Chapter Seven

“Are you going to take your dad up on his offer?”

I turned my gaze from the lights reflecting off the river to the handsome man walking next to me. “That’s a good question. I’m seriously considering it.”

“You acted so surprised. Didn’t you assume you would eventually take it over?”

“Honestly no. Greyson—. You know, never mind.”

“Is Greyson your ex-husband?”

“Yes, but I try not to think about him. He never would have wanted a life here. And our life centered around his life, so no, I never thought about Dixon Construction being mine.”

“So, Miss Dixon, what do you think now?”

I took a deep breath and smiled. “I think I want some ice cream.” There was a cute shop up ahead that made their own ice cream.

He laughed deep into the warm spring air. “Your wish is my command.”

A bell rang as we entered the shop. There were only a few other patrons in the quaint little place. I looked at their handwritten menu on a chalkboard sign.

“Is strawberry still your favorite?” Declan seemed to only have eyes for me.

“Yes, but the baby seems to love chocolate.”

“You can do a scoop of both.”

“Good thinking.” I did just that on a sugar cone.

Declan got one scoop of nonfat peach frozen yogurt in a cup.

“You know you’re making me look bad.” We stood at the counter waiting for our dessert.

“I don’t think that’s possible.”

I nudged him. “Thank you for everything tonight. The gift, the walk, the ice cream.” He had insisted on paying.

“It’s my pleasure, but I hope our walk isn’t over.”

“It can’t be now. I have to pretend to burn off some of these calories.” I took the cone bursting with two large scoops.

“You actually look like you need a few extra.” His eyes said he was concerned.

“I’m okay. It’s been a rough few months, but I’m better.”

He gave my free hand a quick squeeze. “I’m glad.”

His touch warmed me. “Me too.” And I was glad I had someone to enjoy the beautiful spring night with. Flowers lined our path, the scent of jasmine and the nearby restaurants hung in the air. It was serene and Declan’s company only made it that much better. Not to mention the scrumptious ice cream.

“You know, my office isn’t that far away from your dad’s.”

“Are you trying to talk me into taking the job?”

He grinned over at me. “I’m just saying we could do lunch on occasion.”

“I don’t know a lot about the construction world. That was always Daddy’s thing.”

“I can help you there too.”

“I’m sure you have better things to do with your time. Like burpees.” He had told me last night if you couldn’t complete a certain obstacle in the Spartan Races, you had to do a certain number of burpees to continue. It sounded awful.

He chuckled. “There hasn’t been an obstacle I haven’t been able to conquer yet.”

“Well, color me impressed. Then I’m sure you have lots of training to do.”

“I’d make time for you. Besides you’re helping me find a place. I owe you.”

Which reminded me of some things I should ask. “Do you really want to live in Indigo Bay, or would Charleston be better for you? Do you want a house or a condo?”

“It depends.” He took a bite of his frozen yogurt.

“On what?”

He took a moment and swallowed. “Stuff.”

“What kind of stuff?”

“Stuff I’m working on.”

I narrowed my eyes at him. “Are you trying to be mysterious or annoying?”

He wagged his eyebrows. “I can do both.”

I shook my head at him and turned back to my ice cream. The baby’s somersaults indicated he liked it too. “You never did tell me why you came back here.”

He shrugged between bites. “Job.”

“That’s all? It’s a far cry from where you were in Tennessee.”

He looked out over the water. “I love it here. Out of all the places I’ve lived, this is the one place that always comes to mind.” He faced me. “Some of my best memories were here.”

I bit my lip. “You did take state in cross country.”

His deep blue eyes flooded mine. “The only thing I remember about that day is you standing at the finish line, and kissing you on the bus once it was dark enough not to get caught.”

I remembered that day too. The feel of being held against his sweat-soaked body when he picked me up and swung me around. The stolen kisses that I never seemed to get enough of at the time. “That was a good day.” I turned from him. I had no business feeling anything but friendship for him.

“I plan on making more good memories here.” It was as if he was giving me fair warning.

~*~

Declan kept running through my mind even as I looked at fabric and paint swatches for the baby’s room at H2O the next day. I knew I should get a place first, but I couldn’t resist the urge. And I felt like I should be there for Halle in case she wanted to talk. Besides, I loved hanging out at their place. The décor had a soothing affect. The main area was painted in a color named Harmonious, which perfectly described the light blue with a hint of green. It complemented the large white H2O sign on the main wall and white mismatched furniture that matched, if that made sense. It was shabby chic at its best and totally Halle and Heather.

Halle sat down next to me, adding a new book of pictures to scroll through to the pile we had on the table in the middle of the open office space. “Do you have a theme in mind?”

I pulled up a picture on my phone. Daddy got me thinking yesterday when he talked about buying my little guy a pony. “I love this rocking horse.”

Halle’s eyes lit up and I could see her mind fill with a hundred ideas as she studied the beautiful hand-carved horse I found online and ordered late last night. She handed my phone back and shot up. She ran to her desk and grabbed a sketch pad. In no time, she was sketching out a masterpiece.

“Are you doing okay?” I watched her, mesmerized by her ability.

She kept her eyes on her drawing. “You mean because my sister is having lunch with your doctor?” She pressed a little too hard with her pencil and broke the lead.

I took the pencil out of her hand. “You should have said something to Heather.”

She met my eyes and sighed. “I don’t even know why I’m attracted to him.”

“He’s handsome.”

“He’s okay.”

I tilted my head. “What do you mean by that?”

She shrugged. “I know Heather thinks he’s gorgeous, most women probably do, but it was more the way he talked and his bedside manner. And when he walked into the room before you got there, he looked at me first and smiled. That never happens when Heather and I are together.”

“She’ll probably get bored with him.”

“You didn’t hear her talking about him this morning. She’s always wanted to date a doctor. And now that you’re pregnant, her biological clock is ticking louder than ever. And I don’t want her leftovers. And there’s the sister code.”

“I’m sorry, Hal.”

She waved me off and took back her pencil. “It’s fine. It would have never worked anyway. He’s too pretty for my taste.”

“He is kind of shiny.”

She laughed. “That’s a good word for him.” She grabbed a new pencil from her case. “So, what’s going on with you and Declan?”

“Nothing.” I focused on the paint samples in front of me.

“Uh-huh. Try again.”

“Really. We’re friends.”

“You guys have never been only friends. Even before you started dating you could tell there was a connection between you that went deeper than friendship.”

I looked up into her wise eyes. “I know.”

“Do you think he still has feelings for you?”

“I’m carrying another man’s child. I think that’s a turn off for most men.”

“Do you want him to be turned on by you?” She grinned.

“No.”

“You’re lying.”

I played with my curls. “I can’t think like that. I have a baby coming, and what we shared was young love. And I have a terrible track record with adult relationships.”

“Love is love. It wasn’t that long ago that many girls married right out of high school. Not that I think it’s a good idea, but lots of those marriages endured. And you aren’t responsible for Greyson’s actions. If he was a better man you would still be married.” She was always the voice of reason.

“How will I ever know who is a good man? I thought Greyson and Declan were. Both men left me crying.”

She thought for a moment, tapping her pencil against her pad. “The world isn’t made up of good people and bad people. Everyone is some of both—some more than others. You wouldn’t have married Greyson if he wasn’t a ‘good’ person. But he made some terrible mistakes. The kind of mistakes that change the course of lives. The kind you typically can’t come back from. The kind a man of his age should know better than to make. Declan on the other hand, made a hotheaded assumption. And to be fair, our brains don’t fully attach until we’re twenty-five. He was eighteen.”

A small laugh escaped. “Is that a scientific fact?”

“It is.” She went back to drawing.

“I don’t have any room right now in my life for regret.”

“Maybe, but you could regret walking away from a second chance.”