Sweet Serendipity (7 page)

“I don’t think I could ever see a more beautiful sight as I am right now,” a voice sang out. Rebecca looked over and smiled.

“Hello, Ethan. What brings you out and about?”

“What else? I saw a beautiful woman walking down the street past my shop and just knew I had to follow her.”

“You are too much. You just don’t know when to quit, do you?”

“Why would I quit? The chase is half the fun.” He walked up to the tree and placed his hand next to hers. “Do you know the myth behind this tree?” he asked her.

“No, do tell. I am intrigued,” she teased in a flirting manner, which surprised even her.

“It is the Tree of Love. It is said that when a boy asks a girl out while standing under this very tree, that they are then destined to be together forever.”

“Is that so? I guess I don’t believe in those old wives’ tales. I’m not very superstitious.”

“Alright then, Becca. I challenge you, then. Go out to dinner with me.”

“Ethan, I…”

“What’s the matter Becca? I thought you said you are not superstitious. Show me. Go out with me. One date, if you hate me by the end of the evening then I will leave you alone, but who knows? Anything is possible.”

“Ethan, you are so sweet, and trust me you are so good for the ego, but come on, I’m older than you. I have kids, one of which is a teenager. What do you want with me when you can have the pick of any little twenty-something?”

He stepped closer to her until his lips nearly brushed hers. Her body trembled at the thought of their lips touching, here and now.

“You don’t give yourself nearly enough credit, Becca. I am not too young. It’s only a four years difference, and once we hit thirty, well we’re all the same age. I am in the art business. I know beauty, and I have not come across any other woman who can hold a torch to you. I’m not asking for a lifetime commitment from you. I understand you have been through a lot and you have built up some pretty impenetrable walls around you, but I’m just going to let you know that I have every intention of breaking down those walls. If you say no to me today, then I will ask you tomorrow. If you say no to me tomorrow…”

“OK, Ethan, I get the picture. You are persistent if not anything else. Fine, I will go to dinner with you.”

His face lit up.

“Fabulous. Meet me in front of my shop at seven tonight. I’ll give you a sneak peek at what the store is going to look like.”

“I look forward to it.”

She walked down the street to the bank and found herself turning to see him skipping as he hurried back into his store. She couldn’t help but smile. She had never had someone pursue her the way he did, and she had to admit that it did make her feel pretty good.

By the time she got back to Solstice, Emily was staring out the window and had the phone stuck to her ear. When she saw Rebecca enter the store, she quickly hung up. Rebecca looked at her and shook her head.

“Honestly, you guys are like gossipy old women. You were talking to Tasha, weren’t you?”

“So what? This is all great gossip, so spill. What did that hunk of a man say to you? Inquiring minds want to know.”

“I agreed to one dinner…just so he’d leave me alone.”

“Uh-ha, what do you plan on wearing?” Emily asked her.

“I don’t know. What’s wrong with what I have on?”

“Really, go next door to SA`VI. I happen to know the owner and designer. She’ll work you a fabulous deal. Go…now.”

“You want me to go now, as in right this minute?”

“Yes! That is exactly what I want. Then come back here and show me what you picked.”

Rebecca strolled next door and entered the store through the heavy drapery that lined the doorway. Inside there was jazz music streaming through the speaker system. An older woman who appeared to be in her late fifties or early sixties approached her smiling.

“You must be Becca. I am Gloria, I own SA`VI. Emily told me you’d be by. Let me get a good look at you.” She strolled over to her and lifted her arms up. She then made her way all the way around Rebecca while taking mental images of her.

“You are quite lovely and what a cute little figure you have. You are a slight thing. I have a few ideas. Follow me to a fitting room and I’ll grab them for you to try on.”

Rebecca entered the fitting room and looked around in absolute amazement. Inside the fitting room was a full chaise lounge covered in deep luxurious red velvet. It reminded her of something that Liz Taylor would have been draped over in one of her movies. There was a table set up with a bottle of wine and a glass. The card said it was complementary for patrons. Gloria pulled back the curtain and held a few items.

“Try these on. Even if it is out of the norm for you, still try it on.”

She walked back out of the room and left Rebecca standing in the massive fitting room wondering what the hell she was doing there. She looked at the dresses that Gloria had hung on a hook. The first dress was lavender and had ruffles all around it. It was one sleeved and to the knee. She tried it on and actually began to laugh hysterically at the image in the mirror. She felt like an Easter egg, or in the least, it reminded her of a bridesmaid’s dress gone severely wrong.

She tried on a few more dresses and each one was even more completely off the charts as the one before. Laughing at her image in the mirror, Rebecca felt as if she were a canvas and the dresses where pieces of artwork and not something that should be worn.

Finally, Gloria handed her a red dress. Rebecca took it in her hands and instantly fell in love with it; it was so chic. It had a blouson silhouette scoop neckline. One dolman sleeve with embroidered sequin, and the other sleeve was a tank strap. It had an elastic waist and ruching at the skirt, which only fell mid-thigh. Running her hands along the fabric, she had never felt so sexy. There had never been a reason for her to buy anything quite so bold, bright, and red. When she pulled back the curtain, Gloria clapped her hands together.

“Oh we have found a winner. That one is a keeper,” She told her. “Don’t even bother to change darling, just wear it out of the store.”

“I need to pay for it.”

“Oh it’s all taken been taken care of; you just go and knock the socks off of the blue- eyed gorgeous hunk of man.”

“Oh wow! Does everyone know that I am having dinner with him?”

“Not yet, but trust me, sweetie, it will be the talk of the harbor by the end of the night,” She teased her.

Great
, Rebecca thought to herself. She never imagined that putting herself back out there would be such a public affair.

“Oh don’t feel bad, it’s just that we’ve all been watching that hunk of meat since he showed up around here. He’s just so mysterious, and did I mention hunky?”

“Yeah, I believe you said that a few times.”

“Well, you go and knock his socks off, girlfriend.”

“Thank you, Gloria. I appreciate it.”

“No problem, darling. You go and have a great time.”

Rebecca gathered her clothes and walked out of the fitting room. Gloria handed her a bag that contained red high-heeled shoes.

“On the house, sweetness.” Rebecca gladly accepted the items and couldn’t thank Gloria enough for all her help.

She walked next door to Solstice. When she opened the door Tasha was already waiting there talking to Emily. They both stopped talking when they saw their friend.

“Oh dear lord, I think she is out of her shell,” Emily said.

“Baby girl, you are one hot mama.” Tasha said as she made a growling sound.

When it was time to meet Ethan, Rebecca nervously placed her hand on the door knob and took a deep breath. Tasha yelled out to her, “Wait a sec.” She pulled out her iPhone and snapped a picture of Rebecca as she was standing at the door. “I just wanted a memory of your big night.”

“Ugh, guys, would you stop? I’m already losing my nerve.” She started walking back into the store as if she’d changed her mind about going.

“No freaking way. You get out that door, or we are throwing you out,” Tasha yelled at her.

Emily started pushing her out the door. Once she was outside, Emily locked the door and waved to her.

“Ha-ha, no going back now,” Emily yelled through the glass. Both Emily and Tasha blew her a kiss and walked back to the counter.

Rebecca was so nervous she thought she was going to trip on the sidewalk. She was feeling very out of her element, and she felt like people were staring at her because they could tell that she shouldn’t be dressed like that.

She walked to Ethan’s store front and noticed the windows were completely covered over with brown paper. She knocked on the door and waited. She could hear shuffling and then she heard the clicking of the lock as it unlatched. As soon as Ethan opened the door, his mouth fell open.

“Wow…” was all he could muster out. “I don’t even have words. You look…wow!”

She smiled at him. He was all cleaned up, wearing a black suit, which looked great on him with the dark contrast of his hair. He stood a good six inches over her five foot seven inch height. Even with her heels on; he seemed to tower over her. He held out his arm so he could show her around the studio. The interior construction was almost complete. He had torn down the walls to really open up the spa ce. He put up beams that ran all the way to the ceiling. Some half walls had been created to hang art work on, but it also broke the giant room up, giving it the feeling of showcases.

“Can I get a tour?”

“How about I show you after dinner?” He told her. “I made us reservations at the Rustic Kitchen for seven thirty. I hope that’s OK with you.”

“Absolutely, I’ve always wanted to go there.”

“You mean you’ve never been?” He asked her.

“No.”

“Well then, I am glad that I get to be the first one to take you.” He held out his arm and offered it to her.

He walked to the street and stopped at a motorcycle where he handed her a helmet.

“I seriously hope you are joking. I am not getting on the back of that thing,” She told him.

“Come on and live a little. My car is parked too far away. I use this because it is much easier to get around town in. Besides, the restaurant is too far away to walk. Live a little. You just might find yourself having fun.”

She hesitated. She didn’t want to risk her life just to go on a date. She was the mother of two; she couldn’t be whisking off on the back of someone’s Harley. What kind of woman would she be? He draped a leather coat over her shoulders, and he placed a helmet in her hands as he looked in her eyes.

“You are going to love it, I promise you.”

Ethan was absolutely right. At first Rebecca clung to Ethan as tight as she possibly could, but once she knew she wasn’t going to fall off, she relaxed and let the wind whip against her body. She felt exhilarated.

The rest of the evening was like something out of a fairy tale. They shared oysters out on a moonlit patio table. She watched the way the moonlight danced across the ocean. The stars in the sky appeared brighter than usual. Everything seemed enhanced. Ethan watched her in complete fascination. He watched the way the candlelight reflected off of her chocolate-colored eyes. He watched the way the gentle sea breeze kept blowing her long brown hair, and he loved the way she kept tucking it behind her ear without so much as stopping what she was doing. She caught him staring, and she smiled coyly back at him.

After their succulent meal, Ethan walked her around the back of the building and down a path that led them out onto the beach. The tide was low, and the damp sand glistened in the moonlight giving the illusion they could walk across the entire ocean bed.

“Come on,” Ethan told her. He pulled off his shoes and socks and hurried down the beach until his toes were in the water. Rebecca shook her head.
What the hell am I thinking?
She said to herself. She peeled off her heels and held them in her hands. She followed behind him. When she reached the water’s edge, he turned and stopped her from moving. She looked at him, startled, until he pointed down at the ground. There, moving next to them, were little baby sea turtles trying to make their way into the ocean.

“Oh my dear God, look at how tiny they are,” Rebecca said. They stood and watched as the trail of them met with the first wave that rushed the sand. Some of the little turtles fell out of line and had to begin again. Some of them made it through the wave and into the sea.

“We chose a great time to come to the beach. It’s not every day that you get to witness something quite as remarkable as this,” Rebecca said.

“I know!” Ethan replied.

She looked over at him and noticed he wasn’t even looking at the turtles, he was looking at her. She could feel herself blush. She couldn’t remember when, if ever, someone looked at her the way he did.

“Come on,” he said to her.

They walked along the beach until they came across a playground in the sand. He led her to a swing, and they both sat down. She smiled at the simplicity of a simple thing such as swinging. She tipped her head back so that her hair brushed against the soft sand below her. She pointed one leg in the air as she swung forward. He couldn’t help smiling as he saw how she was finally letting her guard down and relaxing.

When she was done swinging she sat clutching the chains of the swing and dug her toes into the sand.

She turned to Ethan and said, “So if you are an artist, why don’t you paint?”

“I used to. I’d love to again. I hit a sort of painter’s block.”

“Why would you invest that kind of money into a studio then?”

“Just because I can’t paint right now, doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy it. I travel all over the world scouting out the next Picasso or Rembrandt. I like to find all the raw talent that may go unnoticed, the artist who paints because they can’t put the brush down instead of for the money, or the commercialism.”

“That’s pretty amazing. You are giving chances to people who otherwise wouldn’t have the opportunities to share their art with the world,” Rebecca commented.

Ethan reached his hand out to her.

“Dance with me,” he told her.

“Here? Now?”

He took her hand in his and he pulled her close to him.