Page 13 of Last Second Chance

“Holy shit.” His eyes were as wide as saucers.

“Yeah. I bought a ring and everything. I know she’s young for it, but I also know she’s the one for me. I was planning to do it after she graduated.”

“We’d be brothers,” he said, grinning. But that quickly faded, and his expression grew serious. “So, do you still want that? Because if you give up now, she’ll eventually find someone else to marry.”

Over my dead body.

“Okay, I get it,” I said, nodding. “No giving up. I’m just frustrated. It’s been a fucking year, and she still won’t even hear me out. It’s been hard to accept losing her, and I can’t even move on because I keep thinking that I’ll get her back somehow.”

“And you will,” Ben insisted. “I mean, you have me on your side.”

I chuckled, and it broke some of the tension in the room. “You’re so humble.”

“Humble is overrated.” Ben smirked. “Besides, I’m the hero of this love story.”

“What?”

“I’m the one trying to get you guys back together, playing both sides, setting up situations where the two of you can interact. I mean, Michael’s in on it, but he’s so busy with his wedding that he’s really dropped the ball.”

I rolled my eyes. “How dare he.”

“I’m just saying that this matchmaking stuff is a pain in the ass. You two are not making it easy.”

“I hate to disappoint,” I snorted. “But I am worried that I’m running out of time. This week feels like my last chance and it’s already half over. If I can’t get her to talk to me before going back to New York, I don’t think she’s going to give me the opportunity to try again.”

“Yeah, she’s already pretty pissed at me for making her come for the whole week.” Ben ran his fingers through his hair. “Her defenses are up now. So, you’d better take advantage of the time you have left on the island with her.”

“That’s easy for you to say.”

“You should have dinner with her tonight.”

“Oh sure, that’s likely.” I laughed, but the sound lacked any humor. “And here’s a fun idea, I’ll ride in on a unicorn while pigs fly overhead.”

“Don’t be a smartass,” he said with an amused grin. “I’ll arrange it.”

I was pretty skeptical about his ability to do that, but I wasn’t going to turn down the offer. I clearly needed some help.

“Okay. Text me the details when you’ve got it planned.”

“I will,” he said, turning toward the door. He paused before walking out and glanced back at me. “But just so you’re notbothsurprised, she won’t be expecting you.”

“You’re going to trick her?” I asked incredulously.

“Unless you have a better idea?”

When I shook my head, he said, “Okay then. I’ll text her, asking her to meet me for dinner.”

Oh, this should be fun.Not.

Ben left the room, and I went to my suitcase, pulling out my whittling kit and basswood block. I’d brought them on a whim, just in case I had the urge to be creative. Whittling was a skill that I learned from my dad, one that was much more useful than his “hide your feelings” philosophy.

Sitting in a chair near the window, I got to work. If I was going to have dinner with Poppy for the first time in over a year, I wasn’t showing up empty-handed.

CHAPTER7

Poppy

Ididn’t ask any questions when Faith invited me to this family outing, and I wished that I had. As much as I appreciated being included, Ireallyhated golf.

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