Chapter 10
TEN
Leilani
Two weeks after my first meeting over pizza with Remy, I'm in my business with a new set of tables and chairs I'd ordered. They're plain wood.
Remy keeps threatening to get one of those tats, by the way. He says he'll only get one if I do, and I won't lie, I'm tempted. We probably would have by now, had there been a tattoo shop in town.
I'm in a good mood, bopping around to my Yacht Rock playlist that's coming from the Wi-Fi speaker.
Remy's supposed to meet me here to help me discuss the furniture, but not for another hour.
He's been such a sweetheart these past couple of weeks, patiently answering all of my questions about the island, introducing me to contractors, and helping me move things around.
He even gave his opinion on what color I should paint the walls. (Aqua, a color that made me cringe).
I don't get the impression that he's some incredible business mastermind who's going to take the stock market by storm anytime soon, but that's okay.
I chatter away about my business and he listens, offering his opinions, though he doesn't get defensive if I don't choose his preference. (I chose to paint the bar white).
We're in the friend zone together. And he's my only friend here in Cypress Grove so far, if you don't count the nice realtor who leased the bar to me and has brought over muffins on two occasions.
Somehow, Remy and I have been able to keep our attraction at bay. Just barely, though. There are times when we look at each other and I'm convinced we're going to kiss, when every inch of my body feels tingly.
When that happens, I make a joke. Or grab a cold drink. Or step several feet away. Because I'm reminded of my mother and how I don't want to be like her, falling for every man that comes along.
But I can't stop the feelings I have when Remy and I are together.
Take two days ago, when we were going over the liquor license forms. We were here at Mermosa.
Our shoulders brushed against one another's.
He looked over, I looked over, and for a solid minute, we stared at each other.
A minute's a long time to look into someone's eyes. It's like an eternity.
I felt him leaning in, as if seeking a kiss, and I jumped away like a cat touching an unexpected worm with its paw. I don't want to risk this friendship, especially not for a fleeting fling. And not with someone like Remy, who clearly never wants to settle down.
While he's classy enough not to talk about his past conquests, I hear how he talks about his brothers settling down.
It's obvious that he doesn't envision a life for himself like that.
And honestly, I'm glad. A friend is okay.
A man who wants me to cook, clean, and be a stand-in for his mother? Nope. Not for me.
So Remy and I are friends. With no benefits. Although, I've wondered if we could work something out in that department. Could we somehow make a pact that our friendship wouldn't change even if we were to give in to whatever this is?
Because I want him. There. I admit it.
But men get weird about stuff like that. Like when I'd first met Brent, I'd hoped to keep it casual. But he'd wanted so much, so fast, and I was swept up in the excitement of it all. So, with Remy, I'm keeping my mouth firmly shut.
As I'm dabbing at my forehead with a napkin and wondering if the air conditioner should be serviced, the door swings open, allowing the bright, afternoon sun to leak inside the dark bar.
It's jarring, because I usually keep the lights low in the afternoon, partially to save energy, and also because it makes the space feel cooler.
I look up, expecting to see Remy.
Instead, it's a woman. She has long, blonde hair, almost platinum, except for a fuchsia streak in front. She steps inside, and I'm surprised when she's followed by three other women.
And a dog. A pudgy little pug.
"Welcome," I offer cautiously. "Unfortunately we're not open yet."
The blonde comes over to me, setting a messenger bag on the bar. "We haven't met, but I've heard all about you. I'm Natalia Hastings, Remy's sister."
"Oh!" I ball up the napkin and leave it on the table. "He's told me all about you. You're the one who creates the beautiful jewelry. Look!"
I hold out my wrist, showing her the silver bangle with a delicate starfish. "Remy gave this to me. Said you made it. I told him to tell you that I love it. It was such a thoughtful gift. He totally didn't have to."
Natalia exchanges a smirk with one of the women. "No, he didn't, and Remy usually doesn't give things like that to women. Which is why I wanted to meet you. And I wanted to bring the welcome wagon. Figured you'd want to get to know locals other than my weirdo brother."
I giggle. She looks nothing like Remy, but her laid-back, brash attitude is very similar.
She gestures to a familiar-looking woman wearing jeans, flip-flops, and a black T-shirt that says Lime and Salt in cursive. "This is Kate. She runs the tiki hut, at the springs."
"I know you — the tiki bar owner. Hang on, let me turn the music down," I say, going for my phone and tapping. I go over to Kate and shake her hand. "It's nice to see you again. You're married to Remy's twin, right? And you were at the Chamber meeting, I think?"
"Sure am and sure was."
Natalia stands between the other two women. She rests her hand on the shoulder of a woman wearing an expensive-looking romper and gold wedges. Totally glamorous.
"This is Lauren. She's dating my brother Max.
And this," she waves her hand in the direction of a woman with pin-straight hair and a pink polo, "is Isabella.
She's with my brother Tate and works at the turtle sanctuary.
So, you four can all talk about my brothers.
Save the gushy stuff for when I'm not present, though. "
We all grin, and I shake Lauren and Isabella's hands.
"You were on the platform that day with Remy and Tate." I gesture toward Isabella, who is holding a small paper bag with twine handles, emblazoned with the logo of Ice Ice Baby, the coffee shop.
"Yes! You are such a great swimmer. I loved watching you and can't wait to see what you turn this into.
" Her eyes go around the bar. There's something unusual about Isabella, like she's from another country.
She has a formal way of speaking that I can't quite grasp.
Maybe she's from a remote part of England?
"And this little one — is this your dog?" I bend down and hold out my hand toward the pug.
"That's Steve," Isabella says. "He's Tate's dog. Well, our dog, but the whole family shares him."
The dog waddles over and I pet his velvety head. I look up at the women. "I think I'm in love."
Natalia rolls her eyes. "Watch out, or my mom's going to add you to the dog-sitting list. He now has his own Google calendar."
I stand and cock my head. "Why?"
Natalia shrugs. "He apparently can't be left alone. It's one of those mysteries of Cypress Grove. Like Jack's Grocery."
"Huh?" I ask. "What about it? That's where I've been shopping."
"No one knows why it's called Jack's Grocery. No one named Jack has ever owned it," Kate chimes in.
I nod, not quite getting it.
"My mother thinks that Steve should never be on his own. We don't really know why, and can't get a good explanation out of her. So, we all pass him around. I assume that this will all change when one of these women bears a Hastings grandbaby." Natalia shoots Lauren a pointed look.
"Don't look at me," she yelps.
I press my hands to my chest. "I'm so rude. Do y'all want something to drink? I have some sodas and beer in the cooler."
Lauren nods thoughtfully. "It is Saturday at three."
"Which means it's five o'clock somewhere," Natalia responds.
"It's always five o'clock in Cypress Grove, so beers it is," says Kate.
I practically skip to the cooler, where I have a six-pack of Remy's favorite beer. I'd hoped to surprise him when he came over today, but cracking one open with these women seems like an excellent idea.
When I come back out, they've settled around the lone, oval table. I begin popping tops, handing out the beers.
"Thanks for coming over like this. That's really kind. I've been working non-stop to get this place going, so I haven't had time to meet many people yet."
"To mermaids," Lauren says, holding up her beer.
"To a woman who tears my brother's interest away from bass fishing," Nat retorts.
We all clink glasses and drink. "I dunno about that. Anyway, we're just friends."
The raised eyebrows and small smiles tell me that these women think otherwise.
Which makes me giggle. I miss having girlfriends, since I'd had so many at the park.
But because I didn't want Brent to know where I was going, I'd told only one woman where I was headed, and she'd promised to keep my new location a secret.
For the next half hour, we talk about the bar and what I'm going to do with it. Turns out that Lauren has a huge social media presence and is teaching local businesses how to leverage Instagram. Mermosa is tailor-made for social media, she tells me.
"Let's do a video where you teach me how to swim as a mermaid," she squeals.
"I love that! Yes."
"I just created a whole social media calendar for another business here. Have you heard of Salty Sadie's Pirate Cruise?"
I nod. "I've seen the brochures around town."
Lauren talks excitedly about what she did for Sadie Greco, and I notice that Isabella's taken out what looks like a T-shirt.
"We could do the photo shoot here," she says to Kate. "The white walls would be a great backdrop."
Everyone turns toward Isabella. "What are you taking photos of?" I ask.
She holds up the small shirt, which is printed to look like a tuxedo. "We were going to put Steve in this shirt and take photos. It's Ginger Hastings' birthday, the mom of all of them," she gestures at the other women, "and we thought we could put him on the party invite."
I burst out laughing. "Does he like dog clothing?"
"Steve likes whatever people like. He's quite an amenable little man," Isabella answers.
"You know, I recently saw another funny dog costume on Facebook." I point to the coffee shop bag.
"Tell us," Natalia says.
"Hang on. I think I have the other props." I get up and walk behind the bar. It doesn't take me long to grab scissors, tape, a long rubber band, a hole punch, and a clean, white, plastic, coffee lid.
I set them on the table in front of the four women. "I'm kind of into stationery, so I have a lot of craft tools," I say.
They nod. "We are your people," replies Lauren. "I've become a planner addict."
"Can I have the café bag?" I ask.
Isabella hands it to me. Over the next fifteen minutes, I explain the dog costume that I saw online, and by the time we're putting it on Steve, we're laughing uncontrollably.
The door swings open, and we all look up.
"Well, well. Look who it is. My little brother." Natalia's settling the coffee cup on Steve's head, like a hat.
"Well, well, well, what's happening here?" Remy grins and walks to the table. I open the final beer and hand it to him.
"Thanks. Oh, no. No. What are you doing to that poor dog?" He looks down at Steve.
I giggle. "He's a..." I can't talk because I'm laughing so hard. Remy puts his hand on the small of my back.
"He's a Pug-kin..." Kate rests her head on the table in hysterics.
Lauren sets the dog on his feet. She's wrapped the paper bag around his midsection so that the coffee cup logo is on his back. The lid is perched on his head. He looks up with his adorable, bulging eyes.
"A Pug-kin spice latte," she says through her cackles.
Remy groans and laughs, turning to face me. Something about the scene, how relaxed it is, how close he's standing, makes me giddy. I lean into him, pressing my face into his chest. Prickles of awareness flow through my body. Gah.
He laughs against my hair, and then kisses my forehead. Oh, mercy. Forehead kisses make me melt. There's something both sweet and sexy about them. And the fact that he did it in front of his family and friends… yikes.