“Yes, I suppose I have.” She finished her drink. “We’ve talked enough about me. Tell me about you. I know you love your work, and I know you love this community. Did you marry?” She had no right to ask, but she needed to know.
“No. I found love twice in a lifetime. That’s more than most. You?”
She shook her head. “There was no one after you. No one important.” How could there be? Five minutes in his company was enough to remind her why she’d never been interested in anyone else. “Abby has started asking questions about us.”
“So has Evie.”
“What did you tell her?”
“Nothing. You?”
“Nothing.”
He toyed with his empty glass. “So what happens next?”
It was the question she should have been asking herself but she hadn’t wanted to.
“I’m not sure. I have a couple of people to see tomorrow and then I need to think.”
“I wasn’t talking about the business.”
“Oh.” And now they came to the awkward part. He was going to ask her what she was doing here, visiting him, and she didn’t even know.
“You said you felt a sense of closure from seeing your father. Is that why you knocked on my door? Closure?”
“No. That wasn’t why.” This was ridiculous. At her age, with her level of competence, she shouldn’t be sitting here feeling like a flustered teenager on a first date.
He studied her for a long moment. “When are you flying back?”
“I don’t know. When my business here is concluded, I suppose.”
“Can I persuade you to take some time for yourself while you’re here?”
“You mean a vacation?”
“I assume you’re allowed time off. You are the boss.”
The way he said it made her smile. “That’s right. I am.” Her smile faded. “But we can’t turn the clock back.”
“I’m not suggesting that we do. I’m a big believer in living life forwards.”
“We’re different people now, Eddie.”
“No, we’re not. We’re the same people but in a different place. Possibly a better place. We no longer have the responsibilities we once had. And you’ve proved whatever it was you needed to prove. We don’t owe anybody anything. Perhaps it’s time to focus on ourselves.”
Her heart was thudding. He was every bit as charismatic as she remembered. “I’m still not sure what you’re suggesting.”
“I’m suggesting exactly what you think I’m suggesting.”
The steady thud turned into a swooping flutter. “We’re a little old for romance, don’t you think?”
“I do not think that. And neither do you. Love is a feeling, not a fashion trend. You don’t have to be a certain age to wear it.”
He’d always had the ability to unsettle her. “It has been a long time, Eddie.”
“Exactly. Enough time wasted, I’d say.” He stood up and held out his hand.
She hesitated and then took it and felt his fingers close over hers, his grip firm. “What about the plate and the glasses? We should at least tidy up.”
