At first, they’d intended on a simple beach wedding. But after the fiasco of Penny and Rowan’s wedding, Bea had decided she didn’t need the stress an outdoor ceremony. Charmaine understood how she felt — Penny’s wedding had come close to giving her a stomach ulcer, and she wasn’t even the bride.
So, Bea had changed the venue to the Blue Shoal Inn. They could get married in the rose garden outside the inn, or in the gazebo. Both settings were equally romantic, but Charmaine really loved the rose garden and hoped she selected that.
If the weather was bad, Taya promised they could easily move it inside. The guest list would be small enough for the inn to accommodate, and it was Charmaine’s job to call the resort and confirm the request. She’d already made a tentative booking, and since there was only one weekend available, she’d snapped it up quickly, hoping Bea wouldn’t change her mind.
Before she left, Evie pressed an old book into her hands. “I noticed you always carry a book with you. Try this one — it’s one of my favourites.”
“Thanks,” Charmaine said. “I’ll bring it back when I’m finished.”
“We read it for book club last month. Everyone loved it. You should think about joining. We meet every month in the bookshop. It’s a lot of fun.”
“That sounds really nice,” Charmaine replied, dropping the book into her shoulder bag. She waved goodbye to the women and stepped outside into the darkening twilight.
A book club was just the type of thing she never would’ve joined in her previous life. She wasn’t a joiner, and did everything she could to avoid groups and clubs. It was her introversion but also insecurity that kept her at arm’s length from the people around her.
These days, she didn’t like being so distant. It was time she took a risk and put herself in situations that made connection possible, but also gave her some enjoyment in life. A book club might be just the thing she was looking for — she enjoyed reading, and it would open her up to meeting new people. She decided she would give it a try.
Rather than going directly home to her empty flat, Charmaine took a walk around the water’s edge and along the dock, carrying the lasagna in both hands. The sun had set, and all that remained was a faint yellow glow above the mainland to show where it had been. The water was as black as ink as she stared across it. She shivered and looked up at the sky as the first stars began to shimmer faintly overhead.
“Not cold, are you?” A man’s deep voice startled her from behind.
She spun around to find herself staring up into the large brown eyes of a very tall, athletic-looking man. He chuckled, and one side of his mouth pulled into a teasing grin.
“You gave her a fright, Bradford. I’m going to have to teach you some better manners when you’re talking to people. Sorry about that, Chaz,” Aidan said, coming up behind the other man and slapping him on the shoulder.
Aidan carried a small esky in one hand. The stranger held a long fishing rod.
Charmaine swallowed down her fright. She really shouldn’t be so jumpy, but ever since her brother showed up, she expected him to jump out of a dark corner at any moment. “It’s okay—I’m a little on edge. Not your fault. Have you been fishing?”
“We went spearfishing with Elias, Bea’s dad.” Aidan waved down the dock at an elderly man who was tying a boat in place.
“And mine…” Bradford added.
“Yes, yours too. But Chaz knows Beatrice.”
“You know my sister?” Bradford asked.
“I’m planning her wedding.”
“I’m Bradford,” the man said, holding out a hand.
She shook his hand. “I’m Charmaine, but everyone calls me Chaz.”
“You must be new in town.”
“I’ve been living here a few weeks. Working at the florist shop with Betsy.”
“Oh, right,” Bradford said. “That must be why I haven’t seen you around. I don’t buy flowers often.”
“What he means is, he’s single,” Aidan said with a wink as he strode back to the boat.
Charmaine smiled. “Did you catch anything?”
“We did okay. Now comes the not-so-fun part, cleaning the fish. But at least we’ll have something good for dinner tonight.”
“Sounds delicious. I love fresh fish.”
“You should join us,” Bradford offered.
