Page 28 of Stars Shine In Your Eyes

“Well, I for one think it’s brilliant. In fact, once I heard about reading retreats, I wondered why they hadn’t existed before. I can tell you there have been many, many times in my life when I could have used one. I would have loved some time to get away from the difficulties of real life to sink into books and remember how to be happy. I’ve always said that, apart from travel, reading books is the best way to learn about the world and, perhaps, about ourselves.”

His grandmother had never said much to him, or any of them, about her past. The mystery writer was herself a mystery. A part of him suspected it had to do with his grandfather, who’d passed away a number of years ago, but it was nothing she had ever confirmed.

But as his grandmother and Josie looked at each other, he felt that they shared a connection that went deeper than simply loving books. There seemed to be heartache that bound them together.

He didn’t usually think along these lines. He wasn’t sure what was prompting it now, but being with Josie seemed to be shifting something inside him somehow, making him more aware of other people and their emotions.

As they moved on to the scones that Gran still baked herself, served with clotted cream and strawberry jam, the two women seemed to grow even closer. They talked about the classic mystery writers—Agatha Christie, whom everyone knew, but Josie also read Ngaio Marsh, Dorothy L. Sayers, and Margery Allingham. Malcolm had vaguely heard those names, but Josie and Gran had read all of their books and could discuss how Lord Peter Wimsey solved a crime compared to Inspector Alleyn. He should have been bored to tears and excusing himself to check email, but surprisingly, he enjoyed the debate. He left the two women talking to fetch the macaroons and ginger cake that Gran had made for dessert.

When they’d emptied the teapot, Josie excused herself to use the bathroom, and after directing her where to find it, Mathilda wasted no time in turning to Malcolm. “She’s delightful. You’d be a fool to let her go.”

“Gran, I agree she is delightful. But she’s not with me. So there’s no keeping her or letting her go.”

His grandmother rolled her eyes. “I’m not a fool. There’s obviously a connection between you two. She could be with you, if you would only use that pretty face of yours and the charm you too often keep hidden to woo her.”

He’d never spoken with anyone in his family about his aversion to finding love for himself. He thought it was great for his parents and his siblings. He hoped they all found love. He wanted them all to be happy and fulfilled. But for him, love had never seemed to be in the cards. As more than one lover had told him, he was married to his work.

“She’s not the kind of woman I would want to mess about.”

His grandmother nodded. “I agree. She deserves more than that. She deserves more than any of those other women that you flit around town with.” She narrowed her glance. “Don’t think I don’t see pictures of you in the papers with those whip-thin models who look beautiful on your arm but don’t challenge you, don’t fill your heart with joy. You can do better, Malcolm. You deserve someone wonderful. Like Josie.”

He wasn’t sure that his grandma was right. He wasn’t sure that he deserved a woman like Josie. What if he let her down again? “I hate to see you get your hopes up, Gran.”

“I can’t help but wish happiness for each of my grandchildren. I knew the first time I met Mari that she and Owen were perfect together. I have that exact feeling about you and Josie.”

Her words settled in deeper than he wanted her to know. He should have been disagreeing instinctively with what she was saying. Everything within him should have been rejecting it. And yet, somehow he found himself wondering. Wondering if his grandmother was right. If maybe, just maybe, Josie was the one for him.

Finally, something inside of him did rebel. Not about whether Josie would be the perfect girlfriend. But at the thought of ever letting someone in far enough to fall in love, far enough to risk losing her.

Gran leaned in and lowered her voice. “You wouldn’t want Tom to swoop in and woo her before you do. You know your brother can be extremely charming when he sets his mind to it.”

“Tom?” He shook his head. “Tom would be a terrible partner for Josie. He’s still too messed up from his marriage, and he has Aria to think of.”

A burning feeling ignited in his chest at the thought of Tom and Josie together. While his grandmother simply sipped tea and regarded him over the rim of her teacup, he recognized the burning feeling as jealousy. Like hell Tom was going to be with Josie.

He was still trying to find words to explain to his grandmother why Tom and Josie would be a terrible match when Josie returned.

“Thank you so much for afternoon tea, Mathilda. It was delicious, and I’m so glad that I got to spend time with you.”

Mathilda rose, and so did he.

“It was a pleasure to meet you, Josie, and to be able to talk about some of my favorite books with another bibliophile. I hope we see a lot more of each other.”

Josie pinkened with pleasure, and after refusing their offers to help her tidy up, Mathilda sent them on their way.

As they walked back to his boat, he said, “Just as I expected, she loved you.”

“Really? I’m still so starstruck. I was trying not to be an embarrassing fangirl the whole time, but I’m not sure I succeeded.”

“Even if you had acted like a slobbering fan, which you didn’t, she still would have loved you. You talk books like a sensible woman. She appreciates that.” Changing the subject, he said, “How do you feel about going over our notes and working out a game plan on the cottages? Or are you too tired? Because right around now is when the jet lag should be kicking in big time.”

“I think that tea has woken me up,” she said with a smile. “I’m not sure I’ll be able to sleep for a few hours at least. Plus, I don’t want to let Mari down. The sooner we get the place cleaned up, the sooner I can run my reading retreat.”

“I agree. I’ve already got some people in mind who owe me a few favors. Hopefully, they’ll be able to do the work at a cut rate for her.”

“It’s really nice of you to help her,” Josie said.

“Don’t paint me as any hero. This is the first truly nice thing I’ve done in a while, and I haven’t even done anything yet besides value some china.”

---