I let myself sleep in after my long night at the bar. I’d waitressed during the dinner shift, which hadn’t been as bad as I thought it would be. Sarah had been right about it all coming back, and Melanie, the waitress who’d been assigned to train me, had been friendly and extremely helpful. After a while, she realized that I didn’t need much training, and she threw me behind the bar to learn the ropes.
It was easy at first. The bar was slow during dinner and mostly consisted of making drink orders for the waitresses; however, once the tables were cleared and the place went from “restaurant” to “bar”, it got a little hectic. It took me a while to get the hang of things and find my rhythm, but once I did, it went smoother than I thought it would.
The Seaside had a great atmosphere, and everyone was really welcoming and fun to be around. Staying busy meant the night flew by, and I went home with a nice stack of tips. All in all, I liked working there.
Of course, working at the bar also meant that I would have no choice but to deal with idiots and a*sholes on a daily basis, like the jerk from the beach. Melanie told me that he was a regular who never went home from the bar alone and never with the same girl twice. None of that came as a shock to me. In fact, it only confirmed my assumptions about him. Melanie also mentioned that he typically steered clear of the girls who worked there, and she was shocked to see him direct his “attention” toward me. Whatever. I wasn’t about to analyze the situation. I had no idea what kind of game he was playing, but I did know that was all it was… and I didn’t want any part of it.
I was meeting my old roommate and friend, Nora Montgomery, for lunch, and I couldn’t wait to finally see her. Of course, I’d called her while I was on my way down south, but she was a songwriter and had been in Nashville recording a new song. She’d only come back last night. I hadn’t had a chance to fill her in on my whole situation. I knew she was eager to catch up and find out why I’d all of a sudden ditched my fiancé and my life in New York in order to move to a place that I’d only visited a couple of times. We certainly had a lot to talk about. With all the sudden changes that had occurred in my life, I was glad to have one relationship that I could count on.
Nora and her boyfriend, Jake, were living in her grandmother’s house in Charleston. It was the house we’d stayed in when we came down here during our college breaks, and I couldn’t imagine a more wonderful place to live. It was on Bay Street, right downtown, and was one of those great historic houses with big white columns and a front porch complete with rocking chairs. It looked like something out of a magazine.
As soon as I stepped out of my car, Nora came barreling down the front steps, her long brown hair flowing behind her as she threw her arms around me in a hug.
“Liv!” she cried out happily. “I can’t believe you’re here!”
“You have no idea how happy I am to see you!” I said, giving her a squeeze before releasing her and following her toward the house. “How are you?”
I had missed this girl. She was truly the sweetest and most genuine person I’d ever met, just as beautiful on the inside as she was on the outside. It was such a relief to see her, and I could feel my eyes welling with tears. I didn’t realize until now just how desperate I was to have someone familiar to talk to.
“Never been better,” she smiled. “But right now, it’s your turn to spill. What the heck happened?”
Nora ushered me up the steps to the front porch, and we settled into the rocking chairs. I filled her in on the whole story, from beginning to end, while she listened with rapt attention. Her face filled with rage when I got to the part about catching Steven with another woman.
“Ugh! I always knew he was a slimeball. I knew it!” she when I was finished. “He got his claws into you early, like he knew that you were too good for him and he had to make sure no one else ever had a chance. Then, he was always dictating what you should wear and what classes you should take… God, I hate that guy!”
I couldn’t help but smile at how caring she was. I’d always known that she wasn’t a huge fan of Steven, but she kept it to herself because I told her that I was happy. I should have known that someone like Nora, who never disliked anyone without good reason, was right about him.
“You know what?” Nora continued. “I’m glad you’re done with him. He’ll get what’s coming to him, and now you can finally find someone who really deserves you and treats you right. As hard as it is, you’re so much better off!”
“I know,” I nodded. “It didn’t take me long to realize that I wasn’t truly happy with him and with my life there. I never let myself admit it though, because I was too scared to start over. Now that I’m here… I’m actually excited for a new beginning. I can do whatever I want now, without worrying about accommodating someone else or disappointing them. My life is finally about me.”
“I’m so proud of you, Liv,” she said, squeezing my hand. “You’re the strongest, bravest person I’ve ever known. There’s no doubt in my mind that you will be just fine.”
“Thanks, but I’m hardly brave—” I abruptly stopped talking when I caught the glimmer off of Nora’s left hand. “Holy shit!” I grabbed her hand and held up the stunning diamond ring to inspect it. “You let me go on and on about that idiot Steven Chambers and didn’t even tell me you’re engaged?”
Nora grinned. “I was going to tell you! I was just waiting for the right time…”
“Details, now!” I squealed, barely able to contain my excitement. I was beyond thrilled for my friend. No one deserved happiness more than Nora.
She and Jake had been high school sweethearts. Nora’s dad had never approved of them together, and orchestrated their breakup before Nora left for NYU. She nursed her broken heart all through college; never getting involved with anyone else and avoiding going back home where she would see him. After we graduated, she finally returned home to Beaufort, and it was clear that neither of them had ever moved on. When the truth about their breakup finally came out, they picked up where they’d left off in high school and had been living together happily ever since. Once Nora worked things out with her father, she was finally able to pursue her dream of being a songwriter. Now she was going to Nashville once a month to record her songs, and several had already been picked up by various artists. Jake had proposed to her last week before they left for the trip. It was easy to see just how happy she was. I hadn’t met him yet, but considering all the great stuff that Nora had told me about him, I knew I would like him.
The Nora who was sitting next to me now was an entirely different person than the one I’d lived with for four years of school. She’d always been wonderful, but there had been a veil of sadness below the surface. Despite how well she hid it, it lingered underneath the smiles and the laughter. There wasn’t even the slightest hint of it now. Everything about her radiated happiness, and she was practically glowing.
When she was finished telling me all the romantic details of the proposal, an old truck pulled into the driveway. That truck had definitely seen better days, and it certainly didn’t fit in with the elegant surroundings here. But the way Nora’s face lit up when she saw it, I might have thought it was the Publishers’ Clearing House, arriving with a check for five million dollars.
“Oh, good! Jake’s home,” Nora said excitedly. “I was worried you wouldn’t get a chance to meet him!”
Jake strolled up the stairs wearing the same happy smile as Nora. His eyes never left hers. If I didn’t know better, I would have thought they’d been apart for weeks rather than mere hours. If they weren’t so adorable, I would probably be nauseated by how in love they were.
“Hey, baby,” Jake said, leaning down to greet Nora with a kiss. Then he turned to me with a smile and surprised me with a hug rather than a handshake. “You must be Olivia,” he said. “Nora hasn’t stopped talking about you since she heard you were moving here. It’s good to finally meet you.”
“You too,” I smiled, liking him already. I turned Nora and said, “Well, now it all makes sense… I wouldn’t have been interested in any of the guys from school either if I had this waiting for me at home!”
They both laughed, and we all went inside the house to eat lunch. For the first time since arriving in Charleston, I didn’t feel completely alone.
When I returned home, I saw Sadie in the yard with a guy I didn’t recognize. The two of them were sitting in the grass on a checkered blanket having a picnic together. Amy hadn’t mentioned a boyfriend, and it didn’t sound like Sadie’s dad was in the picture, but I wondered if it maybe that was him. As soon as she saw me, Sadie came running over.
“Oleeva!”
She still hadn’t quite gotten the hang of my name yet and I couldn’t help but smile. “What’s up, girlie?”
“Me and Dee are having a tea party.” She took my hand and dragged me over to where she was playing. “Will you come play with us?”
The guy she was with, “Dee,” turned around when we approached, and my jaw dropped to the grass. There, holding a tiny pink teacup in his enormous hand, was the jerk from the beach. And the bar. His lips turned up in a smile when he saw me.
“This is my Uncle Dee,” Sadie announced, patting him on the back affectionately.
He flashed me a cocky grin. “Well, isn’t this a surprise. You must be my sister’s new neighbor… Olivia, right?”
“Yeah,” I choked out, still confused. “So, Dee… you’re Amy’s brother?”
“Actually we’re twins, but I’m a whole three minutes older,” he jokingly pointed out. “And it’s Dex. Dex Porter.”
“Olivia Mason.” I shook his extended hand, in what was easily the most polite exchange we’d had so far.
“Are you joining in our tea party festivities?” Dex asked, gesturing to the blanket and tea set that he and Sadie had set up.
“Yes!” Sadie said, jumping up and down.
“Well, I can’t say no to that,” I smiled, sitting down while Sadie poured me a cup of “tea.”
There was something about seeing a tough guy like Dex playing tea party with his little niece that made my heart melt. I knew it was probably an act, but I still couldn’t help wondering if there was more to him than the crude jackass I’d previously encountered. Anyone who acted as sweet as he did with Sadie couldn’t be all bad, right?
“It’s good to know that there’s at least one girl in the world who can hold your attention,” I teased Dex while Sadie was busy handing out fake cucumber sandwiches.
“That’s because she’s my special girl. Ain’t that right, Sadie?” Dex smiled the first genuine smile I’d ever seen, and I couldn’t help but return it.
“Right!” Sadie giggled.
Just when you think you have someone all figured out, they turn around and surprise you.
Olivia. Of course, she had a beautiful name too. I couldn’t believe that she had actually agreed to play tea party with us, and I was strangely excited about it. Sure, she was only doing it for Sadie, but it was good to know that I didn’t repulse her so much that she couldn’t stand to be near me. I made a mental note to buy my niece a new doll or an ice cream cone to reward her for getting Olivia to stay.
“More tea?” Sadie held up her pink plastic teapot to Olivia.
“Oh, yes please!” Olivia said, holding out her cup. “This tea is delicious, Sadie. I’m so glad you invited me to your party.”
“Now we’re friends, so you come to all my parties!” Sadie exclaimed.
“What about me, Sadie girl?” I said. “Am I invited to all your parties?”
“Umm… yes! Except when it’s girls only, then no boys allowed. Not even you, Dee.”
“Fair enough.” I locked eyes with Olivia, holding her gaze until her cheeks flushed pink and she looked away. I liked making her blush—it was so unexpected coming from her. She seemed like such a tough girl, with her witty comebacks and confident take-no-prisoners attitude. Then there were times when she seemed almost shy. She was really sweet with Sadie, too. Kind of adorable, actually. I was a total sucker when it came to my niece, and anyone who made her smile and laugh the way that Olivia did automatically had my stamp of approval. She didn’t pay much attention to me, but at one point when I was sipping my “tea”—which was really just a glass of fresh South Carolina air—I was pretty sure I saw a smile directed at me. It vanished almost as quickly as it appeared, but I was glad that I could get a reaction from her that wasn’t disgust.
I felt bad about the way I’d treated her during the first couple of times I saw her. The truth was, I didn’t know how else to interact with women. Except for my sister, my mom, or Sadie. All other women were kept at arms-length because I didn’t want to get close to them, or have them get close to me. Unless it was in the physical sense, of course. That was the extent of my female relationships. Anyone other than family or a one-nighter existed in a gray area that I didn’t know how to navigate.
Now that I knew Olivia was Amy’s neighbor, any hopes I might have had about her falling into the one-nighter category were long gone. Chances were that I was going to be seeing her a lot and spending time with her, which meant I could never get involved with her in the way that I wanted. I needed to figure out a way to be friends with her and put my obvious attraction aside. It was time for me to find my way around the gray area.
Every once in a while, I would catch Olivia looking at me. Not in a dreamy or admiring kind of way, it was more like she was studying me. Trying to solve a puzzle. I wasn’t used to women looking at me like that. In my experience, all women looked at me the same way—like they expected or wanted something from me. None of them gave a damn about anything beneath the surface. Normally I liked to keep it that way, but Olivia… she looked at me like she wanted to get to know me, and a part of me wanted her to. That thought terrified me. If things were different, maybe she could. They weren’t, though. If Olivia caught a glimpse of what was beneath the surface, it would only send her running.
Something beeped in Olivia’s pocket, and she pulled out her cell phone and glanced at it.
“Yikes! It’s already four o’clock. I have to get to work.” She stood and ruffled Sadie’s pigtails affectionately. “Let’s do it again soon, okay?”
“Okay!” Sadie beamed up at her.
“See you guys later,” she said, glancing quickly at me before turning toward her car.
I started packing up Sadie’s tea set and was folding the blanket when I heard the familiar whine of an engine straining to start, followed by an aggravated voice.
“Ugh! Stupid piece of junk!”
I walked over to where Olivia was trying—and failing—to start her car. “What’s wrong?”
“This stupid dinosaur of a car has apparently chosen this moment to curl up and die,” she huffed, continuing to turn the key and further aggravate the engine.
“Well, I’m a mechanic. So, it’s your lucky day,” I said, stepping closer. “Mind if I take a look?”
“Be my guest,” she said, popping the hood. “Although knowing my luck, it’s probably beyond repair.”
I examined the engine, and it didn’t take long for me to figure out that the problem was a faulty ignition switch. “It’s an easy fix,” I assured her. “Amy will be back any minute to stay with Sadie, so how ‘bout I give you a lift to work, then I’ll swing by the garage and grab the part I need. She’ll be good as new by the time you get home.”
“Oh no, you don’t have to do that,” she said. “I can walk, it’s not that far to the Seaside.”
“No way am I going to let you walk. Come on, I thought we were finally becoming friends. This is what friends do.”
“Hmm… I don’t know about friends. That might be pushing it,” she teased.
“Okay,” I laughed. “Well then how ‘bout you let me do it to make up for being such a dick to you before? Then we can call it even. I promise I don’t have any ulterior motives other than friendship. What do you say?”
“Okay, fine,” she conceded with a smile. “Thank you.”
When Amy pulled into the driveway a couple of minutes later, Olivia and I climbed into my truck to make the short drive to the Seaside. Truthfully, I probably could’ve gotten her car going right then, but I was selfish and wanted a few minutes alone with her.
“Do you want me to swing by and pick you up when your shift is over?” I offered when we pulled into the restaurant parking lot.
“That’s alright, I can catch a ride with one of the other waitresses.” She stepped out of the truck and looked up at me with those gorgeous eyes of hers. “But thank you for all your help, Dex. I really appreciate it.”
“Any time.” I watched her walk across the parking lot, fixated on her smooth stride and the gentle sway of her hips as she moved. It wasn’t until she disappeared inside that I finally tore my eyes away and drove off.
I ended up grabbing a few extra parts when I stopped by the shop. I only needed the new ignition switch to get the car running, but some of the other engine components were really old and worn so I figured I might as well replace them now and save Olivia a trip to the mechanic later on.
I couldn’t remember the last time I had the desire to help a woman out and expect nothing in return. Okay, well maybe not nothing. I wanted to get to know her. She had so many different sides—feisty, sweet, shy, and funny—I wanted to know more. There was something about her that drew me in, and I didn’t understand why. We couldn’t be anything more than friends, yet I still wanted to be around her.
As I was finishing up the repairs on her car, Amy came down from her apartment with a beer in her hand. She was smirking in the way that warned me she was about to give me crap about something.
“Got a little crush on my new neighbor, Dex?” she teased, handing me the beer.
“Yeah, right…” I said, taking a long pull from the beer and swallowing. “You know I don’t do the girlfriend thing. I’m just trying to be a Good Samaritan over here.”
“I wouldn’t blame you if you were interested in her. She seems really great, and in case you haven’t noticed, she’s drop dead gorgeous.”
Oh, I had definitely noticed.
I shrugged. “She doesn’t seem like the one-night-stand type, and that’s all I’m good for.”
“That’s a load of crap, and you know it,” Amy said, narrowing her eyes at me. “I wish you would let other people in, Dex. It’s impossible not to love you when you do. You don’t need to isolate yourself so much. You deserve to be happy.”
It wasn’t the first time we’d had a conversation like this. My sister knew me better than almost anyone else, she still didn’t know everything. I deserved a lot of things, but happiness was definitely not one of them.
***
It was a busy night at the restaurant and before I knew it, my shift was over. I’d barely even looked up in five straight hours and was downright exhausted. All I wanted to do was take a shower and climb into bed. Unfortunately, the only waitress I felt comfortable enough to ask for a ride home was Melanie, and since she was staying late to work behind the bar, it looked like I would be walking.
I could have asked one of the other waitresses, but I’d barely been working there a week, and I didn’t want to make a bad impression or put anyone out. I needed to take care of myself. It was bad enough that I had agreed to let Dex fix my car for me. I didn’t need any more favors. Besides, it wasn’t that long of a walk and it was a beautiful night.
I was on my way out the door when the hostess called out to me, stopping me in my tracks.
“Wait up, Olivia! Dex came by earlier to drop these off for you,” she said, pressing my car keys into the palm of my hand. “You were really busy so he didn’t want to bother you, but he asked me to make sure you got them.”
“He did?” I said skeptically, examining the keys. “Um, thanks.”
“No problem, see you later!” she said, returning to her post at the hostess stand.
I didn’t fully understand why Dex had come all the way down here to bring me my keys until I walked outside and spotted my car in the parking lot. He couldn’t have fixed it already… could he?
Climbing into the driver’s seat, I pushed the key into the ignition and turned it cautiously. Sure enough, the engine hummed to life, sounding better than I’d ever heard it. I slumped back in disbelief. Dex had not only brought my car back from the dead, but he’d also gone to the trouble of bringing it here for me so that I would be able to get home. I couldn’t believe it.
There was a piece of paper folded in half and propped up on the dashboard with my name was scribbled across the front in messy handwriting. When I opened it and read the note inside, I couldn’t help but smile.