“I will. Bye.” And with a wave of his hand, he opened the back door and ran toward the garage.
“It looks as though it’s just the two of us now, Andy.”
“Can we go fishing on the lake?”
Her heart sank. She had a stack of paperwork she needed to get through. But unless she made some changes, they’d never have any quality time together.
“As long as you don’t mind me fishing without bait, I’d love to go.” She’d bought three fishing poles last Christmas and quickly discovered she didn’t enjoy catching fish. Seeing the brown trout gasp for air made her feel ill and incredibly sorry for the little critters. So, instead of threading bait through her hook, she threw it into the lake with nothing between the thin string of nylon and the hook—and felt one hundred percent better.
“I’ll get our fishing gear.” Andy left the house and followed Charlie into the garage.
While he was gone, she filled two drink bottles with water, grabbed some snacks from the pantry, and found their baseball caps on top of the hall table.
Before she left the house, she doubled back into the kitchen and raided her emergency supply of chocolate. If she was going fishing, she might as well enjoy the experience.
David smiled at the photo Andrea had sent him. Below the words, “Would you like to come to dinner?” was a photo of Andy proudly holding a brown trout close to the camera.
Quickly, he texted back and told her he’d be at her house in forty minutes. That should give him enough time to get changed and stop by the general store for some ice cream and apple pie.
Peter’s eyebrows rose. “You look happy about something.”
David showed him the photo. “Andrea’s been fishing with Andy. I’m having dinner with them.”
“You’ve spent a lot of time together.”
“I like her.” Why did he feel as though he had to explain himself to his friend? Maybe it was because everything he felt about Andrea was as new to him as it was to her. For the first time in his life, he’d met someone who enjoyed his company for who he was, not what he could do for their career or their social status.
Andrea didn’t care what type of car he drove, how much his apartment had cost, or whether he was wearing the latest designer suits. All she cared about was keeping her boys safe and living the kind of life she’d only dreamed about.
“From the besotted look on your face, I’m hoping she likes you, too.”
David’s smile widened. “She’s thinking about it.”
Peter laughed. “That sounds like something Katie would say.”
“They have a lot in common.”
“Including living in Sapphire Bay.”
David logged out of his computer. “I know where this conversation is heading, and I agree with you.”
“From what Katie’s said, Andrea won’t move anywhere else. Unless you want another long-distance relationship, you only have one option.”
“I’m not thinking that far ahead.” The lie stuck like glue in his throat. He had thought about it, and living in different states worried him more than he wanted to admit. “Besides, Andrea’s not like any other woman I’ve met.”
“Yeah. She has two sons and a new business to worry about. You can afford not to think too far ahead. Andrea can’t.”
David frowned. “Pastor John has already grilled me over my intentions toward her.”
“Good.” Peter picked up his jacket. “I need to help Katie and her sisters clean the inn before we get inundated with more family. Enjoy your dinner.”
“Do you need help with anything?”
“Thanks for the offer, but we’re fine. There’ll be plenty of extra hands to help if anything goes haywire.”
David picked up the keys to his truck and followed Peter out of their office. “How does it feel to be getting married in a few days?”
“Better than I thought.” Peter gave a rueful chuckle. “There’s something about this town that brings out the best in people. Combine that with a wedding and it’s like the rest of the world’s problems don’t exist.”
