One Lavender Ribbon (15 page)

Behind them, she could hear Pops uttering something about drowning and canoes.

Without realizing it, her hand slid into Will’s. It was the look of utter assurance that brought her enough gumption to actually agree to going. There was certainty in him. And honesty. The warmth of his strong fingers closing around hers urged her into motion, and before she knew what was happening, he was pulling her onto the luxury boat.

Her vegetables and purse sat on the kitchen table. Her car windows were rolled down. Her cell phone left smack in the middle console. But none of that mattered. She was going on an adventure. She and Pops . . . and Will.

Adrienne’s mind went to Sara—Sara who loved to fish. She had new information concerning the woman, but for now, she wouldn’t breathe a word of it. No good could come of it. If Leo was wrong and Sara had died, it would only bring more sorrow to Pops. The thought of causing him pain was unbearable. So, until she knew for sure, Adrienne would keep the secret buried, just as it had been for over sixty years.

She took a seat at the back of the boat. The leather cushion was soft and padded against her flesh. The gloriously rich wood of the deck shone beneath her bare feet: her dark pink toes tried to grip the wood but failed against the velvet smoothness. Smoothness created by Will’s care. She faced the front of the boat, her back straight, her shoulders taught. Pops moved below in the cabin. He’d gone down the stairs and was now humming, but the sound brought her little comfort because the engine rumbled to life, nearly causing her to jump out of her skin. Adrienne reached for something to hold onto.

Will shot her a smile. It faded quickly. “Are you okay?”

She nodded furiously, but could feel the color drain from her face, leaving her bloodless and cold. “No one has ever fallen out, right?”

“No. You really are scared, aren’t you?” His gaze dropped to her white-knuckled hands, gripping the cushion so tightly that the leather puckered. “Would you be more comfortable over here by me?”

“No,” she admitted, considering her previous reaction to him as he’d rubbed the lines in her palm and teased her shoulder. Oh, he’d made her
feel
things. Comfortable wasn’t one of them.

But Will folded the helm seat down so they could sit side by side. “Come on.” The sun hit his face, and his eyes sparkled like emeralds.

By the time she was seated, he had slipped past her to untie the mooring lines. As soon as he was back beside her at the helm, he studied her face. “You okay now?”

“Better.” Warmth emanated from where his arm touched hers. He took her hands and placed them on a chrome bar in front of her. She felt silly. Like a little girl on her first carousel ride.

He must have sensed her anxiety. “Don’t worry. Everybody hangs on at first.”

Adrienne was pretty certain everyone didn’t. But it was nice of him to say. She liked this Will. Gone was the prickly exterior, and in its place was something endearing. Finally, here was the grandson she would expect William Bryant to have.

Within the first few minutes of rumbling away from the dock, Adrienne wondered what her apprehension had been about. They eased down the cove, homes and foliage disappearing past them as they went, leaves of massive palm trees tilting out over the canal and swaying in the breeze. The boat motor hummed gently, vibrating her feet against the warm wood of the deck. As they approached a curve, Will slowed the engine. He faced her. “We’re going out into the Gulf after this last turn. I’ll have to speed up.”

She nodded, no longer afraid, ready to meet this adventure head on. And stunned at how attentive Will was to her earlier panic. From the moment he’d seen it on her face, it seemed everything had been about making her feel comfortable. Safe.
You’re safe with me.

“The waves will be a little rough until we get through the pass, but that’s normal.”

She was in good hands.

When he made the corner, her breath left her. As the thick foliage of the canal disappeared, she gazed out at the expanse of blue that stretched on forever before them. Though she often watched boats slide across the water, not one interrupted her view today. The deep blue spanned in a panorama from east to west, sliced only by a golden horizon. Wind saturated with seawater sprinkled her face. The engine moaned louder as Will put his hand to the throttle, moving them beyond the barrier.

Adrienne couldn’t speak.

Will smiled over at her. “Cool, huh?”

“It’s breathtaking.” She squinted into the sun on the water and wished she’d grabbed her sunglasses. “I see this every day from my back deck, but it looks completely different from out here.”

They crashed through the waves, and Adrienne worked to find her sea legs. Will and Pops made it look so easy. She gathered enough bravery to move around the deck, but preferred her spot by the captain.

“So we’re going fishing.” She looked down at the bucket of bait.

He nodded over at her, his tongue moistening his lips. “Uh-huh.”

Whew, it was hot. Adrienne was glad for the tank top. She’d almost put on a shirt with short sleeves. Now she was thankful she’d opted for the tank. Will seemed to appreciate it too. “Do we just stop anywhere?”

“No, we have a destination.”

“How do you know where to go? I mean, you can’t exactly stop for directions.”

“Men don’t stop for directions anyway.” He winked and pointed to a screen in front of them on a dashboard of levers, gauges, and buttons. It looked like a mini computer screen tucked between a compass and the throttle. “This shows us the way.”

“That little screen tells us where to go?”

He nodded.

“Wow, too bad you can’t fasten those onto people. There would be a lot less heartache and a lot more direction.” If she’d had one of those little gadgets she’d have never married Eric.

“I think they only work on water.” He pushed a button and the screen made a blip, blip, blip
sound. “Besides, we’re all already equipped with one.”

She frowned. “Mine must be broken.” Seeing as how she was a twenty-eight-year-old with not even an inkling of what she was going to do with her life . . . broken compass seemed possible.

“Nah, sometimes it shows us a really clear picture of where we’re headed.” He pointed to the now garbled screen. “But sometimes it’s fuzzy.”

“What do you do when it gets fuzzy?” Her screen had been muddled for a long time.

“You stay the course.” His eyes left the screen and found her. “In time, everything comes into view, and the course we’re meant to steer crystallizes before us.”

It wasn’t that simple. Maybe one day she would have a picture of the future. But it seemed far away. She’d spent so many years making sure Eric had what he wanted, got what he wanted, went where he wanted . . . well, she didn’t even know what things she liked anymore. It had all been about him. She’d grown up thinking that’s how marriage was supposed to be. That’s what her mother had done. That’s what all the women in her family did. Unlike Eric, Adrienne’s father never took advantage of the kindness. Adrienne supposed she’d done it all wrong, creating a monster rather than a loving partner. But she wouldn’t dwell on that. Each morning she reminded herself that life was a gift, something she’d learned from Pops. Each day was a present to be opened and relished. So today she’d cherish the gift. And do the only other reasonable thing.

Stay the course. Until the screen cleared.

“Can I take you to dinner?” Will’s voice cracked. Like the words he’d just spoken surprised him as much as they did her.

Her eyes went to his. “Uh . . . ”

“It’s just dinner.”

Like that made it less intimidating. She needed to answer: No. The answer would be no as soon as she found her voice. “Yes,” she said, and that surprised her too. Well, if the screen had cleared at all, this had just succeeded in scrambling the message.

“Where are you taking her?”

Will turned to the doorway where Pops leaned against the wall. The last thing in the world Will needed right now was the third degree from his grandfather. “I made reservations at Palermo’s.”

“Oh, on the water. She likes the water. And I hear Palermo’s is first rate.” Pops had caught him in his room, staring into the full-length mirror. “I’m glad you took off the tie. Makes you look snooty.”

Will flipped the tie over the hanger and headed for his closet.

“Here, I’ll take it,” Pops said. When he didn’t return, Will dragged a deep breath into his lungs, trying to calm his ragged nerves. He’d been on dates before. Plenty. He was thirty. He’d done his share of dating. But Adrienne was . . .

“What about this shirt?” Pops stood in the closet doorway holding a polo that had seen better days.

“Kind of ratty.” Will’s heart rate sped up. Was he actually this inept at dressing himself for dinner?

“But Adrienne likes blue.”

Heat rose to Will’s forehead. “I think a jacket is required.”

Pops tilted his head. “It’s not a stuffy place is it? Adrienne’s a free spirit. She’s like the wind, and stuffy places don’t appreciate wind.”

This really wasn’t helping. He’d thought this through, whether Pops knew it or not. Palermo’s because they would pamper her and because it had an amazing view of the pier. After dinner they could walk out and see if the night fisherman were catching anything. Perfect remedy for a stuffy dining room. Plus, he wanted Adrienne to be pampered. He wasn’t sure why, but he did. Adrienne with her movie-star smile and stained fingers. Adrienne with the giant eyes and all that sadness lurking in the depths of them. “Maybe you need to be going out with her, and I can stay home.”

An aged hand curled, one crooked finger pointing at him. “Now that’s just silly. Don’t get smart with me, young man. You’re not too big for me to put you over my knee.”

Will chuckled. “I think I am.”

Fists to his hips, Pops stared him down, the blue shirt dangling at his side. “Shall I prove it?”

Will’s hands flew up in surrender. “No, sir. I know when I’m outmanned.” Most things, Will could handle—the three-hundred horsepower luxury boat, the down-and-dirty negotiations of a million-dollar loan app—but when it came to Pops, and a certain hot little brunette, Will felt outmanned. Maybe
outmanned
wasn’t the right term where Adrienne was concerned. He certainly felt
matched
. And that was as intriguing as it was sexy.

The smile appeared, then fell from Pops’s face. “Did you wash your car? You should never pick up a lady for a date in a dirty car. It’s disrespectful.”

“Yeah, I drove it through Rub-a-Dub two hours ago.”

Pops nodded approvingly. “Got some ideas for conversation? Be sure to ask about her. Ladies make connections face to face.”

Will bit back a grin. His grandfather was actually coaching him on dating. “And how do men make connections, Pops?”

He looked up at him as if surprised by the question. “Shoulder to shoulder, Will. Side by side.”

Will thought of Pops and the men he was probably shoulder to shoulder with during his time in the war. He quickly brushed that image from his head. “So, do I look all right? I’ll try not to ruin the Bryant men’s swagger.”

A wrinkled face scrunched. “Swagger? You just be a gentleman. Don’t forget to open the car door and walk her to her door when you drop her off.”

“Got it.”

The look on Pops’s face turned serious. “Adrienne’s special, Will.” It wasn’t so much a comment as an invitation to agree. He wasn’t telling Will anything he didn’t already know.

“Yeah. I think she was pretty torn up by that divorce.”

“Protect her heart. That’s what gentlemen do.” Pops’s hands brushed Will’s shoulders as if dusting him off or maybe smoothing wrinkles from his freshly pressed shirt. Will couldn’t help but feel there was more to it than that. Maybe he’d spent too long in the sun today, but Pops’s action felt almost like a mantle being placed upon his shoulders.

Slowly, his grandfather turned and headed for the door. “Have a nice time. I won’t wait up for you.” He darted a glance over his shoulder and winked.

“Are you sure this isn’t too much?” Adrienne angled in the antique mirror, looking at her backside and wondering if the dress was just a little too snug.