“This is my favorite place I’ve ever shot a movie,” she told him finally, her voice soft. “Rosewood Beach is absolutely lovely.”
“Ever?” he asked, incredulous. He loved Rosewood Beach, but surely she’d been to all kinds of wonderful places during her career.
“Ever,” she echoed. “By far. I’ve been enjoying every minute that I get to spend around the people of Rosewood Beach.” Her eyes flickered over his face, as if she was drinking him in. “Especially you.”
For a moment, he couldn’t think of anything to say. His entire stomach felt like it was swirling with butterflies. Glittering, glowing, hot and cold butterflies. “I’m going to a surprise party soon,” he said. “For Faith Talbot. Would… would you like to come with me? As my date?”
Delilah gasped, her delight apparent on her face. “I would love that! I would love to celebrate Faith, and I haven’t been to a surprise party in years.” She smiled coyly at him. “And going as your date would be the best part of all.”
Tom felt the tips of his ears become bright pink. “Well, then,” he said, clearing his throat again. “It’s a date.”
Her expression looked as radiant as his own emotions. “It’s a date.”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Dean looked down at Noelle and smiled as she slipped her hand into his.
“This is so exciting,” she whispered.
He nodded, although he felt less excited than she did. They were walking up to a local woodworker’s home to look at some of the backdrops and wedding arches that he had for sale. Both of them were looking forward to picking out the backdrop for their wedding, but Dean was feeling fatigued and in pain that day, especially in his hands. It was hard not to feel distracted by the fact that he felt less than his best. He wished he had as much energy as Noelle did—she seemed like she could have run circles around the yard they were approaching, which was a sizable one.
“Hey, cuties!” Hazel called out to them. She was standing next to Jacob at the foot of the woodworker’s driveway, looking just as excited as Noelle.
“Hey!” Noelle hurried forward to hug Hazel. “Thanks for finding this guy for us. We can’t wait to look at all the stuff he’s made.”
“He’s great,” Jacob said. “A good friend of mine—I met him when I was first learning how to do carpentry work. He’s really got a gift.”
As Jacob spoke, a man with a gray-tinted black beard stepped out of the house and came toward them with a smile. “Hi, I’m Trevor,” he told them, shaking Dean and Noelle’s hands. “Jacob tells me that you two are about to get hitched.”
Dean and Noelle shared a smile. “We are,” Noelle said, her tone dreamy.
Dean followed Noelle and the rest of their group into a barn at the back of Trevor’s property. It was filled with various backdrops and arches, as well as tables, chairs, dressers, and other woodworking wonders that Trevor had created. The air of the barn smelled of spicily sawdust, but the floors were well-swept and the whole place was clearly well taken care of. They walked down the aisles of wedding backdrops and arches, looking over each of the pieces with admiration.
“These are just beautiful,” Noelle said, pausing to touch a bird that had been carved into the side of one of the more elaborate arches.
Dean nodded, feeling a little foggy mentally because of his fatigue but still enjoying the process. After they’d wandered past all of their options a couple of times, they decided on an archway that was designed to be filled with dozens and dozens of fresh flowers. Hazel and Noelle were both thrilled about it, and Dean and Jacob were impressed by the intricate craftsmanship.
“Just think, sweetheart,” Noelle said, slipping her fingers through Dean’s. “This will be on the altar behind us while we say our vows. Looking at it makes me feel that much closer to our wedding day.”
Dean squeezed her hand back, knowing exactly what she meant. Noelle’s face was shining with joy, and he was distracted from the pain of his hands for a few moments as she hugged his arm and pulled him down toward her for a kiss.
“I can’t wait to marry you,” she whispered.
“I can’t wait to marry you,” he told her, stroking her cheek fondly.
“Break it up, love birds,” Jacob said, laughing. “Noelle, I’m going to steal this fiancé of yours so that we can get this arch loaded into the truck.”
“Perfect,” Noelle said, laughing as well. “I’ll pay Trevor and then come out and be a cheerleader.”
Jacob and Dean picked up the archway and began to carry it out of the barn toward Jacob’s truck. Although it certainly wasn’t the heaviest thing Dean had ever lifted, after a while, he began to feel the strain of carrying it. He could feel his hands start to shake, and the pain in his fingers became more intense than it had been in a long time. He knew he should say something to Jacob and ask to set the arch down for a while, but his manly pride made him keep his mouth shut.
He thought he was going to be able to handle it, but just as they were beginning to lift the arch into the back of Jacob’s truck, the pain in Dean’s hands hit him full-force. His hands twitched involuntarily and he dropped his side of the archway.
“Whoa!” Jacob grunted, his body pulled forward a little as the arch dropped. A second later, he seemed to have realized what happened and he carefully but swiftly set down his side of the arch.
“I’m sorry,” Dean said, wincing and looking down at his hands. “I hope I didn’t break it.”
“Are you okay?” Jacob asked him, putting a reassuring hand on his shoulder.
