I grabbed the basket of food Gillian had sent with us. We held hands as we crossed the driveway to his cottage. He used a key to let us in, holding the door for me to pass through first. The place was small, but always tidy and smelling of coffee, salt water and old wood. His surfboard was propped against the wall by the door and a wetsuit hung in the small laundry room off the kitchen.
“It’s cold,” he said. “I’ll turn on the heat. Won’t be a minute before it warms up in here.”
I hadn’t worn a coat over my leggings and black shirt since it would have ruined my outfit. He took a blanket from the couch and wrapped it around my shoulders, then kissed me. We were lost for a moment in each other, but he pulled apart first.
“I hope you don’t mind, but I’m going to change out of this suit,” Grady said.
“I’ll put some food together for us,” I said.
“Good. You’re going to need your energy.”
He disappeared into the small bedroom. I could hear him moving around, opening and closing dresser drawers as I unpacked the food, putting it on a plate I found on a shelf. Gillian had sent various cheeses, cured meats, part of a baguette, fruit and salted caramels. I put the plate on the coffee table and went to the window. The ocean was a dark expanse except for cresting waves, made silver by the moon.
He came out of the room, wearing a pair of worn jeans and a long tee. As handsome as he looked in his suit, I preferred him this way. My Grady was like those faded jeans. Comfortable, reliable, and fit just right.
“I’ll open wine,” he said.
I returned to the window, heart pounding. This whole night had been a leap of faith, and now I was here, and we were about to embark on a whole new adventure together.
Behind me, I heard him tug a cork from the bottle of wine, then the splash of liquid into glasses.
He came to stand beside me, handing me a glass. I took a grateful sip. I’d been too focused on Grady to have anything but a few sips of champagne at the party. As if to remind me, my stomach growled, which made him chuckle
“Come sit on the couch with me,” Grady said. “We’ll have a little something to eat. There’s no rush.”
“Not after waiting three years.”
“I guess not.” He took my hand and led me over to his worn, comfortable couch. We’d sat together in this very location many times before, but usually the kids had been with us. We were in new territory. It was a little scary, but not enough that I wasn’t glad to be here.
“What do we do now?” I asked.
He chuckled. “Have some food before we begin the next portion of the evening. I have plans for you, and you’re going to need your energy.”
We ate for a few minutes, talking, between bites, like we always did. “Tell me the first time you thought we could be more than just friends,” I said.
“I had a crush on you from the first, but it wasn’t until that one night at The Pelican that I knew I was in deep trouble. Do you remember the one I’m talking about?”
“We’ve had a lot of nights at The Pelican.”
“It was after one of Seraphina’s signings. We all went up to celebrate. You were wearing this yellow sundress. They had live music, and we were all feeling loose.”
“Did we dance?”
He smiled before giving me another kiss. “Youdanced. All by yourself. Just joyful. Alive. I remember thinking your smile, your joyful energy, could light up the whole world. I wanted your light in my life, but I didn’t think it was possible.”
“And yet, here we are.”
“More than a thousand days after we met.”
“Wait. Do you know the exact number?” I asked.
“Not to sound like Robbie, but yes. It’s been twelve hundred and thirteen days since you walked into my surf shop.”
“You do sound like Robbie.”
“When a woman like you comes into a man’s life, he notices. To me, there’s the time before Esme and the after. It’s always felt like something borrowed. Every day—every moment I’ve known you—has felt like a gift I didn’t deserve. I thought at some point it would end. You’d meet some stable, responsible guy and live happily ever after.”
“Why have you dated so many women between now and then?” I had to ask.
