CHAPTER 27
Willa stretched out, waking slowly in Hudson’s bed, feeling like a cat in a sunbeam. Until she realized that it was eleven thirty. Granted, maybe that wasn’t really late, considering she hadn’t gotten to sleep until about five in the morning, after an emotionally exhausting evening and some rigorous physical activity. She hadn’t had any kind of workout in a while, and that particular kind was ...
Thorough.
She blushed hard enough to see it on her chest and stomach when she tossed the sheet aside, showing that she had, indeed, fallen asleep naked with Hudson. Which brought up a point. Where was Hudson?
He probably wouldn’t have stayed in bed until almost noon, she reasoned. Maybe someone had called needing something urgently fixed. It sounded like that happened a lot. She also didn’t know what his schedule of work was, or what he’d be juggling now that her place was currently unable to be worked on—not unless he had a gas mask and was willing to smell rank.
She could feel anxiety start to creep up on her, and she shook it aside. She’d already wasted the morning. Last night had been amazing—and, on the other hand, a setback. She didn’t have time to moon over whether or not Hudson regretted what they’d done. Or how she felt about what they’d done, come to that. But right now, she had to figure out how she was going to deal with her house and the meeting with the sexy chef.
She pulled on the big T-shirt and sweats he’d given her the night before, then went to the bathroom and got herself cleaned up as best she could. He’d tossed her clothes in the washer, she seemed to remember, which was just off the kitchen.
As she got closer to the kitchen, she heard voices—friendly, amused chatter. She rounded the corner, peeking in nervously.
Noodle saw her first. He jumped up from under the kitchen table, scampering over to her with his wide doggy smile and ridiculously fast wagging whip tail. She petted him, stroking his sleek sides before patting his head. He licked her wrist, love in his eyes.
“There she is!” Mari said. “Come on, sit. We eat lunch early because of farm hours.” She nodded at the counter, where there were sandwich makings spread out.
Kimber was sitting at the table, squabbling with a young man who looked like a younger version of Hudson, except with honey-blond hair. He looked over at her curiously even as Kimber bounced out of her seat like Tigger, giving her a hug.
“Hey, lady!” Kimber said with a squeeze. “Heard you got skunked!”
Willa winced at the memory. “Unfortunately, yes. Your dad was kind enough to, um, rescue me.”
She saw a quick glance dart between Kimber and Jeremy, and she wondered if they’d already been aware of that. He’d probably told them, right?
Would he have told them ... anything else?
She didn’t think he would, to protect her privacy. Still, she thought back to last night’s activities. The way that, despite her best intentions, he’d managed to draw sounds out of her that she hadn’t made in years. Possibly ever.
I swear, I tried to be quiet! The heat of a blush came back. She wasn’t sure if this was better than someone’s parents hearing you have sex, or worse.
She didn’t really want to think about either alternative, so she cleared her throat. “Can I help you with anything?”
“Nah, it’s just ham-and-cheese sandwiches,” Mari said. “If that’s okay? I mean, it’s nothing fancy.”
“I’m fine with not fancy,” Willa reassured her. “Not that I’m a chef, but ask any chef what they cook for themselves, and it’s always simple stuff.”
She sat at the table, aware that she looked scruffy, her hair uncombed, no makeup ... in their father’s clothes. It was ten times worse than a shame walk.
“So are you and Dad dating, or what?” Jeremy said.
“Jeez, Jem, you can’t just ask if they’re dating,” Kimber squawked as Mari, efficiently making sandwiches, rolled her eyes at the two of them.
“Why not? Dad hasn’t brought anybody home in forever,” Jeremy protested. “I mean, not since we were little, and that was just ... What was her name?”
“Sylvia, maybe?” Kimber mused, then shook her head. “I don’t remember. I think we were like five or six.”
“Eh. I remember she made really good tamales one Christmas,” Jeremy said. “Like really good. But then one day she just wasn’t there.”
“Yeah, what happened to her?” Kimber asked Mari.
Mari looked pointedly at Kimber, then looked over at Willa, frowning.
“Oh, come on , it was forever ago, I’m sure that Willa doesn’t mind.”
Mari sighed, then went back to making sandwiches, speaking with her back to them. “They just didn’t work out, and they broke up.”
“That was, like, his last actual girlfriend, though, right?” Jeremy asked.
Willa heard Mari mutter something like these damned kids before she answered, “Yes, I suppose she was.”
Jeremy looked back at Willa with curiosity. She decided to turn the situation, much as she had in conversations with investors who had asked uncomfortable questions. “You must be Jeremy, then,” she said.
“Oh, right! I forgot you two hadn’t met,” Kimber said. “You didn’t make it to the barbecue.”
“Wish I had,” Jeremy said, wiping the condensation off what looked like a glass of iced tea. “Wait, you were at the barbecue?”
“She wasn’t dating Dad then,” Kimber supplied helpfully. “She came over because she’d rescued Noodle.”
“Oh! You’re the lady on the phone!” Jeremy’s smile was wide and happy, and the dimples pitting his cheeks reminded her so much of Hudson that she couldn’t help but smile back. “Thank you for taking care of Noodle, by the way.”
The dog in question suddenly pressed his cold nose against her bare knee, causing her to squeak in surprise. He gave her a doggy smile, and she shook her head at him, although she couldn’t keep herself from smiling and was pretty sure that her weak attempts at trying to get him to stop begging weren’t going to work. “It was my pleasure. Noodle is an awesome dog.”
“It’s actually because of Noodle she got skunked,” Kimber added. “Dad said that she had a doggy door put in because she was afraid Noodle would get out again and get caught in a storm or something—he does seem to like her house. But the skunk got through the door instead.”
“Shit, I’m sorry about that,” Jeremy said.
“It’s not your fault,” Willa said. “I didn’t even think that there were skunks on this island, honestly. There aren’t a ton where I’m from.”
“Where are you from, Willa?” Mari interjected.
“Um ... California. Born in Irvine, went to college at UC Davis. I lived in the Bay Area for a long time, then in the LA area for a while,” Willa rambled nervously before clamping down on her mouth. They hardly needed to know all of that.
Mari put sandwiches in front of all of them before retrieving her own plate and a glass of iced tea. “This your first time in Washington? I admit, I don’t remember you visiting Caroline.”
“I was closer to her when I was younger, and when she traveled more.” Willa smiled, remembering the feisty older woman. “When I was a kid, I used to spend a week or two at her house during summers, and we just always kept in touch. I’d only been out to her house here once or twice, and just for a few days.” When Steven had been ill, and she’d hated leaving him alone that long. He’d resented his mother looking after him, feeling like it was babysitting, so she’d avoided that too. “It’s so beautiful here.”
“We love it,” Mari said with pride. “We even had Hudson here—well, in the cabin. We built that first. But we raised him here in the farmhouse, and then we all raised the twins here too.”
“It’s wonderful here,” Willa said, and she meant it. She’d loved San Mateo and San Francisco, but there was something about this little island that just soothed her, even with all the stress she was currently under.
She took a tentative bite of her sandwich, since the thought of stress reminded her of the cookbook and the house and everything she was going to have to do. She needed to figure that out. Hudson had mentioned something about special fans or damage remediation or something?
Which also reminded her: Where was Hudson?
The back door opened, and she heard Hudson’s voice from the mudroom. “Hey, gang.” She could hear him wiping off his boots before walking into the kitchen, where the rest of his family was all smiles. He gave everyone smacking kisses on top of their heads—until he got to her. Instead, he stroked her cheek, then nudged her chin up so he could look into her eyes.
“Hey, you,” he murmured, his voice low and rumbly, his eyes heated.
“Hey back,” she half whispered.
He seemed to remember that they had an audience, because he cleared his throat and grabbed his phone. “I called the damage place, my friend over in Everett—they deal with skunk stuff all the time, he says, and he’s giving me a deal on an ozone generator that ought to get the smell right out. I sealed the kitchen with some plastic until it gets here, though. Jeremy, can you help me do some cleaning?”
Jeremy wrinkled his nose, but Hudson’s expression must’ve made him change his mind, because he quickly nodded.
“If we get the surfaces the skunk hit, it’ll make it easier and quicker,” he continued. “And I grabbed your notes and notebooks, and put ’em in a big plastic bin I have ... spritzed them with Febreze, carefully enough that the ink didn’t smudge, and then covered them with baking soda after they dried. So they’ll be a mess, but they won’t stink too badly, and you can maybe rewrite them?”
Willa felt relief hit her, and she stood up, hugging him. She wasn’t generally a hugger, but she was just so grateful, and it seemed the right thing to do.
“Thank you,” she whispered to him.
He hugged her back, almost lifting her off her feet. “I didn’t want you to worry,” he said against her ear, and she shivered. “My friend did say that their ozone stuff is out on a job, though, so it’ll be a few days. I know you need to do stuff before you meet that chef guy, right?” She let him go, her heart sinking a little, but before she could tailspin, he quickly added, “You don’t have to worry. You can stay here as long as you need to. And ... do you need to use the kitchen?”
She looked at Mari. “I do. I still need to test some recipes.” Then she was struck with an idea, one that would help reduce some of the guilt. “If you all don’t mind—would you be interested in being guinea pigs? I still have to do the entrées, and I could make some meals?”
“I’m not saying no to that,” Mari said enthusiastically, while Kimber’s eyes shone. Jeremy looked curious.
“Can you do it without the notes for now?”
“I’m still tinkering with stuff, so it should be fine,” Willa said.
“Okay. Then I’m gonna grab Jeremy here and get cleaning.”
He leaned in for a second, like he was going to kiss her. Instead, he just smiled at her, that bone-melting smile that made her feel like a meringue dissolving on someone’s tongue.
His tongue, her mind supplied, and she felt her cheeks heat. He winked, grabbed some lunch meat and cheese, rolled it up, and stuffed it in his face as he headed for the back door.
“At least have a real lunch!” his mother called after him.
“In a hurry,” he said, his words garbled from his full mouth. “Let’s move out, Jeremy!”
Jeremy stood up, stuffing the rest of his sandwich in his mouth and downing the iced tea in one go. Then he headed for the door, but paused, looking over his shoulder, his expression puzzled.
“He likes you a lot,” he said, and even though it wasn’t a question, she could sense the unasked ones anyway. Why you? Why now?
She was pretty curious about that, herself.