Chapter 11 #2
“Hey, bud,” Patrick cut in, “why don’t you help me tear this lettuce. Come over here and wash your hands.”
Winston clambered down and ran around to the other side of the island.
Patrick turned on the water and lifted him up.
The boy pumped the soap into his hands and lathered, his feet dangling above the floor as he hung from Patrick’s strong arms. With a rinse and a dry on the towel, he went back to the barstool.
Patrick set a bowl of lettuce in front of him.
“Half the size of my hand, right?” Winston asked, pulling out a large lettuce leaf.
“Yep.”
Emily poured a glass half-full with lemonade and set it beside the boy. “You’ve done this before,” she said.
“Yeah, I help Uncle Patrick cook when he makes dinner for me and Mom.”
“That’s very helpful,” she said, her heart squeezing. She’d love nothing more than to hear the little feet of children as she cooked dinner—something that had been in her near future and now seemed impossible.
“It’s so fun.” Winston’s eyebrows bobbed. “Just not all day.”
“He was at the restaurant today and then had to come with me tonight, so he’s ready to get home, I’m sure. It’s definitely an adventure,” Patrick said as he tossed mixed veggies in a bowl.
Winston brightened. “We go on lots of adventures together.” He put both hands around his glass and tipped up his lemonade.
“Oh really?” Emily pulled up a stool next to Winston. “Like what?”
“We like to hike Timpoochee Trail and look for wild animals. I try to find a dog, though, whenever we go.”
Emily chuckled. “A wild dog?”
“Dogs aren’t wild,” Winston said with a giggle. “Uncle Patrick says if we find one, he’ll take care of it for me so I can keep it.” He grabbed a handful of lettuce.
Patrick slid the potatoes into the oven to warm. Then he went over to Winston and inspected the lettuce. His unique scent of cotton and musk floated toward her.
Emily got up and went back around to the sink. “Dogs are a lot of work. A dog would keep your uncle busy.”
“Mm hm, but Uncle Patrick could do it. He can do anything.”
Patrick ruffled Winston’s hair and went back to unloading the grill.
She washed her hands and dried them on a towel before going back to her stool. “May I help you?”
“Sure.” Winston scooted the bowl between them.
Emily sat back down and grabbed a lettuce leaf. “Could you show me how?”
“Like this,” Winston said, demonstrating by placing a leaf in the palm of his little hand and tearing it.
Patrick had set up a tabletop grill and was warming the steaks.
As Emily prepared the lettuce, she stole glances at Patrick, noticing now how he and Winston had the same sandy-brown hair and jawline.
Did Patrick look like Winston as a kid? He was so stoic; she couldn’t imagine him as a child.
Was he as serious and quiet as he was now?
The glimpses she got of him when he interacted with Winston made her interested in knowing more.
He seemed to notice her looking and heat rose through her face. A gentle fondness shone in the curve of his lips.
“Thanks for letting Winston help. His summer camp was closed today, due to the weather, which is why he’s been working with me all day,” Patrick said, drawing her out of her introspection. “My sister, Julia, called me last minute in a panic.”
“I don’t mind at all,” Emily said. “He’s been a big help. He can come anytime.”
Winston flashed a giant smile before taking another long drink of lemonade.
She turned around to share in Winston’s cuteness with her friends, and both of them were smirking, their attention moving between her and Patrick. She discreetly waved them off.
“You sure are chatty whenever Patrick comes on the scene,” Sienna said as she stabbed a bite of steak and threw a wink to Blair.
Emily shook her head. “Don’t start. I’m no different. I’m just as chatty with you all.”
The pelting rain blurred the view of the churning Gulf even more than it had earlier.
They could hardly tell they were on the coast at all.
With the wind picking up, Patrick had served them quickly.
Emily offered for him to leave everything and pick up his things after the storm died down.
He promised to come back tomorrow, and then he and Winston were gone in a flash.
His grill and bags still littered the kitchen.
“He’s handsome,” Blair said, fueling the fire. “Easy to flirt with, I’d imagine.”
Emily wound her napkin around her finger in her lap, her cheeks heating up again. “I don’t need or want to flirt with anyone right now. I’m tapped out emotionally.”
“Fair enough,” Blair said with a sigh. She leaned back in her chair and turned her attention to the television that was still squawking with red-blotched weather maps and hourly forecasts for the area.
“I know the owners gave me the whole summer here if I want it, but I do have to get home to show houses,” Sienna said.
“I was hoping for a week of sunshine.” She lifted an eyebrow.
“I doubt I’ll be able to come back. It’s quite a drive, and even if I flew, it wouldn’t be the same without you two.
Should we try to come again before the summer’s over, or would it be too much? ”
“I don’t know,” Emily said. “I couldn’t pay for a flight, and I still have to find an apartment or somewhere to live, since my lease is up.
I signed my teaching contract for next year, so I’ll have to find one in driving distance to Nashville, but I want to look in the suburbs—that’ll take some time, and I’ll need to move all my stuff. ”
“Maybe if the sun comes out, we could just tack a few extra days onto the end of our trip,” Blair suggested.
Truth be told, a few extra days would be nice.
The last thing Emily wanted to do was go home.
She could always do her initial apartment search and wedding cancellations from the beach.
The only other thing she had to do was decide whether or not to sign the form for the house.
At the very least, she’d make Will sweat a while.
Even with the rain, living in the lap of luxury was pretty great.
That was how she’d like to keep it for as long as she could.