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Sebastian
Nothing says California more than being on Elianna’s doorstep at ten-thirty at night in late November and it being a perfect sixty degrees.
I see the appeal, especially coming from Longdale, where it was pushing freezing temperatures.
And if Elianna belongs anywhere, it’s someplace sunny and full of life.
I knock on her door. Ethan gave me the address and cautioned me that she might not be there. He said he wonders if she’s been staying with other friends, too, until she can get a place of her own nailed down.
Not for the first time, I feel responsible for the fact that she’s back to where she started from.
But then Stella’s words return to my mind, that I don’t want her back as my assistant because I want her in my life as something more.
I knock a second time, a little harder, and a tall woman with her hair in a dreadlock turban answers, her eyes narrowing.
“Is Elianna here?” I ask.
“I’m sorry. She isn’t.” The woman is guarded, and I don’t blame her. It’s late.
“Do you know where I might find her?”
She tilts her chin. “Are you Sebastian?”
Not sure if that’s a good or bad thing to her, I nod. “Do you know if she’s made it back from Colorado yet?”
Her mouth twists severely to one side as she regards me closely. “She was here. But I think she said something about going to the playhouse.”
I thank her and hurry back to my rental, Googling the address.
It’s a short drive, and I can smell the salt of the ocean air before I even open my car door. The building is smaller than I’d imagined, a mint green with darker green trim, as far as I can tell in the light of the lamppost out front. There don’t seem to be any lights on inside, but Elianna’s Honda is parked out front.
Ivy is growing on a trellis propped up against the front. Adirondack chairs in bright yellow and blue flank the front door. There’s a thin, knitted blanket tossed over the back of one, and I imagine Elianna curled up there, taking in the scent and roar of the ocean.
It is so close to the ocean here, and I feel the magnet of what this place means to her pulling me in as well. I feel it tangibly, and I know this is where she belongs.
I want her to belong with me. I want her to be with me in Longdale. But I can’t ask her to leave this behind.
The doors are locked, so I take the narrow cement path around the side.
“Sebastian?” She stands from a small, outdoor table, wearing a light blue, one-piece shorts-and-tank-top thing. I don’t know what it’s called, but she’s beautiful in it.
“I wasn’t sure if your roommate was going to give you a heads-up that I was coming.”
She knits her brows together. “My phone’s in my car.” She pulls her arms tight around her middle. “I’m surprised to see you here.”
“I—” I pause, not knowing where to begin. I knew this would happen. I’d get tongue-tied. I take a deep breath in and out, and stare into her bright blue eyes. “Elianna, first of all, thank you for An Afternoon of Thanksgiving. I’m in awe of all you did for that. You have a gift of gathering people together.” I take another steadying breath. “Secondly, I’m sorry for all that happened, and for not coming to you sooner. I’ve missed you.”
Her face, once frozen in surprise, now softens. “I’ve missed you, too. A lot. I’m sorry I never reached out to you.” She studies the thin, weathered cement path, pocked with black corrosion. “But it was the right choice to leave, even though I should have given you notice.” She meets my gaze. “It was unprofessional of me that I didn’t.”
“Itwasthe right choice.”
Her brows climb up her forehead. “I know it was. But why doyouthink it was?”
“Because I don’t want you to be my assistant.” I raise a hand. “You were a great assistant, by the way. You’re a quick learner, excellent with people, an out-of-the-box thinker.”
She offers a quick smile.
“If I wasn’t in love with you,” I say. “I’d want you to be my assistant until I retire in about forty years.”
