“Exactly.”
“Wow. That is very cool,” she said, leaning back in her seat. “Is he still alive?”
It was crazy how just thinking about the old guy still made him a little emotional. “Sadly, no. He died a few years ago at the age of 96. We all thought he was going to live forever.” He took another sip of wine. “He was a shrewd businessman and an amazing family man. Before he died, he made arrangements for all of us to give us a leg up in the world.”
“I know you mentioned he gave the construction company to Jake and I know Mallory owns a décor shop in town. I’m guessing your great-grandfather did that for her.”
“He did. My cousin Sam got the landscaping business, my cousin Mason got a pub here in town and some property…”
“What about you?”
He smiled down into his glass. “I got the college education I would have never gotten on my own.” Looking up at her, he added, “And the freedom to follow my dreams and do what I wanted.”
She smiled at him and they stayed like that for several minutes before returning their attention to their food. “It’s nice when things work out that way.”
“Did you always want to be a writer?”
“Definitely. My mom tells everyone how she knew I was going to be an author by the time I was in the third grade, but I don’t know if I knew for sure at that age.”
“Eight years old is a little young for setting a life goal,” he teased.
“Exactly. But the older I got, that was the direction I took and my parents supported it.” Shrugging, she added, “I know I’m lucky and most people don’t get to follow their passion and make a career out of it. Sometimes it feels like all the planets must have aligned for me to have the level of success I’ve achieved.”
“Or maybe you’re just that talented,” he countered. “I know I’m no literary critic, but it’s obvious you’re great at what you do.”
Even by candlelight he could see her blush. “I don’t like to look at it like that. Too much ego. To me, it’s just my job, you know?”
“Not everyone’s job gets turned into a movie.”
She got quiet after that and took a few bites of her dinner and Austin took the hint that maybe this wasn’t one of her favorite topics.
“Got any siblings?” he asked, changing the subject.
“Nope. Only child. You?”
“Two brothers. Both younger than me. Garrett’s only fifteen months younger than me and finally getting ready to finish school to be a veterinarian. Jackson’s the baby and…” He shook his head with a low laugh. “He joined the Marines. It’s the last thing any of us expected, but…if nothing else it’s keeping him focused and teaching him some discipline. He swears he has no idea what he wants to do when he gets out but I’m hopeful he’ll figure it out eventually.”
“Nothing wrong with that. Sometimes it takes a little longer to figure out what you want to do with your life. As long as he’s happy and safe and healthy, that’s really all that matters.”
The thought made him chuckle again. “You sound just like him. Every time anyone asks him what he’s doing, that’s his response—‘I’m happy and healthy so leave me alone.’ I’m telling you, it gets old after a while.”
“Spoken like the responsible older brother.”
Austin’s response was more snort than laugh. “You’re the first person to ever call me that. I think a lot of people would disagree with your assessment.”
Taking a sip of her wine, Mia relaxed in her chair. “Now I’m intrigued. Do I sense that you weren’t always responsible?”
“Who says I’m responsible now?” he asked lightly and the urge to reach out and touch her was strong, but he didn’t think she’d appreciate him being bold.
Her head tilted and her dark hair covered her shoulder. “Hmm…maybe you’re right. You really haven’t been very responsible as a neighbor…you know, all the noise and whatnot.” Her lips twitched and damn if he didn’t want to lean over and taste them.
Clearing his throat, he figured he needed to do or say something to get his mind off of touching and kissing Mia. Fast.
“My father walked out on us when I was seven. He left my mom alone to raise three little boys and other than random cards in the mail, we haven’t seen or talked to him since.”
And much to Austin’s surprise, she was the one to reach out and touch him. One delicate hand rested on top of his. “Oh, Austin, I’m so sorry. How horrible!”
“Yeah, well…life was definitely rough and chaotic and my brothers and I were a bit wild when we got older. We built up a reputation. People called us hooligans and trash because we were poor and some would make comments about how it was no wonder our father left us. People start labeling you like that and eventually you believe them.” He paused and finished his wine. “I couldn’t wait to leave this town and make something of myself so I could come back and prove them all wrong.”
“I don’t blame you. I’m sure anyone who knows you now would see what a fine man you turned out to be. You’re a skilled craftsman and you’re obviously doing well for yourself if someone is entrusting you to renovate their home like you are.”
It would have been easy to tell her how this was the way most contractors worked, but…
“My place back in Boston is being worked on right now—new kitchen, new master bathroom, and custom built-ins in my office for my books. My parents are overseeing the work while I’m gone because I didn’t trust anyone to be in the house when I’m not there.”
“Then why leave?”
She laughed softly and gave him an impish grin. “The noise got to be too much, so coming here seemed like the perfect solution. I mean, how noisy could the beach be in the off-season?”
They finished their meals while making small talk about home improvements, and by the time they were done, Austin had seen Mia shiver more than once.
“C’mon,” he said, coming to his feet. “Let’s clean this up and go inside. The heat lamp is good for a little while, but there’s still a fairly brisk breeze coming off the water.”
“Sounds good to me. We can light a fire,” she said with an easy smile as she scooped up her plate and glass before walking into the house. Austin closed containers and put them back in the bag before blowing out the votives and carrying everything else inside. By the time he joined her in the living room, she had a fire going and was curled up in the corner of one of the sofas.
He must have looked uncertain of where to sit because Mia patted the cushion beside her.
And he was more than happy to oblige.
“So,” he began.
“So,” she repeated with a shy smile. It was lighter in here and this time Austin could definitely see her blush. “Um…would you like to open another bottle of wine or maybe have some coffee?”
“I’m good for now, but thanks.”
She nodded and he could tell she had something she wanted to say and he had no choice but to wait her out.
“Can I ask you something?” she finally said after a minute.