Chapter 34 – Dean
I looked up from my book and nudged Grace’s foot with mine. We were sitting across from each other, sharing a velvet footstool outlined in fringe. The bed-and-breakfast where we were staying for Jessica’s wedding was firmly planted in the early 1900s. “Gilbert rescues her from almost drowning, and she’s furious with him?”
“Yes.” Grace looked up from the book she was reading. She wouldn’t admit it was a dragon shifter book, but the cover with the scripty font, and the muscled guy, and the silhouette of a dragon in the background stated otherwise. “Oh, she tortures him for quite a few more books. Just wait.”
“And why is this a good thing?”
“Because Anne can’t see romance when it’s right in front of her. She’s dying for it, and it’s right there. I don’t want to spoil anything, but he gives up on her at one point, and she has this all-is-lost moment. She thinks it’s too late to tell him she loves him.”
“And you’re Anne?”
Grace got that grumpy look on her face I could never get enough of, because she could never hold on to it for long around me. “I was Anne. She just happens to have me beat when it comes to being stubborn. Also, her daydreams didn’t involve Gilbert nearly enough. Or like, at all.” Grace blushed. She’d recently admitted that she used to, maybe, think about me a lot before we got together, and it tickled me every time I contemplated it. Every mean thing she’d ever said, every time she froze me out, there was the possibility that on the inside, a romance reel was playing out that she couldn’t shut off.
I did feel bad that I’d flirted with her not knowing she’d already developed feelings for me. She may have fallen first, but I definitely fell harder.
Without warning, I closed my book, leaped over our shared footrest, and tackled her into the antique settee she was lounging on, burying my face in her neck and making her giggle.
“You guys are so gross. Stop upstaging me and Simon.” I glanced back to see Jessica and Simon standing in the doorway holding hands. Simon was as shy as Jessica was bold, so he was not into PDA. But in his unguarded moments, I saw the way he looked at her. They’d be just fine.
“Is it time for spooky poetry reading in the haunted wood?” Grace asked. “Will it be too scary for Piper?”
“It won’t be scary at all. I promise. Not even Edgar-Allan-Poe level. This is more the type of stuff a twelve-year-old Anne would have made up. But Piper’s having so much fun with my mom on that tree swing in the backyard. They asked to stay here. Is that okay with you?”
I got up so Grace could go to the window and look out on them. Piper’s laughter carried through the walls of the bed-and-breakfast. “I should get a picture,” Grace said.
“Already done. Having my sister be the onsite photographer has its perks.” Jessica linked arms with Grace and pulled her away from the window. “Come on, losers. Let’s go hike and read some super-dramatic poetry.”
The haunted wood was one of many trails within Prince Edward Island National Park and included the final resting place for L.M. Montgomery in Cavendish cemetery. I wondered what she’d think of the tourism tie-in. Maybe she’d find it funny. Her books did have more humor in them than I was expecting.
Grace’s phone rang just before we stepped outside to the gravel parking lot, and she froze. Once we reached the end of the road, the call would drop.
“It’s Rob. Can I just let him say hello to Piper really quick? She’s used to him calling twice a week, but we’ve been so busy.”
She was asking Jessica. Her hand had already wrapped around mine. She knew I’d stick with her, especially when it came to Rob.
“Yeah, yeah. We’ll stop for mini cherry pies at that little shop on the way. Meet us there in fifteen?”
“Will do.” Grace stepped back into the house and answered the call. “Rob? Give me just a second. I’ll go get Piper. She’s playing in the backyard.”
Hand in hand, we retreated to the backyard in search of her. I completely understood why Piper wouldn’t want to leave this yard, even for a hike. The tree swing went up, up, up to a branch in a tree so big, I’d never stop staring at it with awe. Even the gentle pushes from Jessica’s mother sent Piper soaring across the lawn. Jessica’s dad sat on a porch swing watching and knitting a beanie, looking completely at peace. He was a fraud investigator for a large corporation. He said knitting relaxed him.
“Piper, your dad’s on the phone,” Grace called out.
“K. I’ll be there in a minute.”
Grace leaned back against my chest holding up the phone so we could both hear. “How’s it going, Rob?”
“Okay, I guess. I’m not on an island,” he answered.
“Yeah, it’s pretty great.”
“Not Hawaii great, though. There’s no swimming, unless you’re into hypothermia.”
“True. But I can swim at home. This is a kind of beautiful I won’t see again. The sky is so big, and it’s green and quiet here. There are these grasses that grow tall along the beaches, and they dance in the wind.”
“Oh, you’ve almost sold me.” The sarcasm was coming through loud and clear. “Wind dancing is my favorite.”
“Tell Rob I love him and miss him,” I whispered in her ear.
“Dean says he loves you and can’t wait to see you again.” She silently laughed, her shoulders shaking.
“Oh, likewise. He makes my ex happy, which is not easy to do.”
I’d learned to not pick up the phone and correct him when he said things like that. Grace could handle it herself. She told me she needed to. It was part of having a healthier relationship with him, one where she spoke her mind where it counted, but didn’t make herself responsible for changing him.
We’d come up with theories about why he still made comments like that. Her current reigning theory was that he needed to reframe what had actually happened between them. I just thought he enjoyed being negative.
“Thanks for calling, Rob. Piper loves to hear from you.” She handed off the phone to Piper, who ran away with it and sat next to Jessica’s dad on the porch swing, talking a mile a minute to Rob about everything she was doing and seeing. Grace turned to face me, wrapping her arms around my waist. “Kill him with kindness, right?”
“He’s a lucky man. So am I.”
“I’m the lucky one. The luckiest.” She rested her forehead against my chest and breathed in deep.
I kissed the top of her head. “I forgot to tell you. Connie said she loved the flowers you sent her for her birthday.”
“Oh good. Thanks for doing reconnaissance on what type of flowers she likes.”
“No problem. Remind me. What are we doing after the hike?”
“Hunting for seashells on the beach, and then having an early picnic dinner. After that, I have a dress fitting. If you still find me attractive after seeing me in puffed sleeves with lace across my bodice in a heart shape, I’ll definitely keep you around.”
“Sounds hot. Is there a matching hat?”
“Don't give Jessica ideas.” She squeezed my sides, laughing when I dodged to get away from her. I was extremely ticklish, and without even trying, she’d sometimes set it off.
“You poor thing. I could totally use these fingers for evil.”
“You have no idea how much I appreciate you not doing that.” I wrapped her back up in my arms, loving the way she sighed with contentment.
A minute later, Piper ran back to us with Grace’s cell phone. “I’m all done. Can I go hiking with you guys? I promise not to get scared by the poetry stuff.”
“I might get scared, Piper. You’ll have to hold my hand.” I held out my hand for her, and she took it, immediately running off, towing me along behind her. I reached out for Grace, and she caught up to us and took my other hand. Together, the three of us ran around to the front of the house where the Range Rover we’d rented was parked, and I pulled out the keys.
“Do you think the cops would catch me if I drove it?” Piper asked her mom, completely serious. “Do they have cops here?”
“I think you’re not tall enough to reach the pedals yet. And also, yes, the Mounties would pull you over for sure.” Grace widened her eyes at me, mouthing, “What the heck?”
“She dreams big.” I tossed Grace the keys. “It’s a great quality. Let’s go get some cherry pies and ruin our appetite for dinner.”