Chapter Twenty-Seven

If there was an award for how bad a person could mess something up, he had to at least be in the running for it. Wes ran a hand over his exhausted face as he turned into his driveway the next morning after meeting Lia for a quick coffee before she’d left to head back to New York. She’d confirmed what she’d alluded to the night before. Sarah had walked out on her pitch meeting, essentially quitting her job in the process to be there for Marissa.

He didn’t deserve Sarah.

She was amazing and kind and beautiful and for the first time since Kelly, he’d felt something. Something real. And he’d panicked and messed it up. He’d been afraid and unsure and he’d let his own hesitation get in the way of something incredible. The last two days, all he could think about was her.

She was still in town. He’d noticed her car parked at the inn when he’d driven past. He’d been tempted to stop, but he’d also seen Whitney’s vehicle in the driveway and hadn’t wanted to interrupt. Obviously the friends were getting together before Sarah left town. He’d stop by later to fix the cellar door, and maybe she’d give him a chance to at least apologize for being an asshole.

His cell rang, and he glanced at the unknown number on call display before answering. “Hello?”

“Hi, is this…Sharrun’s Construction?” an unfamiliar female voice asked.

“This is Wes Sharrun,” he said.

“I was wondering if your company did rebuilds of cabins as well as B&Bs?” the woman asked.

A rebuild of a cabin? “Is it your personal cabin?”

“No, I’m sorry, I should have introduced myself. My name is Awilda Melendez and I own Melendez Cottages. We were forced to shut down after weather damage from a storm last year, but we are hoping to reopen next summer. Unfortunately, there’s significant work that needs to happen before then.”

Wes was too stunned to answer. Melendez Cottages were along Highway 1 and they’d been there for years. He remembered staying there himself on a fishing and hunting trip with his father when he was a teen. There was at least forty cabins in the area, and they’d been shut down for a while. They’d suffered excessive damage in the hurricane-like weather they’d seen on the coast the summer before.

“Mr. Sharrun?”

“Oh, yes, sorry, I’m still here.”

“So, would your company be capable of a job that size? Do you have time to give us a quote?”

Absolutely. He cleared his throat. “Yes. I can and I do. Tomorrow too soon?” His aunt would kill him for acting eager, but he was beyond eager. Opportunities like this didn’t fall out of the sky every day.

She laughed, obviously taking his urgency as a good thing. “Sure. I’m in San Diego right now, so I could drive in and meet you out there tomorrow at noon?”

“Perfect. That’s perfect.”

“Thank you so much, Mr. Sharrun. I look forward to meeting you.”

“Likewise…” He paused. “Excuse me, Ms. Melendez, but can I ask how you heard about my company?”

“Your website. I just loved the Dove’s Nest renovations. The combination of modernization while maintaining the original charm was really incredible. We’d like to have that same sort of aesthetic moving forward with Melendez Cottages. Guests these days want to unplug…until they don’t,” she said with a laugh. “We’d like to appeal to all campers, not just those who want to lose themselves in nature.”

His website? She’d seen the Dove’s Nest renos? “Yeah…I totally understand,” he said. He hadn’t until Sarah had proven that tourists really could have the best of both worlds and why should they have to choose. Everyone’s idea of a vacation was different.

Damn, she’d been right about so many things.

“Great. So I’ll see you tomorrow at noon,” she said.

“I’ll be there.”

Disconnecting the call, he pulled into his driveway a few minutes later, still in a daze. His website. What was she talking about? She’d gotten his cell phone number right, so she must have found it somewhere. But he’d never gotten around to making a website. Always thought it unnecessary.

Going inside the house, he sat at Carmen’s desk in the quiet, empty kitchen. He opened a search engine and typed in Sharrun’s Construction.

A new website loaded with the name of his company on top. First website listed on the search, and not in the shady sponsored-ads section. He scanned the site, and there was no question that it was meant for his company, complete with photos of the B&B renovation.

Holy shit. It looked professional. Not like the one-page, poorly designed one he used to have through some free local business site before the free trial expired.

He scrolled through the pages and clicked on the About Us page… A picture of him and Marissa loaded onto the screen. One taken a few months ago on the beach. One of his favorites.

A local company with heart, Sharrun Construction can accommodate all your construction needs big and small… Specializing in B&B rebuilds… Our motto is “Don’t tear it down, save it”…

Wes’s chest tightened the more he read, and a lump formed in his throat as he scrolled past the list of past projects and quotes from locals he’d done work for, praising his skill and craftsmanship. Someone must have contacted all these people to get these quotes.

Not someone. Marissa.

This had to be the surprise she’d been working on.

Getting up from the desk, he headed down the hallway toward her bedroom. Clearing his throat, he knocked on the door with a shaky hand. “Hey, it’s me.”

“I know, Dad; I’m coming!” she called through the door. “I’m just trying to find my cleats.”

He opened it slowly. “Actually, I was thinking maybe we’d skip soccer today.” He’d call Dustin and ask his assistant coach to fill in for him at practice. His daughter deserved a special day together, and she also deserved the option of quitting the team.

He scanned the room, stunned to see that it was clean. Was she applying for a daughter of the year award? Because there wouldn’t be any contest.

“Skip soccer?” she said slowly. “You okay?”

His laugh was a strangled sound. “More than okay. I’m actually the luckiest dad on earth.”

She frowned, studying him. “Okay, now you’re scaring me.”

“I just got a call to quote a job about an hour down the coast… The lady said she found my info online on my website.”

Marissa’s eyes widened even more. “Don’t be mad. I was going to tell you. Actually, Sarah and I were going to show you together, but…”

But he’d made a mess of things. Right. All of this was his fault, and he wasn’t the only one suffering for it. Marissa hadn’t said much the last few days, but he could sense her disappointment over not seeing Sarah. “Mad? What are you talking about?” He moved closer and wrapped her in a hug. “I am so proud of you.” He pulled away and looked at her. “That website was fantastic.”

“Sarah helped,” she said with a huge smile.

Sarah. Another kick to the gut. He needed to find a way to make it up to her.

“We wanted to surprise you… Guess the marketing worked too well, huh?”

He hugged her tighter. “Just well enough.” This new job opportunity with Melendez Cottages might be the one he needed to get his company…his life back on track, and he wouldn’t have it if it weren’t for his genius daughter and the woman he was in love with.

He cleared his throat. “Hey, you wouldn’t happen to have an app that could help me go back in time and stop myself from doing something stupid, would you?”

Marissa raised an eyebrow as she looked up at him. “Nope. Unfortunately, you’re going to have to make it up to Sarah the old-fashioned way—by groveling.”

Groveling. Right.

…

The ceremony of life on the beach was the perfect send-off for Mr. Harrison. All the local business vendors along the boardwalk had closed early that evening to say a final farewell to a man who’d meant a lot to all of them. One by one, they’d helped spread his ashes into the ocean and shared a memory of the man they’d gotten to know over the years.

Sarah had only recently gotten the chance to know him, but he’d always hold a special place in her heart. She hoped he’d finally found peace.

As the sun set on the ocean, everyone slowly dispersed, leaving Sarah alone on the beach. She stared out into the waves and fought to calm her conflicted emotions. Her grandmother and Mr. Harrison had never gotten their second chance, despite the love they had for each other.

Maybe some things just weren’t meant to be.

Years ago, Dove’s Nest had helped her grandmother cope with heartache and loss, and now this new event venue would help her heal from her disappointment as well.

She wiped a tear from her cheek as she silently said her own goodbye to the man who’d meant so much to her grandmother; then she turned to head back.

Her cell phone chimed with a new email from Whitney, and Sarah smiled to see the new reopening brochure her friend had redesigned for the inn. Sarah gulped. This was it. She was doing it. She was staying in her hometown and taking a chance at her own dream, while preserving her grandmother’s.

Climbing into her car, she took her time driving along the coast toward the inn. For so many years, she’d been desperate to leave. She’d always felt out of place in the small town and hadn’t thought she could accomplish the things she wanted living there. She’d been wrong. She’d just needed to carve out a place for herself and let the community embrace her.

Just like they were embracing the new Dove’s Nest.

She pulled into the driveway, and seeing Wes’s truck parked in front, she swallowed hard. He must be there to fix the cellar door. She hadn’t really seen him since their argument, and the idea of seeing him now had her chest tightening even more. Staying in Blue Moon Bay and not being with him was going to be torture. But she’d made her decision.

Checking her reflection in the rearview mirror, she climbed out of her car and slowly made her way to the front door. A deep breath and she entered.

The ominous sound of the buzz saw had her eyes widening as she entered the foyer. She frowned as she moved in farther and glanced up the stairway to the guest bedrooms.

Wes stood on the top step, dressed in his jeans and paint-splattered T-shirt, his utility belt on his waist as he used the saw to cut into the landing where she’d fallen through. What the hell was he doing? Destroying the place? Her heart raced as she hurried up the stairs toward him. “Wes!”

He continued to work, cutting a huge piece of wood out of the landing.

“Wes, what the hell are you doing?” She’d just decided to keep the inn and now she’d have to pay him to repair the landing again?

He finished cutting and turned off the saw. Removing his safety goggles, he turned to face her. “Hi,” he said, looking nervous.

He should be nervous. “Hi?” How about an explanation for destroying her newly renovated staircase?

“So, I heard a rumor that you’ve decided to keep the place,” he said, his thoughts on the subject undecipherable.

“So, naturally you decide to destroy it?” Her pulse raced. He looked so freaking good and despite the situation, she had to hold herself back from rushing toward him.

“I’m not destroying it. I needed to show you something,” he said, bending to lift the piece of wood from the landing. He turned it around and handed it to her.

With a slightly shaky hand, she took it. Then frowned as she flipped it over. He’d written something on the plank of wood.

“A lot of builders like to leave their mark somewhere in their builds and renovations. A little signature on the drywall…a family photo…”

Sarah squinted to read what he’d written.

The incomparable Sarah Lewis was here.

Her laugh was more of a half sob as she stared at it, feeling new tears well in her eyes.

Wes put the saw down and moved toward her. “So it’s true. You’re staying?”

She nodded. “Yes. I’ve decided this…place, Dove’s Nest, is too important to let go of,” she said, fighting to keep her emotions from overwhelming her.

The last few days had taken their toll, and as ready as she was to move forward with her plans, she was still as conflicted as ever.

“So this decision to stay had nothing to do with me? With us?”

Her heart pounded. Was he saying there was still a chance for them?

Just days before, he was willing to let her go. She refused to let her guard down so quickly this time, but she couldn’t lie to him. “It wasn’t not because of you…of us,” she said quietly, glancing at the piece of wood in her hands.

He took several strides toward her, and his chest rose and fell as he took several deep breaths. “I was wrong, Sarah. About everything. You were right about Marissa needing freedom and space to be who she is…and about me needing to let go of the past and tradition and embrace the new.”

She shook her head. “I understood you being angry about the app. I should have been more careful—”

“Parents learn as we go. We all make mistakes along the way, but what you did for Marissa this summer…” He paused, emotion written all over his handsome face. “What you did for me with the website—I can’t thank you enough.”

“That was all Marissa,” she said. “She’s so incredible. The before and after pictures, the quotes from locals, and creating the website design…all her.” Man, she missed the little girl as much as she’d been missing Wes.

“She is incredible,” he said. “And so are you. I’ve always thought so, and these last few weeks, my feelings for you, my attraction—has only grown.”

He paused, and she held her breath. She felt the same way, but doubt and fear held her back from saying anything. She’d put herself out there too many times already. Maybe he still wasn’t ready…

“Sarah, I’m sorry.” He stepped closer. “And I’m hoping you’ll give me one last chance to prove to you how I feel about you. This is what I want. Sarah, I want you here with us.” He took her hands in his and pulled her toward him, his gaze locked on hers.

She stepped into his arms, desperate to believe that this was the right decision for all of them. That everything was going to work out. She was in love with him, and she loved Marissa, and she wanted this new start. Blue Moon Bay was her home and she wanted to be here. With them.

He touched her cheek, then cupped her face in his hands as she stared up at him. “I love you, Sarah. I’m in love with you,” he said.

The words were everything she’d been wanting to hear. “It’s only ever been you for me, Wes.”

His gaze burned into hers with a look she’d never seen before—desire, affection, attraction. No sign of hesitation or uncertainty.

She swallowed hard.

“Sarah, kiss me. I promise you I won’t hurt you this time. Or ever,” he said, tracing his thumb along her bottom lip, his eyes darting back and forth between her eyes and her mouth.

She released a deep breath as she raised her arms to encircle his neck, drawing his head lower. “Say my name again,” she whispered.

“Sarah,” he said against her lips as their mouths connected and she let everything go—her fears, her reservations, her doubt. She clung to him as they stood on the broken staircase, feeling as though all the pieces were finally put together.

She could feel her heart opening a little more with each second and the stress of the last few months evaporated in the hot California sun.

Starting over wasn’t looking so bad after all.

Her breath caught in her chest, and all the happiness and hope in there made her feel like she might explode as she pulled back to look at him. “I’m in love with you, too,” she whispered. “But you know you need to fix my staircase again, right?”

Wes grinned at her as he held her close. “I was counting on it. At the very least, it gave me an excuse to come back here.”

Sarah kissed the man she loved again, knowing everything was going to be okay.  

Thank you, Grandma.