Chapter Twenty-Nine
JULES
I swirledthe red wine in my glass idly, my gaze fixed on some indistinct point beyond the droning television. As I sat on the couch, my living room felt oddly claustrophobic tonight, the coastal-themed décor anything but relaxing. I took another sip, hoping the earthy Cabernet might dull the riot of thoughts ricocheting through my mind.
No such luck.
The renovation meeting, Chase’s surprise partnership offer, that charming grin Eli had flashed my way—it was all tangled up. What had started as elation after the meeting had gradually transformed into a jumble of mixed emotions at home.
I grabbed the remote and flipped aimlessly through channels. Nothing caught my attention. My finger paused over the button as a familiar face appeared on screen—a tanned, rugged diver exploring some impossibly gorgeous reef. For a moment, all I could see was Eli, his eyessparkling with the same infectious enthusiasm anytime he talked about the ocean.
“Nope. Absolutely not.”
I clicked off the TV with a huff and tossed the remote aside. But in the sudden silence, the memories rushed in. Shared laughter over his terrible puns. The warmth of his hand on the small of my back. The way his eyes had locked with mine across the conference table, a flicker of emotion passing between us. That humorous, casual conversation we’d had at the end of the meeting only cemented in my mind how much I missed him. Us.
The thought of working beside him day after day was almost too much to bear. And resenting Helen for her position was futile. She had her reasons, and I didn’t even disagree with them. I just wanted her to make an exception for us. But was that fair?
I stood abruptly, pacing the length of my living room as my analytical mind kicked into overdrive. The resort’s future was looking up at last. I should have been thrilled. Instead, I felt lost. All that time I’d spent working on how to fund the renovations, obsolete. Of course I was thrilled with how it had all worked out… but what now?
“Okay, I need to approach this logically. Pro-con list. That always helps.”
I snatched a notepad from the coffee table, scribbling furiously as I spoke out loud to the empty room. “Pro: The resort’s future is looking much rosier. Con: My months of financial projections are basically useless now. Pro: My job is secure. Con: Said job involves watching the man I lo—the man I used to—Eli, move on with his life.”
I couldn’t write that last sentence down. I couldn’t even say it coherently! I stared at the list, willing it to make sense. But the neat columns of pros and cons couldn’tcapture the ache in my chest or the way my stomach fluttered every time Eli’s name crossed my mind.
I had to find a way to move on. It was best for everyone, especially me.
When my gaze landed on my laptop on the couch, I marched over and sat to open the lid. My fingers hesitated over the keys before typingaccounting jobs Florida. The search results populated, a sea of possibilities that felt more like a cage. As I scrolled through job listings, each one felt like a step farther from everything I’d built here. A corporate gig in Jacksonville. Non-profit work in Orlando. All so sterile. No ocean breeze. No sand between my toes. Or worse—exactly like what I already had, just… not here.
Not on Dove Key.
Not near him.
I slammed the laptop shut, my pragmatic facade crumbling with a long groan. “Who am I kidding? I can’t leave Dove Key. It’s home.”
A sharp knock at the door made me jump. I set my laptop aside and padded across the hardwood, curious. When I swung the door open, my heart studded to a halt.
Eli stood on my porch, eyes blazing with an intensity I’d never seen before. His usual easy grin was nowhere to be found. He wore a fitted polo shirt and dressy shorts, and he looked good enough to eat with a spoon.
“Eli?” I squeaked, acutely aware of my ratty sweatpants and messy bun. “What are you?—”
“Can I come in?” he asked, already stepping over the threshold.
I gestured weakly. “Sure, make yourself at home.”
He paced my living room like a caged tiger while I poured him a glass of wine and refilled mine. When I offered him one, he waved it off, which was beyond weird. “No, thanks, I’m good.”
I set both glasses down, studying his flushed face. “You seem excited. Is this about the meeting?”
Eli ran a hand through his hair, messing it up in that endearing way that always made my heart clench. “Jules, I…” He stopped, seeming to struggle for words.
I waited, my heart in my throat. What could have him so worked up?
“Look,” he finally said, his gaze locking onto mine. “I know things have been complicated between us. But today I realized something important.”
I swallowed hard. “Oh?”
I watched Eli’s face transform as he spoke, a tableau of emotions playing across his features. Something raw and vulnerable had replaced his usual carefree demeanor. Something that made my heart gallop in my chest.
