“Hi, Tom,” she said, stepping up to him and giving him a hug. Their embrace was tighter and more familiar than it had been the last time they’d gotten together, and she found herself wishing that she could hang onto him a little longer. He smelledfaintly of sandalwood and decidedly of garlic, and she felt warm and safe in his arms. She had a sudden realization that she’d been taking care of herself all of the time for all of her adult life, and she’d never found someone who made her feel as though he would have her back all the time, no matter what. Tom made her feel that way, and the realization took her breath away for a moment.
After they pulled away from their hug, he leaned down and gave her a peck on the cheek. “You look excited,” he told her, his eyes twinkling.
“I have news,” she said, a little breathless. “About my audition.”
“Yeah?” He grinned just as animatedly as she’d envisioned, and she grinned back.
“I’m taking a two-day trip to go audition for the director,” she said. “All of the hard work that we’ve both put into these scenes is finally going to pay off. I don’t think I could possibly feel as ready as I do if it hadn’t been for you, Tom.”
“Oh, you didn’t need me,” he said, but she knew that she had needed him. His strong presence had grounded her when she was feeling stressed and insecure about the audition, helping her to push past her negative emotions and choose courage.
“I did,” she said, smiling warmly up at him.
“Well, it was my pleasure.” He was slightly flushed, which she found endearing. “Selfishly, it was a good excuse for me to spend time with you. But I hope you know, Delilah…” his voice dropped as his tone became more earnest. “I want to help you in any way that I can. Whatever you need.”
Hadn’t she just been thinking to herself that he would have her back no matter what? And here he was, offering to help her when she hadn’t even asked him for anything.
“Thanks for offering,” she said, smiling at him flirtatiously. “I’ll definitely be tempted to call on you if I ever need helprunning lines for an audition again. And who knows? Maybe all this time going over the script with me has given you the acting itch. You’ve gotten plenty of insight into my world—maybe you’ll decide you want to experience even more of it.”
Tom laughed. “That’s sweet,” he said, shaking his head and smiling. “But I wouldn’t count on it if I were you. I don’t think becoming a performer is in the cards for me. But I’ve definitely enjoyed getting the insight into your world, as you put it. It’s been thrilling watching you work and getting to participate in your scenes with you. I feel a little bit as though you’re flying when you perform and I get to hold onto you and fly too.”
She smiled, touched and delighted by his words. “I feel the same way about our time spent cooking together,” she told him. “I still wouldn’t really consider myself a cook, but I’ve loved watching you work. I’m much better in the kitchen than I used to be now, and I think with a little practice I’ll be able to cook pretty well on my own. I’ve never really had much need for such knowledge in the past, but maybe someday it will come in handy… when I have someone to cook for.” The words slipped out of her mouth before she could stop herself. The implication was clear to both of them, and Tom blinked rapidly and cleared his throat. They didn’t break eye contact and shared a meaningful look.
“Sounds like a very nice plan,” he told her, his voice soft.
“I’m glad you think so,” she said, grateful that he seemed to like the idea as much as she did.
They left the hotel together and strolled down the sidewalk toward The Lighthouse Grill. A light breeze was blowing in from the ocean, scented with salt and seaweed. Overhead, the sky was tinted with the last blushes of the sunset, and a few stars were beginning to sparkle in the east.
“Beautiful night,” Tom said, and his hand twitched a little as if he was thinking about holding hands with her but stopped himself.
Delilah found herself wishing that he would take her hand. It didn’t make sense for him to, however, since The Lighthouse Grill was a stone’s throw away from the hotel.
As they slipped inside the restaurant, Delilah felt a twinge of delight. The cozy restaurant was unusually hushed, since the only people there were the ones preparing for the party. It had been decorated in a mix of pastel colors andStar Trekdecorations, including a piñata shaped like the USS Enterprise. Delilah looked around the dining room with a smile, thinking to herself that Faith was a very lucky woman to have people who clearly cared about her so much in her life.
“Hi!” Alexis, who was in the middle of setting out raspberry cupcakes on one of the buffet tables, stopped in her work and hurried toward them. “Thanks for coming, both of you.” She gave Tom a friendly hug and then hugged Delilah as if the movie star was made out of precious glass.
“I wouldn’t have missed it for the world,” Tom said, his benevolent grin covering half his face.
“And I’m thrilled to have been invited,” Delilah said. “It looks wonderful in here.”
“Thanks.” Alexis looked flushed and excited. “Julia is the mastermind behind most of this, although we all got on board with planning. It’s been so much fun.”
As if summoned by the sound of her name, Julia entered the dining room. She was wearing a royal blue maternity dress, and her dark hair was pinned back in a simple up-do using a gold hair clip. Delilah was delighted to see that she and Julia were dressed at the same level of formal, and it made her feel as though she’d made the right choice with her outfit.
“They’ll be here in just twenty minutes, everyone,” Julia announced. She caught sight of Delilah and waved before continuing to speak to the whole room. “Feel free to keep doing what you’re doing, but we want to get into our hiding places in about ten minutes. Ryan said he’d do his best to keep things on schedule, but if Faith wants to cut their walk short and come here early for dinner, he doesn’t have a lot of wiggle room.”
Once she’d finished her announcement, she hurried over to Delilah to give her a hug.
“Can I do anything?” Delilah asked. “And I already told Alexis, but the decorations look fantastic.”
“Thanks.” Julia laughed. “Pastel colors and aStar Trektheme might never join up like this again, but I think it looks pretty good.”
“It looks like you put a lot of love into this party,” Delilah said. “It looks more than good.”
Julia looked thrilled. “And to answer your question, we’ve got a couple more trays of snack food in the kitchen. You two could bring those out and set them on the end of the savory buffet table, if you want.”
“You got it,” Tom said.
