Page 75 of An Island Summer
Writing desk. Still full of her things. It’s in the desk.She stared at the single drawer, knowing they’d already opened it to look at the engraved branding but somehow hoping for a miracle.
Open it. All the way, she heard in Pappy’s voice. Meghan looked up at Toby, her pulse racing, her hands trembling.
Slowly, he reached out and hooked the circular drawer pull with his finger, tugging gently as Meghan held her breath. The drawer inched its way out, empty, and her heart fell into her stomach.
Meghan reached into it, pushing her hand all the way to the back, moving her fingers around. “There’s nothing in here,” she said.
Toby stared at the drawer, but he was clearly thinking of something else. “Gramps said, ‘I need you to find Hester and tell her that the ledger paper she was looking for is in her writing desk.’ I thought maybe he meant the will, but I guess it was nothing.”
She looked up at him in awe. “You’d help me find the will?” she asked, wondering why he would do something so kind.
He led her over to the bed and moved the covering, taking her hands and gesturing for her to sit. Then he lowered himself down beside her, breathing in a long, slow breath as if he were centering himself for what he had to say. “I built Mariner’s Inn because I was grieving and Mary had wanted it. I channeled all my grief into building the inn, making it the best it could be. And I couldn’t set foot on the premises. It was too hard because it was Mary’s dream. Just having meetings there took all my energy and I’d rush through them.”
She was curious as to why he was telling her all this now. “But you came to the party,” she said, the recollection of his touch during their dance prickling her skin.
“Yes.”
“Why did you come?”
He stared at her, fondness showing in those eyes of his, his chest rising and falling with his thoughts. “Becauseyouwere there.”
Surprise raced through her veins, her heart slamming around in her chest.
“I tried to push you away because the feeling terrified me. I’ve never felt that way since Mary, and I didn’t know what to do. And when the lawyers suggested I stay away, I tried, but it was impossible. I can’t do it.”
She reached over and took his hand.
“I didn’t know if I was ready to feel this way about someone. And then when Gramps took to you so easily, it was even harder because I also didn’t know if I’d ever find someone who would understand how my time would be split with caring for him. But you do.”
“I do,” she agreed. “And I love being around you,” she said, taking his hand and placing it on her pounding heart. “You make me feel alive.”
“I didn’t explain fully when you thought I stole money from Gramps and paid people off because I thought it might be easier to let you go if you believed it.”
“You’re not stealing money from Rupert?”
“No. Before his memory completely went, he was worried about losing control of things. He gave me access to all his accounts and power of attorney for his legal and financial matters, telling his team I was in charge. And then he told me to take whatever I need and follow my dreams.”
“I had you all wrong,” she said in almost a whisper. “But what about the rumors that you paid off the board members for the zoning?”
“After I had dinner with you, I was terrified at my feelings for you and I turned all my focus back to Mariner’s Inn for Mary. I was so desperate to make the inn perfect to honor her memory that I offered to donate funds to anything the board wanted if they’d just grant me the zoning. It ruffled a few feathers, but most of them understood.”
“I’m so sorry,” she said, shaking her head, her heart breaking for him.
“I’m not,” he said, that wonderful smile of his that warmed her emerging. “It forced me to realize that yes, I loved Mary—I always will. But she’s in my past and I’m still here.” He took Meghan’s hand and mimicked what she’d done with his, placing it on his heart. “I’m alive. And I feel it, too, every time I’m with you.” He let go and put his hands on her face, cradling it. “Want to be alive together?” He offered her an adorable smirk that sent her stomach flipping.
“Yes,” she said, feeling like her heart would burst.
He caressed her cheek, his gaze swallowing her in that way that made her melt. He leaned in and pressed his lips to hers, and it was as if everything she’d done in her life had led her to this moment. His warm breath mixing with hers, the way his hands worked up through her hair and down her neck, the gentle touch of his fingertips against her skin—it was all absolute perfection, and she couldn’t have imagined feeling this way with anyone else.
When he finally pulled back, he was smiling.
“You’re happy,” she said, elation filling every cell in her body.
He nodded, his blue eyes sparkling.
“So am I,” she said.
He let out a nervous chuckle.
