Page 83 of Second Chance Summer
‘Yes, kind of. It’s hard to get across that she’ll probably be afraid of failing at something her whole life. That you have to feel the fear.’
‘And do it anyway?’ Lily offered.
‘Yeah. Though that’s easier said than done.’
‘You’ve renovated the retreat. It’s almost ready to open – properly. You’ve survived your first guest.’
‘Yes, but you almost didn’t survive us.’
‘Yet I’m still here and I know how hard it can be to decide on the right path to take, in business and in life. I’ve got it wrong before, and I probably will again.’
And now, there was an added load on her mind: Sam and her growing feelings for him.
Tonight, however, her main task was to be present. With him … and at the weekend, with her family and at the craft fair.
Reality would come around soon enough.
‘AreyouOK?’
His fingers brushed her forearm, making her skin tingle. He’d been watching her, watching over her … tender and strong. He was exactly what she needed right now and that scared her because she’d have to do without his support in a few days’ time. She’d be on her own as she had been before: an inaccessible island, lost in a stormy sea.
‘Yes, fine,’ she said, a heartbeat away from kissing him again. ‘It’s been a long day but I’m glad Morven is safe.’
‘Me too.’ Without warning, he dropped his hand and picked up their empty bottles.
‘We both deserve a night off from worrying. Let’s heat up these pasties and see what I can find to go with them.’
‘Sounds like a plan,’ Lily murmured, feeling bereft. Once again, he’d been about to get close to her yet had pulled back.
Lily might be opening up but as for her host … with only a few days left on the island, she’d started to question if she could ever break through the rock-hard shell he’d built around him. If she would ever know the real Sam.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
Bryher Quay was bustling when Sam loaded up theHydraon Thursday morning with supplies for his weekend visitors. Over the past couple of days, he and Lily had worked super hard to finish the decorating and fittings.
He was quietly proud when she’d declared it looked ‘sparkling and gorgeous’ for their special guests.
It seemed strange to see Lily’s face on posters all over Bryher, advertising the craft fair. It reinforced the fact that she was a minor celebrity and brought home to him how impossible it would be that a mere mortal like himself could ever make her happy.
Every time he was tempted to open up, to tell her he’d started to have feelings for her that went way beyond host for guest, the scars of the past yanked him back to reality: a woman from such a different world, only here for a matter of days … He cared too much for her to start a passing fling. It was for the best that he keep his distance entirely.
‘Wait. I’m coming back to Stark with you.’
He’d been so lost in thought, he hadn’t noticed Morven arrive.
‘You want to come over?’ he said, setting down a crate ofbeer and wine on the stones of the quay. ‘Haven’t you spent enough time on Stark recently?’ He couldn’t resist it.
‘Ha ha! Soo funny, Uncle Sam.’ Morven curled her lip. ‘I said I’d help with the cleaning and changeovers, which is why I’m here.’
‘I thought you went off the idea when Lily turned up?’
‘Yeah. But her family are coming so you’ll need the extra help. Besides …’ Morven looked sheepish. ‘I thought she’d be a pain but she’s not as horrible as she first seemed.’
‘Thanks. I’ll pass on your compliment to our guest.’
‘She’s not a guest though, is she?’ Morven said. ‘She’s kind of …’
‘A friend,’ Sam supplied.
