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“You can't say that anymore. It's another thing to add to your resume.”
“You think there's any money in being a shield? It looks like I'm taking a sabbatical from my job for a bit.”
Charlotte’s facelitup, her mouth stretching into a wide smile.“So, you're staying?”
“For Ivy,” he said.
Charlotte's expression grew even lighter, and she clapped her hands excitedly.”That makes me happier than a tick on a fat dog!”
He tried to picture that. “That's pretty happy.” He turned and walked back to the table, thinking about Southern customs like funeral casseroles and southernisms. He was born in Atlanta and, by all rights, should be a Southern gentleman, but he had been raised in boarding schools in the northeast, so he wasn't completely familiar with the customs of the South—or their charming phrases.
CHAPTERELEVEN
After an hour with her friends, Charlotte, usually full of energy, felt like she’d run through a gauntlet. When her friends offered their help, she forced a smile, thanked them, and said she had it all under control. That was the furthest thing from the truth, but she was determined to handle it on her own. She had relied on others her whole life and longed for the ability to rely on herself. The setback for the shop wasn’t the end of her dream, but an obstacle she had to hurdle. She needed money but had no intention of asking for help from her friends.
As she walked out of the diner, a sense of dread washed over her. She turned toward the shop to find her entire inventory and furniture on the sidewalk in front of the store. In piles strewn across the cement were waterlogged linens, sample invitations, and floral arrangements. Her stomach lurched as she took in the damage. The storefront looked worse than it had when she took it over. It had once been a rock shop that sold everything from geodes to meteor chips, and now it looked like it had been hit by the latter.
A man from the restoration company approached, carrying a shelf with swollen wooden feet and peeling paint.
She rushed over to speak to him. “How long do you think it will be before I’m back in business?”
He looked at the mound and whistled. “We’ll be done in a week or so. The bigger question will be how soon you can replace what was ruined.” He glanced at the damage. “How good is your insurance?”
She pointed to the candle shop next door. “It’s her insurance that will pay.”
“Good luck with that.” He moved back inside, leaving her with more questions than answers.
As a business owner, she was required to have multiple types of insurance, like a general liability policy to protect against personal injury and property damage. She had professional insurance, which Charlotte liked to think of as whoops insurance in case she messed something up or forgot the cake topper and got sued. She had to have insurance for her storefront as well and purchased the cheapest policy she could find. Charlotte knew cheap wouldn’t equate to good but needed to call her insurance to report the loss, regardless. That was a job for tomorrow because all she wanted right now was a bottle of wine and a seat by the water.
* * *
Her toes movedthrough the sand as she walked to the water’s edge with a bottle of cabernet, a glass, and a blanket. Charlotte faced the water, closed her eyes, and inhaled, letting the salty air fill her lungs and wash away the stress of the day. She set up camp on the shore and cracked open her liquid relaxation. As she poured herself a glass, she watched the afternoon fog roll off the gulf, enveloping her in its embrace.
Charlotte waded into the shallow surf and let the sand squish beneath her toes. She took a sip of wine from her glass, the warmth sliding soothingly down her throat. Gradually, the knots in her chest loosened, and tears pooled in her eyes. The thoughts of the flood that had delayed her dream, the funeral she had attended for her neighbor, and how her friends had looked at her with pity, came cascading forward in emotions too strong to bear.
She loved building that business and was looking forward to running it. It was heartbreaking to see it damaged by something out of her control. But as she gazed at the water and sipped her wine, she watched people stroll along the beach hand in hand. Families and kids ran around playing and enjoying the moment. It was an uplifting sight that reminded Charlotte that even when life threw curveballs, there was still beauty and love to be found amidst it all.
“Aren’t you cold?” a deep voice said from behind her.
She spun on her heel and immediately saw Bastien. He had traded his navy-blue suit for a pair of faded jeans and a black T-shirt. All she could focus on was the taut muscles that lay beneath. The transformation was astounding, and Charlotte’s breath caught in her throat.
“Hey, it’s you.” Surprise mixed with strange excitement coursed through Charlotte’s veins as Bastien stepped closer, leaving only a few inches between their bodies. She met his gaze, his eyes dark and intense. The warmth radiating from him swirled around her, causing her mouth to dry and her cheeks to heat.
“It is,” he replied. His lips were drawn into a slight smile that showcased his pearly white teeth and set off a wave of sparks deep within Charlotte’s chest. “I didn’t mean to startle you. Am I intruding?” he asked.
“No, it’s just—I had a long day, and seeing you here is...” She stumbled over her words, not wanting to say something ridiculous or something she would regret.
“Surprising?” he asked.
Charlotte’s heart skipped a beat. Why was she feeling this way? Out of all the myriad emotions flooding her senses, why did attraction have to be the one that surged forward? After all, there was nothing remotely arousing about her predicament.
“Yes, a pleasant surprise,” she admitted before looking towards the horizon and changing the subject. “I thought you’d be with Ivy.”
He kicked at the sand with well-worn boat shoes. “It was a rough day, and she fell asleep.” He gestured to the blanket and the bottle of wine, half-submerged in the sand, a few feet away.
Charlotte smiled. “I understand how that can be.” She paused to think, then asked, “Do you want to sit down? I don’t mind the company.” It was funny how she couldn’t wait to escape her friends but was happy to spend time with Bastien.
“Will you share your wine?”
