AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Stop messing around and show me what’s what.” Sam walked with Mac to the kitchen, but I stayed behind.
I didn’t understand all the ins and outs of the renovation. I had a picture in my mind of what the B&B should look like. At the end of the day, I tried to pay attention to Mac’s updates, but most of them went over my head. Or I was too busy admiring the confident way he explained everything. The two things I paid the most attention to were an increase in the budget and an extension to the time line. Those two things impacted me greatly.
I needed the B&B open soon to welcome clients. Anytime would be good since Telluride was a year-round tourist destination, but spring was more realistic for our time line.
I wandered to the front room, eager to have female interaction. I was surrounded by men with tools during the day and a nine-year-old in the evenings. I didn’t get out much.
Alice was carefully hanging new mosaics on the floating shelves in her shop.
“It looks amazing in here.” I’d ordered mosaics for every room in the B&B, and these looked beautiful in the windows with the light streaming through.
Alice smiled at me over her shoulder before slowly stepping down. “I’m working on some new designs for Telluride. People don’t appreciate my crabs like they do in Annapolis.”
“It’s a wintery theme here for sure,” I agreed.
A store in Annapolis ordered a ton of crabs in every color combination. It was a thing there, apparently. “Sam’s here.”
Alice smiled. “I saw. I think he wanted to talk to Mac.”
“He doesn’t usually come over to my side.” If he visited, it was only to see Alice. Occasionally, he brought in Maggie to visit. If Delaney was home, the girls played together. Delaney adored little kids.
“Mac came over the other night after the issue with the faucet in the kitchen,” Alice said carefully, keeping her gaze on my face.
I couldn’t stop the flush to my skin. “Oh?”
Alice moved closer, leaning a hip against the table in the center of the room. “Is there anything going on between you two?”
I shook my head hard. “Definitely not.”
“What happened with the faucet?”
I wrung my hands as I looked to see if the guys had returned. “I didn’t know anyone was here. Some nights I hang out in the B&B’s living area for some privacy. I was getting a glass of water when the water started shooting from the faucet, going everywhere. I was wearing pajamas—the silky kind.”
Alice’s head tipped to the side. “But Mac was here.”
“He was tiling the upstairs bathroom. I had no idea.” I remembered the initial shock when I heard his footsteps, then relief because he knew what to do to stop the water.
Alice’s eyes narrowed. “Something happened.”
I sighed, needing to talk to someone about it. “We argued like usual. Then I started shivering, and he helped me dry off.”
Alice’s eyes widened. “Is that code forwarmed you up?”
My face heated as I remembered the feel of his arms around me and my pebbled nipples flush against his hard body. “I thought he might have felt something, but I was wrong. He hasn’t said anything about it since.”
Alice’s frowned. “I don’t think you’re right about that. He came over to talk to Sam. I think he wanted advice.”
“What did Sam say?” I felt like I was in middle school all over again, wanting to know if the boy I crushed on told someone else he liked me.
“He wanted to talk to Sam alone.” She was quiet for a few seconds as she gathered the supplies to set at each chair. “Whatever happened between you two was something.”
“It shouldn’t matter because I just got divorced. I don’t have the time or the energy to deal with a relationship or even the potential of one.” I wasn’t ready to date, but my hopeful heart wanted a love that lasted a lifetime and more kids. I needed to focus on what I had—Delaney and the B&B.
Alice gave me a sharp look. “Just because one man cheated on you doesn’t mean you should avoid men forever.”
“I have no desire to go through that again.” I shuddered at the thought of meeting someone, going through the motions of dating, and then a relationship. Trusting someone enough to marry them? That sounded impossible.
Alice squeezed my hand. “Keep an open mind. Don’t close yourself off like I did.”
