Tangled Love on Pelican Point (Island County Series Book 3) (15 page)

I sat in between Jewels and Natalie, and the discussion was lively all around the table, Mary asking Jewels how she liked working at the library, Cole talking to Nick about the ferry schedule’s latest change, and Tori discussing her worries about tomorrow’s field trip.

Scooping the spaghetti on my plate, I took in a deep breath and looked around the table, grateful for every one of these people. But I couldn’t ignore that none of this would be happening if it hadn’t been for one person.

Natalie picked up her glass of water and dinged her fork against it. The table quieted and we all watched her.

“So as you know, Sophie has started a new business, and as with any new venture, there are a lot of unexpected bumps along the way.”

“I know how that goes,” Nick said with a smile. Nick had been designing and building wood furniture for years. He was a true artisan and had just recently started to get the recognition his work deserved. It was an exciting time for him.

“Well, Sophie. We all love you and wanted you to know that however we can help, we will. Whether you need extra hands to package your orders, or help taking product photos, all you have to do is pick up the phone.”

“Good friends,” my dad mumbled, and Mary cupped her hand over his. I noticed an ease between those two that made me curious. Natalie continued, and my attention turned back to her.

“We also want you to know that we have the next month covered for hanging out with your dad. Mary helped us organize everything.”

I couldn’t believe my friends would do this for me. I’d been trying to piece things together one day at a time, thankful I had a full week of coverage, and here they were, willing to do that and more. I swallowed down tears, and my gaze drifted to my dad, who was smiling and nodding.

“But that’s not the biggest news,” Jewels said, glancing at her sister.

“That’s pretty big news already,” I said, glancing between Natalie and Jewels. “Life changing, actually.”

“We’ve begun organizing a fundraiser,” Natalie said, beaming.

“Are you serious?” I whispered, glancing at my dad.

“I started talking to people at the library, and they all love you so much, Sophie. Whether it’s sitting at your tables at Island Bluff or chatting with you at Natalie’s flower store, you’re a part of this island. You’ve touched a lot of lives.”

I shook my head. “I doubt that.”

“You’ve collected stuffed animals for the firehouse and found nursing homes to donate the shop’s old flowers to. You’ve made an impact on Fireweed,” Natalie said. “Now, it’s time for us to give back to you a little.”

No words came, but tears did, and I knew I’d never be able to leave Fireweed. It was my home, and these people were my family. And something told me if I wanted to find Anthony, I wouldn’t have to look very far. Cole had been searching in the wrong state.

I took in a deep breath and pounded the mammoth wooden door in front of me. After a minute or two with no answer, I glanced around the stonework, looking for a doorbell. The decision to arrive at Anthony’s home unannounced wasn’t something I’d normally do, but something other than myself drove me here. I wanted to thank him. I wanted to make sure he was okay.

But most of all, I wanted to be near him, and I had absolutely no idea why. Finally, spotting the tiny button camouflaged as a pebble, I pressed it and heard the chime ring behind the door. Several days had gone by, and I still hadn’t heard from him.

Neither had Cole. My brother was with my dad today, and I had a few hours before I went in to Island Bluff, but the longer I stood here, the more certain I became that this was not the best use of my time.

Cradling my arms around my chest to keep warm, I heard footsteps coming toward me. Doubt filled my veins and my heart hammered in my chest as I wondered if I’d made the wrong choice. Who was I to arrive without an invite to someone’s house, especially his? Anthony obviously wanted privacy and to be left alone. I closed my eyes and held too much air in my lungs as the person on the other side wrenched open the door.

“Sophie.” Anthony’s tone plastered me with immediate regret for showing up uninvited. “What are you doing here?”

He didn’t sound pleased, but he didn’t sound angry either.

I slowly opened one eye, and the other one immediately fluttered open.

“You look like hell,” I whispered, my gaze moving along his body before meeting his eyes. “I mean, as much as a person like you can. I mean, I’m sure it could be worse. But . . .”

Anthony’s lip curled slightly as his gaze stayed on mine, and I snapped my mouth shut.

“Is that how you always greet people on their doorstep, gorgeous?” he asked, leaning against the stone.

As he stretched, I glimpsed a hint of a six-pack under his flannel shirt, and my body tingled straight from my thighs to my toes and back again.

I shook my head, trying to remind myself why I was here. “No, generally not, but most people I pop in on don’t look like death warmed over.”

Who was I kidding? He still looked sensational, even if it looked like he hadn’t been to bed in days.

“You look cold. Beautiful, but cold. Would you like to come inside?” he asked, his voice softening.

“You don’t mind?”

“You’re already here,” he said, taking a step back.

“Thanks. It’s freezing cold in October,” I said, ignoring the fact that he didn’t exactly sound thrilled that I’d shown up.

I probably should have said my thank you on the doorstep and turned around to leave him be, but the problem was that I didn’t want to leave him until I knew he was okay.

I took two steps in and found myself surrounded by an absolutely extravagant foyer. I’d been to the Hills’ home a few times in high school with Natty, but it had looked nothing like this. Ebony floors stretched as far as my eyes could see, and a wrought-iron banister led upstairs. The walls had been painted a soothing grey, and bright white wainscoting trimmed the lower half of the walls, warming the space up.

“This is gorgeous.” And would certainly make my job easy, if I still had one.

“You like it? Do you remember what it used to be like?”

I nodded. “Lots of nineties accents. Still really nice though. And weren’t the floors cherry?”

“You have a good memory.” He smiled and looked around the space. “I didn’t want anything here to resemble the old house.”

“You’ve certainly accomplished that. It’s like new construction.”

“Think you’ll be able to work with the space?” he asked, folding his arms. “The downstairs renovations have been finished, and the crews are just working on the upstairs at this point.”

“About that.”

“I don’t want to hear one single excuse why you can’t do it.” His voice was gruffer than I expected.

I took in a deep breath and smiled.

“No, you’ve pretty much taken away my bag of excuses.”

“Mission accomplished then.”

I narrowed my eyes on Anthony’s features. The kindness in his eyes usually softened his high cheekbones and strong jawline and nose, but there was something unsettling behind his gaze today.

“I looked over everything you sent, but being here certainly helps me to understand the space. I think stacking a few vintage trunks over there would really create an inviting and coastal vibe, while letting the modern elements of your design speak. If we use a large, oval mirror over there” —I pointed to the stair wall— “I think it would bring the eye up and create a sense of drama.”

“I like your ideas.” Anthony took a step closer and a shiver ran down my spine.

“Good. This will be fun, but I actually didn’t come for business.” I cleared my throat and ran my palms down my jeans.

His brow arched, and he took in a deep, concerned breath as he watched me.

“Did my brother send you?”

I shook my head. “He has no idea where you are. He thinks you’re at some hotel in LA.”

“How did you know I’d be here?”

“I don’t know. I just had a feeling.” I shifted my weight from one foot to the other.

“Why are you nervous?” He took another step closer, and I felt the energy I’d been trying to avoid surround me.

My stare fell to the floor, and I didn’t answer his question but asked my own.

“Why didn’t you answer any of my texts or voicemails? I wanted you to know how much you’ve changed my life.”

His smile deepened. “I didn’t change your life. You did. From what I’ve been told by Mary, your friends have all rallied around you and Charlie, and you’ve been trying to figure out a way to not use my gift.”

So Mary had been talking to Anthony.

“I wouldn’t ever want to feel like I took advantage of someone’s kindness. Your gift was too much, and I can’t get used to something I can’t provide for myself. It wouldn’t be very realistic.”

“Maybe life doesn’t always have to be grounded in reality.”

I laughed and shook my head. “Spoken like a true rock star.”

“I’ve got some turkey soup on the stove. Do you want some? It would give you a chance to check out the rest of the first floor.”

“You cook?” Why was it that even the littlest things about Anthony delighted me?

Because I had it bad, and the sooner I admitted that to myself, the safer I’d be.

“I told you, I’m a man with many talents.”

My stomach growled, and the emptiness of the room made the echo of the grumble cringe worthy.

“Well, that answered that. You’re getting soup.” He started down the long hallway but stopped and turned around once he realized I wasn’t following him. “What?”

“I want you to understand.”

“Understand what?” He stood with his arms crossed.

“How kind of you it was to send Mary.”

“In the whole scheme of things, it’s nothing. It’s a good business decision. Even if I had to drop twenty or thirty grand to get you to design this space, I know I can double—possibly triple—my take.”

“So you’re not just doing it out of the kindness of your heart?”

I found that hard to believe.

“Just don’t read too much into it. That’s all I’m saying.”

I took several steps forward, my stance matching his.

“You just don’t get it. To you, thirty thousand is nothing. To me, it’s everything. Kindness counts. I don’t care why you say you’re doing it. I know the truth.”

“And what is the truth, Sophie?”

“Why did you come back to the island?”

“I don’t want to get into things right now. Do you want soup or not?”

I didn’t understand how he had the power to shut things down. I wasn’t used to that. I was used to hashing it out, getting to the grittiness. It concerned me. How could a relationship survive a lack of basic communication skills?

Not that we had a relationship. But hypothetically speaking, it was yet another reason I needed to keep my distance.

So why was I here?

“Fine,” I relented and saw a smile line his lips before he turned back down the hall with me on his heels.

The kitchen was beautiful, a perfect combination of modern elegance and coastal cottage. Translucent powder blue subway tile covered the backsplash, and white marble countertops spread across a large center island. A commercial stove sat on the far wall, and the kitchen sink overlooked the gorgeous view of the water. There wasn’t much needed in here to show off the space.

Anthony grabbed a second bowl out of the white cabinet and spooned soup into each.

“As you can see, there’s no place to sit. I’ve got a couple of trays in the family room we can use.”

I took a step forward to grab one of the bowls, and he shook his head and nodded toward the cabinet. “I’ve got these. Just grab a couple of glasses of water.”

“Okay,” I said, spotting the cups behind a glass cupboard.

The moment he left the room, it felt like I could breathe again. Something was eating away at Anthony. There was no doubt about it, and if he didn’t feel comfortable talking to his brother about it, he certainly wouldn’t confide in me. But whatever dark cloud was hovering over him needed to be dealt with before he stumbled into being another front-page story.

I walked into the family room and was blown away. White bookshelves lined the wall and a stone fireplace had replaced the brick one. The ebony floors had continued into this room and contrasted beautifully with the custom white trim work and oversized window overlooking the water.

But then my eyes fell to the television, and I couldn’t hide my smile.

“
Project Runway
?” I teased.

“I like to see people reach for their goals.” He grinned, shrugging his shoulders.

“I could see
Top Chef
or something, but this takes me by surprise. Is this why you’re always so coordinated on the red carpet?”

“No. That’s thanks to my stylist.”

“You have a stylist?”

“What? You can’t tell?” He’d placed both bowls of soup on his tray.

“I just always see you in plaid shirts and beanies, so I wouldn’t think you’d need to pay someone for that.”

“You’d be surprised.” He smirked, and his attention turned back to the screen. “They’re about to walk down the runway.”

My eyes went to the DVR, and I chuckled, realizing he’d recorded the show and was replaying it.