Page 19 of Shelter from the Storm

Once they made their selections, Theo handed their slips of paper to the waitress, who stood by their table for a few minutes to talk to them.

Well, to talk to Theo.

The woman was flirting, but Theo either didn’t notice or was ignoring it. When she left to fill their orders, he leaned back in his chair comfortably. “I’m afraid I’ve been monopolizing the conversation.”

“Oh, I like learning about the farm and businesses,” she interjected hastily, aware she needed to cut him off at the pass. “So Nora has the same job as you, except she runs the winery?”

Theo nodded, even though they’d explained that in detail during her interview. How she would work closely with both of them to plan events, sometimes for the winery, sometimes for the brewery, and sometimes for both.

“She does. Is it too hot out here?” Theo asked, when she tried and failed to surreptitiously wipe away a bead of sweat that rolled down the side of her face.

“No. No. It’s much better in the shade. The beer will cool me off.” Nothing short of stripping down to her undies and jumping into a frigid lake would cool her down at this point, but it wasn’t as if that was an option.

The server returned with their flights, so she had a moment to pretend to listen to her explain which beer was which, while figuring what tidbit about her past to share, in case Theo persisted.

Her anxiety was wasted, because Theo went a different route—a worse one—when he asked their waitress to grab a medium T-shirt from the gift shop for Gretchen. “You look like you’re about to spontaneously combust,” he said, when they were alone again. “The T-shirt will be much cooler.”

“Oh, no. I wouldn’t want to take something that’s for sale.”

Theo waved away her concern. “We have a huge stock of shirts. We won’t miss one, and I’m worried about you overheating.”

“Really, I—” Before she could come up with any plausible excuse for rejecting his kind offer, considering she was sweating her ass off, the waitress returned with a navy-blue Rain or Shine T-shirt. “Thank you,” Gretchen said, because she had no choice but to take it.

“Restrooms are right by the front door.” Theo pointed in the direction they’d entered.

Gretchen grabbed her purse and the shirt. She was never without concealer, so she would simply have to cover her bruises and hope it would be good enough.

In the restroom, she ran the cold water, wetting a paper towel that she used to scrub over her face and along the back of her neck. Stepping into one of the stalls, she switched from her sweater to the T-shirt, instantly feeling twenty degrees cooler. Returning to the sink, she studied her neck in the mirror, then grabbed her concealer. Years of covering the evidence had made her an expert when it came to makeup.

Once she felt the bruises were hidden well enough, she pulled her hair out of the ponytail and ran her fingers through it, drawing most of it over her shoulders as a second layer of concealment.

Praying she’d done enough, she stepped out of the restroom.

She felt Theo’s gaze on her as she crossed the large open space. One look at his face and she realized this attraction she felt wasn’t one-sided, something that thrilled and terrified her in equal parts.

Gretchen had fallen out of love with Briggs by degrees over the years, though it was safe to say that during the past couple, her feelings for him had turned to nothing more than hatred and fear. Every drop of affection she’d felt for the man who’d been her first love had been expelled in the tears of pain she’d cried due to his abuse. Loneliness had been her constant companion for too long, so it was no wonder Theo, with his easy smiles and laughter, had captured her attention.

Gretchen had come to Gracemont for a fresh start. In her mind, that meant a job, a safe place to live, and independence. Sure, at some point, she wanted to date again, but sweet Jesus…even if she was ready, which she wasn’t, Theo was the wrong man, full stop. He was her boss, for God’s sake, and she needed this job.

Once she returned to the table, Theo gave her a friendly smile. “Feel better?”

She nodded. “Much cooler. Thanks so much.”

Resuming her seat, she picked up the first beer. Theo followed suit, tapping his small glass against hers.

“To the beginning of a new adventure,” he said as a toast.

“Oh,” she said, after taking a sip, “that’s good.” Gretchen hadn’t lied about not being much of a drinker. Briggs never let her indulge, probably because he suspected it would dull the pain, and he certainly couldn’t let that happen.

“Glad you like it.”

“I can’t even imagine what it must take to make your own beer from scratch.”

Gretchen had landed on the perfect opening, because Theo was clearly a fan of not only his job and his brewery but his brothers’ “mad skills,” as he called them, when it came to brewing beer. He walked her through the process, and because she was genuinely interested—as well as determined to steer them away from personal topics—he patiently answered all her questions.

Before she knew it, two hours had passed in quiet comfort. She had the tiniest of buzzes from the beer, which felt nice. Her shoulders weren’t tight and the pressure on her chest that never seemed to lift completely was actually gone, something she hadn’t thought possible before Theo and Edith.

“Well,” she said at last. “I should head back to Edith’s.” If she didn’t start the two-hour return trip now, she would miss dinner. She’d been smart, however, drinking water between each glass of beer. She also ordered a bottle of water after they finished their tasting, claiming she was thirsty. She hadn’t opened it, intent on hydrating on the way down the mountain.

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