Mari and Owen walked together from Mathilda’s cottage to the bookstore. At three in the afternoon, the island was bustling. Chatter and laughter rang out, and the enticing smell of fish and chips wafted over from the pub. But though Mari had eaten only Hobnobs since breakfast, she wasn’t hungry. She’d been so up, then down, then surprised, then touched, all within a very short time span. She could barely make sense of her emotions at this point.
All she knew for sure was that she didn’t want Owen to leave.
“Would you like to come in for more tea?” Her heart raced with anticipation at the thought of being alone with Owen again. She couldn’t think of any other man to whom she’d reacted so powerfully.
“I’d love to come in.” He stepped inside and closed the door.
After she made tea and they were seated on the couch in the living room, he asked, “How are you feeling? You’ve had a lot to take in since arriving on the island.”
“Seven weeks ago, if you had told me any of this would happen, I wouldn’t have believed it. Finally meeting Charlie’s friends. Being handed the reins of his bookstore. Learning things about him that I’ve always longed to know. Finding out that he never forgot about me, that I mattered to him as much as he mattered to me. Discovering his immense talent as a writer and illustrator.” She paused, holding his gaze before adding, “Meeting you.”
The truth was that the emotions growing inside her for the man who had just walked her home felt like the biggest thing of all. She couldn’t imagine what it would have been like to come to Elderflower Island without Owen being here. It still would have been a thrill to make so many discoveries about her father and to immerse herself in the wonders of life here—but it couldn’t possibly have felt as sweet.
Owen reached for her hands. How she loved the feel of his palms sliding against hers, their fingers threading together. She’d never realized how sensitive her hands were, how sensitive every part of her was, until Owen touched her like this.
“I feel the same way.” His expression was at once gentle, yet full of heat. “I’ve struggled with Gran’s stroke, and my role in it, for so long. You woke me up, Mari. And not just when it comes to Gran. You’ve woken me up in every way.”
It felt so natural, so perfectly right when they both leaned in to kiss. It was fiery. Passionate. Intense. And so incredibly sexy that all she wanted was to drag him into her bedroom and make love with him all night long.
Mom will never forgive me for this.
The thought came from Mari’s subconscious with such force, and such venom, that she instinctively pulled away.
“Mari?” Owen stroked her cheek, searching her eyes. “Is something wrong?”
“No.” But it was clearly a lie. “Yes.” She scrunched her eyes shut. This was coming out all wrong. “Not with you. Nothing is wrong with you. You’re perfect.” Oh God, she was only digging a bigger hole for herself. First freaking out for what surely seemed like no reason at all, then going on and on about how perfect he was.
The corner of his mouth quirked up on one side. “I’m nowhere near perfect, as you well know.” But then his half smile fell away. “Especially given that I have no business kissing you, no business wanting you the way I do, when I know you’re already dealing with so much. I should be backing off, giving you space—”
“No.” She shook her head. “I don’t want space. Not from you. It’s just that…” There was no good way to explain the spot she was in other than to spit it out. “I’ve already told you that my mother isn’t particularly thrilled that I’m here. But it goes deeper than that. She never forgave my father for what happened, and when he died, she didn’t want me to have anything to do with his flat or his bookstore or Elderflower Island—or even England, for that matter. Telling her that I’m planning to stay will be a massive blow.” She had to take a sip of her drink to give herself the fortitude to say the rest. “But I’m afraid the biggest blow of all will be if she thinks I’m repeating history. You see, my father swept her off her feet with his charming accent and exotic British ancestry. She claims I’m the only good thing that came from their relationship. I know you’re not Charlie, and that it’s not fair to lump all charming Englishmen into the same bucket, but—”
“I’m your mother’s worst nightmare, aren’t I?”
She grimaced. “Pretty much.”
He digested the information. “You’re close to her, aren’t you?”
She nodded. “As close as you are to your family.”
He smiled. “That’s got to be a point in my favor, wouldn’t you say?”
“Normally, I would. But I’m afraid that you could solve world hunger, end all wars, and invent the cure for cancer, and my mother might still feel that I’ve betrayed her by being with you.”
His expression darkened. “I would never want to come between you and your family, Mari.” Then his hand found hers again. “But I don’t want to let you go. Not now that I’ve finally found you.”
She loved the way he refused to give up on her. Her chest ached with longing, and her heart skipped a beat with the knowledge that everything she felt for Owen, he felt too. And yet her loyalty to her family at home was strong enough to hold her back despite the yearning.
“I get where your mother’s coming from,” Owen continued. “Anyone would, given the circumstances of her breakup with Charlie. But if she could see how excited you were when you were talking with Gran about reopening the bookshop, if she could see the way your skin flushes and your eyes glow when we’re together—I can’t imagine she would want anything to steal away your happiness.”
Owen’s words stopped Mari in her tracks. Yesterday, on the river, he’d said that she helped him to see things with his grandmother in a new light. Today, he’d just done the same for her with her mom. “You’re right that all she’s ever wanted is for me to be happy.”
Which meant that despite a lifetime of hiding both her true feelings for England and her longing to own a bookstore from her mother in order to protect her from future emotional meltdowns, it was long past time for Mari to pull out every last stop to make Donna see that running the bookstore, living on Elderflower Island, and especially being with Owen were the keys to her true and lasting happiness. And no matter how difficult that task might be, after all the hurdles she’d already jumped over this week, she realized that she felt up to it. Only it wasn’t enough to send another email. It wasn’t even enough to make a phone call.
“I’m going to ask her to come here,” she told Owen. “That way, she can see how wonderful my life on Elderflower Island is, and I’ll be able to talk with her, face-to-face, about any of her concerns or worries.” Though her stomach twisted at the thought of Donna walking into Charlie’s store, she said, “You’re right that she loves me enough to travel here to meet me and to listen. And because she knows how much I love her, too. Once she meets you, she’ll understand why you’d never hurt me the way Charlie hurt her, and she’ll give us her blessing.” Mentally, Mari was crossing every single finger. “She’s got to.”
“She will.” He lifted her hands to his lips and pressed a light kiss to each of them. Her entire body was tingling as he said, “And until then, we’ll be friends. Really good friends. Until we can be more.” He brushed the pad of his thumb over her lips—miles beyond something just friends did but not quite a kiss. “Even if I want to kiss you so badly right now that it’s tearing me up inside.”
Her breath caught in her throat. It was pure agony to have him so close and know she wouldn’t be able to throw herself into his arms and kiss him yet. “That’s how I feel too.”
Owen continued to stare at her mouth for a lingering moment. “I should probably leave.”
Before she could beg him to stay and to forget everything she’d just said about needing to iron things out with her mother first, he stood up.
“I’m not going to hug you,” he announced. “If I do…”
She stood too. “I know.” A hug would surely lead to kissing. Which, at this point, would lead inevitably to more. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
His gaze was lingering, heated. “Yes, tomorrow.”
For a long moment, she wasn’t sure he would actually turn and leave. She could so easily picture him sweeping her into his arms, carrying her into the bedroom, and making love to her.
Or maybe they wouldn’t make it that far. Maybe they’d simply rip each other’s clothes off in the living room and have gloriously hot sex on the rug.
Yes. The rug definitely had her vote if it meant his arms around her and his mouth over hers. In fact, if he didn’t make a move soon, she was—
“Everything you’re thinking, everything you’re wanting,” he said in a low, slightly pained voice, “I’m thinking and wanting too.” His gaze fell to her lips again before he tore it away. She got the sense that if he could have flown a transatlantic jet to pick up Donna Everett right this second and have her on Elderflower Island as soon as humanly possible, he would already have been gunning down the runway. “Once your mother is here, she’ll see how happy you are. How happy living your dream of selling books makes you. How happy everyone is to welcome you into our community. And then everything will be fine.”
She wanted to believe it as much as he did.
* * *
After he left, she stared at the closed door for thirty seconds, maybe longer. It took every ounce of self-control not to run after him. To convince him that throwing caution to the winds was the best possible decision they could make.
She knew it wasn’t, though. Not when so much was at stake. The most important relationship in her life was the one she had with her mom. And while it wasn’t perfect, it wasn’t one she ever wanted to lose.
She didn’t want to lose Owen either.
Fueled with determination—and other much warmer feelings that came straight from the center of her heart—she picked up the phone and dialed her parents’ home number.
“Mari?” Her stepfather’s voice came over the line. He’d obviously seen her cell number on caller ID. “I’m so glad you’ve called. I was just about to call you.”
“Is everything okay?”
“Eleanor has been admitted to the hospital for emergency surgery.” Eleanor was her mother’s best friend and a surrogate aunt to Mari. “Your mother has gone to the hospital to be with her.”
“Oh no. Is Eleanor going to be all right?”
“I certainly hope so,” Gary replied. “Her appendix has flared up, and they’re planning to take it out before it bursts. Evidently, it’s a routine surgery but one that can have a somewhat difficult and painful recovery. Donna will be staying with her to cook and help her around the house until her daughter comes on Friday.”
“Please let me know as soon as she’s out of surgery. I’d like to send her a get-well-soon bouquet so that she knows I’m thinking of her. I hope Mom isn’t feeling overwhelmed with it all?” If Mari had been in town, she would have volunteered to help as much as she could.
“You know your mother—she always puts on a good front, even if she’s breaking apart inside. Which is why it’s so good to hear your voice, honey, and hear you sounding so well. Lord knows your mother certainly doesn’t need anything else to worry about right now.”
Though Mari’s heart was sinking at the realization that there was no way her mother could come to England any sooner than a week from now—and that seven days of hitting the pause button with Owen was sure to feel like an eternity—Mari made sure to keep her voice upbeat as she replied, “Things are going well. I’ve had a chance to meet some of the locals, and they’ve all been really nice.”
“I’m glad to hear it. I keep reminding your mother not to worry about you. You’re a bright young woman who has always had both her head and heart in the right place. I have every confidence in you. I’m looking forward to hearing all about your experiences when you get back.”
It was on the tip of her tongue to explain that she had called to ask them to come to England because she wasn’t coming back. But given that Donna was likely already worried sick about Eleanor, the last thing she needed at the moment was another reason to panic. “Thanks, Dad. I don’t want to disturb Mom at the hospital, so could you let her know I called? Whenever she’s able to give me a call back would be great.” And hopefully by then, Donna would be better rested and more able to take in what Mari needed to say to her.
“Absolutely. She’ll be delighted that you called us.”
Mari wasn’t at all sure about that, not once she explained her reasons for calling. “Love you, Dad.”
“Love you too, honey.”
She hung up the phone, letting out a big sigh. She’d known it wasn’t going to be easy, and that was before she’d considered unexpected complications like her mother being out of commission with a sick friend for a week.
Seven long days before she could introduce her parents to Owen and everyone else on the island, and make absolutely sure that she had their blessing. Seven long nights of keeping her hands and mouth off him. Considering she hadn’t even known him until her arrival, it shouldn’t seem so impossible. But it really, really did.
On the plus side, it meant she now had a week to get the store in as good a shape as possible. Mari knew it wouldn’t erase Donna’s feelings about the store having been Charlie’s, but it certainly wouldn’t hurt to have the business running smoothly.
It was tempting to call Owen to ask him to cancel his evening plans and to continue sorting out the store with her. But while it would be easier to rely on Owen, or his sister, or even the cat to help make her smile, that was a cop-out.
Now that she had made the decision to stay and run the bookstore, she was also going to fight for it. Her father, she finally realized, had been a fighter. He’d fought to stay sober. He’d fought to carve out a new life here on the island. He’d even fought for her happiness, in his own misguided way.
At last, she finally understood—her happiness wasn’t up to anyone else. Not her mother. Not her brother. Not Charlie.
It was up to her.
And gosh darn it, she was going to be happy even if it killed her!
She laughed out loud at the thought.
But at least she was laughing, right?