Page 49 of Wishes at Water's Edge
“That’s the spirit,” Alexis told him with a wink.
Dean sighed with relief as he helped himself to a second slice of chicken pot pie. Next time, he was going to succeed in asking the woman that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with to be his wife. He felt absolutely sure of it.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Alexis looked around her with a smile. She was working with a whole crowd of people in Turtle Dove Hall as they did their best to return the venue to its former glory in time for Julia and Cooper’s wedding.
Since she had Cash strapped to her back in a baby harness, she wasn’t doing any of the particularly difficult work, like removing or replacing the wallpaper and some of the floorboards. Instead, she was on tool duty—whenever someone needed a tool that they didn’t already have, like a hammer or a level or scraper, they would call to her and she would hurry to deliver it to them. Everyone seemed to be extra delighted by being visited by Cash’s smiling face, so it was a good job for her, she thought with a chuckle.
It felt comfortable and companionable to be working together with her friends and neighbors like that. She knew that the people of Rosewood Beach valued their community and were always ready to lend a helping hand whenever they could. It made her feel more grateful than ever to be living in the supportive, kind-hearted town.
“Hey, sweetheart!” Grayson, who was working on replacing the floorboards with Jacob, lifted his hand and waved to her. “Can we get a pliers? Some of these nails won’t come out.”
“And a hammer!” Jacob called. “Thanks, Alexis.”
“You got it, boys,” she called out cheerfully. She grabbed the tools they had asked for and headed over to them.
“My favorite part of today is whenever you turn around and Cash stares at us the entire time you’re walking away,” Jacob said with a laugh as she handed him the hammer. “He’s making the absolute cutest expressions, like he thinks we’re all here to do his bidding and he approves.”
Grayson laughed. “Maybe someday he’ll oversee jobsites like his Uncle Ryan.”
Alexis made a goofily shocked face at him. “Grayson, Faith and Ryan aren’t engaged.” Even if they were, the husband of his third cousin wouldn’t be Cash’s uncle, but Alexis decided to wave that point.
Grayson shrugged, grinning impishly. “We all know they’re headed in that direction.”
Alexis was about to agree when she saw an unexpected visitor walk into Turtle Dove Hall through the main entrance. She blinked in surprise, hardly believing what she was seeing.
“Look,” she squeaked, waving at Grayson. “It’s Lewis. I didn’t think he was still in town.”
Grayson looked up, also surprised that his friend had arrived at Turtle Dove Hall. “I didn’t either. I guess he’s enjoying our simple, countrified ways more than he expected.” He gave his wife a sly smile and Alexis laughed.
Lewis strolled up to them with his hands in his suit coat pockets. There was a smile on his face that appeared to be a mix between friendly and smug.
“I saw so many cars in this parking lot that I thought there must be an event of some kind in here,” Lewis said, flashing agrin. “And then I came in here and I saw all this. The whole town is working together to put this building back in order, is that right?”
“That’s right.” Alexis was determined to stay polite and friendly, even though what she wanted to do was cross her arms and ask Lewis if he planned on being condescending toward their small town again.
“That’s so… charming.” He said the word as if it meant something outdated and sickly sweet. He chuckled and shook his head. “So charming to see a small town pull together. It’s so neighborly.”
“What’s wrong with being neighborly, Lewis?” Alexis asked gently. She suddenly felt very sorry for him. Maybe deep down, he was jealous of the way they lived.
“Well, nothing.” Lewis laughed. “Unless of course you’re acquiring real estate or making a business deal. Then, naturally, it doesn’t get one very far.”
“Not everything in life is about business deals, Lewis.” Grayson set down his tools and stood up, looking his friend right in the eyes. “We don’t value those things like we used to. Life isn’t about success and making money. Our simpler existence here in Rosewood Beach doesn’t have the stress and drama that came with our previous lifestyle in L.A. It’s exactly right for this next chapter of our lives. If you’re unable to see that, might I suggest that you stay in your lane and stop making jabs at our happiness?”
Lewis’s grin was as wide and flashy as ever, but Alexis could see a look in his eyes that implied that Grayson’s words had hit home. “I’m just joking, Grayson, not making jabs.”
“I know you’re just joking, but it’s gone too far,” Grayson said, his tone kind. “I haven’t been insulting the way you live in L.A., Lewis, but believe me, I could be. Joking or no joking.”
Lewis clapped Grayson on the back with a devil-may-care attitude, but Alexis could see that he was feeling less superior than usual. “You can’t insult L.A., Grayson. It’s too big to be bothered by the likes of you.”
“Yes, it is,” Grayson said. “And that’s just the point, Lewis. It’s too big to be botheredwithme too. Can you imagine people in L.A. coming together like this? Right away, without hesitation? This kind of thing doesn’t happen in a big city, but it happens here. I’m so proud of my community. I could never live anywhere else after living in a place like this.”
Alexis listened to her husband with a joyful smile on her face. She was moved by his passionate words, and she felt glad that Lewis had come along and challenged their new values, since it had led to her being able to hear her husband defend their new home with so much conviction. She felt proud that he was standing strong and standing up to Lewis’s words.
“I wholeheartedly agree with Grayson,” Alexis said, slipping her hand into his. “And remember, Lewis, we’ve lived in both places. We really do know what we want, because we’ve tried both of them on for size. This is the place that fits us and our values best.”
“Well, if you ever get bored to tears, come visit me in L.A.,” Lewis said, unable to keep himself from turning everything into bantering, it seemed. “You’ll remember what you’re missing.”
