.
Sophie cocked her head. “Are you okay?”
“Oh, yeah. Totally.” I nodded, pretending I wasn’t eavesdropping on my crush.
A deep, massive laugh echoed through the air, and Sophie shook her head.
“You’ll have to excuse my husband. He just got his first ticket ever, but if you ask me, he deserved it.” She giggled and shrugged.
“Are you telling on me?” Anthony Hill stepped out from the back room and grinned admiringly at his wife as he wrapped his arms around her waist.
“We have a customer.” Sophie scolded him but didn’t remove his arms as she bagged the items.
I stared at the rock star, noticing he was as cute as I’d seen in the tabloids and on television, but I really wanted to see the sheriff.
“I’m telling you, Sheriff. I wasn’t driving squirrelly. She’s just a new machine I’m getting used to. The road to our house is windy and—”
“Nice try, Mr. Rockstar.” The sheriff laughed, stepping out into the store. “But maybe try to get used to your Lambo on a track first. You’re getting the ticket.”
Anthony groaned with a smile. “Fine. Thankfully, my wife’s store keeps us afloat.”
I giggled, and the sheriff’s gaze flew to mine. Shock registered over his expression, and I couldn’t help but smile.
“Howdy, Sheriff.” I grinned. “Seems you have an odd habit of showing up places I’m at.”
“Oh, is this the new girl in town you were telling me about?” Anthony’s brows raised, and the sheriff’s gaze broke from mine to scowl at him.
“Oh, you’ve mentioned me?” I teased, suddenly feeling confident and playful.
“It’s a small island. I like to keep the locals apprised of any—”
Sophie chuckled as Anthony’s arms fell away, and she handed me the bag. “You’re so full of it, Dwayne. I haven’t seen you smile the way you’ve been smiling the last few days… well, ever.”
“Don’t you have a store to run?” he teased Sophie, but he glanced in my direction.
She laughed and shook her head. “No, not really. It pretty much runs itself at this point.”
I giggled. “So, are we still on for dinner tomorrow night, Sheriff?”
The sheriff’s eyes connected with mine, and I felt a flutter deep in my belly that almost made my knees weak. The sensation was wholly illogical and unexpected.
“Oh, wow.” Anthony nodded. “You work fast.”
“It’s our boys.” The sheriff smiled. “They’re becoming fast friends.”
My brow arched, and I hid a giggle. “It’s true. Completely for our boys.”
“Whatever you two say.” Sophie smiled and waved as she walked over to help a new customer.
I clutched my bag, and Anthony and the sheriff started debating the ticket again as I trundled toward the exit. I felt the sheriff’s gaze on me, and I glanced over my shoulder once I made it to the door.
Sure enough, the sheriff had been watching me walk away, so I flashed a smile and wondered if maybe there was something more to our pizza date.
Chapter Six
“Look at this turtle, Mom.” Colby held up a picture of a bright green tortoise that he’d colored in, and I grabbed it from him to admire.
“Wow. That’s the cutest turtle I’ve ever seen. You even gave it pink lips. I didn’t even know turtles had lips.” I smiled, walking it over to the refrigerator. “It deserves a place here for public viewing.”
Colby giggled and climbed onto the stool at the breakfast bar. “I’m excited about pizza with Aaron.”
“I bet you are.” I grinned, looking out the living-room window to see the fog over the Sound had never lifted for the day.
Colby reached for one of the new twisted rope centerpieces I’d bought at Sophie’s store and grinned. “I like this. It’s cool.”
“It is pretty cool, isn’t it?”
In the last several months, everything had become cool to Colby. I was curious to see when things would become awesome or rad. Or were those outdated?
“Do you think Aaron gets sad like I do?” Colby’s words punched me in the gut, and I turned around to face him. “You know, because of his parents?”
I swallowed down the lump that had formed in the back of my throat and took a deep breath, shaking my head. “I’m sure he does.”
“It would be sad to not have you to talk to anymore.”
I nodded. “It would be heartbreaking, my love.”
Colby let out a heavy sigh. “I hope he knows he can talk to me.”
I walked over to my son and hugged him hard. “I bet he does know that, and I bet you can talk to him whenever you're sad, too.” I bent down and touched Colby’s chin. “And you can talk to me whenever you’re sad too.”
Colby dropped his gaze and nodded. “I know.”
“Do you get sad often?” I asked softly.
“It makes me sad when dads come to pick their kids up at school.” He shrugged. “Or like at the pumpkin patch when the dads would give kids rides on their shoulders, but my dad never did any of that, anyway. He was always gone.”
At his apartment in the city with other women, I thought to myself.
“Some dads understand what makes their kiddos happy, and some dads don’t realize what they’re missing out on.”
“I bet Mr. Wilson is a good dad.”
My brows furrowed. “Who?”
Colby giggled. “Aaron’s Uncle.”
I laughed and shook my head, realizing I only thought of him as the sheriff.
“I bet he is.” I glanced at the clock and realized we should head out to the pizza place where we’d be meeting Mr. Wilson and Aaron. “You ready?”
Colby slithered off the stool and ran to his red rain jacket. “Aaron wants a coat like mine.”
“He does?” I asked.
“Yeah. He said we should be matching since we’re best friends.”
My heart squeezed as I thought about how beautiful friendships were at that age. So simple and beautiful.
“Well, Christmas is coming up.” I slid on my sweater coat and grabbed my purse and keys. “Speaking of, do you have any wishes?”
“I don’t know yet.” Colby grabbed a tiny plastic microscope from the shelf by the door.
“Why are you bringing that?” I asked.
“I told Aaron I had one, and he wanted to see sausage up close.”
I shuddered. “That doesn’t sound like a very pleasing visual.”
Colby grinned as we walked outside into the mist.
The sea breeze had picked up, and it seemed like the perfect weather for pizza. It would be helpful, for a change, to be the one sitting at the table in a restaurant rather than the other way.
“What kind of pizza are you gonna get?” I asked as I helped him into the backseat booster. “Sausage and mushroom?”
He shrugged. “Maybe the Hawaiian.”
My brows shot up in surprise. Colby never liked pineapple, but far be it from me to mention anything like that.
“It’s Aaron’s favorite.”
And the pieces of the puzzle began to fit.
He grinned as I climbed into the driver’s seat and buckled up.
“Do you think Mr. Wilson is handsome?” Colby asked out of nowhere.
“What?”
“Do you think—”
I held up my hand. “No, sorry. I heard you the first time. It was a rhetorical question.”
Colby squinted in confusion in the backseat. His cute little puckered lips showed up in the rearview mirror, and I couldn’t wait to thank my friend, Becca, for enlightening my son about the sheriff.
“Well, do you?” he asked.
“He’s an attractive man, yes.” I nodded, clearing my throat as I pulled out of the parking lot.
“I’m attractive too.” He beamed in the backseat, and I chuckled.
“Well, he’s not nearly as handsome as you are.”
Colby bobbed his feet up and down, kicking the back of my seat every so often.
“I hope they have games here.” Colby had graciously switched the subject. “Remember all the games at the Portland Pie Company?”
I nodded, feeling a twinge of remorse about our move.
Even though I’d hoped this was the right age to rip Colby away from everything he knew, I wasn’t sure there was a correct age for that.
I spotted the sign for the Fireweed Pizzeria and noticed the sheriff’s SUV already in the lot.
By the time we made it into the restaurant, the mist had turned to a downpour, and I was trying to wipe the droplets off my wool sweater coat. Colby took off his coat and shook it off all over the floor, and I shook my head in apology to the hostess, and she smiled.
“Happens all the time.” She grinned.
“Two for dinner?” the friendly teenager asked.
Or at least I thought she looked like a teenager. It was hard to know any longer.
“Actually, we’re meeting two for dinner.”
“The sheriff,” Colby said proudly.
“Right this way then.” The hostess motioned us to follow her toward the back of the restaurant.
“Whoa.” Colby pointed to a room across from the kitchen. “Look at that. It’s way cooler than Portland.”
I glanced in the direction his tiny finger pointed, and happiness filled me up.
True glee.
The game room was twice the size of the pizza parlor’s in Portland.
I turned my attention in front of me and saw the sheriff stand up from the booth he was sharing with his nephew.
The hostess placed a couple of menus down and left as the sheriff kissed my cheek.
I glanced at Colby, but he was already busy showing Aaron his microscope.
“Nasty out there,” the sheriff began.
“Pretty close to Portland weather.” I nodded. “So, Sheriff—”
He laughed and shook his head. “Dwayne. Honestly, call me Dwayne, or I’ll feel the need to check behind me every time you say it.”
The way Dwayne watched me made every cell in my body light up, and I had to quickly look away. I had never felt these kinds of feelings, even with my ex.
I nodded. “Okay, Dwayne. Did you get the whole ticket thing sorted out with Anthony?”
Dwayne smiled and nodded. “I did. In fact, Sophie and Anthony invited us over for dinner.”
“That’s nice. I’m sure you and Aaron will enjoy yourselves.”
Dwayne’s grin only widened. “No, I mean they invited you and me over for dinner.”
A surge of excitement ran through me, and I felt a blush creep up my cheeks.
“I mean, wow. That was nice of them.” I glanced at Colby, who was happily examining a sugar packet under the lens with Aaron. “What did you tell them?”
He chuckled. “Honestly, that I wouldn’t be able to give them an answer until after tonight in case I blow it.”
I laughed and shook my head. “I doubt you could blow it.”
Colby looked up from the microscope and shoved it toward Aaron.
“Mommy says you’re handsome.” Colby grinned at Dw
ayne, and complete mortification swallowed me into silence. “She said I’m more handsome, but that you’re really attractive.”
I let out a groan and held my head in my hands as I giggled.
“Is that true, Miss Swanson?”
I raised my head, and Dwayne’s eyes connected with mine. “I don’t think I have to answer that. I have rights, you know. Something like Miranda rights?”
Dwayne chuckled and shook his head. “Those are only if you’re getting arrested.”
I shook my head as Colby started talking with Aaron about the salt they shook out on the microscope’s platform.
“So, you’re not going to arrest me?” My head fell back, and I felt entirely at ease with the sheriff.
“I can’t arrest you for having good taste.” He winked at me, and I shook my head. “Besides, I’m in charge around here and—"
“I think the mayor’s in charge of the town. You merely keep people in line.”
His brow arched, and his smile only widened. Seeing the sparkle behind his green eyes about did me in, and I had to turn away. “Something tells me it’s not going to be easy keeping you in line.”
“We’ll see.” I grinned at him as the server brought out garlic bread and fried ravioli for the table. “Thanks for ordering some appetizers. I’m starving.”
I reached for a piece of garlic bread and looked at the handsome sheriff in front of me. I never expected to be flirting with the uncle of my son’s best friend. I knew it was harmless. That’s all it ever could be, at least until Colby was older and his father had utterly exited our lives.
“You look like you’re thinking about something pretty heavy all of a sudden.” The sheriff’s voice softened.
I laughed and shook my head. “I’m not usually a profound thinker.”
“I don’t buy it for a second.” He smiled, and I let out a happy sigh.
It had been so long since a man recognized that I might actually have a thought or two.
“Wow,” Colby exclaimed, reaching for the ravioli. “These look good.”
I nodded, glancing at the best friends. “What kind of pizza do you want?”
It was definitely time to change the subject and stick to the food.
“Shrimp and sardines.” Aaron giggled.
Discovering Love on Cranberry Lane (Island County Book 11) Page 5
