He knew he wasn’t her first choice to take on the kayak tour, but Rick was thrilled. Not that he cared much for kayaking – that seating position made his hips ache – but he was excited to do something with Addy.
She’d been busy recently, and he’d missed her insightful comments. He missed the way she looked up when she was thinking, then the way his heart sped when her gaze fell back on him…
At dinner, Addy was quiet, forcing Rick to lead the conversation.
“What’s next for you after San Juan Island?” he asked.
She shrugged. “To be honest, I haven’t thought about it.”
“Really? You’re such a planner.”
“Normally I am, but with the divorce, it feels like the rug was pulled out from under me. I’m still figuring out where to start.”
To Rick, it seemed like she always knew what she was doing. He wondered if he seemed that way to other people. What a fabrication that was. “How are the translations going?”
“Surprisingly well.” A smile finally lit her delicate features. “Just when I think I’ve reached the end of the line, I get a new client. Then another, then another. My clients keep referring
me to people they know, which is…” She shook her head. “So incredibly flattering.”
Rick grinned. “I think you’ve created your dream job.”
“You have no idea. I never thought someone like me could make a living this way.”
“Someone like you?”
She rolled her eyes. “You know. A boring mom. Someone who thought her job at the university was so lowly that she’d be safe. I was wrong about that, too.”
“You’re not boring, Addy.”
She shrugged. “I try to stay useful.”
Did she really believe these things about herself? Shane had done a number on her. Or maybe it was just a boring marriage, because Addy certainly wasn’t boring.
“You’re a businesswoman. An entrepreneur.”
“Yeah,” she scoffed, “I’m a real Andrew Carnegie.”
He laughed. “The most exciting thing about your new job is you can do it anywhere. Even Italy.”
She took a bite of her french fries. “Wouldn’t that be nice.”
“What’s stopping you?”
“Not being insane, I guess?”
He smiled. “Something to think about.”
Addy stood from her seat, stacking their empty baskets onto a tray. “We should get going. I don’t want to be late.”
Rick nodded and stood. He wasn’t going to argue with her, but it seemed like Addy was living inside an invisible box.
Invisible to her, at least. Maybe it used to be there, blocking her in. Maybe her ex-husband put walls around her, or maybe her mother had, or society in general. She’d lived inside the box dutifully for many years.
But now the box was gone. There was nothing to keep her contained, save for her instinctive recoil whenever she got close to where the boundaries used to be.
There had to be a way to show her she was anything but boring, that she didn’t have to be useful to be worthwhile.
If only Rick had the words…
