Page 36 of Wishes at Water's Edge
She dialed Dean’s number, and it rang twice before he picked up.
“No, I still haven’t proposed to Noelle,” he said, without even saying hello.
Hazel laughed. “You knew why I was calling, huh?”
“Oh yeah. And trust me, I’m thinking about it. I just don’t have a plan yet. How are your painting decisions going?”
“Way to change the subject super abruptly, Dean.” She chuckled. “I think I have the right to inquire about your proposal plans after I put all of that work into that dinner with you only to have you chicken out on popping the question.”
Dean sighed. “Don’t worry, I’m still kicking myself about that.”
“Oh, I’m teasing. Don’t kick yourself. It’s all going to work out fine. I know you have the courage to do this. You love Noelle, and you’re going to do what you need to do to have a future with her. And besides, we all know she’s going to say yes.”
“I mean, I hope so.” Dean sounded a little doubtful.
“She’s definitely going to say yes.” Hazel smiled, feeling certain.
“Yeah? Well, no matter how nervous I am about her answer, I still need to ask. And you’re right—I can do this. I don’t know what came over me during the dinner. I think it was because she just looked so beautiful.”
Hazel grinned impishly. “You need to tell her that as soon as you propose to her.”
Dean groaned. “I don’t want to tell her I chickened out. I want her to think that I did all that to make it up to her for missing so many of our dates because of my fatigue.”
“Dean, if you tell her she was so beautiful you were too scared to propose, she’s going to like that a lot more than you making a fancy dinner to make up for lost dates. Trust me.”
Although she couldn’t see his face, Hazel knew her brother was grinning. “Okay, fine. I trust you.”
“As you should. Let me know when you have a new proposal plan, okay?”
“I will. Definitely. I’m going to figure this out—I’m not going to let anything get in the way of me being with Noelle.”
They said affectionate goodbyes and Hazel hung up the phone, shaking her head wryly.
Poor Dean,she thought.That’s just the cutest thing about why he was too nervous though.
She was confident that her brother was going to propose to Noelle soon and that everything was going to be fine. She smiled as she turned her attention back to the paint swatches in front of her. She half-shut her eyes, trying to imagine a certain shade of green on an accent wall in the living room, and she had a feeling it was going to look amazing.
She stood up, grabbing her purse from where it was hanging on the back of one of the kitchen chairs. She would go back to the general store to get a paint sample in that color. That would make imagining the shade in the living room easier.
She left the house in a hurry. Samantha was at her friend Willow’s house, so Hazel didn’t need to worry about letting her know that she was leaving. She decided to drive to the general store, although it wasn’t particularly far away. She felt impatient because of her excitement, and she wanted to get there as soon as possible.
She arrived at the general store a few minutes later and hopped out of her car. As she was making her way through the aisles, smelling the interesting aromas of potted herbs and fresh lumber, she noticed a display of tiles. She stopped dead in her tracks, envisioning the blue and green floral tiles that she was staring at in her kitchen, as a backsplash behind the stove.
Oh, those are absolutely perfect,she thought, her heart beating faster in excitement.That will go perfectly with the colors in the kitchen and fit so well with the cottage vibe we’re going for.
She pulled out her phone and took a picture of the tiles. She knew it was a decision that she wanted to sleep on before making, and she knew that there was someone she definitely wanted to talk to before making the decision.
She purchased the paint sample that she wanted and then hurried back out to her car. She drove to where Jacob’s small office was located and parked her car on the street outside.
She strolled up the sidewalk to the front door, able to see through the window that looked into Jacob’s office that he was there, speaking to someone on the phone. Her brow furrowed with concern when she saw how downcast his expression was.
He didn’t notice her standing on the sidewalk watching him, and he said a few more words into the phone before hanging up. He set his phone down on his desk and rolled his shoulders back, looking extremely sad.
Her heart went out to him, and she knew she needed to ask him if something was the matter. She hoped that whatever had happened, it was something she would be able to help with.
She knocked on the door of his office and heard him call, “Come in!”
When she stepped inside the little room, he was looking down at a stack of papers. It took him a couple of seconds to look up, and when he did his eyes widened.
