“These are amazing,” Autumn looked up at Frank Megassey from the black and white photographs spread out on her desk. He’d brought a whole album of them over for their meeting. They showed the history of the pier in photographic detail, stretching from the day it opened in 1899, all the way to present day.
She was fascinated by the sepia images of women wearing long dresses, holding classy umbrellas over their heads as they strolled on the wooden structure. Men wearing bow ties and straw boaters played at stands to try to win prizes for their sweethearts. And at the end there was a fleet of fishing boats, their daily catch captured on shiny paper, buckets filled with fish for the local community to eat.
There was no Delmonico’s in the first photographs. No whale-watching boat, either. But the pier was full of life, nevertheless. A central part of the Angel Sands’ society.
“I have a lot of old photographs of the town,” Frank told her. “My wife tells me I should build a museum to show them all off.”
“You should.” She smiled at him. “People are fascinated by things like this.” She ran the pad of her thumb along her bottom lip. “Do you think I could borrow some for the charity day?”
Frank blinked. “Sure. What will you use them for?”
“I don’t know yet. Maybe I’ll blow them up and frame them. Or have some actors in clothes like these,” she said, pointing to the Victorian ladies smiling into the camera. “I just like them.”
“Then they’re yours. They belong with the pier, anyway. And I could talk to the Angel Sands Amateur Dramatic Society about volunteering their time.” He gave her a big smile. “I’m the president. I’m sure they’ll help us out.”
She had a feeling he had a finger in a whole lot of pies.
“I’ll give them back afterward,” Autumn told him. “It’s a loan, not a gift.”
He shook his head. “Not at all. I want you to have them. It’s nice to see how much you appreciate them.”
“I’ve always been fascinated by old photographs,” she admitted. “They tell such amazing stories. I like to imagine what the people in them were thinking, what they were planning to do after the photograph was taken.” She laughed and shook her head. “You probably think I’m crazy.”
“No. I know exactly what you mean. That’s why I like them, too.” He smiled at her as he stood from the rickety guest chair in her office. “Well, I shall leave you to it. No doubt you have a lot of work to do.”
“Thank you for stopping by.” She walked him to the door.
“It was good to talk through the plans for the day. Let me know if you need anything else.” He lifted a hand to say goodbye, then walked out of the door and down the pier. Autumn closed the door behind him and walked back to her desk, looking at the photographs once more.
The door behind her clicked, and she looked up to see Carla walk into the office, her long, dark hair swept up into a bun, her pretty face enhanced with a sweep of blush and a slick of red lipstick.
“I thought you were Frank for a minute,” Autumn said, trying to ignore the tugging at her gut.
“I knocked, but you didn’t answer.”
Autumn turned and leaned her back against the desk. “Is everything okay?”
“Yes.” She nodded, crossing her arms over her chest. “I just wanted to tell you that my dad will be donating a percentage of earning to the animal shelter on the charity day. He wants to do his part.”
“That’s very kind of him.” Her chest loosened. “I really appreciate that.”
“He loves animals.” Carla shrugged. “And the restaurant is completely booked up for the day. We should make a good profit.”
“I’m glad to hear that.” Autumn gave her a genuine smile. “I hoped it would. I think together we can make this place work well.”
“Okay. Well I should get back to the restaurant.” Carla pressed her lips together, lingering at the door.
“Sure, thanks for coming over. I really appreciate it.”
Carla tapped her fingers on the door handle, then turned back to Autumn. “Is it true what I hear about you and Griff?”
Autumn’s stomach dropped. “It depends on what you’ve been hearing.”
“Are you dating?” Carla’s brow furrowed as she asked. For a moment, Autumn felt bad for her.
“We are,” she said softly. “But it’s a fairly new thing.”
“You remember what I said about him, right?”
“I do.” Autumn nodded. “But you don’t have to worry about me. I’m a big girl.”
“That’s what I thought.” Carla smiled sadly. “But I still ended up with a broken heart.”
God, this was awkward. And a good reminder of why it was so stupid to date where you worked, even if it was way too late for her and Griff. He pulled her in every time she looked at him. Made her heart skip like a kid whenever he was close.
No wonder Carla was upset. If Autumn were in her position, she would be, too.
“I’m sorry,” Autumn said softly.
“It’s okay. And I should go. Dad will be wondering where I am.” Carla’s smile was tight. “I guess I’ll see you around.”
“Sure.”
Autumn watched as Carla walked out of her office, then stared at the closed wooden door, her eyes tracing the knots and lines in the grain.
Her relationship – or whatever it was – with Griff was starting to feel like a bubble. One she had to carefully guard from the people wanting to burst it.
Her father. Carla. Maybe even Josh. Everyone seemed to want to break her fragile happiness.
She was determined not to let them.
Mike was finishing sweeping the deck when Griff’s phone rang. He pulled his cell from his jeans pocket and blinked when he saw the caller.
“Dad?” he said, lifting the phone to his ear. “Is everything okay?”
For a minute, just one small minute, he thought his dad might be calling to wish him a belated happy birthday.
“Yeah, I’m good,” his dad said gruffly. “We’re having some work done on the bathroom, and your mom’s sent me to the hardware store. Just trying to work out what kind of damn cabinet she won’t hate.”
Griff swallowed down a laugh. He could only imagine her response if his dad got the wrong one.
“Anyway,” his dad continued. “I only have a couple of minutes, but I wanted to ask a favor.”
“What kind of favor?”
“It’s Sam. His boat’s a mess and he needs to take it over to the marina. I’m hoping you can help him.”
Sam was one of his dad’s old friends. The same one they visited in Silver Sands not long ago.
“Ah, yeah, sure. When does he want to go?”
“Tonight. It’ll only take a couple of hours. You can do it, can’t you?”
Griff glanced at his watch. The marina was about three hours up the coast, add into that the time it’ll take them to drive back again and that was his evening gone.
“Yeah, sure, I can help. I’ll give him a call.”
“That’s great. I gotta go. Your mom sends her love.”
Griff opened his mouth to say goodbye, but his dad had already hung up. It was the first time they’d spoken in months and he hadn’t even bothered to say it.
After all this time, Griff was used to that.
“What’s with the long face?” Ally asked as Autumn leaned on the Déjà Brew counter and watched her expertly work the coffee machine.
“Ah nothing. Just feeling overworked.”
Ally passed her the steaming mug, and Autumn took it gratefully.
“I know how that feels. I’ve been working since five. Two of our staff are off with that bug going around. And Nate’s in Seattle for some meetings, which means I’m pretty much working for four.” She tipped her head to the side. “I know! We should have a girl’s night to decompress. Maybe we can head to the mall first for a little bit of retail therapy, then go to the Mexican restaurant nearby.” She grinned. “I’ll call Ember and the girls. What do you say?”
Autumn grinned. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d been on a girls’ night out. “That sounds good. I need some new shoes.”
“I heard you had a shoe thing.” Ally leaned on the counter. “How many do you have?”
“Here or in New York?”
Ally’s smile widened. “I need a total.”
Autumn took a sip of coffee as she made the mental calculation. “Um, maybe a hundred?”
“Seriously?” Ally’s mouth dropped open. “I have about twenty and Nate already complains about them taking up too much space in the closet.”
“I guess that’s the beauty of being divorced.” Autumn shrugged, her eyes dancing. “Or maybe the reason for it.”
Ally chuckled. “In that case, we definitely have to go shoe shopping. I know a couple of great places. The mall’s open until nine, and the restaurant is open until midnight. It’s meant to be.”
“You had me at shoe shopping,” Autumn told her as her phone beeped with a message. A glance at the screen told her it was from Griff.
“Great. I’ll pick you up once I close up at seven. Don’t wear anything too glamorous. It’ll put me to shame.” Ally beamed.
“See you later.” Autumn lifted her free hand, carrying her coffee with the other.
When she got outside, she unlocked her phone and read the message.
I missed you last night. My bed’s too big without you. – G
She shook her head, a smile on her face, and quickly tapped a reply.
Your bed is big, but so are you. I’m pretty sure you survived okay without me. - A
Almost immediately, another message flashed up.
I have to work late tonight. A friend’s taking his boat down the coast for repairs and asked me to crew for him. But I still want to see you. Will you hate me if I turn up at your place after midnight? – G
Like a booty call? – A
Pretty much. ;) - G
In that case, you’re on. See you at midnight, Cinderella. – A
“These shoes are amazing,” Ally said, lifting them to the light and turning them around. “But where the heck will you wear them around here? One step on the beach and they’d pin you to the ground. And if the tide came in you’d have to call the Coast Guard out.”
Autumn laughed as Ally handed them back to her, carefully placing them into the dust bag and back into the box. She was sitting with Brooke, Caitie, and Ally around a table at Pancho’s Taqueria, sipping at ice-cold margaritas and nibbling on tortilla chips while they decided what food to order.
“I have no idea where I’ll wear them,” she said, lifting her glass and taking a sip. “But they were too pretty to pass up.”
They’d shopped at the mall for almost three hours, and though the time had passed quickly, Autumn’s feet were aching from walking on the tiled floors. She’d slipped her sensible two-inch heels off and was circling her bare feet under the table. Maybe Griff could give them a rub tonight.
“You don’t need to wear them anywhere. Just put them on for Griff and he’ll fall at your feet. You ever notice what a thing most guys have for high heels?”
“Aiden loves them,” Brooke admitted, lifting a tortilla chip between her lips. “He’s always asking me to wear them, but they’re so damn uncomfortable.”
“I like the extra height they give me,” Autumn told her. “And I’ve been wearing them since I was a teenager. It’s second nature now. It’s different here, but in New York power dressing is still a thing. Your clothes are the first thing everybody notices.”
She glanced down at the pile of shopping bags beside her chair. Two pairs of shoes, some cosmetics she was desperately in need of, and a black, white, and pink striped bag that contained the skimpiest lingerie she’d ever seen. It was pretty, though. Silky black lace, weaved with pink ribbon across the hem of the panties and the center of the plunging bra. She was planning to greet Griff wearing that and the shoes tonight.
It was fun to go shopping. For the months after her separation she’d felt too low to indulge. She didn’t really want to do anything, apart from work, and that was taken away from her pretty early in the process.
Trying on clothes and shoes had made her feel pretty. Alive. She couldn’t wait for Griff to see them.
“When are you planning on going back to New York?” Caitie asked her. She was sitting across the table from Autumn, next to Brooke. Harper and Ember couldn’t make it – Alyssa had a cold so Harper was staying home with her, and Lucas was working the night shift, leaving Ember without anybody to look after Arthur on short notice.
“I don’t know,” Autumn admitted. “At first I thought I’d only be here a little while. Long enough to get the pier up to speed. But I like it here, even if you guys don’t wear high heels.” She grinned at them all.
“I’d wear high heels if you agreed to stay,” Brooke offered. “It’s nice to see Griff happy.”
“It really is.” Caitie nodded. “He’s like a different guy. Have you noticed he’s always smiling now?”
“Let’s make a toast.” Ally lifted her glass. “To new friends who make our old friends happy.”
“I’ll drink to that.” Brooke grinned. They clinked their glasses together, and Autumn swallowed another mouthful of her margarita, looking over the rim of her glass at her newfound friends.
It felt as though she finally belonged somewhere, after years of searching for a place to call home. Maybe she’d been looking in all the wrong places.
And trying to please all the wrong people.
Her life in New York had felt like a constant battle. To be the best at work, to make her father happy, to be a better wife for Josh whenever he criticized her. Sometimes it felt as though she had so many plates spinning, if she took a moment to breathe they would crash to the ground. It was exhausting. She hadn’t realized how much, until she’d walked off the airplane and driven into Angel Sands.
Yeah, she still had challenges to face. The pier was still losing money, and it would take a hell of a lot of work to make it profitable. And then there was her relationship with Griff. It brought her so much pleasure – in more ways than one – but the scars from her divorce were still raw. She didn’t want to be hurt again.
But those things all felt surmountable. They were little foothills compared to the mountains of problems she’d left behind in New York.
She loved being here. It really was beginning to feel like home.
And a lot of that was thanks to the big guy who’d be in her bed right after midnight.