Page 72 of Steinbeck
“Yeah, well, love is about putting it out there.Being vulnerable.Saying the hard things.Do you believe you two are meant for each other?”
Of course, old words, the ones that had skulked about her heart for the last week, dragged up.“You were the one, always.”
Jack’s words to her, but, “Yes.And always.”
“Then maybe it’s time to step up and write your own happy ending.Tear up the contract.Stay.And not for me but for you.”Penny took her hand, warm against her cold fingers, her golden-brown eyes holding Harper’s.“What do you really want?”
Harper turned, her gaze following him on the ice—strong, capable Big Jack.
“That’s what I thought.Now sit back and can we please just enjoy the view?”
EIGHT
“He’s amazing, Em.”
Emberly looked up at Nimue, who sat with her legs folded on her wide daybed swing under the front porch of her beachside cottage.White porch, sky-blue house, not even twelve-hundred square feet, but perfect for Emberly’s little sister.It had been remodeled inside and out by Nimue, who’d gutted the kitchen, the bathroom, and the two bedrooms and even renovated the back patio to include a small round hot tub.
Never mind her upstairs office that overlooked the ocean.Teched out with the latest gear, Nimue freelanced out her hacking skills, under contract with security companies to test their systems.
Now, they both watched Steinbeck in the yard, building a gazebo over the stone patio in Nimue’s quaint yard.
Indeed, the man exuded amazing, stripped down to his shorts, a layer of sweat sheening his body, the sun glistening on his skin.He wore a pair of wraparound sunglasses, a baseball hat backward over his dark golden hair, and talked to himself as he read the printed instructions for the build.
The scent of sawdust mingled in the salty breeze, and the crash of the ocean on the beach hummed in the air.
Four days and she’d finally started to unwind.She’d eaten pizza.Watched movies.Played chess with Steinbeck.
It felt like Phoenix had dropped away, lost somewhere over the ocean.
“I never thought you’d find someone who could?—”
“Put up with me?”
“No.Keepup with you.”
Emberly smiled.“I wasn’t sure bringing him here was the right move.”She wore a pair of cutoff jeans and a tank top, sipped lemonade.“But...”She glanced at Nimue.“What if I left the Swans?”
Nim raised an eyebrow.“Really?”
“You’re smiling.”
“I just...I worry.”She lifted a shoulder.“So do Boz and Anna.”
“Boz got me into this.”
“Doesn’t mean he doesn’t worry about you.His sixtieth birthday is coming up.You should come.”
She met Nimue’s golden eyes.“That’s your family, not mine.”
Nim sighed.“You’re always welcome.Your picture is still on the wall?—”
Emberly held up a hand.
Nimue drew in a breath and took a sip of her lemonade.“All right.For the record, I’m a fan of you leaving the Swans.But...”She glanced out at Steinbeck.“What does he think?”
“I haven’t told him yet.I’ve barely told myself.”
Nimue laughed.
