— ELEVEN —
Present day
“HERE’S our tea, girls.” Gloria set a tray between them on the wide coffee table and Lynn and Olivia both busied themselves making cups and ignoring their previous conversation.
“Gloria, would you mind if I took some pictures?” Olivia pulled out her phone and checked her email for the generic list of secondary sites they were still looking for. “The cottages and maybe some of the property?”
“Of course, dear. Maya and I will do some colouring while you two go exploring.”
Lynn cleared her throat. “Actually, it might be faster if Olivia goes by herself.” She caught a hard look her mother sent her way and twisted her lips. “But I can grab the keys and show you the cottages once you look around a bit?”
Olivia nodded. It was probably for the best, they’d talked as much as they probably were going to. Today. She’d try to make more time for Lynn soon. But wandering down to the dock by herself was nice. It gave her space to think about Rafe, and his notes, and how they fell apart.
How she’d somehow morphed him asking her if she wanted a divorce into him just asking for it. The realization made her slightly nauseous. It was a miracle he didn’t hate her.
But he really didn’t hate her.
Her pulse slowly picked up as she wandered back up the hill and Lynn let her into the first cottage, then the rest. Maybe it was time for her to do some relationship repair. Go back to the beginning and start over.
After she exchanged final pleasantries and headed back to her car, leaving Maya and Lynn at the lakeside house to finish their milk and tea, she forced herself to celebrate the fact that she’d found the perfect place for their stars to stay. The Blue Heron Lane cottages were perfect, and the Fenichs were on board.
This was a big to-do list item for the locations team, and she was about to check it off. Little ol’ Olivia, who was supposed to just run around and take pictures. She couldn’t wait the five minute drive home to call Greg. Her car was too old to have built-in Bluetooth, but Rafe had bought her an add-on kit that served the same purpose. She used the fancy Siri voice commands on her work iPhone to place the long distance call to her boss.
“What’s the good word, Liv?” His warm, rich voice boomed throughout her small car.
“Uhm…the cottages were perfect. I’m going to email you pictures as soon as I get home.”
“Great stuff. Hang on.” He muffled his end of the line for a minute, then came back. “Sorry, John was just leaving my office.”
“No problem.”
“Was there anything else?”
She bit her lip. Why was she nervous? She corrected people who called her honey at the diner. Why did this feel like the stakes were higher? “About my name…I’d prefer to go by Olivia, professionally.”
“Ah.” A phone call was an awful medium to know how a request had landed. “Thanks for letting me know, I tend to shorten names without thinking.”
“It’s not a big deal.” She took a deep breath. “But thank you. Anyway, I’ll send you the contact information for the owners, the Fenichs. Ashley will want to add them to your itinerary for the contracts trip.”
“We’re going to have to split it over two days, I think at this point. Would you recommend I stay in Owen Sound or Port Elgin?”
She laughed. “Are you looking at a hotel map on Expedia or something?”
He snorted. “Maybe.”
“They’re both kind of far. Why don’t you stay at one of the cottages? They’re all winterized. And normally they do week-long rentals, but I’m sure the Fenichs would make an exception for you.”
“And bring my own linens and food? No thanks.”
“You’re forgetting that hospitality and service is my business,” she teased. “I’ll coordinate with Gloria Fenich. It’ll be just like a hotel, I promise. And right where you need to be.”
“Sounds good. Two rooms. Ashley is coming with me this time.”
“No Trey?”
“Not for this. He’ll probably have a couple of trips of his own between now and the start of filming, though. These poor people have no idea what they’re signing up for.”
Olivia was pretty sure the entire town would bend over backwards to accommodate a film shoot. “Speaking of that…I have another idea.” She pulled up in front of her house. “I’m home now, I’m going to head inside, upload these pictures, and when you’ve got some time later today or tomorrow, can we have a video conference? Maybe bring Ashley in on it as well.”
“We’ve got time in an hour, sound good?”
“Great. See you then.”
As the photos downloaded, heavier thoughts started to land in Olivia’s head. She was worried about Lynn, but they weren’t close enough for her to push any harder than she already had. Maybe she should foster more of a relationship with the other woman. But wouldn’t that have happened organically if they were meant to be close?
Is that why she walked away from her marriage? Because it didn’t just work out on its own?
Relationships took work. Olivia had always prided herself on being a good wife to Rafe—supportive, understanding, ready with a back rub or dinner whenever needed. But what if he’d needed something else entirely? He’d called her needy. Maybe she hadn’t been as giving as she thought. Superficially in it for him, but underneath that…had she undermined the foundation of their marriage?
She puffed out her cheeks and turned back to work. This was something that made her happy, that she could be selfish about.
A few clicks of the mouse and the photos were copied into the shared folder. She fired off an email to Greg letting him know they were there, and then she started sketching out her ideas for a town meeting.
A half hour later, she had a poster design, an agenda, and a list of benefits for Dancelight. She pushed away from her computer. There was time to make a cup of tea and practice what she wanted to say a few times before they called her.
A knock at the door surprised her. It was a Thursday afternoon, and Rafe was working. She blushed to herself that she’d ferreted out that information from Dean the day before—although it made the note that much more of a mystery, because he would have been at work while she was at the diner. Maybe he was in the cruiser today, patrolling the north end of the peninsula.
On the other side of the door stood her second favourite Minelli. Genuine pleasure filled her chest. She hadn’t had enough time for any of her friends lately. “Dani, this is a surprise!”
“Is it okay that I popped by? It’s been a while.” Her friend offered a hopeful smile. The last few times they’d tried to meet up for coffee, one of them had been working. “I’ve missed you.”
Olivia waved her friend inside. “I actually have a video call in a few minutes, but it shouldn’t take long. I put a pot of tea on, come have a cup. And no heckling when I embarrass myself, okay?”
Dani asked a few questions about how the location scouting was going and Olivia told her about her visit to the Fenich properties. After hesitating a beat, she also told her about Lynn’s strange behaviour.
“That’s rough. Do you think she might be suicidal?” Dani’s voice shifted to medical professional mode. Olivia remembered that Dani had volunteered at a distress centre throughout college, but that was a serious over-reaction—wasn’t it?
“God, I hope not.” She thought back over their conversations. “No. I think she wants…to start over, maybe. Be young and fancy-free again.”
Dani rolled her eyes. “As someone who is still young and very much single, I’m happy to tell her how awful it is.”
Olivia held her hand up as her laptop lit up and started ringing and she scooted over to the desk. “Hold that thought, my call’s about to begin.”
“Twice in one day, Olivia, you’re earning your keep for us.” Greg’s face popped into view.
“Thanks for fitting me in at the end of your day.” She took a deep breath. “I was thinking that if you come up for two days, we should hold a public information night to explain the impact and benefits of the project to the town.” On the screen, her boss didn’t say anything, he just pinched his brows together and made a note on the paper in front of him. In for a penny…she ploughed ahead. “I imagine that in larger urban areas, a film shoot just happens and is a matter of some curiosity, but you don’t need anything from the surrounding community. Here it’s a little different. In a good way,” she rushed to add when Greg looked concerned. “In a let’s get them on our side kind of way.”
He leaned back in his chair, then turned and spoke to Ashley who was halfway out of the shot because they were in his office, not the boardroom. Olivia couldn’t hear what he was saying, and prepared herself for a gentle—or not so gentle—letdown.
“This is something I’d need to take to the production team, to be honest. And only one of them is here in Toronto, while the others are in Los Angeles. I’m not sure when they’re meeting next, so hang on to that idea and I’ll get back to you, okay?”
It wasn’t a no. It wasn’t, thanks but no thanks, waitress girl. She’d take it. “I put together a proposal, it’s in the shared drive now.”
“Great. Now tell me more about these cottages. It looks like the dock is really nice, maybe we could use that for some of the lakeside scenes.” He was talking mostly to Ashley, and Olivia realized that she still didn’t know much about the movie. There were lakeside scenes? Well, that made sense, given that they chose Pine Harbour. While Greg talked, she flipped to another browser window and did a search for “Hope Creswell and Joshua Pearce new movie”. The Internet knew more about this project, tentatively called Unexpected, than she did.
She jerked her attention back to the conversation in time to explain that there were photos of the wide, easy path down to the dock, and actually there were two docks, about forty feet apart. Greg asked a few more questions, then he signed off after confirming her availability the following week for other location scouting.
From the couch, Dani cleared her throat. Olivia glanced over just in time to catch her friend waggling her eyebrows suggestively.
“You sound and look like your brother when you do that, you know?”
Her friend laughed. “Uh huh. Is that your way of avoiding the subject of your super hot boss?”
Olivia shook her head. “I have no idea what you’re getting at.”
“Are you sure your excitement about this job has nothing to do with Mr. Smooth In a Suit?” Dani leaned forward, her eyes bright with mischief. “Maybe underneath that suave exterior lies the perfect rebound.”
She stiffened. Ew. No. Greg was good-looking, sure, but he wasn’t Rafe.
Rafe. She rolled her eyes at her friend and made an excuse about needing another cup of tea. On the way to the kitchen she grabbed the white note she’d stuffed under the notepad. With shaking hands, she ripped the flap open. The first two had been short, and this one was the same, but unlike the others, it included an invitation of sorts.
Liv,
I should have written you love letters when we were married. You deserve a mountain of notes telling you how beautiful you are. You’re simply gorgeous, from the inside out.
This Christmas might be our last in the same town. The last two have been pretty lonely, I have to be honest. I’d like you to consider spending part of this holiday with me. As friends, if that’s all you want.
Yours,
Rafe
How could he think she didn’t ache for him? She didn’t have time to think about that, though, because from the other room, Dani started carrying on again about how yummy suits were. Olivia tucked the note carefully between two cookbooks to retrieve later, shook off her nerves, and poured herself a new cup of tea. “That sounds like you’re trying to convince yourself of something,” she called out.
Dani blew a loud raspberry.
“That’s mature.”
“That’s me. The kid sister, forever and ever.”
Olivia flopped onto the couch and put her feet up on the ottoman. “You’re not a kid.”
Real, heavy pain sliced across Dani’s face. “You’re the only one who knows that.”
Oh no. A sinking feeling came over Olivia and she winced in anticipation. “What happened?”
“Jake came over to give my mom a quote on new windows. He had to take measurements in every room. And in my room, he made a dumb-ass comment about me doing my homework at my desk.”
She should get out the tequila. Why had Jake been so stupid? “That really sucks, Dani.”
Her friend pinked up, from her nose to the tips of her ears. “I wish it was just that.”
“Oh no, what did you say?” Olivia’s eyes got really wide as her mind raced through the worst responses she could imagine Dani giving.
“I told him the only homework I needed to do these days was researching new and exciting ways to use my vibrator.” She wailed and flung her head back against the cushions. “I don’t even have a vibrator!”
“You don’t?”
Dani gave her a wide-eyed stare. “You do?”
Uhm, yes? “I haven’t had sex in two years, what do you think?”
“I think you should hook up with the guy in the computer. He looks like he wouldn’t run scared at the first mention of a dildo.”
Neither would Rafe.
“Ew, are you—“ Dani squeaked buried her face in a throw cushion. “You’re thinking of my brother right now, aren’t you?”
“Jeez, maybe Jake was right to make a high school joke, you brat,” Olivia said without malice. It wasn’t fair that Dani’s crush would never be returned. The last thing she needed was a friend poking holes in her self-confidence too.
“Come on. You’re not looking for a rebound, are you?”
Olivia shook her head and smiled.
“Oh my god, my mom’s going to have a heart attack.” Dani fluttered her hands in the air. “Well, she’s going to pretend to have one. Then she’ll go out and buy baby stuff.”
“Whoa there, chickadee. That’s putting the cart way before the horse. We haven’t seen each other in almost a month.”
“Then what has you smiling?”
“He’s been leaving me notes.”
Dani squealed and kicked her feet in the air. Sex was gross, but romance was one hundred percent shareable. Olivia grinned. “So now I need to find a way to make a move. But not, like, you know…a big move. Something PG-13.”
Her sister-in-law clapped her hands together. “Haunt the Park. Hayride in the dark, spooky goblins…it’s sweet and sexy and totally public. He’s going to be there, working, but we can probably work it out so he has a break around when you get there.”
“We?” The thought of others knowing her and Rafe were…were…what were they doing? Flirting again? Oh, jeez. “Hang on, maybe this isn’t a good idea.”
“Sure it is. Just Dean needs to know, and he’s good with secrets.”
But you aren’t, sister-of-mine. Olivia offered a weak smile and nodded. “Sure.”
After Dani left, Olivia pulled the note from its hiding place in the kitchen and lay on her bed, reading the words over and over again. Yes, she’d make a move. And if it didn’t work out, they’d have Christmas together as friends and then she’d move on in the spring. That would give her seven weeks to gird her heart in impenetrable steel and find a way to truly just be friends. Or not. The tiny voice that represented her heart squeaked the ever-so-seductive alternative. Maybe this is the start of something new and special.
But he hadn’t written any love letters when they were married. And while she wanted him to have turned a new leaf, this wasn’t really proof of that. This was just another attempt to woo her back to the same old, same old. Which maybe you gave up too quickly, too easily. Yep. Maybe she had.
With a growl, she shoved to her feet, stashed the note beside her bed and put on some running clothes. Not that she was actually going running—she’d done the Couch to 5k app on her phone a few times and decided that week three was her favourite workout. So that’s where she stayed. It also had the best playlist.
She left the house at a brisk walk, hoping the fresh air and extra oxygen pumping to her heart would help her sort out her mixed up feelings about Rafe.
Thirty minutes later she was sweaty, marginally healthier, and had absolutely no more clarity regarding her gorgeous hunk of an ex-husband.
Love notes.
Seriously.
What was a girl to do with that?