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CHAPTER ONE
“Oh! Was that a firework or a shooting star?”
Ariel Hawthorne pointed as a single streak of bright, white light jetted across the night sky, arcing over the harbor, and fizzling out as it neared the darkened horizon. A strong, long-fingered hand reached up and wrapped around her pointing one, and she felt her face warm as Miles curled his fingers around hers and brought her knuckles to his lips, brushing them with a warm kiss. “If it were a shooting star, what would you wish for?” he asked.
She turned her head and gazed at him, sure that she looked silly smiling sideways from their shared position on the soft beach blanket spread out on the still-warm sand. The sun had set over Endless Harbor, Maine, hours ago, but the heat of the day was still radiating up from the fine grains beneath them, offsetting the ocean breeze that blew in from out over the water.
“I wouldn’t wish for anything except to be right here, right now, with you,” Ariel said, scooting closer to Miles.
One of his eyebrows went up, and Ariel giggled at how silly he looked with an expression of disbelief while he was lying on the beach with not a small amount of the very sand they were lying on in his sun-kissed hair. “Really? You wouldn’t wish for riches or for the Seaside Café to take off as well as the B and B has?”
Ariel shook her head, though his suggestions did sound good—but now that Leeside, the rambling Victorian house she’d inherited from her father, was running on a slim profit margin as an inn, she could focus on the new restaurant side of things.
“Nope. The Seaside Café will grow through hard work and the reputation that my food gains. Not to mention the glowing reviews that willabsolutelybe pouring in soon.” Ariel reached out and smoothed her fingers over his quirked brow. “I would just wish for this. Us. Spending time together withno drama.”
“Hmm. What if ‘us’ is going to take just as much work as your restaurant?” Miles smiled again, but Ariel could see the cloud of doubt in his hazel eyes.
Though she and Miles had been dating for a while, they had been through a lot together in a short time. Not only the stress and chaos of her renovating an entire house, but the unexpected complications that had followed. Ariel had gained some surprise adversaries in her journey to opening her business—Mayor Richard Stanton came to mind—and she’d gotten in her own way plenty, too. Some of thecomplicationsin her relationship with Miles had been her own doing, as well. And some of them had been his—there was still the lingering specter of Miles’s ex-wife and the not-quite-final divorce.
“That’s okay,” she said softly, leaning in to give him a quick peck on the lips. “I’m into things that need work.”
His laugh vibrated against her cheek as he pulled her in close again. They had gone through misunderstandings and disagreements, but now they were finally on the same page. On this beautiful summer night, they’d decided to have a date under the stars on the beach, lucky to find a spot that wasn’t taken with a great view of the fireworks that the city was displaying for the Fourth of July.
“So, you aren’t nervous at all about the café opening?”
Ariel considered a moment. “No. I think I would be if I didn’t have so much support. But there’s you, and Katie, and my sister.”
“I thought for sure Charlene was going to convince you to name the café after her,” Miles said at the mention of Ariel’s sister.
Ariel grinned. “Well, seeing as how she basically became an investor after her make-up side hustle made all that money, she might have swayed me. But Babelicious Café just doesn’t have the same ring to it.”
“I don’t know. I’d go to a place called Babelicious.”
With a laugh, she batted a small puff of sand at him, which he turned from, grinning.
“Besides,” she finished, “I had great advice from the Frogmore in Paris about the opening menu, and you cannot get much better than advice from a Michelin-star restaurant.”
“And Endless Harbor won’t get anything better than you or the Seaside,” Miles assured.
They both rolled to their backs to look up as the fireworks display began. Miles wrapped his arm around Ariel and hugged her to his side. She settled her head on his shoulder. He leaned in and kissed her cheek softly and sweetly. Above them, the pyrotechnics lit up the night sky with a spectacular show of light and color.
Ariel and Miles lay in each other's arms and watched until the fireworks display slowly came to an end. It was the perfect evening—even if Ariel had fibbed just a little.
The Seaside Café’s opening was rushing up on them, and she certainlywasnervous.
***
The sun rose over the bluffs that flanked Leeside, casting a warm golden glow over the newly renovated bed and breakfast. Ariel stood outside on the porch, taking in the sight of her pride and joy. The fresh coat of paint on the exterior and the renovated interior had breathed new life into the old building, and it now stood as a charming complement to the lush land that it sat on, rather than the eyesore that it had been just six months back. Ariel sipped her coffee and sat down on one of the porch rockers, savoring the few moments of calm she had before the busy day began.
Ariel closed her eyes and mentally reviewed every detail of Leeside’s stunning facade. The house was a masterpiece of ornate architecture, with intricate trim and moldings, towering turrets, and a wraparound porch that seemed to go on forever.
The house was freshly painted, with white trim that made the delicate details of the architecture pop. The porch was lined with white columns, each one carved with intricate patterns that seemed to tell a story. The wooden floorboards always creaked beneath her feet as she stepped onto the porch, and she could hear the distant crash of the sea in the background.
As she made her way around the porch in her imagination, Ariel marveled at the attention to detail in every aspect of the house's design. The shutters on the windows were painted a deep shade of green, adding a pop of color that perfectly complemented the other colors of the house. The windows themselves were tall and narrow, with panes of frosted glass that cast a soft, diffused light inside.
The front door was a work of art in and of itself, with intricate carvings and scrollwork that made the center panels almost Baroque. Ariel often ran her hand over the smooth surface of the wood on the outer frame, feeling the coolness of it against her skin. The door, which used to stick in cold or rainy weather, now glided open at her touch, revealing a grand entryway that was every bit as ornate as the outside of the house.
The staircase that led up to the second floor was the centerpiece of the entryway, with intricately carved banisters and a soft, plush carpet that seemed to invite her up. The walls were lined with portraits and paintings, each one in an ornate frame that perfectly complemented the style of the house.
