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Still, I watched her closely as she ate the fruit, even as we moved on to other stalls, and it was a relief when she was finished with it.
The next hour was full of quality time with my daughter, and she chattered about everything and nothing while we watched a wood carver work on a sculpture, learned how to weave baskets from a woman who looked about a hundred years old, and bought jewelry made of sea glass for Christine and Audrey.
It was nice to spend time with her like this, exactly the reason I came to this island. I wanted to connect with Christine, especially since she was rebelling so much lately. Her behavior problems had gotten worse and worse over the past six months of school, and I suspected that it was partially because she was hanging around with a bad crowd.
Audrey was convinced we could get her past it by giving her plenty of attention and love. I wasn’t sure it was that easy, but I was still enjoying this.
“Ooh, that dress is cute,” she said, moving to a new stall. I followed her gaze and shook my head.
“No way. There’s nothing to it!”
She pouted. “Come on, Dad. Don’t be so uptight.”
“If being uptight means not wanting my sixteen-year-old daughter to wear a dress that revealing, then I’ll happily embrace that label.”
She chuckled even as she muttered, “Lame.”
She went to the stall anyway, looking at some of the other bright clothing on display, and I followed, not paying much attention to the anything until a particular shade of pink caught my eye.
It looked just like the streaks in Heather’s hair and the polish on her toes. I suspected it was her favorite color.
Moving to it without thinking, I picked it up. It was a scarf, and the fabric was nearly as soft as Heather’s skin.
Would she like this?
“What are you looking at?” Christine was suddenly at my side, head tilted as she saw what I was holding. “A scarf? I don’t think it’s really your style.”
Immediately, I dropped the scarf back onto the table. I didn’t know what I was thinking. Buying Heather a gift wouldn’t be a good idea. It might make her think that I wanted to take this thing between us to another level, and that would send the wrong message.
Right?
Doubt niggled at me, telling me that it might be too late to hold back now. That she already meant more to me than I planned.
“You okay?” Christine asked.
“Of course. Let’s keep shopping. We have to head back to the resort soon.”
Because she had a boat excursion to get to, and I… well, I had a completely free afternoon ahead of me. Nothing to do whatsoever. And that was perfectly fine.
But I kept thinking about that pink scarf long after we’d moved on.
Chapter Twelve: Heather
Leanne arranged the spa trip as a way to thank the women in the wedding party and family, and the fact that she included me in the invitation showed just how nice she was. I understood why she was one of Angela’s best friends.
As we were walking out of the spa, the third person in their trio fell into step beside me.
Jess had gotten a facial treatment and her skin was slightly pink and shiny. She looked just as relaxed as I felt after a sixty-minute massage that worked out the kinks in my back from sleeping on the couch with Greyson last night.
We definitely needed to sleep in a bed next time.
If there was a next time. We hadn’t really talked about anything beyond whatever moment we were sharing together, but we only had a couple of days left on the island, and I wanted to make the most of them if we could.
And after… well, I didn’t know if there was going to be an after.
I was still trying to figure out my future in regard to my education, so I didn’t even know where I’d live in a few months, much less what I wanted my relationship status to be.
I was growing attached to Greyson, that much I could admit to myself, but I wasn’t sure if this could go anywhere. It was easy to indulge in every desire while on a tropical island that provided an effortlessly romantic setting, but when we went back to the real world, things could get complicated.
