Chapter Forty-One
CHAPTER FORTY-ONE
Riley called the law firm Monday morning and accepted the position. She let Jack know that night and he was excited for her.
“You’re going to love it here. It’s a great firm. Good people. I’ll get us an extra-good bottle of champagne to celebrate on New Year’s Eve.”
His enthusiasm was contagious and lifted some of the doubt she’d been struggling with. Especially since her conversation with Aidan the night before. But she felt that she had to do the responsible thing and at least give the position a shot.
Riley found her mother in the kitchen, sipping coffee and reading emails. She told her she’d accepted the role and Beth was quiet for a moment, then nodded.
“That would be a difficult opportunity to pass up.” She smiled at Riley reassuringly. “And if doesn’t work out, you can always find something else.”
Riley relaxed a bit. Her mother was right. And there was always the possibility that she might love the job.
Later that day she went with her mother to the doctor and Beth was able to swap the cast for a brace. Her mother found that much easier to deal with, especially since she knew it was just for a few more weeks.
Riley finished up Donna’s project on Monday afternoon and started on Sean’s the day after. She called him in the morning and asked him a bunch of questions about his business. He followed up with an email with more details and also the kinds of projects he enjoyed working on the most. Riley spent the next two days mapping out a content marketing strategy for his website and writing blog posts and marketing materials that would hopefully result in people finding him when they searched on the internet.
It kept her busy until Friday when she was planning to head home to Manhattan, with Lily. She was actually looking forward to getting back, going shopping, going to the New Year’s Eve party and then to work the following week. Maybe once she was settled and everything was back to normal, she’d stop thinking about Aidan and Luke so much.
Joe called Franny first thing Tuesday morning and confirmed that she would come to his house for dinner that evening.
“I’m looking forward to it. What can I bring?”
“I don’t need a thing. Just you,” he said.
She laughed. “I’m not coming empty-handed. Do you like red wine or would white be better?”
He thought for a moment. “For what I’m making a creamy Chardonnay would be nice, I think. But if you prefer red, that would be fine, too.”
“Chardonnay it is. I’ll see you tonight.”
Franny dressed carefully that evening. She wore her best rose-pink sweater. She’d always thought it brought out the pink in her cheeks. She paired it with a long, slim, black wool skirt and a string of pearls. For a final touch she added a splash of the perfume she’d been wearing since high school, Chanel. She wondered if Joe would remember it.
She left the inn and drove to Joe’s house. She had done a dry run the day before so she knew that it would take her about eighteen minutes to get there. Joe lived in a modest house with a big yard on a cul-de-sac. She could see when she drove by in the afternoon that it looked like he had a garden in the backyard. Joe had always loved gardening.
She pulled into his driveway right on time and shivered a bit as she walked to the front door. But it was from nerves, not the cold. This felt big, that they’d found each other again after so many years. And she wasn’t sure what it meant. She was excited to find out, though. She was just thrilled to have Joe back in her life, however that would be.
She knocked on the door and he opened it wide a moment later. Joe was wearing a big white apron over his baby-blue sweater. He had always looked good in blue, but now it really popped against his white hair. He pulled her in for a hug.
“I’m so excited to see you. I woke up Christmas Day and I wondered at first if seeing you in the shop was just a dream. Was my Franny really coming to dinner? I’m so glad you’re here. Let me take your coat.”
Franny stepped inside, shrugged her coat off, and handed it to him, along with her hat and mittens and then she followed him into the kitchen. Something delicious-smelling was bubbling away on the stove.
“It’s my version of coq au vin—chicken stew made with white wine. That’s why I thought Chardonnay might be good.”
Franny handed him the bottle. She’d kept it in her mini-refrigerator so it was nice and cold. Joe opened it and poured them both a glass. He had a small bowl of salted nuts and some cheese and crackers on a slate tray.
“Let’s go in the other room and sit for a bit before dinner.” He carried his wine and the cheese tray into his living room, which had a big window. Although it was getting dark, she could still see that it overlooked a pond and beyond that, she guessed that there might be a glimpse of the harbor.
“I can see the ocean a little,” Joe confirmed. “I like the pond view, too. It’s relaxing and there are often people fishing or on small boats. Or even paddleboarding. That’s gotten popular on the ponds now that there are so many sharks in the ocean.”
They sipped their wine and chatted for over an hour before they decided to eat. There was just so much to talk about and they continued the conversation over dinner. Franny felt like she could talk to Joe all night and in some ways it was like the years disappeared in an instant. They’d always connected that way. There was never a lull in conversation and often the conversation moved so fast that they rushed to get the words out. And more than once they finished each other’s sentences and laughed.
Franny told him all about her marriage. “We met in college and it was love right away for us both. We felt very lucky and we had a long and mostly very happy marriage. I helped him with the business and we both enjoyed that. We never had kids. It just never happened for us. We were disappointed at first but we lived busy lives. We went out often and we traveled quite a bit. It has been ten years now for me. I still miss him. But I’m used to being alone now and I really don’t mind it.”
“I didn’t think that I minded it either. My story is similar. I had a good marriage. We had a lot of love and respect for each other. And we were blessed with one child, a boy. He’s married, but they don’t have kids yet. She’s a nice girl. I’ve been telling them how beautiful it is here and I’m hopeful that if they spend more time here maybe I can at least get them to consider the East Coast. I would love to see them more often.”
“Have they been out here yet?” Franny asked.
“Not yet. They promised to spend their vacation here in July. I’m going to take some time off then as well. I have some great people that can cover for me in the shop. I’m looking forward to playing tourist and showing them all around Chatham. If you’re in town then, I’d love for you to meet them.” He looked at her hopefully and Franny felt her heart melt.
“I’d love to meet them and I’m planning to spend the summer here. Honestly, now that I’ve bought my house, I’m not in any hurry to head back to Albany. Maybe I’ll stay a little longer.”
His eyes lit up. “I don’t dare to hope, but I would love if you extended your stay.” He reached out and took her hand. “Now that we’ve found each other again, I just want to spend more time with you. I feel like we have so much more to catch up on. And I’ve always just liked being around you, Franny. You know that. That hasn’t changed.”
Franny squeezed his hand gently. “I feel the same way. I still can’t believe that my sister read that article and brought us together again. It just feels…”
“Meant to be,” Joe said and they both smiled at each other.
Franny didn’t want the night to end, but by ten they were both fighting yawns and she reluctantly said she should go.
Joe walked her to the door and looked deeply into her eyes. “Franny, it may be a little bold to say, but I want us to be more than friends. Now that we’ve reconnected, I don’t want to waste a minute. How do you feel?”
Franny smiled and felt sheer happiness and joy. “I feel the same way.”
She saw the same emotions reflected in his eyes as well as a bit of relief. He smiled wide before pulling her into his arms and giving her a sweet kiss that she felt all the way to her toes. She sighed happily when the kiss finally ended.
“Good night, Franny. I’ll call you tomorrow and we’ll make a plan to meet again—very soon.”