THREE
Mia
I stare at the shelves and shelves of blue tiles, chewing my lower lip and scowling. Each shelf has a small display every metre or so, showing the tiles stacked in pallets on the shelves. Nothing comes even close to matching the pictures Oliver sent me.
I’ve been at the tile store for at least an hour and I’m no closer to choosing. Fishing my phone out of pocket, I check my messages. Oliver still hasn’t read the one I sent him this morning. I guess maybe he’s still mad at me. I told him I want to stay in Kraken Cove for the weekend. I probably should go back tonight. It just seems a waste when it’s so much nicer down here. I mean obviously it would be even nicer if Oliver was here, too.
It doesn’t help that I'm completely distracted. I’ve been fighting to avoid thinking about the awkward moment Luke brought to my attention I’d accidentally put on his jumper yesterday, not Oliver’s. How awkward I’d felt about how much I loved the smell of it.
Of course, I took it off and offered it back to him. I am ashamed to say when he did the gentlemanly thing and let me keep it, I put it back on later and pulled it up over my nose, inhaling the scent that somehow became my new favourite smell in the world.
Oh, my God.
There’s got to be something wrong with me. I’m engaged to another man.
I wrestle my thoughts away from Luke and type out a new message.
Mia: Hey. Hope the trial is going well. I know you and Dad are killing it. If you have a moment, could you give me a call? It’s about the tiles for the ensuite
I wait for a long moment, but the screen stubbornly refuses to show a second tick to indicate Oliver read my message.
I’m about to put my phone away and redirect my attention to my task, when it buzzes in my hand. The screen shows an incoming call from Wilson Construction.
“Hi.” I catch myself smiling as I answer.
“Hey, Mia, I was calling to check how you’re going. I’m done on the floor and they need to set anyway. Do you need me to come collect the new feature tiles? ”
“Ahh, about that... I haven’t exactly found the right ones yet.”
A soft chuckle from the other end of the line. “It’s hard committing to something when you know you’re gonna live with it for the next ten or twenty years, huh?”
I shift uncomfortably. I can’t help feeling like his words have a deeper meaning. I’m sure it’s only in my head. “Yeah. Oliver had this vision, but I can’t find anything that fits.”
“Hmm. Maybe you gotta rethink the vision. Or wait and we can order some online and have them delivered.”
I shake my head though he can’t see me, of course. “No. I hate to be such a hassle. I’m sure I can find something. Just give me another half an hour.”
“Listen, I’m going to take a break. Why don’t I come up there and let’s see if we can find something together. Sometimes it helps to have another set of eyes.”
He’s absolutely right. I really wanted Oliver to call so I could send him some photos and he could be that extra set of eyes. It is our place after all. Or it will be after we’re married. But seeing as he won’t even read my messages, I’ll take what eyes I can get. “As long as it’s not too much trouble. If you have another job you could work on—”
“It’s no trouble at all. I’ll see you soon.”
I hang up, feeling strangely giddy at the thought of Luke Wilson coming to pick out tiles with me. It’s innocent enough, but it still feels somehow intimate. As if I should be feeling guilty about it.
I don’t, though. I just feel excited.
I’m wandering the aisles aimlessly, thinking about this and the fact Oliver still hasn’t called or replied, when something catches my eye. A display of feather shaped tiles in a variety of soft greens calls to me. Gathering a bunch of different ones in my arms, I begin laying them out in different patterns until I find just the right one.
So that’s why Luke finds me squatting on the floor of the tile shop, lifting one tile, replacing it, tipping my head to the side, and muttering to myself like some sort of crazed parrot. I stand, intending to grab another dark green tile. Turning suddenly, I run straight into a wall of warm, solid muscle. A wall of warm solid muscle that smells absolutely amazing. “Oh!”
Two firm hands around my upper arms steady me and my own hands tighten reflexively in his shirt as I catch myself.
“Hey.” His tone is warm and slightly amused.
I flush. “Hey. Sorry. I didn’t know you were here.”
He releases me, stepping back. “Yeah, uh, sorry. Didn’t like to disturb you. You looked like you were concentrating.”
He must have been standing there watching me hunch over the tiles on the floor like a gremlin. Oh, my god. Scratching the back of my neck, I flush even harder. I’m sure my cheeks are bright red by now. “Yeah. I get kinda focused when I get inspired, I guess. I suppose that’s why I love art so much.”
“Oh, you still draw? You didn’t give it up?”
I shake my head. “No. I mean I did sort of. It’s just that I don’t have much time these days. But I still draw and paint. When I get a chance.”
Luke smiles. “I’m glad. You’re so talented. Shouldn’t waste it.”
I flush. He’s being kind, of course. Like he always is. Has he even seen my painting? He’s seen my drawing, but I don’t think he ever saw anything I painted. “Thank you. Never talented enough to make it my day job, though.”
“We’ll have to agree to disagree there. But you enjoy law? You like all that courtroom stuff?”
“Oh, not me! I’m not a barrister. That’s the kind who talk in court. I just hide in my cave and prepare case notes. I always hated public speaking.”
He laughs. “Well I’m with you on that. I remember back in school my English teacher told me I had to give some speech. I was ‘sick’”—he pauses to make inverted commas around his face as he says the last word—“for a whole week until Mum made me go see the doctor and I was finally forced to confess I just didn’t want to talk in front of the class.”
I nod. “Yep. Totally sounds like something I would have done. Except, my parents would never have let me stay home for a whole week. Not unless I was actually hospitalized!”
“See that’s why you went to uni and I ended up here. Dropped out of school just as soon as I could get my first apprenticeship.” Luke spreads his hands. “Well, that, and the fact that you’re a hell of a lot smarter than me.”
“No.” I smile up at him. It’s funny how standing so close makes me far more aware of how much taller he is. “That’s not true. You’re running your own business and creating beautiful renovations. I’ve seen the work you did on the clifftop place last year. Oliver showed me on your website when he first wanted to hire you. It looks amazing. I don’t think you could have done that if you weren’t smart.”
I’ve always thought he was handsome, too, but the way his smile lifts the corners of his generous mouth and somehow makes his green eyes look greener makes him striking right then, though I can tell my praise makes him a little uncomfortable..
He shrugs. “That? That was nothing. It’s the location that makes it. All I did was show it off.” With a jerk of his head, he indicates the tiles still spread out on the floor. “So, you happy with those? They look great. You have a real knack with colours.”
“Aw, thanks. I think I am. I wish Oliver would call, so I could double check with him, but I know you wanted to get on with it today, so I think we’d better get them.”
Luke nods. He checks the measurements on the display and I see him do a quick calculation, muttering to himself under his breath. “OK, well I should be right with a box of each colour.”
He takes out his phone and snaps a pic of my design, before gathering up the tiles into a neat pile. “Let’s go!”
Back at the house, I avoid the urge to hover and watch Luke work. Instead, I gather some shopping bags from my car and my purse. The walk down to the small local grocery store only takes about ten minutes. Kraken Cove isn’t a large place. It’s also perched beautifully on top of high cliffs looking east over the Pacific Ocean. The water is dark today, the waves small and choppy. A cold wind cuts over the cliffs and makes me shiver. I wish I’d had the courage to put on Luke’s warm jumper, but it felt too awkward with him right there. I put my head down and walk down the hill through the reserve where the trees break the wind.
I’ve just stepped through the front door with two bags of shopping, the tip of my nose tingling from the cold, when my phone buzzes in my pocket. Hurriedly, I set down the bags, expecting Oliver. But when I look, it’s Nancy, our wedding planner.
Shit.
She’s been asking me for weeks to make a decision about the invitation stationery and I can’t. She’s presented me with three beautiful options perfectly styled and colour-coordinated to match the feel I said I wanted to go for. They’re all lovely. Any one of them would be fantastic. Yet for some reason, I can’t make the call.
Oliver’s no help. When I asked him about it, he just rolled his eyes and told me we were paying Nancy for that. He reassured me the expense didn’t matter, as if my dad wasn’t paying for the whole thing, anyway. But he won’t even look properly at the different options without yawning.
I’m just about to answer when Luke walks into the kitchen and I swipe down to dismiss with a sigh of relief. Nancy will leave another message and I’ll get back to her eventually. I’m not trying to be an asshole about it, I’m just not ready to choose. Not yet.
“Hey.”
“Hey.” Luke gives me a little nod and walks behind me to pour himself a drink of water from the tap in the kitchen. He has his white baseball cap turned backwards, letting a couple of the dark blonde locks escape through the hole. Makes me remember him as a younger man, when he wore his hair long enough it curled.
When he wipes the back of his hand across his forehead a smear of tile dust remains, leaving an adorable little patch I have a strange compulsion to wipe away. Instead, I tuck my hands behind me and lean back against the counter. “You hungry? I was just going to make a sandwich. I could make you something.”
God, his muscles look amazing in that white singlet. I can’t help staring at the sleeves of tattoos covering most of both arms. They are amazing up close. So intricate. It really looks as though his skin was about to burst with fins and tentacles. I wonder how long they took to get.
“That sounds brilliant.” He gives me a wink. “You know, I could get used to this. You better be careful, or this reno will take me a whole lot longer than it should, so I can hang around and get spoiled.”
I laugh at his good-natured joking. Why is it so easy to be around him?
With some people, I feel awkward and shy, particularly if I don’t know them very well. Not with Luke. Something about his self-effacing humour is so reassuring. So welcoming. I never get the sense he’s expecting me to be something I’m not. I think that’s why I was so drawn to him right from the start.
I make the sandwiches and Luke makes us both a cup of tea and we migrate naturally to the living room, finding spots on the floral sofas that have been here ever since I used to come with my parents as a kid. Oliver and I haven’t redecorated yet, since we’re waiting for the renovation to be completed .
It’s funny neither Luke nor I even looked twice at the dark pokey dining room where an old fashioned polished table sits unused. I hate that room. Only one tiny window and decor so painfully outdated and ugly it makes me cringe every time I go in there. Even worse than the floral sofas.
Luke takes a huge bite of his sandwich and makes an appreciative noise. “Mmm. How is it possible to make a sandwich taste this good?”
I laugh. “It’s just ham, cheese and tomato. It’s nothing special.”
“I disagree. I think you have the magic touch. I need to introduce you to my brother, Noah. He’d want to pick your brain to learn all your secrets.”
I vaguely remember a loud kid with a huge grin and light brown hair that stuck up at the front. Really, he couldn’t have been much younger than I was back then. I guess he’s all grown up by now.
Luke proceeds to tell me all about the restaurant Noah is reopening next month on the ground floor of the family motel. I smile as he describes his brother’s fish burger sauce recipe saga and pokes fun at Noah's obsession with finding the perfect balance of flavours.
“It must be nice to have close siblings. As an only child, it was always something I longed for. Now as an adult, I harbor a desperate jealousy for anyone who had it.”
Luke grins. “Yeah, my brothers are pretty great. They keep me level headed, anyway. Nothing like two blokes who know all your weaknesses and embarrassing nicknames to keep your ego in check. ”
I’m strangely sad when it’s time for Luke to go back to work. Usually, I have no problem spending time by myself, but it’s been so lovely just to chat and relax in his company. I find myself wishing he could stay and chat. Which is silly. He’s not a friend, he’s an employee. An employee who probably wishes I’d just leave him alone to get on with his work undisturbed, instead of getting all weird and clingy like someone’s lost puppy.
So, much as I want to poke my head into the ensuite and check up on him, I force myself to stay in the main area of the house. I find my sketchbook since I didn’t have time to pick up any paint or a canvas. Tucking my feet up under me on the sofa, I let my mind wander where it will, my pencil following across the blank white paper.