Chapter 7
After coffee, Willow hung around the cottage for a while. She had nothing on her agenda, so she thought she”d take the time to do a little self care. Self care being roaming around in her robe, snacking on the rest of the junk food and rewatching the movie from the night before.
That got boring after a while, though. Being in Sanibel, she got used to lounging around, going to the beach, browsing shops and just being active. Her life had changed so much over the years; it felt good to do the things she loved to do again.
Somehow, she must have left a good impression on Sheriff Tommy because he called her a few hours after he left and asked if she wanted to have lunch with him.
“Lunch?” she asked, taken aback by his offer.
“Yeah,” he said. “Lunch. You know, the one with food?”
“I’m familiar.” She laughed.
“Well, there’s a nice steak house I like to go to every once in a blue moon when I get the time. I was wondering if you’d like to keep me company.”
She didn’t quite know what to say. She was flattered and eager to go, but what did he want? Was it something casual? Or did he have more questions for her?
“Sure. I could go for some lunch,” she said. “Should I meet you there?”
“Well, the station isn’t too far from you. I could pick you up and we can head over together. This place is a little tricky to find with GPS.”
Her suspicions of him kicked in a little, but the thrill of it all gave her butterflies. She knew his invite wasn’t necessarily a date, but for whatever reason, it made her bashful.
“Okay.” She gave in to him.
“Great. Get ready, I”ll be there in thirty minutes.”
Thirty minutes wasn’t nearly enough time to get ready, but she did the best she could with the time she had. She made sure to choose something comfortable. Not too fancy or dressy. She wanted to look laid back since she knew he’d still be in uniform.
Willow thought he looked good in his uniform. The broadness of his shoulders showed in the way his shirt fit him. The tailored uniform pants and black boots made him look levelheaded and cool most days. She loved when he paired his work attire with his dark shades too. It made him all the more handsome.
“Thirty minutes exactly, huh?” she chuckled at how prompt he was.
“Give or take,” he said. “Nice choice of attire. It’s usually pretty chilly in this place.”
She’d chosen a pair of cozy jeans and an oversized cardigan that could be dressed up or down. It was cute, but casual, and she was glad he approved.
He opened the passenger door of his cruiser for her to get inside and she almost felt like she was being arrested. Maybe because he was in uniform, or maybe it was because they were riding in his police cruiser. Either way, it was an odd feeling.
“You don’t have to be nervous,” he spoke as he climbed back into the driver’s seat. “The only time you’d have to be nervous is if I put you in the back seat.”
Again, his jokes were corny, but she laughed anyway. That time, it was to take the edge off the guilt she felt. Willow wasn’t sure why she even felt guilty. She was an innocent woman who had nothing to hide. She should have been perfectly fine to ride in his cruiser.
“Did you have that talk with Monica yet?” she asked.
“Not yet. I got a little wrapped up at the station earlier and thought it’d be best if I talked to her after I got some food in my belly. I’ve been told I”m not a pleasant man when I”m hungry.”
“Well, you must”ve been very hungry the first time we crossed paths,” she laughed.
He laughed a little, but Willow could tell her description of him wasn’t one he was pleased with. She could see how no one would like being called unpleasant. Especially men. Their egos were so fragile at times that it was hard to know what would push their buttons.
Sheriff Tommy seemed as if he’d had a real change of heart, however. He was more giddy and not as stern and serious as he was when they first met. She wasn’t sure what had him on such a high horse of happiness, but she liked it.
When they got to the steakhouse, she was surprised to see how nice the place was. It was right off the water. The ceilings were high and the furniture inside was high end. There was a goldfish pond at the entrance and the carpet smelled brand new.
“This is gorgeous,” Willow said. “I’ve never heard of this place.”
“Yeah,” he sounded proud. “Not many people venture up this way. They’re missing out, though. This place has some of the best steak I”ve ever tasted.”
“I’ll be the judge of that,” she smiled.
They were seated a few minutes after they arrived. The booth they were placed in had a great view of the ocean too. The windows were tinted, so it gave the place a gloomy feel that she fell in love with right away.
“How do you take your steak?” he asked. “I’ll know everything I need to know about you based on that alone.”
“Medium. Anything beyond that, I might as well go in the field and bite the cow.”
He let out a hearty laugh. It was the first time she had heard him laugh from his gut. If she had to bet her last dollar, she”d say he hadn’t laughed like that in a long time.
“How’d you end up with a guy like Charlie?”
His question stopped Willow in the middle of cutting her steak. She hadn’t even gotten to taste it yet before he threw her off her A-game. Willow thought she would at least get to give him her opinion on the steak before she got bamboozled with questions about Charlie. It didn’t offend her or anything; it just caught her off guard.
“Work friends,” she said. “What kept me attached to him would be a better question.”
She quickly took a bite of steak into her mouth and closed her eyes while she savored the taste. It was amazing. Smooth as butter and cooked to perfection.
“Wow,” she said. “That is a good steak.”
“See! I told ya,” he chuckled. “The best I’ve ever had and I”ve had a good deal of steak in my day. This place tops them all. Every time.”
“I agree. This is really good.”
She ate the majority of her steak before they picked up on his question again. Charlie wasn’t someone Willow wanted to discuss, but she figured she”d better get it out of the way if she and Tommy were going to get to know each other. At least, since his interest in her seemed to have taken a different turn.
“Charlie wasn’t my typical guy,” she said. “At first, he was great. Fun. Loving. A gentleman. Now that I know it was all a lie, I can”t really say what kept me attached to him the way I was. I mean, even before I found any of this out, our marriage had been changing for the worse.”
“Why didn’t you leave then? I know it’s easier said than done, but at some point, you have to give it up and walk away. Put yourself first, you know?”
In a way, she felt like he was edging at a confession. When he said, “give it up. Put yourself first”, it sounded like an interrogation tactic she’d seen on TV before. After talking for a while though, she saw that he was genuine. It was only her paranoia of him being a sheriff that got her blood boiling.
“Relationships are tricky, but marriage? That’s a completely different ball game. I always felt that when I got married, it would be forever. Build a life together through thick and thin, sickness and in health. I knew it wasn’t working, but I didn’t want to give up that easily.”
He nodded as she spoke, letting her know he was listening to everything she said and with great intent.
“Honestly? I was on the edge of divorce. That’s when I came to the island. Brandi talked me into staying for a little while, and when Charlie never reached out to me, well I thought he’d given up. I was so mad. Then, well. You know the rest.”
“That sounds hard.”
“I don’t even know where I stand anymore. I don’t even know if our marriage was legal. I don’t know a lot of things.” Willow didn’t know why she was allowing herself to be so vulnerable, so she tried changing the subject. “Were you ever married?” she asked.
“Almost.” He set down his fork and picked up his glass of water. “It was a long time ago.”
“What happened to her?”
He sat quietly for a moment. His eyes looked as if he were trying to retrace the steps of the night he found out what had happened to her. It still stung in his heart. After all these years and he still wasn’t ready to talk about it.
“You know what, don’t even worry about it.” She said. “You tell me when you’re ready.
She could tell he was grateful, and they shared a laugh before she dug back into her steak. She wasn’t expecting their lunch to turn into a full on confessional about their lives and marriages, but she was happy it did.
He was a charming man who was unhappy with how his life ended up. But all he needed was a little bit of spark to remind him there was still time left to start over.