“I’m just being nice,” Stevie said.
“You’re seducing her with submarine sandwiches.”
“Is that illegal?”
“It could be considered false advertising, since you don’t cook.”
“Shecooks.”
“So you’re only flirting with her for her domestic labor.”
“Is that what they’re calling it these days?”Stevie’s appreciative gaze went to where Drew was hefting and moving and looking altogether quite strong and capable.“Speaking of true love, have you seen Rosemary again?”
“Why is that ‘speaking of true love’?”
Stevie tore her gaze away from Drew to give Corinthia a look.“Because you get a sort of stupid look whenever you talk about her.”
“I do not.”
“Also because shekissedyou.”Stevie shook her head.“You’ve gone so long without stars in your eyes, Corinthia, that you don’t even recognize them when they twinkle.”
Corinthia opened her mouth to retort, then shut it.Dry spells didn’t scare or shame her, butmissingsomething?It couldn’t be borne.“I would recognize twinkling,” she finally said.
“Hmm,” Stevie replied, noncommittally.
“I would,” Corinthia insisted.
“Of course you would.”
“Just because I don’t giggle and make goo-goo eyes doesn’t mean I can’t be romantic.”
“You’d be terrible at making goo-goo eyes and giggling.All you need to do is be yourself and stick to your strengths.”
Corinthia wondered what her strengths might be.Good taste in books, for one.Excellent organizational skills.Tidiness.Cocoa-making ability.All very nice but probably not what people thought of first when seeking romance, except for maybe the cocoa part, which Rosemary seemed to like quite a lot.
“You want people to think you’re all stuffy,” Stevie continued, “but in reality, you care a lot.”
“I do?”
“You care about your dog.You care about me.You care about our dinky old street, for heaven’s sake.You care about people finding the books they’re looking for in the library.You even care about the Refuge, now.You’re civic and you’re thoughtful and it’s going to be catnip for a certain type of person.”
“What type of person?”
“Someone who brings you out of yourself a bit.Makes you step out of your comfort zone but holds your hand at the same time.”
Corinthia folded her hands one over the other, self-consciously, as if someone might leap out and try to grab one.She looked out the window, where Drew was manhandling, or woman-handling, a large piece of lumber into place.“I bet she could use an extra pair of hands,” Corinthia said, nodding toward the backyard.
Stevie didn’t look back as she opened the back door, jumped lightly down the step, crossed the small porch, and hurried across the patchy lawn until it became white sand.
Beaufort, startled by this development, let out a few more tuneful howls.
“Hush, dog,” Corinthia said, smoothing the hound’s ears and patting his back.“Let them talk.”
Drew was already slipping work gloves onto Stevie’s hands.Both women were laughing.Corinthia smiled and helped herself to a chilled soda.
When Stevie and Drew burst in, later, flushed of cheek and sweaty of brow, they brought the oak and sand scent with them.
“All done?”Corinthia asked.
