It’s a beautiful day and the water is gorgeous.”
Bryony tugged Rafael to the glass doors leading onto a deck that was similar in build to her own. The wood was older and more worn but it added character. The railings were dotted with potted plants and flowers. Colorful knickknacks and decorative garden figurines were scattered here and there, giving the deck an eclectic feel.
Bryony often thought it resembled a rummage sale, but it so fit her grandmother’s personality that it never failed to bring a smile to Bryony’s face.
Mamaw didn’t much believe in throwing things away. She wasn’t a hoarder and she would part with stuff after a while, but she liked to collect items she said made her house more homey.
“It’s beautiful out here,” Rafael said. “It’s so quiet and peaceful. There aren’t many stretches of private beach like this. It must be amazing to have this all to yourself.”
Bryony settled into one of the padded deck chairs and angled her head up to catch the full sun on her face. “It is,” she said, her eyes closed. “The whole island is like this. It’s why we’re so resistant to the idea of commercially developing parts of it. Once the first bit of ‘progress’ creeps in, it’s like a snowball. Soon the island would just be another tourist stop with cheesy T-shirts and cheap trinkets.”
“What I purchased was just a drop in the bucket for an island this size. Surely you don’t begrudge any development. You could have the best of both worlds. The majority of the island would remain unspoiled, a quiet oasis, while a very small section would be developed so that others could be exposed to your paradise.”
She dropped her head back down, opening her eyes to look at him. “You sound just like a salesman. The truth is, the whole sharing-our-paradise-with-others spiel is precisely what we don’t want to do. Call us selfish but there are numerous other islands that tourists can go to if they want sun and sand. We just want to be left alone. Many of the people who live here retired to this island precisely because it was private and unspoiled. Others have made their whole lives here and to change it now seems grossly unfair.”
“Having one resort wouldn’t ruin the integrity of the island and it would boost the economy and bring in an influx of cash from those tourists you all despise.”
She smiled patiently, unwilling to become angry and frustrated and ruin a perfect day. Besides, biting his head off didn’t serve her purpose.
“We don’t need an influx of cash into our economy,” she said gently.
He arched a disbelieving eyebrow. “Everyone can always use a boost in capital.”
She shook her head. “No, the thing is, many of the people who retired here left high-paying corporate jobs. Hell, some of them were CEOs who sold their companies or left the management to their sons and daughters and came to Moon Island to escape their high-pressure jobs. They have more money than they’ll ever spend.”
“And the rest? The ones who’ve lived here all their lives?”
She shrugged. “They’re happy. We have shrimpers who are third-and fourth-generation fishermen. We have local shop owners, restaurant workers, grocery store clerks. Basically everyone’s job fulfills a need on the island. Selling souvenirs to tourists isn’t a need. Neither is providing them entertainment. We have a comfortable living here. Some of us don’t have much but we make it and we’re happy.”
“There is a certain weirdness to this whole place,” Rafael said with an amused tone. “Like stepping into a time warp. I’m shocked that you have internet access, cable and cellular towers.”
“We keep up,” she said. “We just don’t particularly care about getting ahead. There is a certain je ne sais quoi about our lifestyle, our people and our island. In a lot of ways it can’t be described, only experienced. As you did for those weeks you were here.”
“And yet you were going to walk away from your life here. For me.”
She went still. “Yes, I’ve already said so. I mean I assumed I would have to make changes. You run a business. You have a home in New York. I could hardly expect you to give all that up and live here. I expected it to be an adjustment but I thought it—you—would be worth it.”
“Given your passion for this island and the people here, I’m a little awed that you thought I was worth that kind of sacrifice.”
“You sell yourself short, Rafael. Don’t you think you’re worth it? That someone could and should love you enough to give up important things to be with you?”
He averted his gaze, staring out over the water as if he had no answer. His body language had changed and he held himself stiffly. His jaw tightened and then he made an effort to relax.
“Maybe I’ve never met anyone who thought that much of me,” he finally said.
“Again, you’re associating with the wrong people. And you’ve definitely been dating the wrong women.”
The mischievous tone in her voice wrung a smile out of him.
“Why do I get the feeling that I probably tried like hell to keep you at arm’s length and you were having none of that?”
She frowned. “Not at all. You seemed…” Her expression grew more thoughtful. “You were definitely open to what happened between us. You certainly did your share of pursuing. Put it this way. I didn’t have to try very hard to get past that stuffy exterior of yours.”
He shook his head. “I’m beginning to think I have a double running around impersonating me. I know I keep saying this, but the man you describe is so far out of my realm of understanding that he seems a complete and utter stranger. If I didn’t know better, I’d say I suffered the head injury before I arrived here. Not after.”
“Does it appall you that much?”
He jerked his gaze to her. “No, that’s not what I’m saying at all. It’s not that I’m shamed or angry. It’s hard to explain. I mean think for a moment of things you would never do. Think of something so not in line with your personality. Then imagine someone telling you that you did all those things but you can’t remember them. You’d think they’d lost their mind, not that you’d lost yours.”
“Okay, I can understand that. So it’s not that you can’t accept the person you were.”
“I just don’t understand him,” Rafael mused. “Or why.”
“Maybe you took one look at me and decided you had to have me or die,” she said impishly.
He leaned sideways until their mouths were hovering just a breath apart. “Now that I can understand because I find I feel that way around you with increasing frequency.”
She closed the remaining distance between them and found his lips in a gentle kiss. He kissed the bow of her mouth and then each corner in a playful, teasing manner, and every time she felt a thrill down to her toes.
“I have tea, but I can see you’re not that interested,” Mamaw said with a laugh.
Bryony pulled back and turned to see her grandmother standing outside the glass doors holding two tea glasses. “Of course I want your tea. It’s the best in the south.”
“Do I like it?” Rafael asked, a hint of a smile on his face.
Mamaw walked over and handed him a glass. “You sure do, young man. Said it was better than any of that fancy wine you drink in the city.”
He gave her a smile that would have made most women melt on the spot. “Well, then if I said it I must have meant it.” He took the glass and took a cautious sip.
Bryony took her own glass and sent Rafael an amused look. “It isn’t spiked. I promise. You’re looking at it like you expect it to be poisoned.”
He took another sip. “It’s good.”
Mamaw beamed at him as if it were the first time she’d heard the compliment.
“Have a seat, Mamaw. We came to see you, not to be alone.”
Her grandmother pulled up a chair and sat across from Bryony and Rafael. “Bryony tells me you were in a plane crash. That must have been traumatic for you.”
Rafael nodded. “I don’t remember much about the crash. I do have a few memories. Mostly of the aftermath and fe
eling relief that I was alive. But the rest is a blur. Including the weeks before the crash as I’m sure Bryony has told you.”
Mamaw nodded. “It’s a shame. Bryony was so upset. She was sure you’d pulled a fast one on her and left her alone and pregnant.”
Heat crept up Bryony’s neck. “Mamaw, don’t.”
“No, it’s fine,” Rafael said to Bryony. “I’m sure she has anger toward me just like you did. There’s no need for her to pretend differently.”
Mamaw nodded. “I like a man who’s honest and straightforward. Now that you’re back and are trying to work things out with my granddaughter, I think we’ll get along just fine.”
He smiled. “I hope so, Ms.…” He stopped in midsentence and looked to Bryony for help. “What do I call her? I don’t remember you telling me her name.”
Bryony laughed. “That’s because to everyone she’s just Mamaw.”
Mamaw reached forward and patted Rafael’s leg. “There now, if that makes you uncomfortable, you can call me Laura. Hardly anyone does. Just the mayor because he thinks it’s unseemly for a man of his position to be so familiar with one of his constituents. His malarkey, not mine. He’s a bit of an odd duck, but he’s a decent enough mayor.”
“Laura. It suits you. Pretty name for an equally pretty lady.”
To Bryony’s amusement, her grandmother’s cheeks bloomed with color and for once she didn’t have a ready come back. She just beamed at Rafael like he’d hung the moon.
“Are things okay with you, Mamaw?” Bryony asked. “How have you been feeling and do you need us to get you anything while we’re out?”
“Oh, no, child, I’m good. Silas came by while you were gone and took my grocery list to his nephew. He’s got a job delivering groceries now. Just got his driver’s license and he’s excited to get to be driving everywhere. I keep expecting to hear of him getting into an accident with the way he zips around these roads but so far nothing’s happened and not one of my eggs was broken, so I guess he’s got it under control.”
“You’re taking your medicine every day like you’re supposed to?”
Mamaw rolled her eyes and then looked toward Rafael. “One would think she was the grandmother and I was the ditzy young granddaughter. Mind you, it wasn’t me who got herself pregnant. I know how to take my pills.”
“Mamaw!”
She shrugged. “Well, it’s true.”
“Oh, God,” Bryony groaned. “You’re on fire today, aren’t you. I should have just gone home.”
Rafael chuckled and then broke into steady laughter. Bryony and her grandmother stared as he laughed so hard he was wiping at his eyes.
“You two are hilarious.”
“Easy for you to say. She wasn’t taking you to task for not using a condom,” Bryony said sourly.
“It was next on my list,” Mamaw said airily.
Rafael shook his head. “At least I can claim I have no memory of the event.”
“It broke,” Bryony said tightly.
“Now see, if you were taking your pills like you were supposed to, a broken condom wouldn’t be an issue,” Mamaw said.
Bryony stood and tugged at Rafael’s arm. “Okay, I’ve had enough of let’s embarrass the hell out of Bryony today. It’s obvious Mamaw is feeling her usual sassy self, so let’s go home. I’m starving.”