Rose Harbor in Bloom (30 page)

Oliver drove them along the waterfront to a space about two miles from the downtown area. It was near Cranberry Point. The dock was open to the public, just as Oliver had promised, and with the tide out it stood several feet above the water. A sign posted explained that it was used by the mosquito fleet to ferry the shipyard workers across the cove on weekdays.

Holding her hand, Oliver walked with her over the freshly painted gray dock. He shrugged off his jacket and spread it out for them to sit on. Annie removed her shoes and dangled her bare feet over the side. Oliver joined her, sitting so close their shoulders touched.

Not knowing where to start, she thought to let him speak first. With her hands braced against the dock at her sides, she leaned back and gently kicked her feet back and forth.

“This has been a big day for you.”

“And you,” she returned.

“Me?” he asked.

“Yes, you. I think I lost count of all the ladies who wanted you to dance with them,” she teased. “I don’t imagine that happens every day.”

“I’d be more excited if they were a bit older than thirteen.”

Annie laughed and turned her face up to catch the sunlight. It felt good on her skin, warming her. The weather couldn’t have been more perfect. It was as if God had smiled down on her grandparents and blessed their special day.

“Are you jealous?”

“Of thirteen-year-olds?” she joked.

“Good point.”

She supposed they could banter back and forth like this all evening, but this could well be the only opportunity they might have to talk, really talk.

“You’re quiet all of a sudden.”

“I know,” she said. “Sorry. It’s just that I have so much to ask you, and I’m not sure where to start.”

“Do you want to go back to the time we were kids?”

“I don’t know,” she said thoughtfully. “It immediately brings up a lot of bad memories, and I’m not sure that’s a good place to begin this conversation.” Then, because it was the question that seemed to burn inside of her, she blurted out, “Is it really true you’ve liked me all these years?”

“Liked you is putting it mildly. I panted after you.”

“Oliver, that can’t be true, it just can’t.”

“I’m serious. If you think you were the brunt of the teasing after our kiss, you’re wrong. Your brother didn’t let up with me for years. Peter was unmerciful, taunting me with news about all your boyfriends, knowing how much it distressed me.”

“You never said a word.”

“I couldn’t get close to you. You were like a wire scrub brush.”

Annie didn’t bother to deny it.

“I did everything I could think of to get you to notice me.”

He hadn’t tried that hard; otherwise, she would have seen more of him, especially in the last few years.

“The truth is, Annie, I had to accept the fact you weren’t ever going to get over what happened after our kiss, and I decided to forget about you and get on with my life.”

She looked at him and frowned.

“Then I heard you’d broken the engagement, and I knew I had to give it one last try.”

His eyes focused solely on her, full of sincerity and warmth.

“I knew you’d need time to get over Lenny, and so I waited. I knew if I left for a year without letting you know how I felt that I would always regret it, so I made sure I was here this weekend.”

“What about your trip? You’re leaving, aren’t you?”

He nodded. “The truth is I booked the trip when I heard about your engagement, and then after you broke it off, it was too late to back out. The anniversary party was perfect timing. I came to see you, one last time. I guess you could say it was a swan song on a teenage fantasy that refused to die a natural death.”

“You’re still going, aren’t you?”

He hesitated and then nodded. “Yeah, my friends are relying on me, and we’ve already made plans, purchased our tickets, and have other arrangements.” He stared at her for a long moment. “Are you asking me to stay?”

“No … no, I wouldn’t want you to do that.”

“I would, you know, if you asked.”

Annie was speechless. He was sincere.

“When I learned you’d broken off the engagement, Annie, you don’t know how excited I was.”

Annie looked down at her feet, which had taken to kicking at a much faster rate.

“I realized I had to think this through carefully. My big fear was that I might say or do something that would make matters worse between us rather than better.”

“My grandfather was advising you, wasn’t he?”

“Yes, but that started long before anything came up about this party. He was the one who encouraged me to try again.”

“The whole thing with him forgetting his glasses was a hoax, then, so you would drive them up?”

“No. I intended on driving up on my own anyway, but Julie phoned and asked if I’d drive, and seeing that I was headed to Cedar Cove, I thought, why not?”

So it wasn’t as much of a conspiracy as she’d assumed.

“I have a question for you now. A serious question,” he said.

“Okay, ask away.”

“Be honest, Annie, because I need to know. Do I have a chance with you?”

She touched his face, and her hand lingered there. “Before I answer, I need you to do something first.”

“Okay.”

“Kiss me again.”

His smile reached far beyond his eyes. “With pleasure.”

He changed position, getting on his knees. They’d kissed more than once over the course of this weekend, and each kiss affected her in a different way. She couldn’t deny that she liked it, but she resented the fact that she’d enjoyed their exchange. Her second kiss had been offered to him less grudgingly. Still, she’d enjoyed it far more than made her comfortable. This third kiss was a test for them both.

Oliver couldn’t be sure of his feelings. They were adults now, and he might have built up a memory that would be impossible to live up to. Feelings change. Things change.

Slowly, he lowered his mouth to hers. He splayed his fingers and buried them deep in her hair, and angled her head in a way that gave him free access to her mouth. The kiss was sweet and gentle, moist and warm, and quickly changed to one filled with longing and passion. Annie didn’t know how much time elapsed, but when he went to pull away, she let out a small cry of protest.

Oliver brushed his lips down her jaw and spread nibbling kisses along the side of her neck. By the time he broke away and leaned back on his haunches, Annie was grateful he’d kept his hands on her shoulders; otherwise, she might have toppled off the dock.

It took her several seconds to find the resolve to open her eyes.

“Does that answer your question?” he asked.

She blinked several times.

“Would you like another kiss? I’m willing, although much more of this and we might get arrested for where it could lead.”

Annie grinned. “Thanks, but I think I have my answer.”

“Can I ask what the question was?” he pried.

“I wanted to make sure what I felt was real and not … something I had enjoyed on the rebound.”

“Ah.” He hesitated, then asked, “And what’s the verdict?”

Oh, yes, this was real. Very real. “I believe we’re onto something,” she said, not wanting to appear overly eager. He was leaving, after all, and planned to be away for an entire year. Besides, he lived in Portland and she lived in Seattle.

Oliver sat down next to her again and placed his hand over hers, wrapping his fingers around hers. “Now that we’ve got that settled, what are we going to do about it?”

That was exactly the question Annie had been asking herself. She met his gaze and then propped her head against his shoulder. “Honestly, Oliver, I don’t have a clue.”

“Me neither.”

She smiled, happy, surprisingly so for a woman who only a few months ago had been engaged to be married to another man. With the way she felt right then, she couldn’t be more pleased than to be exactly where she was with Oliver.

I’d been unable to sleep more than an hour or two at a time and was up before dawn. My eyes burned and my head throbbed. How I would make it through this day was a mystery to me. I had guests to serve, and the open house was set for later this afternoon.

Dressed in my housecoat, I sat on a stool in the kitchen with Rover at my feet. Cupping a mug of steaming coffee, I stared sightlessly into the distance, doing my best to think positively. It didn’t help. Not when this dark mood weighed so heavily on my shoulders. This had been one of my worst nights since I’d gotten word that my husband’s helicopter had gone down.

Yet there was a possibility, however slight, that Paul might be alive. It was useless to believe it, and rationally I owned up to the truth, but I couldn’t make my heart let go of the dream. Because I
so badly wanted to believe Paul had somehow managed to survive, I clung to the improbable.

It went without saying that Paul wouldn’t want this. Even without reading his last letter, I could guess what he had written.

Get on with your life.

Hold on to the memories.

Don’t grieve
.

Did he think I wasn’t trying? Didn’t he realize he was asking for the impossible? Here I was refuting his words before I’d even read through his letter.

My guests would be leaving soon, with the exception of Mary Smith, who would be spending the night and leaving sometime Monday morning. The Shivers, Oliver Sutton, and Annie Newton were scheduled to depart this morning, along with a variety of other relatives who’d come to share in the anniversary celebration.

As it was, my morning was sure to be hectic. In addition to serving breakfast and dealing with getting their sheets changed, rooms cleared and spiffed up, I had the open house to worry about. It felt as if the weight of the world had descended on me. I couldn’t imagine what craziness had made me think I could pull this off when the yard was torn apart and I had a house full of guests. What was I? Nuts?

Rover placed his paw on my foot. Either it was an effort to comfort me or he was telling me he wanted to go outside. I slid off the stool and opened the back door off the kitchen to let him out.

He meandered outside, stood on the top step, and looked out over the yard as though checking over his property. Then he turned around and looked square at me. He seemed to want me to follow him.

“Do your business, Rover,” I said, standing on the porch landing with my coffee mug in my hand.

Rover slowly descended the stairs and walked over to his favorite corner of the lawn. He sniffed around and then looked up at me
as though I needed to confirm that this was a perfectly good location to be watered.

“That’s it,” I said, doing my best to sound encouraging.

My constant companion seemed to be in a disgruntled mood himself. He took his own sweet time and refused to be rushed before coming back into the house. He acted as if I’d done something to offend him, and retreated to his bed, curling up into a tight ball.

“So you’re going to ignore me now?” I muttered.

Rover pretended to be asleep.

“Traitor,” I whispered. I finished my coffee, placed the mug in the sink, and then returned to my room to dress for the day. I didn’t have time to waste if I intended to have breakfast on the table when my guests woke.

Although my heart wasn’t into being the perfect hostess, I was determined to do my best. I dressed casually, in jeans and a bright yellow long-sleeved blouse, thinking the color would help boost my spirits. I generally wore a bib apron and chose one of the more festive ones, again hoping my choice would help me out of this blue funk.

Annie was the first one down the stairs. She bounced her way into the dining room as if it was Christmas morning. I’d already determined she was a morning person.

“You’re in a good mood this morning,” I said, doing my best to sound positive and inviting.

“I am,” she returned in such a bright, cheerful manner that I couldn’t help being inspired. “The party went off without a hitch. Everything worked out beautifully. The food was great, the cakes were delicious, and the music was wonderful. It couldn’t have turned out better.”

“Fabulous.” I was pleased for her, knowing how hard she’d worked to make this event a success.

Annie pulled out a chair at the dining room table, took her place, and sighed. “I’m still on an emotional high.”

“I’m pleased everything went so well.”

“More than well.” She reached for a muffin from the plate in the center of the table. “It was … romantic.” A dreamy look came over her, and she paused, deep in thought, holding the muffin over her plate.

“I know how important it was for you to make your grandparents’ anniversary special,” I added conversationally. “It must be rewarding to have everything come together like that.”

“I’m sorry?” she said, looking up at me expectantly. “Did you say something?”

“It wasn’t anything important.” I automatically poured her a glass of orange juice, seeing that her head was elsewhere.

“Have you seen Oliver this morning?” she asked.

“Not yet.”

“Oh.” She sounded disappointed.

That was a switch. From all appearances, the two had reached some sort of understanding. Earlier, I remembered watching her tense up at the mere mention of his name. I suspected she wanted nothing to do with the man, although I’d picked up on the fact Oliver hadn’t been able to keep his eyes off her. If Annie noticed, she certainly hadn’t indicated as much.

“What about my grandparents? Are they up yet?”

“I haven’t heard a peep.”

She looked up at me a second time with the same blank look, as if she’d lost track of the conversation.

I laughed. Clearly, this was a woman with her head in the clouds. I’d seen that look before and had to smile.

“He’s leaving, you know.”

“You mean Oliver, right?”

“Oh, yes, sorry, I must have been thinking out loud.” She sipped her orange juice and set down the glass.

“Yes, I have him scheduled to depart this morning.”

“Not from here,” Annie clarified. “I mean he’s leaving as in leaving the country.”

“Oh, I didn’t know that.”

“He plans to be away for an entire year.”