“Good. When you’re ready, give me a call. In the meantime, I’ll show you the first of our communal living spaces. If you’re impressed with this home, you’ll like that even more.”
Before John disappeared down the stairs, Zac cleared his throat. “I wanted to ask you about something else. Willow told me you have a PTSD support group in Sapphire Bay. Are you meeting any time over the next two weeks?”
“You’ve asked at the right time. Our next get-together is at the church at six o’clock tomorrow night.”
“Would you mind if I came along?”
“You’re more than welcome. There’s usually about a dozen of us. I don’t know what Willow told you, but we’re fairly informal. We’ll have dinner together before talking about what’s happening in our lives.”
“What would you like me to bring?”
“We’re having a barbecue, so a small piece of meat or a salad would be great.” John stepped onto the spiral staircase. “If we’re lucky, Mabel will drop off some of her home-baked chocolate cheesecakes. Between her cooking and the fudge in Sweet Treats, I’ve gained ten pounds in the last year.” He ducked his head as he wound his way down the staircase. “The plumbers have been working overtime to make sure the kitchen in the first communal living space is finished today. You’ll be one of the first people in the community to see it.”
Zac followed John across the lot. He was grateful John hadn’t made a big deal out of him coming to the support group. After kissing Willow, he knew he had to give counseling one last try.
If he wanted to be more than her friend, he needed to deal with his past. And Sapphire Bay, with its towering mountains and glistening lake, could be the best place to do it.
On Sunday afternoon,Willow placed another photo in Brooke and Levi’s wedding album. She’d spent most of the day going through each shot, choosing the images that worked the best, then enhancing, cropping, and printing the photos.
Usually, it would take a couple of days to make the album, but she hadn’t been able to sleep after she’d arrived home from Megan’s house.
She picked up another photo and frowned. Sam must have snapped the image when Willow was dancing with Zac. With his arms holding her close, and a smile softening his face, Zac looked…content. For someone who’d spent most of his life in high-pressure situations, she didn’t know if that was a good thing or not.
With a weary sigh, she slipped the photo into the album. She must have been more tired than she thought to kiss Zac. Just because he was the most attractive man she’d ever met was no excuse. And it didn’t matter if she was a little in love with him, either. He lived and worked on the other side of the world, had a job that must be incredibly stressful, and had only hinted at the possibility of staying in Sapphire Bay for longer.
Commitment and trust meant everything to her. She’d been let down too many times to stand on a ledge and throw herself into the arms of someone she barely knew. Even if he was one of the kindest and most honest people she’d ever met.
After placing the last four photos in the album, she slid it into a box and tied a bright red bow around the outside.
If Brooke and Levi’s family wanted reprints, they’d have to wait until next week. She still had to get the last canvas ready for her exhibition.
But that could wait until she’d had a cup of coffee and something to eat.
As she walked into the kitchen, she turned on the coffee pot, then opened the pantry doors. On Friday, she’d visited Sweet Treats and bought a yummy carrot cake with vanilla buttercream frosting. The only way she’d made it last more than a couple of days was to cut it into slices and freeze it. Otherwise, she would have found any excuse to nibble her way through the entire cake.
With her taste buds already drooling, she picked up the last fresh piece of cake and sighed.
A knock on the front door startled her. Whoever was standing on her veranda definitely wouldn’t be Megan or Brooke. Sam and Caleb were painting their spare bedroom, and Emma was taking her twins to a birthday party. Zac had told her he was working on his home, so that left only a handful of people who might be visiting her.
With more caution than usual, she walked down the hallway. She looked through the glass panel and frowned. Zac stood outside, holding a bouquet of flowers in his hand.
Worried for a completely different reason, she opened the door. “Hi.”
“I hope I’ve come at a good time.”
“Of course, you have. Is everything all right?”
Zac hesitated before thrusting the flowers at her. “These are for you. I want to apologize. For kissing you. We only met a few days ago and I don’t usually—”
“It’s okay. You don’t need to apologize.” Willow felt her face flame hotter than the glue gun in her studio. “I kissed you, too. We were both tired and Megan had just had her baby. We were probably—”
“Overemotional?”
“Something like that,” she murmured. Willow could think of a lot of other words that better described how she’d felt but, for now, she’d go along with Zac’s explanation. “Would you like a cup of coffee? I was just about to have a break.”
“You’ve been working?”
Willow led him down the hallway. “I wanted to finish Brooke and Levi’s wedding album. If I don’t do it today, I won’t be able to look at it until next week.”
