I have to speak to him,she decided, standing up.I can’t lose him without trying my best to make things work first. I know I’d regret it forever.
She made her way straight to The Lighthouse Grill, knowing that Tom would be working there. She simply smiled at the hostess as she passed her at the front door, not stopping to say hello or ask her if Tom was available. She walked directly to the kitchen’s order window, taking a deep breath as she looked around the kitchen for Tom. She saw Vivian and Alexis, who were standing in front of a counter in the corner, labeling day-old slices of pie for sale.
She saw Tom a moment later, standing over the stove flipping burgers. His back was to her, and the first thing she noticed about him was how much his shoulders were drooping, as if there was a weight on his heart.
“Tom,” she said.
He turned, and his eyes widened. For a second, he stared at her as if she was a hallucination. “Delilah,” he said finally, his voice sounding husky.
“I must speak with you—urgently,” she said. “Can you get away for a while?”
Tom stammered, glancing at Vivian and Alexis, who had been staring at the exchange with dropped jaws. Alexis and Vivian shared a look, and then Alexis cleared her throat.
“Uh, I think you should go, Tom,” she said, her mouth twitching as though she was trying to repress a smile.
“We can cover for you in the kitchen, no problem,” Vivian assured him.
Tom hesitated for a moment and then nodded. “Okay.” He took off his apron and hung it on a peg by the stove. He stepped out of the kitchen, and Delilah felt prickles of relief cover her skin.
“Come for a walk with me?” she asked.
“Yes.” He smiled at her, but the expression appeared forced.
They left the pub together and wandered along the sidewalk in silence for a while. Delilah steered their path toward the gazebo, because she knew that was where she wanted to tell him everything that was on her mind and heart.
Once they were there, however, she felt tears spring into her eyes again. She thought of the other moments they had spent there together, and she feared that this would be their last conversation together. The thought of never getting to see him again, never getting to see his smile again, made her heart ache fiercely.
She blinked back her tears, determined to say what was on her mind with a steady voice. “Tom,” she said, looking into his eyes and putting on a brave smile, “there are some things I want to tell you. Is that all right?”
He nodded, returning the eye contact so earnestly it made her heart thump in her chest.
She took a deep breath, wanting to take his hands in hers but resisting the impulse. “I know you believe that I couldn’t be happy with your world, Tom,” she said. “You believe that I would become bored with the simplicity of Rosewood Beach after a while. But the truth is that I’ve often struggled with the pressures of Hollywood.”
She watched as Tom swallowed, his eyes on her face. She could sense that he was desperately hoping she was about to offer him reassurance that things could work out between them, and her heart lifted up as if she was about to make the drop on a rollercoaster of hope.
“When I first came here to Rosewood Beach,” she told him, “you welcomed me into a simpler, but undeniably appealing existence. I love this town. I love the way I can step outside in the morning and not be bombarded by the sounds of car horns and people shouting, and the smell of fumes and trash. You can never escape those kinds of things in the city, and there’s a feeling of chaos everywhere you go. It can be exciting, and I’ve loved it for many years, but the truth is that now that I’m older, I want something richer and more satisfying for my life. I’ve found that here, in Rosewood Beach. I want to embrace my chance to welcome this new kind of existence into my own life. I want the peace and the tranquility that you have here.”
A hopeful expression appeared on Tom’s face, and she thought it was so sweet that she wanted to kiss him right then and there, but she didn’t.
“How could that work?” he asked her slowly, and she could tell that he was forcing himself to be wary. She didn’t blame him, since she was asking him to risk his heart by trusting her. But wasn’t that true for every romance?
“It’s not as though I’m filming movies constantly,” she told him. “Especially now that I’m older, I usually have a few months between projects. My last two films were back-to-back—this current one and the one before it—but that’s rare for me these days. And I have time before this new movie starts filming.” She took a deep breath and took his hands in hers, unable to resist anymore. He squeezed her hands back, looking as though he was holding his breath. “I don’t want to go home during my break. Or rather, I do want to go home. To my new home. I want to stay here, in Rosewood Beach, to continue to enjoy the wonderful community I’ve found here. I want to be surrounded by kindness and honesty and a simple way of living. And I want to be closer to this man I’ve met, who makes my heart beat faster every time I look at him. A man who makes me feel safe and secure in a way no one ever has before. He makes me feel as though he’d have my back no matter what. He’s a person that I want to spend more time with, and take care of. I want to make him laugh and have adventures with him and watch the sunset with him at night. I want to get coffee with him in the morning and try out recipes with him and dance with him in the summer nights when the fireflies are out. I don’t think I could be happy away from this man, now that I know he exists and I care about him so much.” Her eyes grew moist as she squeezed his hands. “I’m not ready to part with this man, not when I feel so sure that things could work out beautifully for us.”
Tom blinked rapidly. “Who is this lucky man?” His voice caught a little, and he laughed.
“Don’t be silly,” she told him, and kissed him.
They lingered over the kiss for a few heartbeats, and then Tom took her into his arms. “I’m not ready to let you go either,” he told her. “I’ve been struggling so hard, still wrestling with the decision of whether or not to end things even after I told youI thought that we should. My fear got the better of me, and I allowed myself to think I’m not worthy of you.”
“You are,” she whispered, gazing up into his eyes.
“I don’t know just how worthy,” he said, laughing, “but I know that I can treat you right. I want to treat you right. I want to make you happy, Delilah.”
“I want to make you happy,” she whispered.
They shared another kiss, and she felt as though her heart might explode with happiness. Every fiber of her being was looking forward to staying in Rosewood Beach and pursuing a relationship with Tom. She couldn’t wait to enjoy the summer by his side.
“So,” she said finally. “We’re agreed. We’re going to put aside any concerns about what silly people might say and follow our hearts. Let’s see where this goes.”
