Chapter 8
Key West, Florida
Charli ran down the stairs and scanned the kitchen and dining room, making sure everything was perfectly in place.
She had no idea why she was so nervous, but she wanted everything to be flawless.
The last several days had passed in a blur and before she knew it, the time had come for Annette’s arrival.
Needless to say, Charli was a bit frazzled and incredibly excited all at the same time—her past and present were about to meet.
Satisfied with the house, she gave a quick nod to herself and strode out the back door.
As she reached the sidewalk, she noticed a large royal palm tree that Jack and his crew were installing into the garden dangling fifteen feet in the air.
She stopped and watched in amazement as a crane maneuvered the tree over the wall and existing garden into the perfect spot and began slowly lowering it as the workers guided it carefully into place.
She grinned as she watched Jack bark out orders.
She had always been attracted to confident men, and he was the very definition of both competent and confident.
She was beginning to see more and more of his personality emerge as they went about fulfilling Dottie’s wishes, and she loved what she saw.
Their flight back from the Dry Tortugas had been thoroughly awkward as she’d silently fumed in the copilot seat, alternatively mortified at her own clearly flawed judgment and assumptions, and yet exhilarated at the memories of their encounter on the beach.
She mulled over what had happened between them and feared that they’d crossed some invisible line.
But since then, Jack had been a complete gentleman—still!—and given her plenty of space, all the while keeping a close eye on her.
Charli couldn’t help but feel conflicted about her budding feelings for Jack.
While it was an exciting turn of events that he was not only straight but very interested in her, it was also a fact that it was only a matter of time before she returned to Boston.
What then? She couldn’t imagine Jack anywhere else but in Key West and she couldn’t stay here indefinitely.
Her stomach churned as her mind continued to run in circles with each scenario ending in heartbreak.
A shouted greeting snapped her out of her doldrums, and she glanced over to see Jack waving at her. Charli grinned and waved back, walking over to say hi before she had to head for the docks.
“Are you okay? You were staring off there for a minute,” Jack asked when she reached the wall.
She smiled at the picture he presented: deeply tanned with his muscles rippling and covered in a light sheen of sweat.
She felt her body react to the picture in front of her, and she could have sworn the temperature had jumped at least ten degrees when she got near to Jack.
He was the epitome of masculinity and after their trip to the Dry Tortugas, it was all Charli seemed to notice now.
Jack was a complete one eighty from the power-suited, clean cut men that she had dated back in Boston—and that made him even more alluring, as if he needed anything else to make him more attractive.
Charli nodded. “Yeah, just watching your team unloading and placing the tree. You guys make all of this seem so easy.”
Jack grinned. “We do this type of work all the time. It’s all about having the right tools.” He glanced down at her purple sun dress. “Nice dress. Are you headed into town?”
Charli gestured toward the general direction of the docks. “Annette’s ship is in. I was going down to the docks to pick her and her sister up.”
He straightened and his brows shot up. “That’s right! I didn’t realize that was today. Will I get to meet her?”
Charli snorted. “Are you kidding me? I won’t be able to keep her away.”
Jack chuckled. “I’m looking forward to it.”
“Would you like to join us for dinner?” she asked. “I’m making her favorite—lasagna and garlic bread.”
His eyes twinkled and he gave an enthusiastic nod. “Yeah, that sounds great.” He threw a thumb over his shoulder. “We’re almost done here and I’ll run home to take a quick shower. Can I bring anything?”
She twisted her lips to the side, thinking. “I don’t think so, unless you have a nice bottle of Italian red wine on hand. I forgot to pick some up at the grocery store.”
Jack grinned, his dimples popping out. “Don’t worry, baby. I got you covered.”
Charli smiled at his term of endearment and then pressed her lips together, willing herself not to say anything else.
She tilted her head to the side. “Well, I gotta run. I’ll see you later.” She turned with a wave and made it a few steps before she spun back around. Jack was still standing there watching her. “And brace yourself.”
He frowned as his head tilted to the side. “What do you mean?”
“Annette.”
He chuckled. “Ah. It sounds like a good time.”
“Oh, it will be,” she assured him with a broad grin, then turned and practically ran down the street.
* * * *
Charli could see the massive cruise ship towering over the buildings from blocks away as she hurried toward the pier and was amazed at the chaos and activity as she approached.
She hovered back from the walkway as hordes of tourists made their way off the ship, headed toward either the Southernmost Point, Mallory Square, or the bars and shops on Duval Street.
A quick shout rose above the din and Charli turned her head toward the sound. She knew that voice anywhere. Spotting her friend, she raised her hand and yelled. “Annette!”
She laughed as Annette rushed up to her and pulled her in for a huge hug. “Oh my god, Charli! I hardly recognized you.”
Annette stepped back and grabbed Charli’s hands, holding her arms out to the side. “You look amazing and so relaxed. This place really suits you.”
“It doesn’t suck,” Charli remarked with a big grin. She glanced at the girl standing coyly behind Annette, a twinkle in her eye. “Hi, I’m Charli,” she said, holding out her hand. “You must be Amy.”
Amy bobbed her head enthusiastically. “It’s great to finally meet you. Annette has told me so much about you over the years.”
“Oh boy,” Charli snarked. “That could be bad.”
Amy giggled and waved her hands in the air. “Oh no. According to Annette, you practically walk on water.”
Charli snorted. “Well, I know for a fact she’s lying if she said that.” Charli gestured to her right. “Are you ladies ready? I was going to take you to my house first and then show you around a bit.”
Annette gave her a mischievous grin. “Do we get to meet Jack?”
Well, that didn’t take long... glad to see Annette’s priorities haven’t changed. How on earth am I going to explain what happened in the Dry Tortugas? I’m not even sure what it means, let alone where I go from here.
“Yeah, if we hurry. He and the landscaping crew were planting the palm trees in the courtyard garden when I left to meet you.” Charli looped her arm through Annette’s as they walked. “But don’t worry. If we do miss him, he’s coming over for dinner.”
“Well, okay then!” Annette nudged Charli with her elbow and snickered.
“What?” Charli asked.
Annette waved her hand toward Charli. “I’ve just never seen you like this...so comfortable and chill. Retirement looks fabulous on you.”
Charli snorted and nearly missed a step. “I’m not retired. I’m too young to retire. What the hell? I’m not even thirty five yet!”
Annette smirked and grunted at her, then deftly changed topics by pointing at her sister who followed along next to them. “Amy was hoping to see the Southernmost Point. Can we take her down there?”
Charli gave them a nod. “Of course. My house is just a few blocks from it. But let’s wait for the crowd to die down before we walk down there. Jack says it always gets mobbed after the cruise ship tourists disembark.”
“Jack says, huh?” Annette’s lips twisted to the side. “You do realize that we’re tourists, right?”
Charli chuckled. “Well, yeah. But you have the benefit of having a local as your guide. Most locals turn tail and run at the first sight of a cruise ship.”
Annette’s brows shot up. “So now you’re a local, huh?”
Charli shrugged. “Well, for a little over a week I have been. I do own a house here, you know, and I’ve been inducted into the Royal Conch Society. Plus, I’m co-owner of a rundown, haunted bed and breakfast that is currently under renovation,” she added.
Amy sucked in a breath and leaned forward, her eyes lit up and her body practically vibrating with enthusiasm. “It’s haunted? Really?!” Her voice squeaked on the last word.
“Supposedly,” Charli answered. “I haven’t seen anything yet to convince me that the rumors are true.
Of course, we haven’t gone inside the house yet because we’re still working on clearing out the overgrowth and renovating the gardens.
But I’ve been assured by several reliable sources that there is a ghost, and they have reassured me that Amelia is peaceful. ”
“Amelia?” Annette and Amy parroted simultaneously.
Charli hummed absently. “Allegedly, she’s the ghost and incidentally a however-many-times-great aunt of Jack’s. If the legend is true, she killed herself in that house around 1871. Apparently, it was heartbreak from losing her lover in a shipwreck.”
“Oh my god! This is so exciting.” Amy squealed as she clapped her hands. “I can’t wait to see it.” She glanced around them. “How far is your house?”
Charli pointed toward the south. “Down this street about seven blocks and then we make a right and a left and we’re there. It’s just a block away from the lighthouse and the Hemingway House.”
“Ohhhh!” Amy exclaimed, bouncing up and down as they walked. “I so want to go there, too.”
Charli grinned. Amy was like a carbon copy of her sister.
Annette nudged her. “What are you laughing at?”
“The two of you—you’re exactly alike.”
“We are not!” they both shot off in matching offended tones.