Chapter Thirty-Six
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
Beth had a great time shopping in Hyannis with Sean. They went to Macy’s at the Cape Cod Mall where Sean helped her to pick out a pretty pink cashmere cardigan for Riley and she helped him choose sweaters for his two girls. She also helped him decide on a gold bracelet for his mother. They each found a few other gifts as well and when they were done, Sean led Beth to the gift-wrapping station in the middle of the mall.
She laughed but happily had them wrap all her gifts, too. “I’ve always done this myself, but it’s one less thing to worry about.”
“It’s so worth it,” he agreed.
When they were done with their shopping, they went across the street to the Tiki Port Chinese restaurant and split a few dishes. Beth hadn’t been there in ages and it was still as good as she remembered. She dunked a chicken finger in some duck sauce and wondered why she didn’t get Chinese food more often. It was such a treat when she did.
“So, you’re heading off-Cape tomorrow afternoon?” Beth asked. Sean had mentioned that he was going to stay with one of his daughters for the holiday.
“Yeah, my mother and I will probably head up there midday. One sister is hosting tomorrow night and the other is doing Christmas Day. I’ll be home late Sunday night if we don’t stay over and come back Monday. That’s still up in the air.”
Beth had a great time again with Sean. It was just so easy with him. It almost seemed too good to be true. She didn’t want to get her hopes up too soon, but she was enjoying spending time with him. And she hoped it would continue.
When Sean excused himself to use the restroom, Beth flagged their server and gave him her credit card to pay the bill. He brought it over for her signature as Sean was sitting back down.
“What did you do?” he asked and seemed shocked that she’d paid the bill.
“I told you I wanted to treat. It was my pleasure.” She echoed the phrase he often said, and she meant it. It felt good to do something nice for him.
He smiled and gave her hand a squeeze. “Thank you. You know the whole time I dated Marcy she never once even offered to pay.”
They headed back to Chatham and when they reached Beth’s house, Sean grabbed her bags and carried them to the door.
“Do you want to come inside for a bit?” Beth asked.
“Sure. I’ll carry these in for you. I have something I want to give you, as well.”
They went inside and Beth saw that the TV was off and that Riley had gone up to bed.
“Would you like a coffee or a tea?” Beth asked.
He smiled. “No. I can’t stay long. I just wanted to give you a little something. And wish you a Merry Christmas.” He reached in his pocket and pulled out a small, gift-wrapped rectangular box. He handed it to Beth. She opened it care fully and sighed when she saw what it was—a delicate charm bracelet with a little inn and a bookcase. It looked similar to the one he’d just built. It was adorable.
“Sean, I love it. Thank you!” She leaned in and gave him a kiss. He pulled her closer and held her. The kiss went on for a bit, until Beth pulled back.
“I have something for you, too. It’s just something small that made me think of you.” She pulled the gift-wrapped book out of her tote bag and handed it to Sean.
He looked happily surprised as he carefully unwrapped the gift and then turned it over to see the cover and read the title aloud. “ Beautiful Woodworking. ” He flipped it open and looked at a few pages. “This is awesome. It will look great on my coffee table and maybe I’ll get some good ideas from it.”
Beth had ordered the coffee table book from Amazon and wrapped it earlier that day. She didn’t think she’d see Sean again before Christmas so she’d stuck it into her tote bag.
He pulled her in again for a thank-you kiss and it went on and on. Finally, they ended the kiss and just stared into each other’s eyes for a long moment. “I’ll call you next week. Have a very Merry Christmas, Beth.”
“You, too.”
She walked him to the door and they kissed again before he headed to his truck and drove off. She watched him go and felt like she missed him already.