CHAPTER 2

Rose closed the front door behind her, both charmed and intrigued by her brush with Cole Matthewson. If Emmaline hadn’t told her the year before that he came from an influential family and ran his own investing firm she would’ve guessed he was a marine. His dark blonde hair was cropped short, making his face seem more rugged and strong without hair to soften it.

His green eyes had looked at her with interest. Something Rose hadn’t seen in a man’s eyes in a while. Maybe it was because she wasn’t looking. Ever since she had tossed Sam’s clothes out and the consequential fight to keep the house, she hadn’t been interested in another man. Until today.

Cole’s smile was both mischievous and sexy as he teased her about her choice of cuss words. A soft flicker of attraction fluttered in her tummy as she grabbed her phone, a sweater and her keys before heading the front door to Emmaline.

As she crossed the lawn she wondered if Cole had a girlfriend back in the city. It would be a shame she thought as Emmaline opened the front door.

“Rose! I’m so glad you came.” Emmaline greeted her dressed in a pink tracksuit with a bright pink flower pinned to her perfectly coiffed grey hair. “I’ve already started but I could use your opinion.”

“I said I would,” Rose said as she followed the energetic old lady into the living room. “I just had a minor incident with my trash bag. I keep telling myself to take out the trash sooner, but before I know it it’s overflowing and as heavy as a sack of bricks.”

Emmaline nodded and started pushing a large floral print sofa from one wall to another.

Rose knew it wouldn’t help to ask Emmaline to sit down, she would just continue moving the sofa anyway.

Instead she took the other side and started pulling anyway. “Anyway, just as I wanted to chuck the bag it tore and spilled its contents all over the sidewalk.”

“Such a shame. Just a little bit more dear, then I can see the sun rise with my morning coffee.” They pushed it against the wall viewing the east window and both sat down to assess the view.

Rose turned to Emmaline. “Anyway so here I am picking up peels and rubbish when an attractive man starts helping me.”

Emmaline turned to Rose at the mention of a man, completely forgetting about the view. “What man?”

“Cole Matthewson.”

Both women raised their eyebrows before Emmaline asked. “Really, he’s back? He hasn’t been here since last summer and it’s already fall.”

Rose shrugged as she got up and moved the side table adjacent to the couch. “He’s in town for a family reunion or something.”

“That’s right. I heard the Mathewson’s were having a family reunion this weekend.” When Rose cocked her eyebrows Emmaline shrugged, got up and started pulling the coffee table in front of the sofa. “Actually I have an invite here somewhere.”

“An invite to a family reunion?” Rose asked confused.

“Honey, it’s the Hamptons. Every event is a bit of show and tell. Besides, a lady in my knitting group is Cole’s mother’s cousin. She asked me to come.”

“Oh right.” Rose smirked. “Of course you would know someone who knows the Mathewson’s personally.”

Emmaline smiled smugly as she patted Rose’s shoulder. “One day dear you’ll have lived long enough in one place to know mostly everyone.”

Rose laughed. “Oh please, I lived in Detroit all my life and I never knew half the people in our neighborhood.”

Emmaline sat down in the wingback chair, testing its location. “That’s different, that’s city. This is small town Hamptons.”

“I guess you’re right.” Emmaline cocked her brow questioning if the wingback chair’s position was satisfactory. Emmaline nodded. Rose walked over to the other wingback chair and started pulling it into the other corner.

After all the furniture was set in its new location for fall, Emmaline put the kettle on for some tea. “So what did you think of Cole?” Her blue eyes twinkled with mischief.

“I thought it was nice of him to help.” Rose said tightlipped.

“Oh come on Rose, you’re young and healthy. You must’ve thought something else. Besides you haven’t been with a man for almost a year, you must be itching in certain places?”

Rose gasped at Emmaline’s casual tone of voice. Hopefully one day she would be old enough and bold enough to talk about that ‘itch’ with such casualness. “Not that I’m itching, but he is quite attractive in a rugged Paul Walker kind of way.”

“He was so attractive, that young man. Such a shame. Anyway did he ask you on a date?” Emmaline said as she poured the tea into two cups.

“No, but he did ask if I wanted to join him for a beer on his porch.”

“Why didn’t you?” Emmaline frowned as she tasted her tea and added another spoon of sugar.

“Because I said I’d come and help you.” Rose answered confused.

“Oh Pooh! I could’ve done this on my own, have been until you moved in last year.” Emmaline took her cup and sat down in her new spot facing the east window.

Rose followed and sat down on a wingback chair placing her cup on the coffee table. She sighed deeply before looking at Emmaline. “Probably but maybe it’s because I’m not ready to date yet?”

“Why not?” Emmaline demanded without preamble.

Rose loved the way Emmaline didn’t dance around anything but rather called it by its name, but found it intimidating when she was the one being called out. “Sam only moved out eight months ago, I haven’t sold the house yet and I don’t think I’ll ever forgive him.” She picked up her cup and took a sip. “I think I’m still angry.”

Emmaline nodded and thought for a moment before speaking. “Honey I think you’re going to be mad at Sam for a long time, but that doesn’t mean you can’t see other men. If you like Cole, you should see him.”

The wisdom of old age made it sound so simple, Rose thought. “I don’t know Emmaline, besides he’s just here for the weekend.”

Emmaline clapped her hands together. “Then it’s even better. You don’t have to wonder if he’s going to call and where it’ll lead. It’ll just be a one night stand.”

“A one night stand?” Rose exclaimed. “I don’t do one night stands! Where’s the dignity in that?”

Emmaline smirked behind her cup of tea. “The most fun I’ve had usually didn’t have much dignity, that doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy it.”

Rose wanted to be horrified, instead she was delighted. Quite often Emmaline hinted at her wild younger years, but she had never told Rose about it. It was only small statements that gave Rose a glimpse into the life the older woman had led. “I’m not sure; I’ve never done anything like it before.”

“Never?” It was Emmaline’s turn to sound horrified. When Rose shook her head Emmaline put her cup down and looked at Rose with determination. “Every woman has to have at least one one night stand. Do you know how freeing it is? No explanations, expectations. You don’t have to worry what he thinks about your body, because he’s only seeing it once. You can be whoever you want to be and in the morning it’s only a distant memory because you never have to see him again.”

Rose thought for a moment. “When you put it like that it does sound like fun.”

Emmaline smiled and cocked her brows twice. “With the right man, it’s lots of fun.”

Rose laughed. “I’ll think about it. Besides his hands seemed quite adequate and his smile was charming.”

“Hands and smile, seems like a great combination to me.” Emmaline winked as she took both their cups to the sink.

As Rose pulled back the covers and climbed into bed she thought of Emmaline’s words, with the right man it can be a lot of fun. Maybe she should consider it the next time Cole invited her for a beer, besides there was that itch she’d been ignoring for the past few months.

She and Sam had been together for four years; although she was young when they met it had been love at first sight. He was this charming young man with big dreams that had pursued her at a time when she hadn’t felt worthy. She had struggled with her weight for most of her life and even though she had won the battle right before prom, she had never fully regained her confidence.

When he came into her life she had just turned twenty two and was still a virgin and naive. Sam had given her confidence and love; a combination lethal enough to entice a girl cross country. Add to that some big dreams and promises of a life together…she didn’t think twice when she handed in her resignation to the firm where she worked in Detroit.

Sam had always referred to her as cute, and it didn’t bother her because she knew she wasn’t beautiful, but ever since their break up the old niggling doubts had returned. She would never be taller and her breasts and hips would always be in the more generous department.

Would another man be interested? Would they remain faithful? Was it her fault that Sam had strayed? Was it because she didn’t satisfy him?

A familiar tear slid down her cheek onto the pillow. She briskly brushed it off and said to herself. “If he can’t see the real me then he isn’t worth my time.”

She repeated those words until her mind went fuzzy and sleep drifted in.