“My favorite, too.” I smiled at Rosie as I stepped back inside the bed and breakfast.

CHAPTER13

Adalyn

When I went to turn on the garbage disposal the following morning as I was cleaning up from breakfast, it made a horrific grinding sound and shut off.

“Great,” I flipped the switch up and down.

Making sure the disposal was off, I reached underneath and pushed the reset button, flipped the switch, and nothing. Picking up my phone, I saw the time was eight-thirty. Colin was the first and only person that came to my mind. Opening my contacts list, I pulled up his name and sent him a text message.

“Good morning. I’m sorry to text you so early, but I have a problem. My garbage disposal isn’t working. Is there a chance you can come over and take a look at it?”

“Good morning. I can come now if that’s okay.”

“Now would be perfect. Thank you, Colin.”

I made another cup of coffee while I waited for him and thought about last night and what he told me about his ex-fiancée. At least she had the courage to tell him before they walked down the aisle, unlike my spinless coward of an ex-husband who led me to believe he wanted children.

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door, and when I opened it, I smiled when I saw Colin standing there holding his toolbox.

“Thanks for coming over. I don’t know what happened.” He followed me to the kitchen. “I turned it on, and then it made a horrible grinding noise and shut off.”

“Sounds like the motor went.”

Colin flipped the switch several times, got underneath, and took the disposal apart. I stood there and couldn’t help but admire him. The fluttering in my belly heightened like it did every time I saw him.

“I’m afraid this disposal is no more.” He looked up at me. “You’re going to need a new one.”

“Of course. The joys of owning a home.” I smirked.

“As soon as the store opens, I can go grab one and install it. It won’t take too long.” He stood up and wiped his hands on a rag in his toolbox.

I glanced at my watch. “I have a meeting with the contractor in thirty minutes at the gallery.”

“I can swing by later and install it, but only if you agree to have dinner with me.” A smirk crossed his lips.

“Ah. So you won’t install it if I don’t have dinner with you?”

“As much as I’d love to, I’m afraid dinner is a must.”

“Well, I need a garbage disposal, so yes, I’ll have dinner with you tonight.”

“Great. I’ll bring food from the bar, we can eat it here, and then I’ll install the new disposal. What time works for you?”

“Anytime is good.”

“Six o’clock?” he asked. “I have a shipment coming in around four, and Katherine is off today.”

“Six o’clock is perfect.” I smiled.

* * *

Colin

I walked out of Adalyn’s home with a smile on my face. Telling her about my broken engagement last night felt right, especially since Adalyn confirmed she had been married once. The more I saw and talked to her, the more I felt like she was the one woman I wanted to spend more time with—the first and only woman since Olivia.

Olivia and I had dated for three years before I proposed to her. I was thirty years old and was ready to settle down and start a family. We were engaged a year before we started planning the wedding, which took approximately another year to plan because Olivia wanted everything to be perfect, and I understood that. About six months into planning the wedding, Olivia started behaving strangely. She seemed distant and looked for every opportunity she could to start an argument. I knew things were spiraling out of control, but I chalked it up to her being stressed about the wedding. I helped her all I could, but the more I did, the more agitated she became.