“Well, Iamglad to hear you’re well, but I’m not sure how that relates to the meatloaf,” Gordon said, casting an eye down to the plate with her half-eaten meal on it. “I suppose that’s what passes for the local cuisine?”
Celeste frowned. Somehow, Gordon seemed even more snobby than she remembered him – and he waspretty snobbyin her memories.
“It’s really good,” she said, a little defensively. Chrissy was a good cook, and a good friend. And she’d been enjoying the meatloaf! And she thought Pierce had been too, before Gordon had showed up. “But… why are you here a day early?”
“I thought the sooner I arrived, the better,” Gordon said breezily. “And it seems like I came just in time.”
He looked down at Pierce with an unfriendly eye – and Pierce looked right back, just as unfriendly.
Uh-oh,Celeste thought. But surely… Pierce couldn’t think Gordon was – was – aromantic interestof hers, could he?!
The idea seemed ridiculous – ridiculous enough that Celeste almost wanted to burst out laughing at the thought. She didn’t think Gordonhadany romantic interests – and even if he did, she certainly wasn’t one of them. She’d known him since she was a girl, and the only things he’d ever seemed interested in were books, loudly patterned ties, and waxing his moustache, in that order.
But anyway, even if hewasinterested in me romantically, that doesn’t explain anything,Celeste thought. What, was she just going to assume that Pierce would be jealous – after twenty years? After only meeting up again and talking for a grand total of about half an hour?
Just how big-headed are you, to think he’d still be hung up on you after all this time?she thought, wanting to shake her head at herself. Why had her mind jumped to that? It was true:she’dnever stopped thinking about Pierce Hardwicke, even after all this time. But she had no reason to think the same was true of him.
“Well, I assume you’re just about to introduce me to your…friend, here,” Gordon said, into the awkward silence that Celeste now realized had grown.
“Oh, of course,” Celeste said, feeling flustered.I have to get myself back under control!“Uncle Gordon, this is, uh, an old friend, Pierce Hardwicke. We just ran into each other by chance, since he’s staying here. And Pierce, this is my uncle, Gordon Ledbeter.”
“Charmed to meet you,” Gordon said, holding out a hand for Pierce to shake – which he did, after a barely perceptible pause.
“Likewise,” Pierce replied, though his voice suggested he was anythingbutcharmed.
“Well, Celeste dear, as much as I’d like for you to stay and finish your meal, I think we have things we need to discuss. Is this the kind of establishment where they’ll allow you to take your leftovers away with you in some kind of… doggy bag?”
“Um, yes,” Celeste muttered. “I’ll go ask about it now.” Still, as much as she knew Gordon was right, and it reallywouldbe best to get back to the lighthouse as soon as possible, she found herself reluctant to leave Pierce.We hardly even got to talk…
But then again, maybe it was for the best, she reflected. She’d already been about to say more than she should about the earth tremors, about what she knew about them. And whether or not he’d just write her off as crazy, she knew she couldn’t do that. Her family’s sacred duty in keeping the magical wards maintained at the lighthouse was a secret for areason.
“Do… do you want to stay here, or should I ask for a box for you too?” Celeste asked Pierce, who was still sizing Gordon up as if he didn’t like what he saw at all.
“Yes, please, if it’s not too much trouble,” Pierce said, turning to look at her after a moment. “I have a few things I’ll need to do this afternoon myself. Maybe it’s for the best if I get going.”
The servings here werehuge, anyway, Celeste thought, as, having grabbed two boxes from Chrissy, she scooped the remains of her meal into one of them. It was a shame, though – everything here really was better when it was fresh. And she was still hungry!
Well, she’d be able to finish it later, she supposed, as she wistfully sealed up the box. Whatever was going on at the lighthouse was more important than her rumbling stomach.
But is it more important than catching up with Pierce, after so many years?
Celeste shook her head. Of course it was! Whatever was happening there might be a cause of ruin to not just Portsmith, but who knew how much else – she couldn’t put her passing nostalgia for the one who got away over all of that.
Keep your head on straight, Celeste Williams! Remember who you are!
“You’ll – you’ll be in town for a few days, right?” she couldn’t stop herself from asking as they left Chrissy’s diner, their boxes of leftover meatloaf and hash in hand.
From the corner of her eye, she could see Uncle Gordon’s head turn sharply toward her, but she ignored him, focusing on Pierce.
“Yes,” he said, after a moment, his gray eyes looking down into hers in a way that made her breath catch in her throat.
He still had that power over her, even now. If Celeste had been asked twenty years ago if Pierce Hardwicke could possibly get any more handsome, she would have said it was impossible – but looking at him now, she had to admit that, if anything, she was evenmoreattracted to him now than she had been when they were young. The graying temples suited him more than was fair, dammit!
“But I wouldn’t want to take up your time, if you have a guest,” Pierce said after a moment.
“Yes, I’m afraid wewillbe quite busy,” Gordon broke in, his tone politely acidic. “But it was very nice to have met you… Peter, was it?”
“If you like,” Pierce said, his tone just as acidic. “It was nice to meet you too, George.”
