“Excuse me,” she said to Alexis before she turned away. “What’s in this French toast?”
“Oh, that’s vanilla and cardamom,” Alexis said, her eyes twinkling. “Our chef, Tom, came up with that. He’s always experimenting with flavors and coming up with wonderful inventions.”
“Well, my compliments to the chef,” Delilah said, smiling. She glanced at the kitchen again, watching the tall man as he flipped a pancake in a skillet with the graceful precision of an artist.
She was quiet as they continued to eat their food, even though her teammates were soon involved in an animated discussion about the best movies from the 1990’s. She was enthralled by the taste of her French toast, and she tried to decide if it was really as good as she thought, or if she was simply enjoying it immensely because of how hungry she was. She soon felt sure, however, that even if she’d tasted it on a full stomach, she would have come to the conclusion that it was the best French toast she’d ever had in her life.
She took a sip of her coffee, smiling with an almost giddy kind of happiness. Clearly, things in Rosewood Beach were going to be a lot better than she’d initially thought.
CHAPTER FOUR
“Isn’t this fun?” Julia slipped her hand through Cooper’s as they walked down a picturesque sidewalk lined with flower beds. “I love Rosewood Beach, but I haven’t been to Cedar Grove in ages.”
“It’s cute.” He grinned at her. “I like it. It’s bigger and more modern than Rosewood Beach, but it’s still got that laid-back, small town feel to it.”
She nodded. “We used to come here on day trips when I was a kid sometimes because they’ve got a great children’s museum and a jungle gym in one of the parks that’ll just knock your socks off. Not to mention a couple of fabulous ice cream shops.”
Cooper looked eager as he listened to his wife describe all of the things there were for kids to do. “We should bring Macey here,” he said. “We’ll have to wait a few years for that jungle gym, but before you know it, both our kids will be old enough for the monkey bars.”
Julia felt her heart stir with a kind of happy ache. She couldn’t wait to bring her and Cooper’s children there, and the thought of sharing her own childhood memories with them made her tear up a little.
“Are you okay, sweetie?” he asked her with concern, slowing down in his stride.
She nodded, laughing and wiping away a stray tear. “I’m great—I’m so happy that I get to share this place with my kids. With our kids. It kind of helps me feel closer to my dad, you know? Like, I get to keep a piece of him somehow.”
Cooper nodded and wrapped his arms around her. “Yeah, I understand that.”
They walked quietly together side by side for a few moments, and Julia enjoyed the fresh scent of the wind that promised rain. Although the sky overhead was gloomy with dusk, she felt a peaceful kind of joy as she strolled along beside her husband.
“What about this restaurant we’re going to?” he asked her after a few moments. “Did you ever come here with your family?”
“Oh, yes, but not until we were a little older. It’s such a nice place, I think my parents didn’t want to bring a gaggle of raggle-taggle toddlers there.”
Cooper laughed. “Raggle-taggle, huh?”
“Well, not really.” She laughed too. “We were quite a handful, though, when we were all little. Dean and Hazel especially were a couple of well-meaning troublemakers. One time they took a whole bunch of beads from the bead store and my mom didn’t realize until we were back home. She made them go back with handwritten apology notes—which were pretty short considering they were only six.”
She and Cooper shared a smile, and she knew that they were both looking forward to being parents together—even when it involved mishaps and unplanned adventures.
“Well, I’m excited to eat here,” he said. “You’ve told me how great the food is.”
She nodded. “It’s gourmet. I mean, I would never want to imply that The Lighthouse Grill doesn’t serve the best food onthe east coast, but if we’re talking places that make the time to really prepare something flavorful, this place comes in second.” She winked.
He laughed. “Good. I’m imagining a steak with onions and my taste buds are ready to do a happy dance.”
“It’s called chewing,” she teased, and they both laughed over her silly joke.
They arrived at the restaurant a moment later. It was made of a combination of white stone and siding painted a deep navy blue, and it looked elegant and inviting, especially because of the string lights that had been strung over the outdoor seating area.
They stepped inside and were shown by the hostess to the table that they’d reserved. Hazel and Jacob, who they were meeting there for dinner, were already waiting with big smiles on their faces.
“Hi!” Hazel said, jumping up to give Julia a big hug. “We went ahead and ordered a couple of appetizers. Spinach and artichoke dip and breaded calamari.”
“Oh, stop,” Cooper groaned happily as he sat down. “It smells incredible.”
“Taste it,” Jacob urged him. “I’ve never had calamari before, and this stuff is wild.”
Julia and Cooper dug into the appetizers, both of them amazed by how fresh and vivid the flavors were. After taking a few minutes to peruse the menu, Cooper decided on steak with onions along with sides of broccoli and mashed potatoes, and Julia decided on a chicken Alfredo flatbread pizza.
