Chapter 2
Willow made sure Richy left early. He wasn’t happy about having to leave at nine o’clock, but it was a decent time. After he’d gone, she stayed out a little while longer, just to appreciate the scenery and smell of good food.
Most of the kids had left, and the parade had turned into an adult street party once the lights came on. Now it was more her scene. In the corner of her eye, she saw that Tommy ditched his golf cart and was making his way around on foot.
“You’re still here?” He found her near the cotton candy stand. “I thought you would have been gone for the night.”
“Nope,” she shrugged. “The night is still young.”
“It is, huh?”
He gave Willow a daring look that gave her butterflies. The glimmer in his eye for her was something that started to get easier to catch on to. Before, his hawkeye was sharp and suspicious. But over time, it turned into a softer stare that was more curious and interesting.
“How long will you be here?” she asked. “All night?”
“Just a little while longer. The boys will be taking watch shortly. I’ve been here since early this morning.”
“What are you doing after?”
“I haven’t thought about it,” he shrugged.
Something in her was eager to ask him to stay out with her, though she would have preferred it if he asked her. She wasn’t sure why she wanted to be around him as badly as she did. Maybe she missed having intimacy in her life. Intimacy was something she had longed for, for a long time.
“Hey, do you want to go for a drink when my shift is up?” Tommy asked before she could. “We could take a walk over to the tiki hut. I love that place.”
“Really?” She was surprised. “It’s my favorite place in town. I would love to.”
He smiled brightly. Maybe he expected her to say no. Or maybe he wasn’t used to women being kind to him.
They looked at a few more pop-up shops before it was time for him to turn over the keys to the golf cart. When he did, he removed his uniform shirt and traded his boots in for a comfortable pair of sandals. Willow smiled. She thought he was always so uptight and militant. She was shocked to see him get comfortable.
“You ready?” he asked.
“If you are,” she replied.
He was the perfect gentleman on their walk to the tiki hut. The kind of man who walked on the outside of the street. He also opened the door for her and even pulled out her chair before they sat down.
“You know you don’t have to do that, right?” she chuckled. “Unless you”re just trying to impress me.”
“Oh no,” he said. “I was raised to take care of women. Doesn’t matter who, you should always be kind and polite.”
She liked that about him. He really was sweet underneath all of his aggression and silence. Much like his uniform, there were layers of him that needed to be pulled back in order to reveal his gentleness.
“You say you like this place, huh?” he asked.
“I do,” she smiled. “It’s cute, cheap, and the food is incredible. Back home, it’s hard to find a place like this. You’d think they”d be everywhere because we’re also near so much water. But, nope.”
“How is it in Tallahassee? I hear a lot about it and have always wanted to go. I just never found the time to leave the island.”
There were so many ways for her to describe her hometown. Most of those ways were pleasant and breathtaking, but all she could seem to think about when he asked was Charlie. He made some of her best memories so rotten and sour that she didn”t even want to talk about Tallahassee. Willow wasn’t even sure she wanted to go back there.
“It’s nice,” she said. “Definitely a place you’ll have to visit and get a feel for, for yourself. Everyone has a different experience with it.”
“Didn’t you grow up there?” he asked. “I’m sure you can tell me more than it’s nice.”
“I can, actually.” She let out a slight laugh. “There’s just so many memories, good and bad, it’s hard to get a grasp of which ones are worth talking about. When someone ruins something you used to love so much, it’s hard to talk about the good things.”
He looked concerned. She didn’t mean to turn their outing into something so serious, but it was the way she felt.
“I’m sorry,” Willow said. “I didn’t mean for our conversation to lead to talking about my issues.”
“No, no, it’s fine. Believe me. Sometimes I need to decompress too. I don”t talk to many people about my personal life. Well, not many that I trust to be able to handle it.”
“Really?” She didn’t take the sheriff as a man who liked to talk about his problems.
“Have you ever tried going to therapy?” she asked. “I’ve been before. It helps take the load off.”
“Like a shrink?” He chuckled. “I don’t think strangers should know anything about my life.”
Technically Tommy and Willow were still strangers, but there was a sense of familiarity between them.
“I like to keep things pretty private. At least, until I get to know someone.”
“You don’t know me,” she teased.
He smiled at her. His cheeks got rosy and he ran a hand through his hair. Willow could tell he wanted to say something sweet or romantic, but he held back.
“I get it,” she said. “You’re comfortable talking to me. It’s okay. Sometimes it takes a stranger to get you to open up more.”
“I guess so.”
He smiled again and reached over to remove something from her hair. It was a flower. Where it came from, they had no idea, but it landed right on time.
“So, what are you gonna do about your divorce?” he asked. “Surely you’re not planning to stay married to Charlie, are you?”
“Oh, no! Definitely not. I’m very ready for things to be over between us. I”m just waiting for the right time to do it. You know, like once he’s caught.” She laughed. “But I don”t have any loose ends to tie up before ending it with him for good. I don’t want something to come back years later to bite me.”
“Yeah,” he nodded. “That’s a good idea. You never know what kind of hold someone has over you.”
Slowly but surely, Tommy opened up more and more about his life. He had some interesting facts to share. Some pleasant, some not so pleasant. Either way, Willow was happy to hear them. He was soothing to talk to. Even more soothing to listen to. In a way, she guessed it was a comfort to her to know that she wasn”t the only one in the world who had issues.
Listening to the details of his past love was interesting.
“Sometimes, we tend to overlook people’s flaws because we care about them so much,” she said. “In the end, true colors always show.”
“Oh yeah? Do you have any regrets before you got married?”
Willow thought long and hard about all the things that made her want to say no before she said yes. At the time, she didn”t think any of those red flags were big deals, but in the end, they proved her wrong. Charlie ended up possessive. Secretive. At times, he love-bombed her and showed her off to keep up his image, but that was about as far as his love went for Willow. It showed the longer they stayed together, she was just too in love with him to see it.
“I had a lot of second thoughts about marrying the man I married. I wanted kids, he didn’t. I liked to be social, he often wouldn’t. I wanted to work, but he wanted me to stay home and take care of the house while he traveled the world doing God knows what.”
“Those are pretty big deals, Willow.” Tommy gave her a stern look. “He basically wanted you to be someone you didn’t want to be.”
She didn’t know how to answer without crying, so she took a few deep breaths. Crying was the last thing she wanted to do tonight.
“Why did you allow it? I know love makes us do some crazy things, but it sounds like you completely lost yourself for him.”
“You are absolutely right,” she nodded. “Looking back, I don”t know why I allowed him to change me into someone I”m not. But now, I have to remind myself of who I am.”
Tommy walked Willow home after they were done at the bar. She would have invited him inside if it wasn’t so late and she wasn’t so tired.
“Thanks for the drink,” she said. “Maybe we can get together again sometime.”
“Sure. I would like that,” he said. “Well, sleep tight. I’m gonna be on my way.”
He waited until she unlocked the door to get inside. What was supposed to be the perfect ending to the perfect night…
“Oh my God!” She gasped and covered her mouth with her hands.