Moment of truth.
She’s standing on the main stage, flipping through a stack of papers, when I walk in. The metallic squeak of the double doors pulls her attention to me and a warm smile tugs at her lips.
With a wave, I walk to the bottom of the stage and look up at her. “Good morning, Pippa.”
Under the bright spotlight, creating a halo around her golden-brown hair, she looks younger, like the woman I remember from my summer trips here. She was always kind but a hard-ass, especially on her dancers. I’ve chalked up her influence as a large part of what makes Mia who she is—Calypso too if I had to guess.
“Thanks for coming in,” she says smoothly and sits on the edge of the stage.
I shake my head, indicating it wasn’t a problem at all. It’s warm in here, and I start rolling up my shirtsleeves.
She twists her lips and gives me an assessing once-over. “I’m going to take a chance on you.”
My brows scrunch together. “I’m sorry, I don’t understand.”
She laughs airily and waves a hand in the air around us. “Let’s renovate the studio.”
My mouth drops open. I’m positive I heard her wrong, or that this entire exchange is a joke. Pippa waits patiently,sitting with her ankles crossed and her hands on her lap—the posture of a ballerina.
“I can have Lucas draw up a contract by tomorrow,” I finally say. “What changed, though?”
I don’t want to test my luck, but I have to know. She was too certain eight days ago to change her mind so suddenly.
“Calypso trusts you,” she answers without a second thought. But she hesitates before continuing, “Look, I love Stanley, and your family is good—no,greatpeople. But Stanley’s reputation began to waver. I know he has a lot of health issues right now, and I’m glad he decided to take a step back. But projects were always running late, or he’d underestimate budgets.”
I’m quiet, shocked. Neither Lucas nor Mia have mentioned anything of this nature, and it’s hard to imagine they wouldn’t hear grumblings in such a small town.
There’s a million questions racing through my head and I ask the first one I can grab onto: “What does that have to do with Calypso?”
She tilts her head, sudden reluctance creeping across her expression. “You two are dating, yes?”
Pulling out my best poker face, the one that kept me out of trouble a handful of times growing up, I act nonchalant. Calypso and I are notdating. We’ve fucked once and gone on a blind date one other time. Other than that, we’re friends.
A friend who the town saw me being a little handsy with in front of her ex-husband, and the same one I’ve spent every morning this week with.
Yeah, I can see how those rumors spread.
I never lived in Amada Beach before this summer, but I’ve heard more than a few stories from my cousins about how meddlesome the locals can be.
I still have no idea what Calypso has to do with this though, or why us dating would change anything. I need to hold on to this hope a little bit longer.
She rolls her eyes at my prolonged silence, but it’s more playful than annoyed. “Any man worth Calypso’s time wouldn’t tell the town her business.”
That’s good to know.
“If Calypso trusts you, Liam,” Pippa says more seriously, “then I’m inclined to as well. I’ve known Calypso and Mia since they were girls, and I love both of them as if they were my own. You being Mia’s cousin doesn’t win you many brownie points, but gaining Calypso’s trust?” She raises her eyebrows, giving me a meaningful look.
“So what you’re saying is…” I trail off, trying to word this in a way that won’t fuck me over later. “My relationship with Calypso has convinced you to hire me for the studio’s renovation project?”
That word may get me in trouble with Calypso later, but a friendshipisa type of relationship. Semantics and shit.
“Yes, Liam,” Pippa confirms with a sharp nod. “I trust Calypso’s instincts enough to bet on you.”
Fuck.
Maybe Calypso and I wouldn’t have to confirm or deny anything. We could just let the town form their own opinions based on their preconceived notions of me.
It feels gross to make this decision without her. If I let Pippa hire me based on my proximity to her, Calypso has to know. She has to be okay with it.
