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“Speaking of early…” She wound through the helm and ducked up to the front deck to stand beside him at the rail. “…you must have gone out at the crack of dawn.”
“You noticed.” He thought for sure she’d been sleeping. “Miss me?”
“I missed a few things while you were gone.” She sidled closer and threaded her arms around his waist. Trailed a hand to rest on his hip.
Damn, but he had missed her too. He hadn’t let himself think about how much until he was out of the Navy for good. Once, during a family July Fourth ball game that coincided with his leave, he’d peered over at the pitcher’s mound in the backyard and knew she should have been there. For one thing, she would have brought her A-game and goaded everyone on the opposite team just for fun. More importantly, she would have flat-out enjoyed the day. The family. The fun. He’d known then that he’d screwed up with her. But by then, she’d been dating someone else.
“Good to know my finer qualities are appreciated.” Wrapping her up in his arms, he reeled her close to hold her tight, savoring the surprise he had in store for her.
The waves splashed against the power catamaran hull, the boat surprisingly steady despite the choppy water. He’d made plans to meet Keith’s CFO in a couple of hours, unable to stall the handoff of the water craft any longer. Alicia had already arranged for a rental car to be dropped off for her at the bed and breakfast so she could explore the Bar Harbor area a little more before returning home.
“Should I sit down for your assessment of the property?” Edging back, she gazed up at him and shielded her eyes from the glare of the sun on the water. Although it wasn’t hot, it was a bright, clear day. “I’ll admit I’m a little nervous to go over that big list I spotted on your phone yesterday.”
That was the opening he’d been waiting for. His chance to make things right with Alicia.
He’d played this out a few different ways in his head in the early hours of morning, unsure how to proceed. A damn foreign feeling for him since he’d been born sure of himself. Now that the time had arrived to reveal what he’d done, he felt all the more pressure to get it right.
“Maybe that’s a good idea.” He looked around the dock and up to the rambling bed and breakfast building, his gaze coming to rest on the two Adirondack chairs closest to the water. “Let’s go sit by the house.”
Nodding, she followed him off the boat and down the planked pier until they reached the big, wooden seats. Bright paint had faded to sun-washed shades where they rested near a circular fire pit.
“You really hate the house, don’t you?” she asked as she sank into her chair, her brown eyes studying him. “You think it’s past the point of no return.”
“No.” He withdrew the phone, thinking it would be quicker to simply show her the list so she understood some of his thinking behind investing in the property. “But it’s priced too high when you consider some of the major repairs that need to be made.”
Pulling up the notepad on the phone, he handed it to her, giving her time to absorb the problems.
Alicia whistled softly between her teeth.
“These are serious setbacks.” Her finger flicked down the touch screen, scrolling through his notes. “The roof alone would cost – wow. You projected the costs, too?”
Frowning, she stilled her finger on the screen and Jack remembered he may have made some notes about the sale of the property at the bottom of the page. Or had he put that information in another file? He’d crammed a lot of research into a couple of days so his brain was still swimming with numbers. He didn’t want to ruin the surprise.
“I thought it might help you to have some rough figures to work with.” Reaching to retrieve the device, he couldn’t remember what exactly he’d written. “But the bottom line is this--”
When she didn’t hand over the notes, he tugged the phone free from her fingers.
“It’s a bad investment,” she said.
At the same time, he announced, “I bought it for you.”
* * *
Alicia must have forgotten to breathe.
Her world stilled. Narrowed to the news Jack had just dropped on her like a neutron bomb. Had he really just said that he’d bought the bed and breakfast?
“I’m sorry.” She blinked to clear the pandemonium in her mind. Forced herself to take a breath. “What did you say?”
Jamming the cell phone in the pocket of his cargo shorts, Jack shifted on the seat beside her, his knee grazing hers.
“I said I bought this place.” He gestured to the sprawling old three-story structure behind them, the grand home fallen on hard times that she’d been dreaming about bringing back to life. “All of the problems that I listed need to be addressed, so it won’t be easy to turn this property into a profitable, thriving business. But I know how much it means to you and I know how committed you are to doing this.”
His hand covered hers where it rested on the wide wooden arm of the Adirondack chair. Birds chirped in the silence while he waited for her to say something, but she couldn’t begin to process what all of it meant.He’dboughtherthe property? She watched a squirrel shamble across the yard and up a tall oak tree.
“Is it a new acquisition for Murphy Resorts?” She knew his father wanted her to come back to work for the company. Was this some kind of Murphy maneuver to ensure she returned to the corporate fold?
The thought of her charming seaside inn turned into a homogenized, vanilla hotel made her heart feel hollow. Didn’t Jack understand what she wanted better than that?
