4. Harley
Chapter Four
HARLEY
“What do you mean? Like that?” Gemma asked, clicking on a button on her computer screen.
“Just like that,” I confirmed.
“Oh, well that’s easy.” Her eyes twinkled when she smiled over at me. “Do you really think I need a website?”
“Yes. That way, new people can find you, and customers can pay online. It's much easier. I promise.”
“Thank you for doing this for me.” She brushed her honeyed curls away from her cheeks.
“It's no big deal. You're family.”
Gemma grinned over at me before glancing at Daphne. “She’s the best almost sister-in-law I could ask for.”
“Same,” I returned as Daphne nodded in agreement.
Gemma, with her curls and blue eyes, was perfect for my brother. She was a soft edge to him. As a yoga teacher with a warm and kind personality, she was a good counterpart to his gruff but soft heart. Diego loved hard, and he deserved someone like Gemma.
I leaned back. “Let me finish up the back end.”
I slid the laptop across the table to me. Her website was pretty simple with a basic about page for her and a calendar for her yoga classes. It allowed people to select times and sign up and pay right there.
“People can still pay when they show up for class, but this way, it's all set up in there for you. The system automatically tracks it and does your monthly accounting.”
“Oh, that’s amazing.” She pressed her palm to her chest, letting out a sigh. “This is going to make it so much easier for me.”
“That was the plan,” I replied with a grin.
She leaned back in her chair, smiling. “Thank goodness for you. I'm not that tech savvy. There's no way I could set up a website.”
“I got you on this. I'll make it so you can update it on your own if you'd like, but I will always do it if you need my help.”
“Thank you. I will probably never update it unless you tell me I need to.”
Cammi, a friend and the owner of Misty Mountain Café where we were meeting, approached, and replied to Gemma's comment, “She made my website too. I'm not updating it without her help.”
She stopped by our table, smiling at us. “How's it going, ladies?”
“Good. You weren't here when we came in,” Daphne replied.
“I had to run to the bank because we were short on cash for change. I have to get back in the habit of stopping by the bank almost daily during the summer.”
Daphne let out a sigh. “That is one thing I don't mind not worrying about.”
Cammi snagged an empty chair from a nearby table and sat down with us. “What do you mean?”
“Not worrying about all the cash,” Daphne replied. “I love being the chef at the lodge. I just cook for the guests and staff. I don't have to handle bills or tips or anything.”
Cammi grinned. “Ah.” She owned this café along with Red Truck Coffee. Between the two businesses and recently having twins, she was busy, especially in the summer months when tourists descended on Alaska. “I don't mind it. I love the hustle and bustle.”
“It’s perfect for your personality. You're like a ray of sunshine,” Daphne said earnestly.
Cammi burst out laughing. “A ray of sunshine?”
“Absolutely,” a low male voice intoned.
We all glanced over to see Elias, Cammi’s husband, and another one of the pilots at Walker Adventures, approaching our table. He leaned down and pressed a lingering kiss on Cammi’s cheek. Her cheeks were flushed pink by the time he straightened.
“Sunshine is a good thing.” He rested his hand at the base of her neck, squeezing lightly. “You’re not behind the counter?”
“No, I'm having lunch with my friends,” she said with a saucy smile.
He grinned. “Good. I'll go get my coffee then.”
“Are you staying?” she asked as she swiveled around when he began to turn away.
“Don't have time, babe. Just grabbing a coffee. I have a flight.” He glanced at his watch. “Oh, shit. I gotta hurry.”
“Bye! I’ll pick up the twins on the way home later.” She blew him a kiss as he jogged to the counter.
When she turned back, Daphne smiled indulgently at her. “You have made Elias one happy man.”
“I love him, so it's mutual,” Cammi said simply.
“How’s working and having twins going for you?” Daphne asked.
Cammi’s smile was wry. “We’re making it work, and I’m so grateful we have friends to help with daycare. Today, they’re with Susie’s mom. Everyone tells me life is just hectic with babies, and it is. I don’t mind, and Elias is a big help.”
“You know, I got his old room at the staff house. I didn't even really know him before you two were together. Rumor has it he used to be on the grumpy side,” I commented.
“He was very mysterious,” Cammi said, lowering her voice, her eyes glinting with mischief.
Daphne chuckled. “He wasn't mysterious at all. He had a crush on Cammi forever.”
“He'd only been here for four years,” Cammi protested.
“Okay, forever as long as he lived here,” Daphne corrected.
Cammi laughed before letting out a soft sigh. She slid her eyes to me. “I think it's your turn.”
“Excuse me?”
Daphne grinned. “Your turn to fall in love.”
“Oh, no, no.” I held a hand up, shaking my head swiftly. “No way.”
“I said no way to love too,” Daphne interjected. “I came to Alaska figuring I would never be in a relationship again.” She held up her hands and let them fall.
I sighed. “You know, it would be easier to sell if I'd known either of you before you were ridiculously whipped. You have Flynn wrapped around your little finger.” I gestured to Daphne. “And Elias worships the freaking ground you walk on.” I waved toward Cammi. “I'm not like either one of you.”
“What do you mean?” Daphne pressed, her eyes narrowing.
“I don’t know how to explain it, but I’m not the kind of woman guys fall for.”
“You haven't even dated since you've been here, and you've been here over a year,” Gemma said.
“Yeah, I don't want to date. I am great at being single,” I said firmly. “Hell, my last boyfriend Joe screwed my roommate. I walked in on that.”
“You mentioned that, but honestly, you don't seem that upset about it,” Gemma added.
I laughed a little. “No, not really. I was planning to break up with him anyway. I learned two things: She was a shitty roommate, and I had a good reason to break up with him. He's already cheated on her too.”
“Comes around, goes around,” Gemma said, nodding sagely.
“Did you really swear off relationships forever?” Cammi pressed.
I shrugged. “I'm kind of opinionated, and it's possible I might be difficult to deal with.”
“Difficult?” Cammi looked puzzled.
“Outspoken, blunt. I'm not great at sucking up to guys,” I explained.
“Neither are we,” Daphne replied.
“Yeah, but you have a softer touch than me. I feel like I'm all sharp edges.”
“I think you're just trying to find excuses,” Gemma commented.
That was true, but I wasn't about to fess up to that.
“Maybe you don't want to be in a relationship, but ruling it out for no good reason is kind of silly,” Daphne commented.
I bit back a sigh, and my heart twisted sharply.
I knew she had a point, and thinking about my emotional resignation when it came to relationships tended to remind me how much I wanted a family.
I loved kids. Fiercely. Babies were the cutest. They smelled good.
They were chubby. Their skin was soft, and they were magic.
Yet I just didn't have the best luck with relationships. I was almost thirty, and it felt like my biological clock was on fire. Even though I knew better intellectually, that's just how it felt.
“Maybe someday,” I said nonchalantly. Just then, my heart fluttered oddly, and I felt my pulse race. I ignored it.
Daphne looked at me quietly. I loved Daphne. I hadn’t known her for all that long, but she was sort of a mother hen, always taking care of everyone. She wanted everyone she loved to be happy. She seemed to have decided that meant finding their person.
“Maybe I don't want to find my person,” I said, lifting my chin a little. “Maybe I'll be that single girl who lives a bold life.”
Cammi cast me one of her sunny smiles, reaching over to give me a side hug. “Of course, you will.”