Love Promises (Sully Point, Book 4) (8 page)

As she got dressed for the day, Maggie felt like she
was in a dream. She kept remembering Eric's touch, and his whispers into her
ears. She could hardly wait for the afternoon to arrive. She wondered if he was
thinking about last night too. Probably not. Men were different from women,
right?

* * * *

Eric once again realized he'd lost track of the
conversation with Sam. The image of Maggie last night, responding to his hands,
his body, had taken his mind completely off what they were talking about.

"Eric?"

"Sorry, Sam. I've had something on my mind
this morning. What were you saying?"

"I wanted to know if you fished at all."

"I never have tried it."

Sam looked completely surprised. "You've
never fished--ever?"

"Nope."

"Somehow, I think that is about to change, my
friend. Wait until Cody hears this."

Eric laughed. "I've spent most of my life in
rooms with computers. I was never much of an outdoor guy."

"I used to spend a ton of time at my computer, writing, but I also spent time outdoors. Then my life became much fuller when Anna entered it. You and Maggie seem to be getting along very well."

"Yes, we are. I like your sister quite a bit.
I know it's only been a short time that we've known each other, but it feels
like longer."

"Here we are. This dock leads to Cody's Bait
and Tackle Shop."

Eric was surprised by the size of the place once
they were inside. It looked like the store must have every type of fishing
equipment ever made. Cody came out from behind the counter and sat with them
around the wood stove, in the rockers that surrounded it.

"Never fished, you say? Unreal, man,"
Cody said. "Now's not the best time to go out for deep sea fishing. Unless
we get a good day, it might have to wait until spring. You're willing to try
it, right?"

"Sure. You run a charter service also?"

"That's right," Cody said. "Not
much call for it during the winter months."

"Tell me something, guys. What kind of things
is Maggie interested in that I might use to get her a Christmas present. I've
had one idea, but I've always thought that it was best to give a woman more
than one gift."

"Good one. Yeah, Maggie can be tough to shop
for," Sam said. "She's always so into her arts and crafts, or her
martial arts, she doesn't have much time for anything else."

"Hold on--arts and crafts?"

"Yes. You didn't know? Half the stuff in her
apartment she made herself. I have no idea of the full list of what she can do.
She's always been into crafts."

"I noticed the paint job on the bookcase--it
looked hand-painted."

"Yeah, she did that."

Cody said, "Julia is always telling me that
we should convince her to do it full time. The arts and crafts thing. It's
obvious she really doesn't like public relations."

"Anna has said the same thing to me,"
Sam said. "Maggie should do something she loves."

Eric thought about what they'd said, as the rest
of the morning passed by with a tour of the shop and more fishing discussion.
Maybe there was a way he could make it happen for her.

Sam took him to the Diner for lunch. There
they had homemade cream of tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches. Eric
liked Sam, his easy manner and his conversation that traveled all over the
place. He guessed as a writer that Sam had researched a lot of things, but as
they talked he learned that Sam had also done a lot of things. It made Eric
feel almost naive about the world, to hear the other man talk.

Eric knew he'd been so caught up in his passion
for computers that he'd narrowed his focus greatly in life. At one point, he'd
definitely qualified as being a geek. The more he'd delved into his studies,
the more esoteric his conversation had become. Eventually, he'd realized he had
to look up from the keyboard every now and then. His father had gotten
particularly pissed off at him over how he talked. 'Can't you speak like
everyone else?' he remembered hearing.

Usually, he'd had a good relationship with his
parents, so his father's anger had a major impact on him. He started paying
attention when other people spoke to him, and remembered to speak like a
regular guy and not like he was the computer. He made further changes in his
socialization efforts by taking up the guitar again and beginning to perform
wherever he could. All of which had stood him in good stead when he formed the
company. He'd learned how to get along with people, not just computers.

But the world was a big place. And now he had the
money to travel, to see some of it. Or he could pursue other interests. He
didn't have to go back to school, he realized. He didn't have to become
obsessed with another big project. It bore thinking on.

"Sam, how would it be if I brought the wine
for the Thanksgiving meal?"

Sam smiled. "That sounds like a great idea.
Let's just let Frank know about it." He gave a quick call to Frank who
approved of the plan.

Eric felt better knowing he'd be contributing. And
that made him remember his idea. "I was talking to Maggie and she told me
about how you all distribute food and presents for the holidays to those who
need it. And it occurred to me that there are probably a number of low income
households that don't have computers. I'd like to change that."

Sam sat back in surprise. "What a fantastic
idea. I don't know why none of us thought of that. Especially Julia, since her
work is with computers. If you want to do this, it might be best to go through
the foundation she and Cody already set up. Just logistically speaking, it will
help you out a lot, at least for this year. If you were to continue the
program, you could set up your own thing if you want."

"Maggie and I are having dinner with Julia
and Cody later on, so I'll speak with them about it. I'm still not used to
having access to so much money. If I can do something meaningful with it, it
will help me to adjust to my change in circumstances. And I can't imagine
growing up in a house these days without a computer. Every kid needs
access."

Sam nodded. "The library has computers available,
but children really do need access at home."

"I haven't even gone online since I got here.
I was taking a break from all computers. How's the internet connection?"

"Julia runs it. She got tired of waiting
forever, how slow it was, so she set up a whole deal that I don't begin to
understand. All I know is, the town now has fast internet speed, and it's due
to Julia. The whole town is one giant wifi spot."

"Now that is excellent news. It will make
giving people access even easier. I'll definitely bring it up to Julia tonight."

The two men went out to the building site for the
Sully Point Project and Sam took him through the plans. Eric was impressed by
their goals, and that they were actively doing something for the Sully Point
area. He'd like doing something for others that would help and make a
difference.

Sam dropped Eric off back at the cabin. As soon as
Sam was gone, Eric grabbed some clothes to wear to dinner and took them to his
car. He was on the phone to Maggie as he started driving toward her apartment.

"I'm on the way over," he said.

"Now? Okay, I need to clean some stuff up
first."

"Are you doing some kind of craft
project?"

"How do you know--Sam! Yeah, I was."

"Keep it out. I want to see what you're
into."

She agreed and they ended the call. The rest of
the drive Eric spent reminding himself to be sound impressed no matter what her
arts and crafts project looked like. He'd never really liked homemade projects.

Maggie opened the door to him a few minutes later.
Her curls were sticking out in all directions, like she had spent time tugging
at them in frustration. He walked in and set his extra clothes on a chair, then
turned to grab her and kiss her. He'd wanted to do that all day, and the kiss
deepened as he felt himself falling into that great feeling of closeness to
her.

At last he lifted his head and gave her a big hug,
lifting her off the ground. She started laughing.

"What are you doing, you crazy man?"

"Loving you," he said without thinking.

Then they both froze as it registered what he'd just
said. Maggie slid through his arms to land on her feet and stare at him.
"What did you say?"

"Uh, yeah. That wasn't what I was expecting
to say."

"You must be one impulsive guy," she
said with a bit of a smile.

He frowned. "I'm not, though. I usually think
things through very carefully. But since knowing you, I'm breaking all my
rules."

"And does that bother you?" she asked
tentatively.

He looked at her and smiled. "Not at all. It
surprises me, but I like it."

"Good."

He looked past her to see a quilt spread across
the sofa. "What's that?"

"It's a Christmas gift for Joshua, Sam and
Anna's little boy."

Eric walked over and lifted a corner of the quilt
to examine it closely. He was surprised at the professional looking quality of
it. "Maggie--this is good. Really good. The stitching is exquisite. You
did it by hand?"

"Most of it, yes. I just finished the satin
edging today. It was a pain to do. Here, I'll show you Jennifer's." She
spread another one out and he stared at it.

"How long have you been quilting?"

"Oh, gee, probably since I was twelve or so.
My grandmother taught me."

"Is quilting the only craft thing that you
do?"

"No, I'm into other stuff. Decoupage, macrame,
cross-stitch, really any kind of needlework, a few others. I find it very
relaxing. I've always had a busy mind, and this type of work settles me down. I
bet it's like playing the guitar is for you."

He nodded. "Yes, that makes sense."

She folded up the quilts and put each one in a
tissue paper-lined box. "I'll wrap them with the others nearer to
Christmas."

"More quilts?"

"Nope. But don't ask me what. I want the rest
to be a surprise," she said with a grin at him. She stacked the boxes in a
closet, and then asked him if he wanted anything to drink or eat.

"I had lunch with Sam at the Diner, so I'm
all set. There's only one thing I want right now, something I've been thinking
about for hours."

A rosy blush crept across her cheeks, and she
said, "I have had a few thoughts myself."

He walked across the room to her and picked her up
in his arms. As he walked to the bedroom, she reached a hand up to caress his
face. That one touch of her hand set him on fire.

They undressed quickly, looking into each other's
eyes. There was a steady, strong flame of desire that grew until they were
lying next to each other on the bed. Suddenly he was kissing her passionately,
his hands running over her body.

As she kissed his neck, he murmured softly,
"I love you, I love you."

She stopped for a second. "Really?"

"Yes, really. What do you feel?"

"I've been afraid to look at what I feel.
Because it seems like it's too soon to be feeling what I'm feeling."

"But...?"

"But I feel the same way. I love you, Eric. I
think I fell in love with you when I heard you singing that first night. Is
this even possible? Can it be real?"

"Sure feels real to me. I think sometimes
people do fall in love at first sight."

"Make love to me, Eric. Make it all real."

* * * *

Maggie thought waking up next to Eric was the most
delicious feeling she'd ever experienced. Until she realized that she'd been
asleep, and that they were supposed to be going to dinner. She sat up abruptly
tossing Eric's arm to one side.

"Yikes! Wake up! We barely have time to get
ready."

Eric raised his head from the pillow and stared at
her blearily. "What are you talking about?"

"It's evening. We fell asleep after we, uh,
made love. A lot." She couldn't help but smile at that. "Anyway, we
have to get dressed to go to Cody and Julia's house for dinner."

His eyes widened, but then he nodded and started
to get out of bed. "How much time do we have?"

"We can take a quick shower if we do it
together--and no funny business! My hair dries quickly but you'll probably need
the hair dryer."

They managed taking a shower together with minimal
distractions. Maggie was sure that the shower would be revisited when they had
more time to explore the possibilities. She yanked a green velvet skirt from
her closet, pairing it with a soft gray dressy sweater. Eric came in just as
she finished her make-up in the mirror that hung on the closet door. He looked
startled.

"You're ready?"

"Except for my boots, yes."

"I didn't think women could actually manage
to get ready that quickly."

She punched him in the arm.

He reached out and touched her hair. "It's
still damp. Let me dry with the hair dryer."

"No, I'll do it. You still need to put on a
shirt." She couldn't help staring at the picture he made, bare chested
with gray pleated-front pants that fit him perfectly. His hair was down around
his shoulders and she wanted to wrap her hands in all its silky goodness. That
was a lovely memory from their afternoon together.

She left him at the mirror pulling his hair back,
while she went in the bathroom to quickly dry her hair.

"All set?" he called out from the living
room.

"Yeah," she said and walked in to see
him holding out a coat for her to wear. She saw him and laughed. "Eric,
you're wearing purple and I'm wearing green. We match each other's eyes."

He looked down at the deep purple, almost
eggplant-colored sweater he was wearing and laughed. "You're right. Here,
get this coat on. It's freezing out there."

They were soon on the way, gliding into the night
in the Lincoln. Eric's hand found hers, and she discovered the different
sensation of holding hands when they were both wearing gloves. There was something
so satisfying about the strength of his fingers entwined with hers. She sighed
in contentment.