The Kiss on Castle Road (A Lavender Island Novel) (31 page)

“Natalie, I kneel before you as a man of honor, respect”—he glanced up at her—“a whole lot of courage . . .” He laughed. “And most of all as a man of adoration.”

The ocean wind ruffled his hair as Natalie watched the crown of his head, and she watched as the moonlight played a circle in his hair. She did know he adored her, and hearing him say it now filled her with a warmth she’d never experienced. It settled first in her brain, then down her spine, then in her heart and stomach as it slowly calmed her.

“I want you to know how much you mean to me,” Elliott said, “and how much you’ve meant to me the whole time I’ve known you. I used to think I was just a loner by choice—that I threw myself into work because it was easier than being with people—but now I see that I just hadn’t met the right people. And I definitely hadn’t met the right woman.

“I pretty much needed lessons in everything—how to date, how to dance, what to wear, what
not
to wear . . .” He glanced up. “But the one who taught me the important thing was you. You taught me how to love, and how to accept love, and how that means that you want to take care of each other and stand up to anything or anyone who gets in the way.

“The Colonel told me a few times, and again just a bit ago, that time was of the essence—he said once you know you’re in love with someone, why would you let another day go by without wanting her in your life? So I thought I’d ask . . . and see if you would consider staying here with me on the island, and making a life with me?”

Natalie gasped when he pulled a box out of his pocket. She suddenly felt unsteady on her feet. She waited for the panic to set in. But the box was huge.

“This isn’t an engagement ring.” He reached out to steady her. “I know better than to mention marriage around you.” He grinned. “I thought we’d just take a small step.”

He opened the box to reveal the female version of the
Star Trek
TAG Heuer.

“When this prize came to me as a his-and-hers set, I never thought I’d have a wife or partner to share it with. I never thought anyone would understand this kind of thing, or appreciate it like I do.” He laughed. “I’ve never given a woman a piece of jewelry in my life, and I’m so happy the first—and, hopefully, only one—is you. Whatever happens, I want you to have it.”

“Elliott, I can’t take this. You should save it for—”

“No, it’s yours. You were my other half these past few months, and I want you to have it. But I hope we can wear the matching set for a while, Natalie. I know you’re a commitment-phobe, and I don’t expect you to promise forever, but I’m wondering if you’ll give me a chance at a little while. I want to tell you and show you how I feel—
I’m
in this. All the way. I love you, I’m yours, and I’m here to work on making your life better every day.”

Natalie stepped back and stared. She waited for her heart to start skipping and the panic to set in. She waited for the crushing sensation, the tight chest, the feeling that she couldn’t breathe.

But . . . nothing like that came.

Instead, she looked at the man before her, and all she felt was tenderness toward him, care coming from him, joy at the idea of his company every day, anticipation of more beautiful sex, and—most of all—love, which felt like all those things combined. And, just as Paige said, it felt like friendship with a whole lot of attraction.

“Your sister doesn’t approve of me,” she finally said in the smallest of voices. She couldn’t imagine tearing Nell and Elliott apart. They’d been through too much together.

“She helped me find the watch, actually.”

“What?”

“I’d given it to her to save for a niece someday, but I talked to her, Nat, and told her what you mean to me. I told her I would always love her and be grateful to her, but I needed to start my own life, and make my own decisions about who I wanted in it. And when I told her how much I loved you, she started crying. And then she helped me find the watch. It was always meant to be a set.”

“Really, Elliott?”

“Really.”

“Then, yes,” she said when she could finally find her voice.

His eyebrows shot up under his messy hair, which had come undone from the gel and was back to its normal style now, much to her delight. “What?”

She pulled him up to hug him. “I’m saying yes. Yes to the watch. Yes to you. Yes to staying on the island. Yes to starting a relationship with you.”

“Yes?”

“Yes.”

“I can’t believe it. I thought you’d . . . Well, forget what I thought. I just . . . Wait, you’re saying
yes
?”

She laughed and threw her arms around his neck. “It sounds like you’re the one who’s shocked now.”

“A little.”

“I talked to Paige and Doris earlier, and they both convinced me that commitment isn’t the scary thing I used to think it was. Doris said you need to stop worrying about possible future failures and just live with what makes you happy in the present. And I can do that with you, Elliott. You make my days so much happier. I fell in love with you a long time ago, I realize. And I can commit to you, and loving you, and making our life together—hopefully a long life together—the best it can be.”

“You’ll live with me here?”

“Yes. I’ll be close to my sister, and my niece, and my new nephew, and the seniors. The Colonel wants me to take the new job opening as activities director. It’ll be perfect. You can work at the center. And Nell and Jim might come back someday, and then you’ll have your nephew here, too. And we can continue our . . . lessons.”

“Our lessons?”

“I’m thinking of even sexier ones.”

His smile grew wicked. “You know I’m going to ruin the curve on that.”

“I look forward to it.”

He pulled her toward him “I’m the luckiest man in the world.” His mouth found hers, and he kissed her with a combined fierceness and tenderness she was growing to love about him.

When she finally broke away, they walked back through the French doors to several sets of eyes suddenly on them.

“She said yes!” Elliott announced.

The room let up a collective cheer. Doris hustled over to embrace both of them, Marie gathered them into a group hug, the Colonel saluted, and even George and Sugar and John-O and June seemed in on the plans.

“Did everyone know about this?” she whispered to Elliott.

“I had some support,” he said.

Nell approached from the side, beaming with Jim, and held out her hand.

“Can we start over? I’m Nell, and thrilled to meet the woman who finally stole my brother’s heart.”

Natalie reached for her hand, but Nell pulled her into an embrace.

As Natalie glanced behind them, she saw Paige across the table give her a thumbs-up.

The whole group danced until morning—quite a feat for the seniors in the room, but they were all having a fabulous time.

When the lights finally dimmed after the last dance, Elliott took her hand, touched the watch that now sat beautifully on her wrist, and tugged her out the front door, starting down the hill.

“Where are we going?” she asked.

“I want to walk you home.” He tugged his bow tie out of his collar. “I look forward to this good-bye kiss at your door. I want to see how you feel about me.”

Natalie laughed. “Oh, I think you’ll know.”

And they walked all the way home together, barefoot, smiling at each other.

And smiling at the sunrise.

EPILOGUE

The February sun bounced harshly off the ocean waves as Natalie shaded her eyes and tried to see all the figures before her in the sand. She jostled her new nephew, Aaron, in the carrier in front of her.

“Do you want me to take him?” Olivia asked from beside her. She, too, stood shading her eyes and staring out at the sea.

“No, I’ve got him.”

“They sure look sexy out there, don’t they?” Paige asked, forming the third figure with her hand over her eyebrows.

They took in Jim, Garrett, the Colonel, John-O, Tag, Olivia’s husband, Jon, Elliott, and a new guy named A. J.—all standing with their feet in the sand, lining up crates along the shore, ready for the last sea lion release of the season.

Moe was in this release. He was one of the last three sea lions to make a full recovery from spring’s onslaught. It had taken him a little longer than everyone else, but he’d done it. He was almost unrecognizable now—a full year old, nearly three hundred pounds, his coat now a shiny acorn brown like his brothers.

“Well, Moe looks pretty good,” Natalie said. “But if you’re using the term
sexy
for the Colonel, young Garrett, or any of those married men, we’ve got to find you a date soon.”

“Tag and John-O aren’t looking too bad,” Paige said.

“There you go.”

“And, hey, yours isn’t married yet.”

“Back off, Paige.”

Olivia laughed. “Let’s get closer.”

They walked another ten feet in the sand along the shore break, picking up Lily on the way, who was doing cartwheels in the wet sand and racing up with a handful of seashells to show baby Aaron.

Natalie, though, kept her sights on Elliott. He turned to smile at them, and, as usual, Natalie’s heart wanted to burst with pride. He wore a casual sweatshirt that outlined his shoulders, which had grown even fuller and wider with all the sea lion hauling he was doing and all the eating Natalie was making sure he did. His beach shorts and bare feet were covered in sand as he hauled a heavy crate near the shore break. His hair was still a mess, even though Natalie tried to trim it for him regularly, but the sea air always blew it about his forehead in a way she’d simply come to love.

She handed Aaron off to Olivia and ran up to meet him. She could hardly keep her hands off him these days.

They’d been together about eight months now, and Natalie saw no end in sight. Rather than find him more and more annoying, as she had with boyfriends in the past, she found more and more reasons to adore Elliott. And her love for him—rooted in the deep caring and respect of friendship first—made her want to simply make him happy every day. She never wanted to see him hurt. She never wanted to see him sad. And she did everything she could to make sure he wasn’t, focusing on bringing him joy every day.

Of course, he returned the favor. He kissed her forehead every morning. He told her he loved her every day. He brought her potted flowers every few weeks, and he texted her love quotes whenever he thought of them. Normally, Natalie might have found all this suffocating, but with Elliott, she found it endearing. She’d shed the confines of commitment-phobia with this man, and his love warmed her rather than smothered her; it made her feel cherished rather than claustrophobic; it made her feel free rather than chained. And, much to her surprise, it grew stronger every day.

It was the best chance she’d ever taken.

Law of probability, indeed.

“Are they almost ready?” Paige yelled to the men manning the crates.

The townspeople began gathering along the stretch of shoreline in front of Elliott’s place, which he’d recently purchased from Dr. Johnson and that Natalie was now redecorating. They all slowed to a stop right before the tide pools.

“LET’S GO!” the Colonel yelled, calling everyone around.

This was a huge turnout for a February. Many of the townspeople had come for this release, as Moe had practically become a Friends of the Sea Lion mascot and town celebrity. He was in the paper almost every week, with detailed news of his slow recovery, and earning lots of donations from island visitors and residents alike, which went back into the center to help feed more sea lions.

The Colonel positioned everyone into two long rows, and Natalie, Paige, Lily, and Olivia joined the lines of onlookers, who formed a sort of tunnel toward the Pacific. Even Paige knew where to stand now, since she’d come to the island almost every other weekend last summer. Natalie and Olivia still couldn’t get her to move there with them, but she was starting to crack, her visits lasting longer and longer. Paige’s favorite visits were when they had sea lion releases like this one.

Once everyone was in place, Jim held up his hand. He’d come back to the island with Nell for good once their stint in Italy was over. They’d missed all the work they’d done at the center, and Nell wanted to raise Max in such a close community. They’d bought a cottage just two doors down from Olivia, and Natalie and Elliott had started having dinner with each family once a week. Sometimes Natalie and Elliott just went over to take Max and Aaron out on evening stroller rides after dinner, Lily bouncing along beside them in her new veterinarian costume.

As Jim’s hand came down among the crowd, all three crates were opened simultaneously, and the three sea lions popped their heads out.

“Good-bye to Jangles, Toast, and Moe!” Elliott called out.

The crowd all clapped as the three sea lions waddled slowly toward the ocean, first hesitantly, popping their whiskered noses into the air, then—as they instinctively recognized the call of the ocean—faster and faster until all three blubbery bodies leaped together into the waves.

The crowd cheered and yelled as the sea lions dove up and down through the whitewater, their bodies glistening in the sun. Within seconds, they all made short order out of diving down into the Pacific.

“Good-bye, Moe!” yelled Lily, jumping up and down and waving her little hands. “I’ll miss you!”

Natalie looked at the pride on Elliott’s face—the wind whipping his hair around his head—until he finally glanced back, caught her eye, and smiled.

She wrapped her arms around him and gave him a squeeze.

“I’m going to miss him, too,” he whispered into her hair, curling his arm around her back. “We have him tagged so we can keep an eye on him, but—as much as you want them to go back—you realize how important they became to you.”

She laid her head on Elliott’s chest. “Moe looks so happy out there. He truly found his home,” she said.

Elliott squeezed her and leaned down to kiss her forehead. “So did I.”

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

So many thanks go to so many people for helping me bring these books to life.

Thanks, first of all, to the real-life volunteers at sea lion rescue centers throughout California—your constant dedication to helping marine life, and educating the public, is truly heroic and admirable.

Thanks to my very own romance hero, my husband, Chris—he brings me wine, he makes dinner, and he makes me laugh every day. It’s a true joy being married to your best friend.

Thanks to my sister-in-law, Denise Sanchez, who has played “roadie,” manager, and marketer for me. She’s a pillar of strength for our whole family and always offers help and support, no questions asked.

Thanks to friend Barbara Young, who has offered such unwavering support since the beginning of my writing journey—she went with me to my first writers’ meeting, threw my first launch party for me, and always offers such wonderful encouragement and cheerleading. You are a true friend, Barbara.

Thank you to my amazing critique partner, Tricia Lynne. You always bring out the best in me and my writing, and always make my books better. Your skill and talent are unsurpassed.

Thank you to friends who read this book at various stages and gave me great feedback: beta readers Debi Skubic, Mary Ann Perdue, Barbara Young, and my mom, Arlene Hayden.

Thanks to friend Michelle Arconti Gordon, who offered some of her own memories of working with sea lion rescue teams.

Thanks to my wonderful Firebird sisters who are always superstar supporters. Especially those who lent a special hand in this book: A. J. Larrieu, who helped with the scientific lingo for Elliott; brainstormers Pintip Dunn, Lorenda Christensen, Wendy LaCapra, Priscilla Kissinger, Sheri Humphreys, Jean Willett, Jamie Wesley, Lexi Greene, Talia Surova, and Pamela Kopfler, who offered great brainstorming ideas; and especially Tamra Baumann, who constantly talks me off ledges.

Thanks, as always, to my terrific agent, Jill Marsal: I don’t know what I’d do without you.

Thanks to my editors at Montlake, Maria Gomez and Charlotte Herscher, and to the talented Montlake copy editors and cover designers.

Thanks to my kids for their constant support and encouragement—even from one thousand miles away on college campuses. And special thanks to my youngest—the only one still home—who goes without clean socks many a Monday as his mom is gunning for a deadline.

And a huge thank-you to my parents, Don and Arlene Hayden, who have always been so loving and supportive and are a fine example of a true love story, celebrating their fiftieth wedding anniversary this year. Mom and Dad, this one’s dedicated to you!