Cape Cod Promises: Love on Rockwell Island (27 page)

Chugger, Ethan’s golden retriever, bounded up to Trent, whining for attention. Trent and Reese both crouched to love him up. Chugger licked Trent’s chin as they petted him.

“I wonder where Ethan is,” Reese said.

Trent looked around and spotted Chandler sitting in his wheelchair facing the water. When Didi spotted them, she waved.

“Chugger must be here with Chandler and Didi,” Trent guessed. “Are you up to saying hello to them?”

“Of course I am.” Once they were out on the beach, she immediately reached out her hand to Didi. “I’m Reese. And it’s such a pleasure to meet you.”

“It’s wonderful to meet you, too, Reese.” Didi smiled warmly.

Chandler turned, and as his eyes trailed over Reese and Trent holding hands, his lips curved up in a smile. But just as quickly as the smile had appeared, he pressed his lips into a firm line.

Trent suddenly wondered how many other times he had missed Chandler’s flashes of emotion.

“Hello, Reese,” Chandler said in his characteristically sober tone. “It’s very nice to see you again.”

After Chandler’s earlier reference of
that Nicholson girl
, Trent was delighted by his grandfather’s kind greeting.

Reese beamed at his grandfather. “Hi, Mr. Rockwell. It’s lovely to see you again, too.”

Chugger stepped between Chandler’s knees to be petted, and Chandler automatically pressed a kiss to the top of his head. Even though Chandler had lavished Chugger with attention since the first week Ethan brought him home, given the standoffish way he usually acted toward people, it still surprised Trent to see him give so much affection to the pup.

Now that they’d had a nice, brief encounter, he didn’t want to chance it turning sour. “Enjoy your time on the beach,” he said as he took a step away, pulling Reese along with him.

“Good night.” Chandler nodded curtly.

As they walked farther down the beach, Trent heard Didi say, “Your grandson seems very happy,” to which Chandler replied, “As well he should be.”

“You’re right,” Reese said in a low voice that only Trent could hear. “Your grandfather did seem happy for us, and Didi seems really nice.”

Reese truly had seen something good in his grandfather, long before anyone else did. “She seems to have really bonded with him, which is weird considering he fired so many nurses before her.”

As Reese and Trent kicked off their shoes and rolled up their jeans, she mused, “That just goes to prove that there’s someone special to fill every role in a person’s life. You’re my special person, and I’m yours.”

Carrying her shoes, Reese walked toward the water as if she hadn’t just sent his heart into a spin.

“Are there any roles that I don’t fill?” he asked.

She tapped her chin, as if she were really thinking it over, then said, “You’re a best friend, but you can’t fill the space of a best girlfriend.”

“I would be everything for you if I could.”

“You very nearly are,” she said with a smile, “although I’m going to go out on a limb and guess that you wouldn’t enjoy girls’ spa days, getting mani-pedis and catching up on island gossip.”

A moment later, Reese dipped her toes in the water, then immediately ran back up to the dry sand. “Cold! Cold! Cold!”

“It’s September in New England. What did you expect?” He laughed as he scooped her up into his arms and pressed his lips to hers. “I’ll keep you warm.”

“I need to store some of the coldness in my body for later, because you don’t keep me warm, Trent. You make me scorching hot, all the time.” She twined her arms around his neck and kissed him back. But too soon she was wriggling out of his arms and running down the beach, dragging him alongside her.

“Where are you taking me?”

“Here.” She stopped and took both his hands in hers, with a wide grin. “Do you recognize this spot?”

It was dark now, save for the light of the moon dancing across the water, and in the distance, the beam of the lighthouse split the inky sky.

“This is where we exchanged our vows,” he said softly.

“This is where I gave you my heart, Trent, and where you gave me yours.”

“You were so beautiful in your wedding gown, with your hair falling over your shoulders. And when you looked at me with so much trust and love as you said your vows…I know we said no more apologies, but I wish I could erase the hurt of the past.”

She cupped his face, in the same way he always touched hers, and gazed into his eyes so intently it was like she could see through to his soul. “You know what? I don’t want to erase the hurt or any of the past. I’m glad I remember what it felt like when I left and that I know what you felt like when you came home to an empty apartment. That hurt is what drove us both to better ourselves, and it deepened our love for each other, which enabled us to be so much better this time. We’re more giving, more aware of our own faults and of each other’s needs. Our love
is
inescapable
and
unbreakable. It’s totally consuming, and fast, and crazy, and too darn wonderful to even try to deny. All this time we’ve spent together has been like a dream come true. My parents are expecting me to come to their house for breakfast tomorrow, and I want you to come with me this time to share our joy with them.”

“Reese…” He gathered her in his arms as he tried to slow his racing heart. He hadn’t realized how desperately he’d longed to hear her complete and utter acceptance of their relationship. “There’s no place else I’d rather be than by your side.”

THEY FOUND REESE’S parents outside in the backyard. A sparse forest of pitch pine trees separated their house from the neighbors’ on either side. Their yard was lined with Knock Out roses, forsythia, and hydrangeas, as well as pretty flower beds that were past their spring and summer blooms. Beside the patio there was a rose garden, and it looked as though the trellis had come unsecured from the deck. Reese’s father was standing thigh-deep in the center of a cluster of rosebushes, trying to simultaneously hold the roses back and nail the trellis into place.

Judith opened her arms as they approached. “Honey. Trent. I’m so glad you both made it.” She embraced Reese, and then Trent stepped in for a warm hug.

“Thanks for having me over.” Trent kissed Reese’s forehead. “I’m going to help your father before he ends up with prickles all over.”

“Okay.” Reese waved to her father.

“Thank you,” Judith said. “He’s having a heck of a time with that trellis.”

“We’ll get it fixed up.” Trent crossed the patio. “Hi, David. What can I do to help?”

Reese’s father had one hand on the wooden trellis and the other on the rosebush. He grimaced and said, “If you have a trick for making the thorns on the rosebush not poke me every few seconds, that would be great.”

“Here, let me get in there.” Trent moved beside him and held back the thick rosebushes. “I spent years helping my father with our gardens. I’m used to being poked by these buggers. I’ll hold them back while you nail up the trellis.”

They worked in silence for a few moments before David said, “Reese seems happier than she’s been since she came back to the island a decade ago.”

“So am I, David. I’m glad we have a few minutes alone to talk.” Trent took a deep breath as David lowered the hammer and turned to face him with a serious gaze.

“I know that Reese needs more time before we move forward, and I will give her all the time and space she needs. But she’s the woman I love and cherish, and I want to have a family with her. I’d like your blessing to ask her to marry me again when the time is right.”

When David didn’t respond immediately, Trent said, “I also want you to know that I’m selling my practice and staying on the island for good.”

“That’s good to hear, Trent. But my earlier warnings still apply. Don’t hurt my daughter again. Do absolutely everything you can to make your relationship work. Forever, this time.”

“I will, sir.”

David smiled and scrubbed his hand down his face. “I know you will, but as her father, I still need to hear it. It’s a dad thing. You’ll understand when you have children of your own someday.”

“I already understand, because we both have a common goal—loving and protecting Reese.”

David put a hand on Trent’s shoulder and said, “When you’re ready, know that Judith and I are overjoyed that the two of you have found your way back together.”

He pulled Trent into a warm embrace, and the scent of fresh-baked muffins wafted out the screen door. “Now, let’s get this thing fixed so we can go eat some of my beautiful wife’s, and your beautiful girlfriend’s, down-home cooking.”

* * *

REESE FILLED FOUR mugs with coffee, working shoulder to shoulder with her mother in the kitchen. She couldn’t have been happier to be spending Sunday morning with her three favorite people. Watching Trent and her father work side by side made her feel good all over.

Her mother glanced at her for the hundredth time in the last ten minutes, smiling like she could barely stand to hold in whatever happy thoughts were going through her mind, and finally Reese couldn’t hold back her curiosity any longer.

“What is it, Mom?”

“Nothing.” She turned back to the eggs she was making and began humming a tune. She hadn’t seen her mother with so much energy in a long time. It made her look several years younger, though that might have also had something to do with the cute new jeans and sweater she was wearing.

“You’re humming, Mom. You only hum when you’re super happy.”

“Then I’m super happy,” her mom said with a grin. “Aren’t you?”

“Yes. I’m happier than I ever expected I would be again. I never dreamed Trent and I would get back together, or that if we did, it would happen in a whirlwind.”

“Oh, honey. I think you did.”

“How can you say that?” She set the mugs on a tray and glanced toward the sounds of her father and Trent laughing in the backyard.

“You never really gave anyone else the time of day since your divorce.”

Reese held out the plates one at a time as her mother put eggs, bacon, and a freshly baked muffin on each one, then added a sprig of berries.

“I gave them the time of day. They just weren’t”—she smiled as she thought about what had been wrong with the men she’d dated—“Trent.”

“You don’t look nervous anymore, like you did when you told me you were first starting to date him again. Are you?”

“Not anymore. We’ve talked about everything. I mean,
really
talked, in ways that I don’t think we ever even tried to back then, or would have known how to. I feel like I know him so much better now. And I also feel like I know myself better now, too.”

Her mother touched her hand. “All your father and I have ever wanted was for you to be happy, and I can see that you are.” She leaned in close and said with a grin, “I have to thank you, too, Reese. Your happiness has rubbed off on me.”

“What do you mean?” Reese asked as the men walked up to the deck.

“After you and I talked about wiggle room the other night, I thought,
you know, there’s no reason we can’t have wiggle room
. The past doesn’t have to mark our future.”

They picked up the plates to carry outside as her mother explained, “Your father and I are shaking things up a bit. We danced the night away at the resort the other night, and your father even signed up for a cooking class.”

“Dad signed up for a cooking class?” Her parents had such a traditional marriage that she couldn’t imagine her father cooking.

Her mother lowered her voice again. “I know. Can you believe it? I really do love cooking and making dinners, but now we’ll do it together. I’m delighted about it. Oh, and we’re going to take sailing lessons, too. I guess it really is never too late to make things even better.”

“I’m so glad, Mom,” Reese said as Trent came inside.

“Let me help.” He took a plate from each of them. “This looks delicious.”

“Thank you, sugar.” Her mother took the remaining plate from Reese’s hand and said, “I’ll take these out to your father.”

“I’ll go get the coffee.” Reese heard Trent come back inside as she set cream and sugar on the tray. His arms snaked around her waist and his stubble tickled her neck. She turned toward him. “Frisky, aren’t we?”

“Always. And I’m just so happy to be part of your life again.” He pressed his lips to hers, and it took all of her restraint not to disappear into that kiss and revel in the happiness that rushed through her entire body.

And as they joined her parents out on the deck, Reese knew they had just taken another huge step closer to putting the past where it belonged...and building a beautiful future together.

MONDAY MORNING TRENT stopped by Shelley’s Café to see if Quinn needed any last-minute help before the grand opening later that afternoon. The bushes had been trimmed, the lawn was freshly manicured, and with the tables and bright umbrellas that complemented the colors in the sign, the old mill looked revitalized and ready for business.

Inside, the wood floors had been refinished and the shelves Trent had built on the right side of the rear wall were now filled with fresh flowers, coffee mugs with the
Shelley’s Café
emblems, and several bags of the delicious organic coffee that Shelley was already becoming known for around the island. Tables were set up throughout, and the counter on the left rear of the room sparkled in the sunny overhead lights. Trent touched the old millstone as he passed by on his way to the stairs, thinking about the night he and Reese had bumped into each other after so long and all of his dreams had started to come true again.

He stepped up the first riser and looked out the front windows. Without the bushes in the way, he had a clear view of Reese’s gallery and the shops on Old Mill Row. He gazed at the sign above her gallery door, thinking about how good their relationship was now and how far they’d come. Building their new strong foundation step by step, piece by piece.

The sound of Shelley giggling pulled him from his reverie, and he mounted the stairs.

“Quinn? Shelley?” he called up.

“Don’t come up here!” Quinn said. Then Shelley giggled again, kicking Trent’s brain into gear. He heard them shuffling around and quickly realized he’d interrupted a private moment.