She headed outside with her knitting project carefully placed in the cute bag Darlene had given her. Hopefully she wouldn’tforget all she’d learned by the time she got home. She’d love to keep going and get a few more inches done on the scarf this evening. But now, she needed to get back to wrapping up details for the festival.
When she got back to her cottage, she set her knitting out beside her favorite chair and went to her laptop to check emails. She clicked through them one by one, jotting notes to herself when needed.
She looked at the next email in surprise. She’d reached out to a friend in New York who’d given her the name of an art critic. Her friend heard the woman was doing an article on regional art shows. Amanda had written to the woman but hadn’t heard back. It was a long shot, anyway.
But here she was, replying. The woman wanted to do a preliminary viewing of the items in the show. She wanted to do a write-up of the show but had a conflict on the actual date of the festival. Pleased, Amanda quickly answered back that it would work. An early write-up might help with promo for the festival too.
Luckily she had most of the artwork staged now in a large room in city hall, waiting to be moved to the pavilion for the festival. She wished she could set up the artwork at the pavilion for the critic, but it really needed to stay inside and protected until the festival. She’d have to make sure everything looked great and the lighting was good.
She finally rose and stretched, walking over to the sink to grab a glass of water. Glancing outside, she saw that Connor’s workshop doors were open. She debated going over there but didn’t like to interrupt his work uninvited.
She hadn’t seen him since the almost-maybe kiss on Saturday. A flutter of insecurity swept through her. Maybe he was avoiding her? Maybe he hadn’t had as good a time as she had? Or he was regretting his decision to go on a date with her?
She turned away from the window, determined not to go over. He could come see her. She didn’t want to look like she was chasing after him…
She settled into the overstuffed chair and picked up her knitting. Soon she was engrossed in her project, the rhythm of the needles and the dance of the yarn feeling more and more familiar as she practiced.
A knock at her door startled her, and she put her knitting down. She walked over and opened the door, pleased and surprised to see Connor standing there. “Hey, you.” A warm smile turned up the corners of his mouth and his eyes twinkled.
“Hi.” Her breath caught.
“Wondered if you needed any help with anything for the festival. I’ve got some free time on my hands.”
“I’m actually pretty well set. If the weather just holds out. That’s one thing I can’t control.”
“It wouldn’t dare rain on your parade.” He winked at her.
Connor Dempsey winked.A smile slipped across her lips. “It better not.”
“So if things are going well and you’re not busy, you want to take a walk on the beach?”
“I’d love to.” She kicked off her shoes, leaving them on the weathered porch steps as they stepped into the late afternoon sunshine.
They headed down to the beach, the powdery sand shifting beneath their feet until they hit the hard-packed sand by the water’s edge.
“This never gets old,” he said, nodding out toward the water. “The view of the waves, the clouds up in the sky, the birds flying past. It’s like a living piece of artwork. When I lived in the city, I felt like all I got were brief, teasing glimpses of the sky.”
“I know what you mean. Bits of sky between all the skyscrapers. Trees just in the few parks scattered around, allboxed in by concrete.” She glanced out toward the horizon where the turquoise water met the blue of the sky, the vastness of it all almost overwhelming her. And the fact that she was here, right now, taking it all in, appreciating it.
“And I admit to liking the sound of the surf better than the honking of cars and the sounds of sirens.” He watched the waves lap at his feet. “It was a good decision for me to move here. To… get away.” He turned back to her and smiled. “Guess I’m just in a reminiscing mood today. How things were, how they are now.”
“It seems like a different world than the one I came from. I’m really enjoying my time here.” And she could barely admit to herself that she’d been thinking about extending her visit. She’d already scheduled two whole months off. What would be left of her business if she took even more time off?
He looked down and gently took her hand in his, his fingers intertwining with hers as if it was the most natural thing in the world. They turned and headed down the beach, their steps in sync as the wind gently swept past them. The waves raced up the beach in front of them and washed away their footsteps behind them.
Contentment settled over her at the rightness of her life these days. Life here on Magnolia, with the friends she’d met and with Connor, filled her with a joy she hadn’t known she was missing. With a bone-deep sense of belonging. And with the certainty she was where she was supposed to be right now. She glanced up at him and he smiled back at her. If the man didn’t watch out, his smiling might become a habit.
CHAPTER 19
Amanda’s fingers trembled slightly as she arranged the items for the art show, wishing she could be doing this at the actual pavilion. There she could spread them out more artistically in the groupings Connor had come up with, to better highlight their artistry. But this cramped room in city hall would have to work for now.
The door swung open, and a woman strode into the room dressed in a flowing skirt and silk blouse, her steps confident as if she owned the room. Extending a perfectly manicured hand, she introduced herself, “Desiree Knight.”
“Miss Knight, nice to meet you. I’m Amanda Kingston, the event coordinator.”
“I was a bit surprised at how difficult it was to get here. Needed to take the ferry. I see they are building a bridge. That will make the trip to the island much more manageable.” Desiree swept her gaze around the room with a look of distaste. “This is where you’re doing the show?”
“Oh, no.” She rushed to explain with an apologetic smile. “We’re having it at the big open-air pavilion. It will be the perfect place to display the artwork. This is just where I’ve been stagingthe show to keep the items protected. I’ll set it all up at the pavilion when the festival begins.”
