* * *
Dale watched the clock all morning at the shop. The minutes seemed to drag by. He wanted to be sure to get back home early so he could help Maxine move into the cottage. Well, if she wanted his help. She did seem to like to do things herself. Have her independence. He guessed that was logical after her divorce. She hadn’t said much about it. He didn’t know if it had been an amicable one or a nasty one. All he knew was it had been a few years ago. And she had kids, but she didn’t talk about them much. There was probably more to the story, but he didn’t want to pry.
At two o’clock, he left his employee to handle the shop and headed home after first stopping at the market to pick up a few things for dinner. He put the groceries away, all the while glancing out the window to see if Maxine had arrived.
Finally, he heard her pull into the drive. He popped outside and waved as she climbed out of her car. Her hair was blowing madly in the strong breeze coming off the gulf. She yanked it back away from her face, a movement he was growing accustomed to and it brought an easy grin to his face.
He walked over to the car. “I thought I could help you move your things in.”
“You don’t have to do that.” She swung a suitcase out of the car. “I can get it.”
“But I’d love to help.”
After a brief pause, she nodded. “Okay, thank you.”
They unloaded her car, putting most of her things in a pile in the main room.
“I’ll sort through everything in a bit.”
She stood there looking at him. Did that mean she wanted him to leave? Or help? Or… what?
“Can I do anything else to help?” he finally asked.
“No, I’m fine. I’m just going to settle in.”
“Okay, I’m just across the courtyard if you need anything.” He couldn’t think of any other reason to delay, so he walked over to the door. “I’ll see you soon.”
“Yes. And thanks so much for everything. For renting me this cottage and for the help hauling everything in.” She glanced at the pile of her belongings, and he got the distinct feeling that, yes, she wanted him to leave.
“My pleasure.” He left her to it and returned to his cottage.
Maybe he should have asked her to come have dinner. She probably didn’t have anything to eat over there.
Or maybe that would be bothering her. Maybe she just needed time to unpack and settle.
Since when did a woman make him so unsure of himself?
Oh, he knew the answer to that. And the last time had been years and years ago—when he’d learned his lesson and left San Francisco with his heart and his ego in his hands. He should remember that lesson now and give Maxine her space. Not get tied up with a woman who was clearly wanting to make it on her own.
* * *
Maxine slowly turned around in the cottage, a smile spreading wide across her face. She flung out her arms and spun around. This was hers. Her own place. Not some cold mansion that Victor picked out. Not some crummy one-room apartment back in Philadelphia, which she hated. She loved this cottage. The light streaming in. Everything about it.
She busied herself unpacking her things, putting everything away. Hanging clothes in the large closet and putting things in the chest of drawers Dale left here. Thank goodness the bed he left here was a queen-sized one, because she had sheets for that. She made up the bed, put her things away in the bathroom, and hung up some old towels she’d brought with her. She was going to replace those as soon as possible. And get a pretty new bedspread.
Beverly had insisted she take a small box of food items, which she unloaded into the pantry. She’d go shopping for groceries tomorrow. When she looked out the kitchen window, the small view of the ocean delighted her. An unexpected perk.
She sat at the table and opened her laptop. After thirty minutes, she’d made arrangements for her things in storage to get shipped here. Luckily, there was a staging lot right by the ferry landing on the mainland that people used when they were moving to the island or getting larger items delivered. As soon as she was notified that her things had arrived, she would use a local company that would load everything into a small van and deliver them to the island.
After her personal items got here, she’d better know what she needed to get for the cottage. She flipped the laptop closed and walked over to the pantry. She reached in and grabbed some microwave popcorn. That would do for her dinner.
As her dinner cheerily popped in the microwave, she opened a bottle of wine she’d brought. Thankfully, Dale had a wine opener in the drawer.
She walked outside with her bowl of popcorn and glass of wine and settled into one of the Adirondack chairs in the courtyard. This, this was heaven. Her own place. A nice sea breeze coming in from the gulf. The beginning of the sunset. A view of the ocean across the courtyard.
She never would have thought a month ago that her life could turn around like this. A nice job and a great place to live. Renewing her friendship with Beverly. And new friends like Dale. A bit of pride swept through her. She had real hopes of making it on her own now.
She let out a long breath of air. Contentment spilled through her. She leaned back in the chair, balancing the bowl on her lap. She raised her glass to the sky and toasted. “To new beginnings.”
