Chapter 6
CHAPTER SIX
Dean checked his hair in the mirror of his bathroom. It was a little messy, as it usually was, but after combing it down a little he decided he looked presentable enough. He knew Noelle liked the way his hair always looked slightly tousled, so it didn’t matter that it looked a little messy now.
He’d spent the morning working at Main Street Auto, but at lunchtime he’d left the shop in the hands of his capable employees and gone home to take the rest of the day off.
Because of his early-onset osteoarthritis, he needed to rest frequently.
Now that he had so many great mechanics working for him, he was able to do that more often and it had greatly improved his energy levels and overall wellness.
Now that it was later in the afternoon, he was planning on taking a short walk over to the physical therapy clinic where his girlfriend, Noelle, worked. He wanted to surprise her at work with flowers and a beverage that she liked.
He smiled to himself as he stepped outside and began to walk down the sidewalk.
The leaves on the trees were just beginning to turn vibrant shades of red and yellow, as if the natural world was beginning to blush.
There was a crisp scent in the air, and the wind was cool enough to make him shiver a little even in the warmth of the sunlight.
Dean decided that he should put on a warmer jacket before walking all the way to the physical therapy clinic.
He popped back inside his house and put on his favorite black leather jacket, which Noelle had bought him for Christmas.
She said he looked like the main character in an eighties movie whenever he put it on, and he liked wearing it for her.
Besides, it did an excellent job of cutting out the wind and keeping him warm.
He set off again, enjoying the sights and smells around him.
It was a beautiful day, and he saw several flocks of birds beginning to fly south as he walked.
His spirits were light, since he always loved going to see his girlfriend.
She could make even the dreariest of days seem as though they were full of sunshine.
He stopped at the local general store and picked up a beautiful bouquet of pink and yellow roses.
They reminded him of Noelle, who loved bright colors, especially pink.
Then he set off in search of a beverage to bring to her.
She loved all kinds of drinks—kombuchas, teas, coffee, boba tea, and artisan sodas.
He finally decided on a lavender elderberry kombucha for her, although he refrained from buying one for himself.
He’d never really understood why other people liked kombuchas so much, although he knew they were supposed to be good for you.
Bearing his gifts in hand, he made his way to Noelle’s office. He knew that she had a break in between clients starting in the next five minutes, and he was determined to arrive on time so that he could surprise her as soon as her break started.
He stepped inside the physical therapy clinic, which had a lobby that had been charmingly decorated for fall and which smells spicily of essential oils.
He knew that Noelle was responsible for all of that, and he felt proud of the beautiful job his girlfriend had done.
The lobby always looked tidy and charming, but Dean thought to himself that it looked best during autumn—that and of course Christmastime.
He was very familiar with the physical therapy clinic because he was still a patient there himself because of his osteoarthritis.
He’d switched to the other P.T., Chip, before asking Noelle out on their first date.
Chip was fun and just as qualified as Noelle was, and Dean liked to go to physical therapy not only because it made him feel better, but because he was usually able to swing by Noelle’s office and say hello to her quickly before her next client arrived.
He made his way to her office door and knocked softly.
“Come in!” she called cheerfully.
He grinned to himself, knowing that Noelle probably thought he was Chip or the receptionist stopping by to ask her a question. He stepped to the side of the door and pushed it open slowly before ducking fully out of sight.
There was a short pause, and Noelle called out, “Um, hello?”
“Surprise!” Dean jumped into the doorway, holding up the bouquet of flowers. “I came to visit you.”
Noelle shrieked with surprise and delight and stood up to hug him. “Dean!” she cried eagerly. “I had no idea you were going to show up today.”
“That’s why I said surprise,” he said gleefully, nuzzling her nose. “Look, I bought these for you.”
Her cheeks flushed with happiness as she took the flowers from him. “They’re absolutely beautiful,” she said, inhaling the scent of the roses as if she was drinking it in. “You shouldn’t have.”
“Oh, I definitely should have. You have been so patient with me during all the times I barely had any energy for our relationship. The least I can do is pamper you now that I do have the energy.”
She smiled up at him, her eyes warm and soft.
Dean knew that if she could have moved mountains for him, she would have.
She had been instrumental in encouraging him to commit to his physical therapy when he first began it.
It was her determination and kind spirit that had made him feel as though the hard work of physical therapy would be worth it.
He’d seen right away what an incredible person she was, and they had quickly become friends.
It didn’t take long for that friendship to blossom into love, and Dean thanked his lucky stars every day that she had fallen for him just as intensely as he’d fallen for her.
“What do you want to do on your break?” he asked her. “We could go for a walk or just sit and talk for a while. Or play checkers.” Dean had a checkers app on his phone, and he liked to play on it with Noelle.
“That all sounds wonderful,” she said. “I’d love to get some sunshine. Let me put these gorgeous roses into a vase and then I’ll throw a jacket on. We can walk down to the town square and play checkers for a while.”
“Perfect.” He grinned. “And while we’re out, you can drink this lavender elderberry kombucha I bought you.”
She gasped and took it into her hands as if it was made of precious metal. “This is my favorite flavor! How did you know?”
He shrugged, feeling thrilled he’d been so spot-on. “Lucky guess.”
“Aren’t you a clever man. We can split it.”
Dean shook his head. “No, I’m good, thanks. I’ll grab a bottled coffee out of the vending machine while you’re putting those flowers in a vase.”
A few minutes later, they were out in the sunshine together. Noelle had her arm linked through Dean’s, and she took deep breaths of the fresh air eagerly.
“Oh, it’s such a beautiful day,” she said. “I love my patients, but this is so much better than being cooped up inside. I can’t wait until it’s fully autumn. Autumn in Rosewood Beach is so beautiful.”
“So beautiful,” he echoed, looking down at her adoringly, and she bit her lip as she blushed.
They spent a wonderful time together sitting in the gazebo playing checkers.
Noelle drank her entire kombucha in about ten minutes, while Dean sipped his coffee more slowly.
Too soon, it was time for Noelle to start walking back to work.
Dean walked with her and dropped her off on the doorstep of the physical therapy clinic with a kiss.
“See you later?” she said, squeezing his hand.
“See you later.” He kissed her a second time.
“Thank you again for the roses. They’re going to keep me company all day, looking gorgeous and smelling gorgeous and reminding me of you.”
They waved to each other as she slipped back inside. Dean slowly turned away from the clinic, sighing like a schoolboy. He still couldn’t believe he was as lucky as he was to have found Noelle.
He strolled slowly back toward his place, taking in the charming sights of Rosewood Beach as he went. He was pausing in front of a public herb garden when he heard someone call his name.
“Dean!”
He turned and saw Jacob Dorsey heading in his direction. Dean grinned as soon as he recognized him. He’d always been fond of Jacob, but now that the other man was dating his twin sister Hazel, Dean thought of him as more of a brother than a friend.
“How’s it going?” Dean asked, clapping Jacob on the back as he gave him a hug. “What brings you out here to the sidewalks?”
“I was just taking a look at Mrs. Dilber’s sink,” Jacob said, tapping the side of his backpack, which was clearly heavy with tools. “My truck is parked over there.”
Dean turned and saw Jacob’s handyman truck parked across the street. Although it was an older vehicle and a little on the dirty side, he knew that Jacob took great care of it. His friend had only taken it into Main Street Auto once, and that had been to replace the transmission.
“Ah. How’s her sink?”
“Dead. I need to bury it and replace it with a living one.” Jacob grinned at his joke, and Dean groaned appreciatively. “What about you? You look like you’re on cloud nine.”
“I am.” Dean laughed. “I was just stopping by the P.T. clinic to spend time with Noelle on her break. My day always gets a hundred and ten percent better whenever I see her.”
“You’ve got it bad, huh?”
“You’re a fine one to talk. I’ve seen the way you look at my sister.”
Jacob shrugged, although Dean could see a small flush rising to his cheeks. “Guilty.”
“But you’re right. I do have it bad. I don’t think the elation I feel when I see her will ever subside.”
Jacob chuckled. “You are clearly head over heels. And if my guess is correct, Rosewood Beach’s finest mechanic is going to do something about that sooner rather than later.”
“Who’s Rosewood Beach’s finest mechanic?” Dean asked, feigning innocence.
“You.” Jacob punched Dean in the shoulder.
“Aww, thank you.”
“So, am I right?”
“About what?”
“Come on, Dean.”
Dean grinned. “Yeah, you’re darn right. I think about proposing to her all the time. I know I want to marry her—if I thought she’d agree to it that suddenly, I’d marry her tomorrow.”
Jacob grinned as he clapped his friend on the shoulder.
“You’d better get to it, then. I would have proposed to Hazel already, but after her first marriage she wants to approach that level of commitment more carefully, which I completely understand.
But Noelle wants to get married, I know she does—I’ve overheard her saying as much to Julia when they were talking about wedding planning. So—you should get to it.”
Dean’s face lit up with a wide grin. “I fully intend to.”
Jacob pretended to salute Dean, and the two men parted ways after checking that they would both be at the next Owens family dinner night.
Dean’s imagination was filled with bright images as he continued on his way.
The conversation with Jacob had lifted his spirits even further, and it had solidified his resolve.
He was going to propose to Noelle, and he felt full of anticipation for that moment, and all the moments that would come after it.
He went on his way with a spring in his step, feeling fully confident in what he intended to do.