Chapter Thirteen
Riley
I could have rented my own apartment, but Anna had understood why I didn't want to spend more of my grandfather's money. I stood to inherit more money if I kept to certain conditions, but I wanted to be prudent. I wanted my grandfather to be proud of me. Plus Anna knew the draw her small apartment had for me. The first time we’d pulled into the parking lot, Anna got out and reached her front door while I was transfixed, staring at the ocean. The three-story apartment building was built just a sand dune away from the beach.
Now I only glanced at the silver-glinting waves. Instead of letting the rhythmic surf calm me, it stirred up memories of walking on the beach with Landon. I tried instead to concentrate on the parking lot and fitting my car into a tight spot without scraping the paint.
It was a relief to see that Owen's car was gone. A totally different wave pressed me back into my car seat. What was going to happen when Owen ran into Landon?
My first thought was that Landon would look straight through my ex-boyfriend. Owen went out of his way to be noticed because physically he was tall and thin and had a quiet look. To me, that explained his attitude and constant bravado. Landon wouldn't see him as a peer or even a rival.
"Too bad quiet confidence isn't catching," I muttered. If it was, I'd be all for Landon meeting my ex-boyfriend.
I spied the rosemary from the stairs and ran to scoop it up. Even without a label or love note, I knew it was from Landon.
I fumbled with my keys, distracted by a wild daydream where Landon was waiting for me inside. Him, on my bed, bare-chested under his open white shirt.
I was almost relieved when I found our apartment empty. My cheeks were hot from the flash fantasy, and I was glad for a moment to clear my head. Still, I peeked into my room on the way to the kitchen, just in case.
I watered the little rosemary pot, found a sunny nook on the kitchen windowsill for it, and took the time to cut a fragrant bouquet garni. I still hoped Landon would be cooking lasagna. Once the herbs were tied tight with kitchen twine and hanging from the window latch, I allowed myself a glance at my phone.
No new messages.
I leaned on our sliver of a counter and willed my phone to ring. When the screen lit up, I gave out a small shriek. I picked it up, laughing, and then sighed. Another text message from Owen. He wanted to make dinner with Anna and me.
I shook my head. Owen was an old friend and when he first arrived in Santa Cruz, it made sense. It was awkward, but Anna and I didn't want him to feel lonely after such a big move. Then he got into his own loose definition of a routine with his friends or business partners, and I tried to get some space. That's when he started hanging out in our parking lot. He'd be there with Anna when I got back from class, or just show up with sandwiches around lunchtime, and he pretended like it was normal and innocent.
I had hoped that his time alone back home, without me, would have straightened up and motivated him. He was motivated but in his own way. I knew that no matter what, I would never go back to that dead end relationship. I liked Owen as a person, but we weren’t right for one another.
I forced myself to walk out of our kitchen and cross the tiny living room to the front window. I inched my way to the corner and peeked through the fronds of a maidenhair fern. Expecting to see Owen waving from the hood of his rusty sedan, I scanned the parking lot. Owen and his dented heap were nowhere to be seen.
The flash of sunlight off a shiny car turned my attention back to the parking lot. Landon's glossy black sedan pulled up to the steps, and James came around the car to help Landon out. I squeaked and dropped down out of sight.
Landon was back. My heartbeat drummed in excitement.
I scurried to the bathroom to check my hair. When I reached up to comb out the tangles, I realized I was still holding my phone. The screen lit up with another text message from Owen. I tossed it in my makeup bag and retrieved a light rose-colored lipstick instead.
"Hello?" Landon called. There was a muffled knock and then a rustling and thumping outside the door.
I heard a few choice swear words before I let him in. A bag of groceries tumbled inside, but Landon caught it just before I was pummeled with a head of lettuce. He stood up and hoisted the bag under his arm. Then he smiled. I smiled back, feeling like a goofy teenager.
Then his other grocery bag tore open. A variety of fruit and vegetables rolled into my apartment.
"You look nice," Landon said. "That shade of pink suits you."
I remembered the lipstick and grazed my lips with my tongue. Landon's eyes went from ocean to cobalt blue and neither of us moved to retrieve the rolling produce.
Then I shook my head and stepped back, almost tripping on an apple. "Come on in. I'm so glad you're back. I mean, Anna and I don't mind cereal for dinner, but whatever you've got here looks a lot better."
"Well, I hope you don't mind if I changed the menu from lasagna to something a little more ambitious." He handed me one grocery bag, then bent to scoop up what had fallen with one hand.
I set the bag on the counter. When I turned around, Landon was behind me and the bag he held was crushed between us. His eyes landed on my lips again and slowly trailed up to meet my gaze. Heat ignited inside me and I gave a nervous titter to relieve some of the pressure.
Landon chuckled too. Putting the groceries away became a hilarious game of tangled limbs and brushing bodies. The small kitchen made it impossible to turn around without coming nose to nose, and we smiled each time we almost collided.
Instead of dumping all the fruit and vegetables into one of the refrigerator drawers, I reached for one at a time.
"I am clearly in over my head," Landon said.
"With this dinner, or something else?" The fire leapt to my cheeks. All I could think about was kissing him, and now I was just saying the first thing that popped into my one-track mind.
"One way to find out," Landon murmured.
All he had to do was lean and I was caught between him and the kitchen counter. I could have pushed him back, but my hands slid up his shoulders and behind his neck instead. Then I stood on my tiptoes and caught him off balance with a kiss.
He pulled me closer to him. I was lost in the brush and press of his lips against mine when his hands encircled my waist. He melded me to him and there was only one thing I could do.
I swept my hands to his chest and pushed. I broke away from the kiss and dropped back to the counter. "Sorry," I said. "I just, um. Would you like a beer? I think Anna has some stashed in the back of the fridge."
Landon leaned forward again, but then caught himself. "Yeah, a beer sounds great. How was class?"
I shrugged and dug out two beer bottles. "You don't want to hear about that. What did you do all day? Are you going to go down to the boardwalk?" My heart raced as I could still feel his hard body in my hands and feel his soft lips on mine. I wanted another kiss but resisted the urge.
He smiled. "I do want to hear about your classes. I think viticulture is a really interesting graduate degree. How was your, what was it, botany lecture?"
I handed him a beer and jumped up to sit on the counter. "It was fine. I was a model student, great notes and everything, until you sent along that cat selfie."
"What if I told you he sent it?" Landon asked. Anna's cat opened one eye from his perch on the back of the couch.
I laughed, and then gave him a stern finger shake. "Making me check my phone in class, making me snort with laughter, making me distract and amuse my fellow students. You're in big trouble."
Landon pointed the lip of his beer bottle at the cat. "Then he definitely sent it." He gave me an apologetic smile. "Sorry to distract you. How did you land on viticulture anyway? I mean, besides your obvious green thumb."
"Houseplants and potted herbs just need a little water and sunlight. Grape vines are a whole lot more complicated."
"And that's what you want? To grow grapes, maybe in a California vineyard? Isn't that hard work?" Landon leaned a hip on the counter next to me.
"That's what appeals to me," I said. "The hard work, the physical product. I don't just want to cash paychecks, I want to produce something I can hold."
"And drink," Landon said with a smile.
I swatted his shoulder. "There wasn't a garden at my grandfather's until my mom and I came to live with him. Just a few clumps of wildflowers and a bunch of weeds. It was therapy for my mom to make order out of all that chaos. Then she made it into so much more." The memory overtook me. "More colors than I knew flowers could be, sweet smelling herbs, fresh vegetables, and even fruit trees."
"So that's where you learned to garden and where you got your green thumb," Landon said.
I took a quick gulp of beer. "My mom got sick and she couldn't bear to see the garden overgrown. So I used to help her out to a lawn chair and let her direct me. I thought it made her feel better, but now I realize she did it for me."
Landon took my beer, set it down, and kept my hand.
"She knew I needed the garden," I continued. "When she died, I found so much comfort in all the living things we had planted and tended together."
He kissed the back of my hand. "Thank you for telling me that. I bet your mom would be proud of how you're thriving." Landon paused and looked into my eyes and I could almost feel the next question coming. “You never talk about your dad. Do you keep in touch?”
“No.” I stretched my neck and then cocked my head to the side. “He left us when I was barely walking. My mother never talked about him. All I really know was what my grandfather would say under his breath, and that was usually that we were all better off.”
I pulled my hand away, swiped my beer, and jumped off the kitchen counter. "It's nice out. We should sit on the balcony." The last thing I had wanted to do was think about a man I didn’t even have a memory of.
"Oh, that reminds me! I got a surprise for you," Landon said. He rummaged through the ingredients on the counter and pulled out a box of tea. "I noticed a pitcher of sun tea in the photograph of you and your grandfather on his front porch. I thought you might like to make some?"
I took the box of tea but couldn't say a word.
"I'd make it for you, but I have no idea how it works," he said.
His hopeless shrug made me laugh. "There's a pitcher in the cupboard above the stove."
Landon grabbed it. I held out my hand to take it, but he refused to hand it to me. "Now what?"
I tore open the box of tea, handed him a few bags, and directed him to fill the pitcher with water. He checked in with me after each easy step.
Laughing, I asked, "You've really never made sun tea before?"
He shot me a blue-eyed wink. "I know it needs sun. Wanna sit on the balcony?"
He squeezed through the narrow side door onto our small balcony. There was just enough room for the two chairs Anna and I had placed out there, and he settled into one with a happy sigh. I put the pitcher on the sunny corner of the railing and took the other chair.
"Not bad for a little apartment, huh?" I asked.
Landon looked out over the Pacific Ocean. "Not bad at all. Though I've got to admit I love the view from Michel's Beach more."
I tipped my face to the warm sunshine. "Funny what a few more miles down the coast can do."
"I’ll admit it. Santa Cruz is great. Lively town, phenomenal beaches, great mix of tourists and college students. What's not to like, right?"
"But you like somewhere else better." I shot him a sideways glance to confirm my suspicion.
Landon nodded. "I love the fog and the cliffs and that tiny little town, but I get it when people love beaches like this. You can't really blame your ex-boyfriend for moving here. I mean, I'm sure upstate New York is beautiful, but then there's this."
The beer fizzed in my stomach along with a sour taste. Hearing Landon mention Owen made me uncomfortable, but I had to agree with him. I couldn't blame Owen for wanting a change and when an opportunity popped up in Santa Cruz, I couldn't blame him for taking it. The only problem was how it overlapped with my own fresh start. Things were so tangled up, like vines on a trellis.
"Is it bad that I'm starting to see my relationships in terms of vineyards?" I asked.
Landon took a sip of his beer and coughed. "I'm sure that'll make sense once you explain it."
I leaned forward in my chair. "Some people help the vines grow up and along the trellis, some people are the trellis, and some people block the sun."
"Okay, I can see it," Landon nodded. "Some people help you grow while others tend to stunt your growth."
I shrugged. "Maybe that just fits my life, but I'm trying to be selective about the people I allow in my vineyard."
"Your analogy fits my life, too," Landon said. "In fact, I feel like I'm sitting in the sun for the first time in a long while."
I remembered his oh-so-charming cousin and her instant assumptions about me. Landon frowned every time he got a text message from her, but he still let her organize his life.
Landon's lips curved in a contented smile. "No wonder all your plants are growing so happy. I could get used to this."
I snorted. "Used to a tiny, two-bedroom apartment? Doesn't it make you feel cramped?"
"You've got everything you need right here. What could be more perfect?"
It made my head spin. Sitting with Landon so comfortably on the sunny balcony was more than I could have hoped for. I had told myself just seeing him again was enough, but now I wasn't so sure.
Landon stretched out his long legs and took another sip of beer. "I'm more interested in knowing what's going to happen now you have room to grow."
I started slowly. "I want to find a small vineyard, something that feels like family. I'm not looking for the top job. I want to earn my way up and learn everything I can. I don't care if all I do is prune for years, as long as I can see something good come out of my efforts."
"You'll be able to literally see the fruits of your labors," Landon said.
I groaned. "Puns aside, it's your turn. If you didn't have your family legacy hanging over your head, what would you do?"
Landon's eyes drifted out over the waves. "You really should meet our head gardener. Like I said, we've got vines on the estate, and he meets regularly with local vintners. Maybe he could help you find an apprenticeship or even a job."
"No. No, thank you," I said. "I probably could use the recommendation, but I don't want it. I need to earn my own way. I need something of my own. Does that make sense?"
"I completely agree," Landon said. "I know it sounds stupid, but I want the same thing. Just a chance to do something real, something hands-on. Like you said, I wish I could do something, have something of my own." He grimaced. "I know, ridiculous coming out the mouth of someone who has everything."
"Except a job," I said.
Landon threw back his head and laughed. "Exactly. Oh, by the way, did you get the rosemary?”
In my excitement, I turned toward him and our legs bumped together. He sat up, leaned forward, and gave my bouncing knee a squeeze.
"I love it," I said. "How did you know it was the one herb I was missing? I can't wait to make rosemary lavender scones. Wait until you try them. I'm a terrible baker, but scones are easy and having fresh rosemary on hand is going to be so great."
Landon drew back and I realized how overwhelming I sounded. I jumped up and checked the sun tea. "Is it done?" Landon asked. He stood up, unintentionally cornering me against the railing.
"Sorry about before," I said. "I wasn't really thinking. It's just despite the tight fit, I like having you around. I hope that's not too much to say."
His smile was slow, as were the fingers that caught a tendril of my hair. "You keep worrying that the cramped quarters make me uncomfortable. To me, it feels like a good fit."
I fought the urge to lean into his arms. The man was stronger than an ocean undertow, and I was in definite danger of drowning in his eyes. Then his smiling mouth brushed against mine and a sigh of pleasure escaped my lips.
Landon put his hands on the railing, boxing me into the corner, and took his time tasting, nipping, and stirring up a storm with small strokes of his tongue. He'd let up, our eyes would meet, and then he would kiss me again with a smile still on his lips.
"You really don't mind having me here?" he asked, brushing a kiss across my cheek.
My voice wavered as he nuzzled my neck. "No, I don't mind at all. Actually, I was a little sad when I got home and you weren't here."
"Mmm," Landon pressed an electric kiss to my neck just below my ear. "Sorry about that. I let the day get away from me. Lunch with Owen ran long, and then I wanted to stop by the grocery store and pick up everything for dinner. By the way, I should tell you, the rosemary wasn’t from me. Owen left it for you and Anna."
"Wait, what?" I shoved Landon back and he blinked in surprise. My heart fell into my stomach and a cold wave of fear washed away the heat that had been building between us. "I'm sorry, did you say you had lunch with Owen?"
Before he could finish nodding, I pushed Landon farther back and ducked into the kitchen. He followed, holding the sun tea, but he had to step back as I paced the small section of tiled floor.
"You had lunch with Owen? My ex-boyfriend? What, did you run into him in the parking lot and hit it off? That's crazy!" I couldn't let Landon talk because panic was pulling me apart. "How could he do that? I can't believe this. He runs off every single one of my dates."
Landon caught me by the shoulders. "What do you think Owen did? He saw me coming out of your apartment and we got to talking. I wanted a recommendation for lunch so he took me to the surf shack."
I shrugged off his hands and spun in the tiny kitchen. "You don't understand. Owen's the laziest person I've ever met. He gets everyone to do everything for him. He was probably hungry and didn't have any cash so he conned you into thinking you needed him as a lunch companion."
"Riley stop, please." Landon tried to corner me again.
I dodged around him and then spun to face him, my hands on my hips. "That's it! Owen has crossed the line."
"He's the one who gave you the rosemary," Landon said. "And it wasn’t just for you —this isn’t all about you.”
"You don't understand," I said. "Owen figures out what people want to hear, but he only cares about getting what he wants."
"I don't see it." Landon's jaw muscle flexed.
"No, you don't," I said. "You don't see how he hangs around here and watches our apartment. You don't know how he figured out both mine and Anna’s schedules and appears whenever he thinks we have a free minute. He acts all casual and says he's just checking up on us, but it feels like more than that.”
Landon crossed his arms and smiled. "I think it is more than that, just not what you think. Like I said, I don’t think it’s about you. So he's tenacious and maybe a bit too thorough. Is it wrong for him to try for what he wants?”
I held up both hands and shook my head. "This isn't happening. You're not defending my ex-boyfriend.”
He let his arms drop to his sides. "I'm sorry, Riley. It was probably way out of line. It's just we got to talking, and I realized that he would be a good fit at our housing project office. So I offered him a job."
I flopped back against the counter and gaped at Landon. "You offered Owen a job in one of your offices and he accepted?"
"It's about an hour from here. Owen will be heading there next week."
"Landon, are you sure you want to do that? You don't have to do that. Owen's not the hardest worker. What if he just causes you more problems?" I ran my hands up and down my arms.
He shrugged. "It's a good opportunity for him. They don't work the typical nine to five there and the work is interesting. Also, I set him up in a small apartment. He can finally get settled and start to think about getting his life organized."
It would be good for Owen, but I didn't see any benefits for Landon. "He didn't earn that job. He tricked you into giving it to him. You don’t have to be nice to him for me."
Landon caught my hands and gave them a reassuring squeeze. "He didn't trick me and I’m not just doing it for you. Owen’s a good reminder to me to find a goal and work toward it. We’re alike in that way. Besides, when Owen's an hour away getting his life together, he won't be lurking outside your apartment. And he won't be interrupting us."