Chapter 38
G loomy morning light filtered through the gauzy curtains Charlotte had hung in her apartment, Mads blocking some of the light from his perch in front of the window that provided prime cat-television programming. She woke before her alarm, already buzzing with the excitement of the grand opening of Under the Waves. Memorial Day Weekend started tomorrow, and Uncle Frank and Aunt Marianne’s longtime dream was coming true after years of hard work, ready to greet guests for the first time. And Gregory and Ever Fund had got them over the last hump. The thought of Gregory sent a million sensations through her mind and heart: gratitude, sadness, hopefulness. He’d warmed up ever so slightly in that meeting and that hug at the end had meant something, right?
But in the last couple of weeks, they’d only interacted in regards to the big event. There hadn’t been another hug or even a brushing of arms. An invisible barrier stood between them. Charlotte missed sharing their days together: work headaches, laughter, coffee—all of it.
She pushed the covers back, stood, and kissed Madmartigan on the head. “It’s going to be the best day, buddy. And that doesn’t look like rain to you, does it?”
“Meow.”
“I didn’t think so either. I can feel your excitement from here, Mads. Shall we get you some food?”
He dutifully led Charlotte to his bowl and after he was crunching his kibble, Charlotte thumbed open her phone. It was early but it hadn’t stopped Melanie, her parents, her cousin, and her aunt from sending her messages. She needed to remind her family about the efficiency of group texting. Charlotte brewed coffee and made toast before she answered their questions, soothed worries, and put in a pastry order with Melanie. God love her, she was stopping at Three Bites Bakery, Charlotte’s favorite, on her way from the airport. She’d decided on an assortment of sugary goodness and was pressing SEND when the phone rang, startling her into a comedic and unintentional game of cell phone hot potato. Once she’d saved it from a free fall, she clocked Gregory’s name flashing across the screen.
Eyes wide, she answered. “Hey! Hi. Good morning?”
Gregory laughed and she felt the sound of it in her toes. “It is indeed morning. I didn’t wake you up, did I?”
“No, I’m already on the coffee portion part of the day. I was too excited to sleep in.”
“Same,” Gregory said. “I’ve been up for hours.”
“From excitement?”
“A little of that. More like anxiety, worry—pick a synonym. It’s a big day for Lands and . . . it’s a lot.”
“Yeah,” Charlotte agreed. “It is a lot. But take comfort in knowing that you’re making a big dream come true today.”
“I know. Though that’s part of the pressure.”
“It’s all going to go great,” Charlotte reassured him. “We’re prepared for any scenario.” And they were. Charlotte knew the importance of the backup plans having backup plans, and she’d helped make sure they were ready for anything weather, crowds, or malfunctions could throw at them.
“I know.”
“Can I give you a tip?”
“Please,” Gregory said.
“When the time comes to let guests in, find a place to stand off to the side and watch their faces as they enter. It’s always magical.”
“What if they make bad faces?” Gregory asked.
“Never happens,” Charlotte said.
“Would you, uh, stand with me, Charlotte?”
She sat down hard on the nearest chair.
“Stand with you? For, like, moral support?”
“Uh, moral support, yes, but more than that. I think this evening would be infinitely better if we were together for it. What I’m trying to say is, will you be my date for the grand opening?”
Charlotte swallowed a ball of emotion. “I will.”
“Meet you at the park in an hour, at the Under the Waves entrance? Then we can talk?”
Having a “talk” with Gregory wasn’t how Charlotte had imagined this wildly busy and important day of all days starting, but she would take it.
“Can’t wait. See you soon.”
They hung up and Charlotte held her phone in front of her, mouth agape. That was definitely not a business-only conversation. She jumped out of her chair with a huge grin on her face, walking toward the shower with a literal skip in her step. The day had gotten a hundred times better.
Charlotte got ready, packed her outfit for the grand opening—since she probably wouldn’t have time to run back home to change—and sent a handful of texts and emails to make sure everything she was responsible for was on track for the day. She put out extra food for Mads and gave him goodbye scritches before heading out.
* * *
As Charlotte walked through Adventurer’s Gate and toward the iridescent tunnel that marked the entryway to Under the Waves, she spoke quietly to herself to calm her nerves. “Charlotte, you can do this. It’s going to be fine. Great, even.”
Gregory asking to talk on this busy day had to be a positive thing. Had to be. She took a deep breath and walked into the tunnel. The lighting and sound weren’t on just yet, but even so, the cooler air and dimmer light supported the feeling of walking into a new space. On any other day she’d be scrutinizing the shifting gradation of the paint and the texture of the tunnel walls, making sure they looked as they should, but today Gregory stood at the end of the tunnel. He was in worn black jeans and a black V-neck T-shirt, running his hand through his still-wet-from-the-shower hair, and holding something Charlotte couldn’t make out in his other hand. The morning sunlight made him shine. He spotted Charlotte and his face transformed, glowing, kind, and open. He looked like everything she’d been missing. Everything she’d been waiting for.
“You’re here,” he called.
“I’m here.” Her answer echoed in the tunnel. She walked closer, her eyes locked on his and as she reached hugging range, he held out the object in his hand. Charlotte laughed. “Is that what I think it is?”
He chuckled. “If you think it is a bouquet of cinnamon rolls, then yes. I may have plotted with Holly.”
“A mini cinnamon roll bouquet. Gregory, you goddamn genius.” She took the pastry bouquet and brought it to her nose as if it were roses. “This is so much better than flowers.”
“I hoped you would approve.”
“I do, and I guess I’ll have to eat them immediately since I don’t think I have a cinnamon roll vase.”
“I’ll keep that in mind for next time.”
“Next time?”
Gregory took her free hand, the one not clutching her magnificent edible arrangement. “Next time I’m short-sighted and don’t trust you enough to communicate clearly with you and then ignore you when you’re trying to tell me what you want and need. I don’t intend for there to be a next time, though.”
Charlotte nodded and intertwined her fingers with his. “And next time I don’t talk to you to find out what’s going on and go chasing after what I think I want and need, I’ll try to take a few before acting rashly and I’ll bring you . . . I don’t know, what kind of apology gift works for you?”
“You, Charlotte. Just you.”
He stepped toward her and opened his arms, and Charlotte propped the bouquet between the slats of a nearby bench to walk right into Gregory’s arms and sink into him. She buried her head in his chest and inhaled the scent of his eucalyptus woodsy cologne as he rested his cheek on her head. “I’m so sorry, Charlotte.”
“No, I’m sorry, Gregory. I messed up and abandoned you and Lands and everything we worked on together for so long. I thought the grass was greener, but no, it’s just the right amount of green here.”
“You did run, but you had a reason to. We shouldn’t have shut you out. I could have handled things better, too. A lot better.”
“You could have. We both have to communicate in the future and agree to not keep things from each other based on assumptions about how the other person will react or anything else.”
“I could not agree more, especially since I just did it again. I was assuming from your switching to emails instead of texts and not bringing up anything about us at Sir Cinna-Swirls that you weren’t interested in figuring this out,” Gregory said, tightening his arms around her.
“No, I didn’t want to push you. I couldn’t get a read on your feelings and email felt like it gave you more of an option to keep work boundaries. I don’t know. Then it seemed like you were in business mode only at Cinna-Swirls. We’re idiots, in other words. Appreciate you being the one to pull their head out of their ass and call me.”
“Glad we settled everything,” he said. “Now what?”
Charlotte pulled back and looked up at him, losing herself in those forest-green eyes. “Now I need you to know something.” She took a deep breath.
“I’m all ears.”
“I love you.” There, Charlotte put it out there. Her time feeling untethered in Paris proved she wasn’t falling in love with Gregory when she left; she had fallen for him.
Gregory wrapped his arms around her waist, lifted her off the ground, and gave her a spin. He set her down and locked eyes with her. Happiness infused his voice as he said, “Thank goodness, Charlotte, because I love you, too. You being gone made it crystal clear how important you’ve become to me, and how much I like having you by my side. We make a strong team—but more than that, you make me want to loosen my tie and take on the world. You remind me that I have the power to do anything I want. And right now, what I want is to work with you to make Lands be the best it can be, and to help give others the kind of magic I’ve experienced here.”
“Is that all you want?”
“No, I want as much of this as humanly possible.” Gregory pulled her close and gave her a soul-cleansing kiss, their lips connecting with urgency and longing and a promise of a bright tomorrow—many bright tomorrows.
Charlotte broke the kiss and collected herself. “So, big day for us. We made up, first I love yous, and now we’re going to open a kick-ass theme park land and rides.”
“Solid plan.”
“I know. Planning is a talent of mine.” Charlotte paused, considered her recent missteps and added, “Most of the time.”
Gregory leaned down, took Charlotte’s cheek in his hand, and kissed her. She stretched up into the kiss and wound her arms around his neck. When they finally broke apart, both of them were a little out of breath.
“That’s better,” Gregory murmured.
“Definitely better. Remind me, how’s our schedule this morning?” she asked.
“You know as well as I do that it’s packed,” Gregory said. “Unfortunately. It’s an entire holiday weekend, after all. And the way I want to make up with you, we’re going to need more than five minutes.” He ran his fingertips lightly around the inside of her waistband and Charlotte’s toes curled inside her shoes.
“You’re coming home with me tonight, okay?” she said.
They kissed again and Charlotte felt his lips curl into a smile. “You couldn’t keep me away. Then we take the day off on Tuesday. Maybe get to the next movie on the eighties fantasy list— Labyrinth , wasn’t it?”
“If we have time, sure.”
“Why wouldn’t we have time on our day off?”
“We have a lot of catching up to do.” She tugged on the bottom of his shirt and lifted an eyebrow. “But right now, we have so much to get done.”
Charlotte pulled on his hand and retrieved her bouquet. “Good thing someone provided us with plenty of sugar. Let’s get to the office. Everyone else should be here soon.”