Made For Us (16 page)

It was a hollow victory.

* * *

The drive back into town was almost painful. Aidan did his best to keep his eyes on the road and not look over at Zoe, but all he had to show for it were eyes that hurt. She was talking softly on the phone to someone—he couldn’t be sure, but from the little he was able to hear it sounded like it was Baron’s owners. No doubt she was making arrangements to get the dog back to them.

And for some ridiculous reason, that bothered him. He’d never had a pet, but after spending those days in the apartment with the damn dog, Aidan found that he liked it, had actually thought about getting a dog with Zoe, and now, in a matter of minutes, he was going to lose them both.

How
could
she
want
to
leave?
He had offered her everything she needed. Why wasn’t it enough? This was why he didn’t get involved in relationships—they were impossible to understand.

He knew Zoe was going to be upset with him when he got back, but he had seriously hoped that they had reached a point in their relationship where she would be able to accept that he wasn’t able to talk about certain things. He was entitled to his privacy, wasn’t he? He almost snorted at the thought because, clearly, he wasn’t. The fact that they were in the car proved it.

Behind them in the backseat, Baron was panting loudly and pacing back and forth on the seat. Aidan wanted to say something to try to calm him down, but he didn’t want to be the first one to break the silence.

Childish.

He wasn’t proud of it, but right now it was oddly satisfying to think he could last longer at keeping his mouth shut.

He just wished his brain would shut up too.

The thing was…he knew keeping this issue to himself and not telling Zoe what had happened meant he was going to lose her. Who was he kidding? He was going to lose her anyway.

He had just moved up the expiration date.

Aidan knew he was a good son, a good brother, and a good businessman. But relationships? He shook his head. That was something he had never excelled at. He would’ve tried with Zoe. Hell, he
wanted
to try with Zoe. But it just wasn’t meant to be.

Dammit.

So now what? It wasn’t as if they were never going to see one another again. For all intents and purposes, she still worked for him. He couldn’t fire her—that would be unprofessional. He couldn’t ask her to quit either. He cursed under his breath. This was why he didn’t get involved with people he worked with. Too many damn complications!

Before he knew it, they were turning into the subdivision and he was pulling up behind her car. He was about to say he was glad there wasn’t any damage to it, but Zoe was already opening the door and climbing out.

Everything inside of Aidan screamed for him to stop her. To apologize. To make her understand. But he couldn’t. This was all for the best. In time, he’d get used to seeing her without wanting her, needing her.

Touching her.

A low growl came out of him as he climbed down from the truck and helped her move the luggage and cooler to her car. While Zoe got everything situated, Aidan got Baron. As if sensing his mood, the dog let out a small whine when Aidan took hold of his leash and helped him down.

“You’re a good boy,” he said softly, crouching in front of the dog. “But do yourself a favor and listen to Zoe until your owners come and get you. And even then, make sure you don’t run off again.” The dog looked up at him with sad eyes. “I know, buddy.” He scratched him behind the ear and looked up to find Zoe standing beside him. She held out her hand for the leash and he handed it to her. Whether it was intentional or not, he touched her hand and everything in him went on alert. Aidan looked up at her, but Zoe was watching Baron.

“Thanks for the ride,” she said quietly and turned and walked away.

“Zoe?”

She stopped but didn’t turn around. “What?”

Dammit. He needed to see her face, needed her to see that this wasn’t easy for him. “I’ll…I’ll call Martha when we’re ready for you to resume work here on the homes.”

With nothing more than a nod, she walked to her car and helped Baron in. Aidan stood rooted to the spot until she drove away and her car was out of sight.

* * *

Zoe’s head was spinning as she drove away, battling the tears she refused to let fall. Anger. Sadness. Disappointment. Those were the words that just kept a steady chant in her head.

Stupid chant. Why couldn’t she let her brain think of pleasant things like…rainbows, sunshine, unicorns. Unicorns? “Great. Now I think I need to be a twelve-year-old to be happy. This is what my life has come to.” She snorted with disgust and then looked at Baron through her rearview mirror. “You’ve got it easy, Baron. You know you have people who love you and who take care of you. Be sure you appreciate them.”

He barked.

“Lucky dog,” she muttered and then chuckled at the play on words. “We’re going to meet your mommy and daddy in a little while; then you’ll be all set. At least one of us will be.” Rolling her eyes, Zoe focused fully on the road in front of her. “And now I’m talking to a dog.”

With at least an hour to kill before meeting up with the Maddoxes, Zoe took her time driving through town and seeing what kind of damage the storm had left behind. It seemed as though no one had been spared, but luckily most people had gotten away with fallen branches and minor issues.

“I guess only the lucky ones get their houses tossed in the ocean.”

There was a ton of activity going on everywhere she looked, and as much as she wanted to keep driving around, she knew she was probably just getting in the way of vehicles that really needed to be on the street. With nothing left to do, she drove to her office to meet up with Martha.

She parked the car and looked at Baron with indecision. “I don’t know if Martha’s going to want you wandering around the office, boy. But I’m also afraid to leave you alone in the car for too long.” Deciding that the worst Martha could do was ask her to take the dog back out, Zoe reached for Baron’s leash and helped him from the car. She didn’t get more than a few feet when Martha came walking across the parking lot toward her. “Hey, Martha! I know I’m a little early but I didn’t have much else to do.”

“Not a problem. I was ready to get out of here for a little while. I’ve been on the phone all morning with clients with storm damage.” She gave a dramatic shudder. “I didn’t drink enough coffee to handle it all. So really, you’re saving me.”

That made Zoe laugh. “How so?”

“The apartment is over my daughter’s coffee shop. Two birds, one stone.”

“Ah. Again, I know it’s early, but I told the Maddoxes to meet me there at the shop to pick up the dog. I don’t want to monopolize your entire day.”

“Nonsense. Like I said, there’s only so much I can do there right now too. Plus, now I can grab a blueberry scone and have a little extra time with my daughter.”

In that instant, Zoe missed her mother fiercely. “I promise to bring those to you every morning since I’ll be living right above the shop,” she said to distract herself.

“Oh, that would be lovely.”

They pulled up to the shop a few minutes later and Zoe found herself smiling. She hadn’t been this far south before, but it was just as quaint as the beachside part of town where she had been living. Sure the sand wasn’t right outside her door, but right now, that wasn’t a bad thing. Climbing out of the car, she could still smell and hear the ocean, so that was definitely good enough.

As she looked up and down the street, a smile crossed her face when Baron barked excitedly. She spotted the Maddoxes and kept a firm grip on Baron’s leash so he wouldn’t take off. As soon as they were close enough, she let go and watched the joyful reunion.

“Honestly, Zoe, you’re an angel,” Fred Maddox said as he hugged her. “Julia was beside herself the last few days and she couldn’t wait to get here and see our boy.”

Julia was crouched down and hugging Baron and nearly weeping with happiness. “I’m with Fred, Zoe. I don’t know what we would have done without you. Thank you for taking such good care of Baron. I know he can be difficult.”

“He was a sweetheart,” she reassured. “No trouble at all.”

“It’s nice of you to say,” Julia replied. “With all the kids grown and moved away, he’s all we have. He’s part of the family.” She gave the dog another squeeze before straightening and walking over to hug Zoe. “And so are you.”

“Oh…Mrs. M.,” Zoe began, but the emotion clogging her throat stopped her from saying more.

“Come on, Julia,” Fred finally said. “Let me have a chance to give my boy a good head scratch.”

It was sweet, Zoe thought, to see how much the dog meant to them. Maybe that was something she should do—get a pet. As soon as the thought entered her mind, she dismissed it. Didn’t she have enough to deal with without adding puppy training to it? “It was my pleasure, Mr. M. He’s a good boy.”

They talked for a few more minutes, but Zoe was anxious to see the apartment and the Maddoxes were just as anxious to get back to their daughter’s house. They’d be staying there until repairs could be done on their house. Zoe admired their spirit—Mrs. M. was teasing Mr. M. that she was finally going to change the wallpaper, and he was taking it all in good humor. Zoe promised to call them when she got settled in, and they both thanked her at least a dozen more times before walking away. She sighed happily and was surprised when Martha walked over and hugged her.

“What was that for?” she asked curiously.

“You’re a good girl, Zoe. Not many people would have stayed behind to look for another family’s pet. I just wanted you to know that.”

“Thank you,” she said quietly. Feeling herself about to become overwhelmed with emotion, she took a deep breath and reached for the door of the coffee shop. “Shall we?”

“I hope you’re not going to be disappointed,” Martha said as they walked inside. “You had an entire house before, and this is really just a one-room space.”

“Please, Mom, try not to oversell the place!” A woman in her late twenties came out from behind the counter and hugged Martha. “Stick to decorating and not selling real estate, okay?” She turned and faced Zoe, her hand outstretched. “Hi, I’m Lisa. I’m so sorry about your place, but hopefully you’ll like the apartment.”

Lisa seemed fun and personable, and Zoe liked her immediately. “Thanks,” she said, shaking Lisa’s hand. “And really, I’m not going to argue with having a place to move into so soon after losing the house. I couldn’t believe my luck when Martha told me you had a place available. Do you have any other applicants?”

Both mother and daughter laughed. “Applicants?” Lisa repeated with humorous disbelief. “Zoe, I’ve been putting off renting this place out just because I’m sentimental about it. When Mom called and told me about you—she’s always bragging about you and the work that you do—I knew I had procrastinated for a reason.” Reaching into her apron pocket, Lisa pulled out a set of keys. “Seriously, if you like the place, it’s yours—effective immediately.”

“Really? Wow…I…I don’t even know what to say.” Zoe looked from Lisa to Martha and back again. “What about a deposit? How much are you looking for rent?”

“Don’t worry about a deposit. If you’re anything like my mother, you’ll probably make the place a thousand times more fabulous than it already is. And as for rent…honestly…why don’t you go upstairs and look at it and we’ll talk money when you come down?”

Zoe was about to protest, but customers walked in at the same time Martha began to lead her out. “Don’t worry about the rent. I’m sure Lisa’s not going to ask for much,” Martha said dismissively as they walked around to the side of the building to a doorway and quickly changed the subject. “There’s plenty of light out here, so you don’t have to worry about that. Lisa lived here for five years without any problems. There are always police cars patrolling the area, so it’s very safe.” Once inside, they walked up a set of stairs to the second floor, which led to another doorway. Martha opened the door and let Zoe walk in first.

It was only one room but what a room it was! Zoe walked in slowly and already could imagine herself living there, and if Lisa would let her paint, she could really make the place special. The ceilings were high with exposed beams, and the floors were hardwood. There was a kitchen nook that would be absolutely fabulous if Lisa could just afford to put in granite countertops, and as she walked around touching everything, she knew the space was perfect for her. The furniture was nothing special, but Zoe could add her own touches to the place to really make it nice.

The windows at the front of the room looked out over the town, past which you could see the beach. “That’s some view,” she said over her shoulder to Martha. “I think it’s fabulous.”

Martha walked toward the back of the room and opened a door and motioned for Zoe to walk in. The bathroom was large, with utilitarian fixtures, but Zoe thought she could make it cuter by changing the cabinet pulls, and adding colorful towels and a shower curtain. If it were hers, she’d make it spa quality, but that was too much to expect. Martha was clearly delighted that Zoe liked the place. “But…you’ll want to pull yourself out of there for this last space.”

“You mean there’s more? Where?” They stepped out of the bathroom and in the opposite corner of the room was another doorway, minus a door. Zoe followed Martha and found a set of stairs leading up. “Is this what I think it is?”

Martha grinned. “If you’re thinking of a rooftop entertainment space, then you’re right!”

Up on the roof, there was a covered seating area that Zoe could just picture with beautiful wicker furniture, a stainless-steel barbecue, and a separate dining area. Her fingers itched to spruce the place up. Maybe her insurance money would allow for some luxuries like that. She couldn’t believe she’d lucked into such a nice place, just like that. She turned to Martha. “So Lisa moved in with her fiancé, and I can move in here right away?”

“Absolutely,” Martha said with a serene smile. “I’m hoping for a wedding in the spring for them and grandbabies not long after.” She sighed happily. “So what do you think, Zoe? Will this work for you?”