Love Redone in Hidden Harbor (Island County Book 2) (18 page)

Back in college, if I took a night class, he’d always wait outside and walk me to the dorm, and on the few nights class got out early, and I left for the dorms without him, he was not pleased. I forgot how great it was to have someone care.

“It’s not LA,” I reminded him.

“There are crazies all over, and boy, you do like to argue.” His eyes swept over my body, and I felt a flood of emotions I hadn’t anticipated.

“Only with you.” Realizing most of my hair had fallen out of my bun I tucked some of my strays behind my ear.

He reached over to the other side and did the same, catching me off guard and sending a jolt of electricity through my body.

“Let me give you a ride home,” he suggested.

“How do I know you’re not one of the crazies?” I asked, feeling the exciting current run between us.

“I never promised that.” He took a step closer, and I smelled the mix of soap and something all Cole. It slammed me right back to that summer. I’d had his jacket in my belongings and wrapped myself in it every single night and slept in it until it no longer smelled like him.

He touched my chin softly and tilted my head up. “What? What are you thinking?”

I sucked in a deep breath. “Nothing.”

“You never were good at lying to me.”

“I never lied.” The lights in the gym began to flick off, row by row. It was closing time.

“Not when it mattered.” He smiled.

“I never lied. Name one time.”

“When I asked if you wanted to go clam digging with me and my brother, you told me you loved clams.”

“I wouldn’t call that a lie.” I liked not being angry at him, but I didn’t know how long it would last. Or would sadness merely replace it once I got home tonight?

“Do you love clams?” His lip curled into the most beautiful of smiles.

“I don’t
love
them…no.”

“Lie numero uno.”

I rolled my eyes. “Big deal.”

“You told me you knew how to ride horses,” he added.

“I didn’t want to get left behind.”

“I never would have left you behind,” Cole said. He slid his hands along my waist, and I didn’t pull away.

“What are you still doing on the island?”

“Remember how I told you that you were my one light? I meant it. It was like you guided me back to where I needed to be.”

“Sounds more like a beacon,” I mumbled, and he laughed in return.

I heard the click behind us as they locked the front door. I could do this. Being nice didn’t have to have strings attached, and it didn’t have to carry the weight of the world. Besides, being cordial was the decent thing to do, and I always wanted to be decent.

Besides an obvious masochist, who else would agree to do wedding flowers for an ex?

A decent person.

But then out of nowhere, I felt compelled to tell him one more thing as if to test the waters of our past.

“I didn’t know you sent any letters,” I said quietly.

“What do you mean?” he asked, studying me. “You sent them back to me in a box.”

“It wasn’t me.”

He let out a deep sigh and brought me closer into him, kissing the top of my ratty bun and not saying another word, but he didn’t have to. It was a long time ago, and things had changed for us both.

 

Being so close to Cole last night did exactly what I was afraid it would do. It left me wanting more.

More of exactly what, I wasn’t sure, but whatever it was, it left me humming as I sat completing my monthly invoicing before Brandy and Aaron arrived for their appointment.

The moment I got home last night, I clicked on Cole’s email, and it was an invitation to his parents’ house to visit. He wanted to catch up. The idea both frightened and intrigued me. When emailing him back, I decided to base my decision on the former emotion and told him maybe I’d see him around the gym sometime.

My goal wasn’t playing hard to get, especially because I didn’t think he was trying to get me, but I didn’t want to hop into something I couldn’t hop out of. When Cole wrapped his arms around me last night, it immediately felt like before and that scared me. I knew how much I hurt the first time I lost Cole, and I didn’t want to spend another eight years of my life wishing I hadn’t had the reminder of what I was missing after he left Fireweed.

Because he would leave Fireweed.

As if on cue, an email popped into my inbox from Cole and I groaned.

He certainly was persistent.

Could I convince you to see me if I offered you bowling lessons? How about dinner and one bowling lesson? Your game could only improve. Trust me.

My heart flipped in place as I read his email again and typed back.

Are you stalking me?

Why did I want the answer to be yes? Only crazy people wanted stalkers. But if I were to pick one, he’d have all Cole’s qualities: good-looking, polite, respectful, and persistent.

Will my answer ever be used against me in a court of law?

My fingers tingled with excitement as I responded.

You tell me.

No answer.

Well, that was fun while it lasted. I closed up my bookkeeping software as the front door chimed. Brandy and Aaron’s appointment would be a perfect distraction. I twisted my hair in a quick bun and grabbed a pen and notebook.

“We’re here.” Brandy’s excitement reverberated through the air.

Now this was my favorite kind of bride. I could feel her enthusiasm a room away.

“I’ve been looking forward to this appointment all week,” I gushed, walking into the front part of the shop where Easter had taken over Valentine’s Day.

The yards of tulle and satin hearts had been replaced with giant ceramic bunnies in the window. Lavender and yellow polka dotted eggs rolled around in the lime green plastic grass and white twinkle lights dangled from above. I’d made a few rustic tables by painting wooden milk crates. I turned them on their side to display my arrangements.

“It must be amazing getting to immerse yourself in every single holiday.” Brandy was already bending over, looking at my milk-crate creations. “I love this country look. It’s going to be so hard to decide.”

Aaron beamed as he watched her and, boy, did he watch her. Every single thing she did brought a smile to his lips. I noticed he was lugging around a large box, and I wondered what was inside.

Brandy stood back up and spun around. “I’ve got so many ideas and I’d love to help any way I can.”

“Love hearing that. Okay, let’s go over here where we can spread out.” With this bride, the table would not do. We needed counter space. Aaron plopped the box on the counter with a thud.

“I have no idea where to start,” Brandy told me. “It’s like when I start trying to narrow things down, all that happens is that I add more to my wish list.”

I pulled two stools over for them and stood on my toes, trying to look inside the box.

“Have you picked out your dress?” I asked, glancing at Aaron. He might need to leave for this part.

Brandy’s eyes turned dreamy. “I’m wearing my mom’s wedding dress, except we’ve made some alterations. The dress originally had long sleeves, but we made them cap sleeves. I tend to overheat so my mom actually suggested it.” Aaron rubbed her shoulders, and I felt there was more behind that simple statement than the obvious.

“The dress itself is classic and just yards of lace.” Brandy eyes misted over. “To be able to wear my mom’s dress means the world to me. I know it will bring us luck. Anyway, I guess the dress is kind of like how we want our wedding. A mix of old and new.”

Aaron lifted a gorgeous bronze candelabra out of the box and set it on the counter.

“We have two of these. We found them when we were in France,” Brandy said as Aaron began pulling more items out of the box.

 “Beautiful.” An ornate foliage design dripped from where each of the candles sat and the age of the piece only added character. I took out my tape measure and quickly measured it.

“And then we have these,” Brandy said. “We have an entire set of like ten or so. I thought we could have the table arrangements coming out of each of these bowls.”

“From the nineteenth century,” Aaron sighed, looking at the set of wooden bowls.

“Supposedly.” Brandy rolled her eyes and Aaron laughed.

“When we were in Europe, I found out that Brandy loved old things. Very expensive old things.”

“Wow,” I whispered, my fingers running over the burled wood. “Are you sure you want arrangements in these? I will certainly do everything I can to protect the wood, but I can’t guarantee that water won’t get through. If a guest bumps a table or—”

“What’s the point having these things if we don’t use them?” Aaron said and Brandy’s grin widened.

“I feel all over the place,” Brandy sighed. “I want our wedding to feel homespun, but with flair.”

“There will definitely be flair,” I assured her.

“Our family is usually the party streamers and confetti type of family,” Brandy began.

“Those are always the best kinds of parties,” I laughed.

“Exactly how I feel so I don’t want this to all of a sudden feel stuffy because I’m nothing like that…” She glanced at Aaron who lifted a motorcycle helmet out of the bag.

“So this is where it gets tricky.”

My brow arched.

“I got into a motorcycle accident a while ago and—”

“We almost lost her,” Aaron said, sitting down.

“I wasn’t the one going anywhere,” Brandy reminded him and he shook his head, smiling. “Anyway, my life has changed course a few times since that moment in life, and we somehow want to include some personal elements into the décor that no one will understand or possibly even notice, except Aaron and I.”

“Interesting concept.” I nodded and stared at the helmet that had taken the brunt of the accident.

“I’ll come up with some ideas and sketch them out. Maybe send me a list of these reminders you’d like hidden in the ceremony or reception, and we’ll come up with something meaningful.”

“I knew you could do it.” She looked extremely relieved, which made me happy.

“Have you picked a location for the reception?” I asked.

“We’re going to have our ceremony and reception at the same place, and we just put the deposit down on this mansion we found in Seattle. It’s surrounded by amazing gardens and feels like an old chateau.”

“Have you thought about colors?” I asked, taking notes as things came to mind.

“We love blues and silvers. Maybe, we could even add silver confetti to something,” Brandy laughed.

“You never know,” I said, making a special note.

“I’ve got an entire spreadsheet filled out with ideas. I’ve even categorized it and color-coded the columns. There are drop-down boxes and everything,” Brandy added.

“It’s the lawyer in her,” Aaron laughed, rubbing her shoulders.

“Organized brides are always welcome,” I teased, standing up. “I’ll be right back. Let me pull some flowers out of the cooler, while you flip through my portfolio.”

“Perfect.” She opened the leather binder and began her oohs and aahs, which made me feel so good I almost skipped into the cooler.

I had several examples of flowers we could incorporate, and I was giddy with excitement as I pulled a few lavender ranunculus from a bucket and placed them on a rack. I cut off a few pieces of white lavender and grabbed some sky blue delphiniums and white miniature roses.

I came out with my assortment and laid them on the table.

“I was thinking a loose bouquet?”

“Totally,” she agreed. “But I have a question.”

“Of course.”

“I was wondering if you might be able to include this into the arrangement somehow.” Aaron slid over a French newspaper. “This is the day we got engaged. I bought like a hundred copies.”

“She’s not exaggerating.” Aaron smiled.

“You mean like origami flowers?”

She nodded and pulled her phone out of her purse, sliding to a picture. “Like these. They look like they’re no bigger than the size of a thimble.”

“Wow. This will be something. I’m sure I can learn how to recreate it. Absolutely. I’ll send you pictures of examples as I play around.”

“I’m so excited,” Brandy nearly squealed. “I knew you were the perfect one to do our wedding. What is this?” She picked up the white lavender.

“White lavender.”

“I had no idea it existed and it smells so nice.”

“I thought it might be something to include. Do you like this color of blue?” I asked, picking up the delphinium.

“Love it and those are the prettiest flowers.”

“Those are ranunculus. They’re pretty cool. The most common colors are salmons and reds, but I just ordered this color and love them.”

“I think we might have to have a wedding every year.” Brandy winked at Aaron. “This means so much to us. Thank you for doing this for us. I know it’s kind of out of your way.”

“It’s a huge honor. Thank you for giving me the opportunity.”

“Should we head back?” Aaron asked. “Your mom might not be happy if we stand her up for dinner.”

“I promised my mom I would tell her everything about our meeting,” Brandy explained.