Love In Logan Beach

David felt the depth of emotion in her words. She must have lost loved ones, too.

“That must have been hard on you as a family.”

“It was, but I think because we had one another—we got through the grief faster than those who have no one.” Before he realized what he’d said, the words were out. He wasn’t sure if Rose had anyone, but he didn’t get the impression that she did, at least no one close. And so many people were going through the same trauma as she was.

“Go on,” Rose prompted. “How did you get from a baked-goods store to a department chain?”

“My uncle left a small retail business that my father took over. People in the retail store would ask about ordering from the bakery and my father would take their orders and pass them on. It was my mother who came up with the idea of putting a bakery in the retail store, giving people a one-stop-shopping experience.”

“Good idea,” Rose said. “That’s a staple of the House of Thorn.”

“Every Thorn store has a bakery. The idea proved to be a perfect arrangement. After a while the bakeries were doing equal business with the retail store. My parents decided to open more stores, one at a time until, in addition to the original bakery, they had five stores in as many states and my father was back on the road, managing them.”

“So did you decide to help out by managing the new Logan Beach store?”

He shook his head. “That’s where the family meeting came into play.”

Rose leaned her head back on the seat, her neck rolling until she faced him. He felt a small twinge of awareness under her scrutiny.

“When the twins went to college, my parents announced they planned to retire after the twins graduated. They would stay in business until then. After that they planned to go on an around-the-world cruise and the empire would pass to the next generation.”

“So obviously the twins graduated.”

“Two years ago.”

He looked at her. Her eyes were closed, but they opened, looking directly into his. David turned back to concentrate on the traffic.

“When they asked which stores we wanted to manage, I chose this one.”

“Why?”

“I love Logan Beach. All my memories here are fond ones. I expect to make more in the future.”

The drive from the store to Rose’s apartment was only twenty minutes. Their conversation hit a lull and when David glanced at her again, she’d fallen asleep. He smiled at her and pulled her head against his shoulder.

David drove slowly, not wanting to wake her. He also wanted to prolong the drive. He couldn’t believe what she’d done with the plans for the store. The design was better than good. Smiling to himself, he thought of their argument over the placement of display cases, and the best method of directing the flow of customers, yet she’d incorporated it into her design. It wasn’t a battle or a war that he’d won, but he felt it was a crack in the glass case she’d protected herself with.

Pulling up in front of her apartment, David cut the engine and looked sideways. Rose didn’t move. He leaned over and released her seat belt. She fell against him.

Her breath was warm on his neck and he didn’t immediately move back or push her head away. He turned his face slightly, taking a more comfortable position, one that was a prelude to his mouth seeking hers.

David stopped himself. He knew if he moved another inch he’d kiss her, and while the thought was foremost in his mind, the timing was wrong.

“Rose,” he whispered.

She stirred, yet remained asleep.

“Rose,” he said again, this time his voice a little stronger.

Her eyes opened and she looked up. It only took a moment for her to realize where she was. Quickly, she pushed back and shifted in her seat.

David knew she would react that way, yet he’d hoped she wouldn’t.

“Excuse me, I must have dozed off. I guess I’m more tired than I thought.” She glanced out the window. “We’re here.”

“I’ll see you in.”

“There’s no need of that,” Rose insisted.

“You were asleep in seconds. I want to make sure you get to your apartment safely.” He didn’t wait for her to agree or disagree. He was out of the car and coming around to her side. The truth was, he wanted to make sure she got safely inside.

The hallway was still dim, but his eyes adjusted quickly. He followed her up the steps and stopped at her door.

“I’ll be in tomorrow,” she said.

David nodded. He knew there was no reason to argue. And he didn’t want to.

“I won’t be in until noon,” he told her.

“Oh.” She frowned. “I don’t remember anything on the schedule.”

“It’s not there,” David said. “I’ll be at Legal Aid to see how I can help out. I promise I’ll get back in time to take care of whatever is on my schedule.”

“No worry,” Rose said.

“I won’t. I’m sure you can handle anything that comes up.”

* * *

In the ensuing week, David watched Rose as she moved like a dynamo. She was on the phone talking to designers, incorporating her plans into the ones they’d presented. Her office was a collection of charts, fabrics, color schemes and her endless lists of things to do.

He loved seeing her busy. He loved watching her move. In fact, it was hard for him to keep his eyes off her.

Rose had posted a large magnetic whiteboard in the reception area that showed their locations at a glance. Seeing her name on it each morning when he arrived added a lift to his day. He wondered what she did when she wasn’t in the office. Did she ever think of him the way he was thinking of her?

Their relationship had begun like two sharp rocks on a beach, but the water was slowly wearing away the edges. It was only a short time ago that David had met a fiercely independent woman who was in no way like the efficient executive who spoke with a strong voice to suppliers, gave directions to the builders and had fallen asleep on his shoulder.

Even though he’d given Rose the go-ahead and she was deep into details, on Friday he went to her office with news from the board of directors. Her head was down and she was concentrating on a floor plan. She looked up. The light hit her face at just the right angle. Her liquid brown eyes were large and fringed with long lashes—the perfect setting. David remembered that her eyes were the one thing that arrested his attention the day he met her. Today, he could drown in them.

“David, you’re staring,” she said. “Do I have lipstick on my nose?” Her hand went to her nose and she wiped at it and looked at her fingertips.

He cleared his throat and shook his head, blinking to pull himself out of the stupor he’d fallen into.

“Sorry, I was thinking of something.” He tried to cover himself, because his thoughts were only of her. “I brought you some good news.”

She smiled tentatively and David had to force himself to concentrate on why he was here.

“I sent your plans for the store to my brothers, who’ll be managing stores in California and New York, and my cousins, who’ll have stores in the Midwest and Texas. They liked your ideas and will implement some in their stores.”