Chapter 9
9
Gorgeous.
From her spot beside the lighthouse on Pelican Point, Bren smiled as the sun peeked over the hills behind her and gilded Sunrise Reef, transforming the stretched-out necklace of rocks that barely crested the cerulean surface into a shimmering gold chain worthy of a larger-than-life sea goddess.
And she had the show all to herself.
Or did she?
At a flash of movement in her peripheral vision, she looked over.
Groaned.
Why hadn’t Noah Ward slept late, like most people did on Saturday?
And what was he doing on Pelican Point Road again? Had this become his regular running route?
Unfortunately, that was a strong possibility. He came across as the type of guy who would establish a routine and follow it to the letter. No deviations allowed for a number-crunching, by-the-book, buttoned-up CPA.
Meaning she’d have to forgo her morning trips to Sunrise Reef until he left if she wanted to avoid the disconcerting feeling he stirred up in her whenever they were in close proximity.
On the plus side, his departure shouldn’t be far off. From the occasional comments Fred had dropped about his son through the years, it sounded like he was a workaholic who’d be champing at the bit to get back to his office.
Noah lifted his gaze from the pavement. Came to an abrupt stop.
Though distance made it impossible to read his expression, his body language was clear.
He wasn’t any more eager to initiate another encounter than she was.
Good.
Maybe he’d leave if she didn’t encourage him to linger.
Forcing up the corners of her mouth, she lifted a hand in greeting, then swiveled back toward the reef.
A minute passed.
Two.
The tension in her shoulders began to dissipate.
She was safe. He’d taken the reprieve she’d given him and—
At the crunch of approaching footsteps on the gravel path behind her, the tension surged back.
Dang.
He hadn’t left.
“Morning.”
Since ignoring his greeting would be rude, she filled her lungs and slowly rotated to face him. “Good morning.”
“Did you, uh, run here?” He flicked a glance at her well-broken-in everyday sport shoes.
“No. I drove.” She waved toward the parking lot, tucked among the trees near the banquet center, where her Kia was the lone occupant.
“A reef-viewing visit?”
She frowned. “How did you know that?”
“Charley mentioned it. I ran into him up here on Thursday, after you and I passed on the road.”
She transferred her weight from one foot to the other.
What else had Charley told him? When he’d stopped to offer her a ride, she’d been limping along like someone in the last stretch of a forced march.
Cheeks warming, she angled toward the burnished rocks. “I do like seeing the reef in the morning.”
“Your guest didn’t come with you?”
“I didn’t want to wake her. She was dead to the world.”
“At least you’re not—and I mean that in a literal sense.”
She swung back toward him. “Why would I be? Emma passed Lexie’s background check with flying colors.”
“There’s a first time for everything. If she has money issues, as you seem to think, that could compel her to take desperate measures. I’d advise you to lock up any valuables.”
Bren snickered. “If a heist is in her plans, she picked the wrong target. I’m not exactly rolling in jewelry or cash or electronics.”
A few beats ticked by as he studied her, only the caw of a gull overhead breaking the silence.
“So what’s the story on her car?” He removed his shades, giving her an up-close-and-personal view of eyes that were deeper blue than the water off the point today.
Her heart flip-flopped. Like it had during their two previous encounters.
Oh, for pity’s sake. Noah wasn’t even her type.
But he should be somebody’s type.
So why wasn’t he married?
Or was he? Did he have a wife or fiancée or significant other back in St. Louis who was missing him and counting the days until he—
“It wasn’t a hard question.” Noah cocked his head, expression quizzical.
Whoops.
Her cheeks heated up again as she tried to recall the thread of their conversation before she’d gotten sidetracked by irrelevant musings.
Oh yeah. Emma’s car.
“Sorry. My mind wandered for a minute. Nothing from Marv yet. I’m hoping that’s not a bad sign—for her sake.”
He slipped his glasses back on. “Be careful she doesn’t end up becoming the man who came to dinner.”
Huh?
She peered at him. “What does that mean?”
“You know—the old Bette Davis movie.”
“Bette Davis I’ve heard of. Not the movie.”
“Sorry. I always assume everyone likes old movies as much as I do. It’s a classic about a guy who comes for dinner, gets injured, and can’t be moved. He wreaks havoc in the lives of everyone in the household.”
“Emma isn’t a havoc wreaker.”
“Famous last words.”
She folded her arms. “Look ... if you’re concerned about a certain barista, don’t be. I don’t let people take advantage of me. I’m also a decent judge of character. I can spot a phony a mile away. Emma’s the real deal.”
“What makes you an expert on phonies?”
“Experience.” The response spilled out before she could stop it, etched with bitterness.
Of course Noah picked up on it.
“That doesn’t sound like a happy story.” His tone was mild, but his demeanor was somber.
She shifted her weight, waving off a persistent fly as she formulated her response. “Life isn’t always happy. Everyone has encounters with unpleasant people. If we’re smart, we learn from them. I bet you have a story or two of your own.” Perhaps turning the tables on him would end this line of discussion.
Instead, her conjecture ended more than that.
Forehead creasing, Noah took a step back. “I should get going. I promised to help my dad this morning with a deck-repair project for a family that’s down on its luck. Enjoy the view.”
With that, he spun around and took off at a fast clip back down the path.
As the distance between them grew, Bren let her arms fall back to her sides.
Considering his abrupt departure, he apparently did have a story or two of his own. Ones he didn’t want to share, any more than she wanted to spill her guts about her own background.
Fine by her. He had a right to keep his secrets.
That didn’t mean she couldn’t wonder why her comment had spooked him, however.
Whatever the reason, though, at least the perturbing fizz of electricity that sparked in the air whenever he was around was evaporating as fast as a Hope Harbor mist.
Now she could enjoy the reef in peace.
But when she turned back toward the sea, the gold had faded from the rocks. To make matters worse, the sun dipped behind a cloud and a shadow fell over the landscape, robbing the scene of its sparkle and life.
Kind of how the day felt now that Noah was gone.
She huffed out a breath.
How annoying was that?
Yet denying reality was senseless.
The truth was, Noah had gotten under her skin. Even though he was on the stuffy side, he also appeared to be a decent guy. Someone you could count on in a pinch, who knew how to get a job done and would always do the right thing in the end. Maybe with a dash of foot-dragging, in Emma’s case, but caution wasn’t always bad.
Especially in terms of men.
Noah included.
So rather than waste brainpower dissecting his character, she ought to focus on more pressing matters.
Like talking to Emma to see if she’d heard from Marv—and helping her figure out next steps if she didn’t have the funds to cover whatever repairs were necessary.
“You mean you stayed in a stranger’s house last night?”
As her brother’s pitch rose, Emma eased the cell away from her ear and wandered toward the kitchen in the cottage to refill her coffee. “It’s okay, Justin. She’s very nice, and she offered to put me in touch with her pastor as a reference.”
“Did you talk to him?”
“No. I got positive vibes from her, and this is a tiny town. Everybody knows everybody. She works in the coffee shop. Don’t worry. It was the best solution, with my car out of commission.”
“I don’t like it.”
“It’s only temporary. I could be out of here by this afternoon.”
“What if you’re not? What if your car’s dead?”
Her fingers tightened on the cell. “It’s not dead.” Or she hoped it wasn’t, anyway. “Bren said I could stay until it’s fixed.”
“What if the repairs are expensive?”
“I have money.”
“Not that much.”
“Enough to fix the car.”
“What if you don’t have anything left for eating and sleeping?”
She tried to quash the flutter of panic in the pit of her stomach. “I’ll be fine. I have to land somewhere soon, and I like this town. I might see if there are any jobs here.”
“Doing what?”
“The local café may have an opening on their waitstaff.”
“Oh, Em.” Justin’s dismay came through loud and clear across the miles. “You always wanted more than that. I remember how you used to talk about owning your own business someday.”
Yeah, she had. But that was a distant dream now. Getting guardianship for Justin was her top priority.
“That could happen at some point. At the moment, I ... oops.” Her pulse picked up. “Call coming in from the garage. I’ll touch base with you again tomorrow. Love you.” She cut Justin off and greeted Marv.
“I came in early today to give your car a going-over, Ms. Blair. It didn’t take long to find the problem. Your starter’s bad.”
She slid onto the stool at the counter that separated the kitchen from the living room. Braced. “How much will that set me back?”
“Somewhere in the neighborhood of $500.”
Bad ... but it could be worse. There would still be a small amount of cushion in her nest egg.
“How soon can you have it finished?”
“I’ll have to source the part first. Equipment for older cars is harder to find. If I can locate what I need fast and get it here quick, I could have the starter job done by early next week. But I found other problems too. Did you notice the white smoke coming from the exhaust?”
Her stomach knotted. “No.”
“Has she been idling rough?”
“Sometimes.”
“That’s what I figured. You’ve also got a bad head gasket.”
As he proceeded to explain the situation in gory detail, then moved on to issues he’d found with the brakes and struts, she closed her eyes. Squeezed the bridge of her nose.
This was getting worse by the minute.
And when he gave her the estimate to remedy all the defects, she almost lost the bagel she’d eaten for breakfast.
“I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news. I know that’s a chunk of change.”
No kidding.
“Yeah. Way more than I expected.”
“I’ll do everything I can to keep costs as low as possible, but there’s a fair amount of labor involved.”
She swallowed.
If she made all the repairs he’d outlined, not only would her cushion be gone, her bank account would be on fumes.
“I, uh, need to think about this.”
“I understand. It’s a sizeable amount to put into an older car with high mileage. I’m not trying to lose myself a job, but would you want to think about trading her in for another vehicle instead of sinking a lot of money into repairs?”
Yes, she would. But with the price of used cars and her limited financial resources, that wasn’t a realistic alternative.
“No. I want to keep this one.” She moistened her lips. “If you only fix the starter, would it be drivable?”
“For a while—but I wouldn’t recommend it. The gasket’s about to blow, and suspension problems can escalate, leading to bigger and more expensive issues down the road. The bad brakes are also a safety hazard.”
She couldn’t argue with anything he’d said.
“I’ll tell you what. Why don’t you plan to fix the starter, and I’ll think about everything else over the weekend?”
“That’ll work. Let me know once you make a decision.”
“I will. Thanks.”
After ending the call, Emma set the phone on the counter and wove her shaky fingers together. Squeezed until her knuckles whitened. Tried to quash her panic and get her muddled brain in gear.
She had to think through her options, what few there were, and talk to Bren. The other woman may have said she was welcome to stay longer if necessary, but surely Bren would get tired of the inconvenience of someone sleeping in her living room and sharing her bathroom.
Emma choked back a sob.
She ought to leave rather than take advantage of Bren’s hospitality.
But short of a homeless shelter or park bench, where else could she sleep until she found a place to live? And she wouldn’t be able to find a place to live until she had a job. No one would rent to her unless she had steady employment.
So priority number one was getting a job.
Expelling a shaky breath, she slid off the stool. Rubbed her damp palms down her jeans. Tried to psych herself up for the challenge ahead.
Maybe fate would be kind. Maybe, by the time she shared the bad news about her car with Bren, she’d also have a job in hand and a definite departure date to pass on so the woman who’d befriended her wouldn’t have to worry that she’d inherited a permanent moocher.
If she didn’t?
She’d have to put this in God’s hands and hope for the best.