Page 74 of Love is Grand
“Can you?” Rylan asked. “I need to stop and grab some samples from the linen place.”
“No prob.”
“Leave it with Tony. I’ll text him what to do.”
I noticed Cal’s fists clench at the mere mention of Tony. The guy was bent out of shape over nothing. Yeah, Tony had tried to date me for a hot minute, but I wasn’t into him like that. That didn’t mean he wasn’t a good guy. He was one of the better ones, and happened to be Rylan’s closest friend, so for better or worse, he was part of our lives.
“Will do,” Jack said, grabbing the case and was out the door.
Rylan followed behind, calling out, “I’ll let Adam know you’re here. Dinner tomorrow? Our place?”
Cal nodded, then came close, backing me into the counter, his arms on either side of me. “Finally alone. Tell me, how are you, Shell?”
“I’m good. Told you already.”
He pushed an errant hair behind my ear, smoothing his palm over my curly mane. His mouth found my cheek, then my earlobe. “Missed you,” he whispered.
I swallowed for fear of what would fall out of my mouth. A whole list of endearments and proclamations ran through my overactive mind.
“Did you miss me?” he asked, his breath hot on my ear.
“Yes,” I finally croaked out.
“I don’t like this anymore, the separation between us. I thought it would be okay, but it’s not.”
“Cal—”
“No, don’t Cal me. I don’t like it, but I’m not sure how to fix it. I need to be in New York quite a bit.”
“And Weez goes to school,” I said, raising a brow.
“I know. I’m working on a solution. Promise you’ll think about whatever I dream up?”
His lips hovered close to mine, doing crazy things to my pulse rate. I would have promised anything to secure one more kiss with this man, so I nodded, and he kissed me. We stayed like that for a while, and I was thankful for a lull in the coffee shop until a voice bellowed, interrupting our affections.
Dad spread his arms wide as he came through the front door. “My favorite American is back! Next to your brother, of course,” he joked.
“I’m back. Like I said I would be,” Cal said.
Cal and my dad shared some kind of moment. I wasn’t sure what it was, but I knew better than to ask. Assuming it was about the loan and my urgency to pay everyone back, I kept my thoughts to myself. When it came to these two, I couldn’t decide which one was the more stubborn.
“Dad, I’m going to drop Cal at his place and then swing by the Ritz. They have an order to place and want me to take it in person.”
“Good, good. You should tell your friends over at the Grand Escape that the Ritz is ordering nonstop,” he teased.
“Dad, Rylan was just here. The Grand remains our number one customer on the island.”
“I know, baby girl.”
My dad smiled, the corners of his eyes crinkling, and I thought how grateful I was for a father who loved me unconditionally.
With this thought came sadness. It struck me in the gut over Weezie’s hurt about how Ricky had walked out on her. Cal’s spoiling her was sweet and endearing, but it wasn’t a replacement for unconditional love. This was why I had to consider her with every decision I made, maybe even more so.
“Wherever you just went in your head, come back to me,” Cal said, squeezing my hand.
“Okay. Let’s go,” I muttered while walking toward the door, then stopped short. “Oh shoot, I have to get my purse. Pregnancy brain.”
My dad and Cal exchanged another one of their looks, and I made a mental note to call Dad later.