Chapter 25 #2
“I’m glad she’s getting back into the swing of things.” He pulled out two fillets and set them on the grill. “She and I have chatted when we’ve run into each other around town. She told me she’s going back to work soon.”
“Yes. On a limited basis at first. But still, her recovery is nothing short of miraculous.”
“Indeed it is.” He began chopping garlic.
“The world is full of miracles—or blessings, if you prefer. Recovery from a serious accident certainly qualifies. As does the unexpected gift of a world-class choreographer for Hope Harbor’s amateur production of Oklahoma.
Or two sisters reuniting.” He tossed the garlic on the griddle.
“From what I gathered during my chats with Lauren, the two of you are taking full advantage of your visit to get reacquainted.”
“We are. Thankfully, the timing worked out great for me. I don’t know what I would have done if the accident had happened during the season.”
“I expect you would have found a way to come out here.” He selected an avocado from the basket on the counter and began peeling it.
“True. But I couldn’t have stayed as long.”
“Or gotten involved in the show, or met a little girl who needed the very pick-me-up your presence is providing.”
She squinted at him.
How could he know about that?
“Are you talking about Isabel?”
“Who else? She was here with Ben and Aaron earlier this week, and she was chattering away, like she used to. Your name came up more than once.” He cut a slice off the avocado. “And not just from Isabel. Ben was singing your praises too.”
What about Aaron? Had he also mentioned her?
Unfortunately, there was no way to ask that question without revealing her interest in him.
“I’ve enjoyed getting to know them.” She kept her tone conversational.
“I think the feeling is mutual—with all three Steeles. I haven’t seen Aaron smile much in the past few years, but there was a sparkle in his eyes whenever your name came up.”
She appraised the taco chef as he pulled three corn tortillas from his stash and flipped the fish.
Had he picked up on the attraction between them, as Lauren had?
If so, surely he realized that road led nowhere.
“I understand you and Aaron had a dance lesson Sunday after rehearsal.” Charley laid the tortillas on the grill beside the fish.
It was a comment, not a question. A one-word answer would suffice if she wanted to change the subject.
Or she could take the opening he’d given her to talk about the situation. Tap into the wisdom he always seemed to offer to those who confided in him.
Since sage input would be welcome—and Charley’s discretion was legendary—the latter would be the smart choice.
She inhaled the salty air and took the leap. “Yes, we did. He’s a very nice man.”
“Also smart. He could have gone far in the corporate world. Some people thought he was foolish to leave the fast track behind and return to the mill, but you have to admire a man who has his priorities straight.” Charley pulled out a handful of shredded purple cabbage and a sprinkling of cilantro from his cooler and began assembling the tacos.
“I admire a lot of things about him.”
“Then you have excellent taste in men.”
“It doesn’t matter in this case. I mean, it isn’t like getting too friendly with him could lead anywhere. I’ll be leaving in a handful of weeks. There isn’t much call for someone with my background in Hope Harbor.”
He began wrapping the tacos in white butcher paper. “You do have a very specialized skill set.”
“I know. And the closest ballet company with any sort of cachet is in San Francisco. That’s not exactly commuting distance.”
“True.” He slid the tacos into a brown bag one by one as he talked. “It would be hard to match the prestige of your current position, or the visibility and notoriety it provides. I imagine it would also be difficult to give up the adrenaline rush of standing ovations and the applause of thousands.”
She waved that aside. “Those are all perks, not priorities. I dance because I love the mastery of motion and the oneness with the music. When everything is clicking, it’s magical.
” She exhaled. “But those fleeting moments of almost transcendent joy come with a high price tag. Ballet is a demanding taskmaster.”
“So I’ve heard. I’m sure finding balance is difficult.”
“More like impossible. During the season, I eat, sleep, breathe, and live ballet. The pace is fast, the days are long, and the rehearsals are relentless.”
“Do you enjoy that?” He set the bag in front of her, then leaned down and rested his forearms on the counter, putting himself closer to her eye level.
“Not always. But I don’t know any other kind of life. I’ve been doing this for as long as I can remember.”
“I can see how it would be a challenge to strike out in a new direction, leave that familiar world behind. I imagine Aaron struggled with a similar dilemma as he was evaluating his corporate career. It was fortunate he managed to find a new use for his business skills. And he got his life back in the process.”
“Business skills are more transferable than ballet.”
“I understand from Lauren you have those too, which is admirable. Getting a degree while juggling your demanding career had to be difficult.”
“It was, but I believe in thinking ahead and being prepared.”
“Also admirable. Maybe you could somehow combine your business and dancing skills down the road.” Charley held her gaze for a moment, his dark eyes intent, then straightened up and motioned to the cooler.
“I can put a bottle of water in the bag if you like, but with clouds moving in and the breeze picking up, my recommendation is to stop in at The Perfect Blend and get a hot drink to go with your lunch.”
Devyn gave the sky a distracted scan as Charley’s comment continued to loop through her mind.
The sun had disappeared behind a mass of gray clouds, and there was a definite chill in the air.
“I think I’ll follow your advice.” She dug out her wallet, handed over several bills, and picked up her bag as a hoard of customers descended on the taco stand from across Dockside Drive. “Looks like you’ll be cooking for a while. I hope you weren’t planning to paint this afternoon.”
“My muse can wait. It’s a pleasure to feed bodies as well as souls. And sometimes it’s the same thing.” He winked. “Enjoy your lunch.”
“Guaranteed.” She stepped around the person in line behind her and set a brisk pace for the coffee shop as the tantalizing smells wafting up from the bag triggered a rumble in her stomach.
After checking both directions for traffic, she crossed Main Street, reading the saying-of-the-day on the A-frame sign in front of the coffee shop as she approached.
Today’s words of wisdom were from F. Scott Fitzgerald.
Our lives are defined by opportunities.
Even the ones we miss.
She stopped beside the hand-lettered board.
Huh.
Zach, the owner, typically featured humorous adages.
Strange that today’s message was serious.
Stranger still how it dovetailed with Charley’s comments.
Yet as far as she could see, there were no new opportunities on her horizon other than the challenging roles she’d be dancing in the fall season.
She pushed through the door and into the shop, ordered a plain coffee, and tried to banish the unsettled feelings stirred up not only by Charley’s observations but by the thrum of anticipation generated by her date tomorrow with Aaron.
No-go. Nor did the adrenaline jolt from the caffeine do anything to help calm her nerves.
Rather than linger, she finished her tacos in record time and exited the shop. Glanced at Eye of the Beholder across the street.
Hmm.
She’d been wanting to peek inside since she’d arrived. Perhaps a quick visit would distract her from her less-than-relaxing thoughts.
As she veered that direction, Bob Howard came out of the hardware store two doors down—and promptly dropped the box he was carrying, sending basketballs bouncing in all directions.
Changing course yet again, she dashed about, helping him retrieve the wayward balls.
Five minutes later, as she returned the last ball to the box, he swiped the back of his hand across his forehead. “By golly. That was my exercise for the day. Thank you kindly for your assistance.”
“Happy to help.” She surveyed the long table in front of the store, which was loaded with merchandise and topped by a sign that read “Everything must go—75% off.” “You have quite a sale going on here.”
“I’m down to the wire on closing. Saturday’s it for me. Store’s pretty cleaned out, but I’d like to get rid of the last of the stuff. What’s left, I’ll donate somewhere. How’s sweet Lauren doing?”
“Improving every day.”
“Glad to hear it. Come on in for a minute. Let me give you some grape candies to take to her for old time’s sake.”
She followed him inside, past mostly bare shelves, toward the wooden counter. “What’s going to happen to this?” She tapped the massive antique piece.
“A restaurant up in Bandon wants it. They plan to use it as a bar.” He grinned.
“I sold screwdrivers here, and they’ll be doing the same—but theirs will pack more of a punch.
” He dug into the candy jar and began fishing out the remaining grape hard candies.
“What’s your favorite flavor? I’ll put a few in the bag for you. ”
“I’m partial to lemon.”
“You got it.”
While he continued to rummage through the jar, she surveyed the shop. “What sort of business is going to move in here?”
“I have no idea. Neither does the owner, unfortunately. There haven’t been any takers yet.
The place is too big for the sort of shops Hope Harbor is attracting these days, so I expect it will be hard to rent.
But that’s not my problem.” He dropped one more lemon hard candy into the bag and handed it over. “Enjoy. And tell Lauren I said hello.”
“I will. Best wishes on your retirement and your trip to England.”
A gleam of excitement brightened his irises. “We’re wheels up in twelve days. It’ll be the adventure of a lifetime.”
“Do you think you’ll miss the shop?”
“Not for a minute. At least not while we’re on the trip.
I expect it’ll be strange after we get home not to have to work every day, and I’ll miss talking with customers.
But I’m handy with home repairs, so I plan to volunteer with Helping Hands here in town and Habitat for Humanity up in Coos Bay.
I think between the two organizations, I’ll be kept as busy as I want to be.
And I’ll still be around hardware, just in a different capacity. ”
“Sounds like an ideal plan.”
“To me too. Thanks again for helping me chase the balls.” He pulled his cell out of his pocket and checked the screen. “My wife. Probably another packing question about our trip.”
“Go ahead and take the call. I’m heading out.”
With a lift of his hand, he angled away and greeted his wife.
While the two of them discussed biking rain gear, she wandered toward the door.
What an unnerving outing this had been.
First, Charley had asked disconcerting questions about her life in New York, then segued to Aaron’s decision to leave the corporate world and find a new use for his skills.
Next up had been the quote at The Perfect Blend about how missed opportunities could define your life.
Now the encounter with Mr. Howard, who’d shared his plan to retool his skills for retirement.
All of which had further disrupted her already shaky peace of mind.
She circled around a shelf near the door, pausing to look back at the shop.
It was a decent-sized space. Once all the shelving was gone, this could be converted to any number of uses if someone with vision came along. A clothing boutique. A yoga center. A hair salon/spa.
A dance studio.
She blinked.
What?
Where had that ridiculous thought come from?
There wouldn’t possibly be enough business in a town this size to support a studio.
Could there?
No. Hope Harbor was tiny.
However . . . there were other communities in the area, a number of them sizable.
Like Coos Bay. But from what she’d learned while researching places for Isabel to take lessons, that town already had dance studios.
To draw students to Hope Harbor from a wide geographic area, a studio would have to offer something extra special to be sustainable.
Like a teacher who’d been a principal dancer with one of the most prestigious ballet companies in the world.
She sucked in a breath.
Could this be one of those opportunities Fitzgerald had been talking about? One that might define her life if she passed it up, by eliminating any chance to explore a relationship with the most interesting man she’d ever met?
But letting a few sparks influence a life-changing decision would be foolish. While a dance studio could be in her future, when and where that happened should be based on facts and logic, not intuition and hormones.
She pushed through the door and into the blustery conditions outside. Tucked her chin down against the wind and hurried toward Eye of the Beholder, her original destination.
And tried to erase from her mind the hardware store detour that had planted the seed of an idea and left her more unsettled than ever.
Even though she had a feeling that was going to be a losing battle.