Chapter Twenty-Eight

Colin got to the Goat a little later than usual because of last minute chaos, which would probably be the status quo now that the pub had opened. As he rounded the corner across the street, he realized the light was still on in the kitchen. Had Peaches forgotten to turn it off when she left?

No, as it turned out. Peaches was still in the kitchen, cleaning the sink.

Colin gave her a mock frown. “That’s my job.”

“I know. But I thought if I cleaned the kitchen, you could finish the cleaning faster, and then we could go home and you could tell me everything. And I’ve got some news, too. Some really great news.” Her cheeks were rosy from effort and blushes. He suddenly wanted nothing so much as to take her in his arms and make love to her on the kitchen prep table.

Which would undoubtedly be unsanitary and possibly illegal.

“Thanks. If you’re satisfied with your kitchen, I’ll get to work on the deli and the restrooms, and we can head home. Or you can head home and I’ll be there in an hour or so.”

“Could you just tell me now? Or give me a summary? I’ve been worrying all afternoon. Is everything really okay?” Her blue eyes were anxious, and he felt like a jerk for worrying her.

“Everything is fine.” He touched her cheek, running his fingers along the cheekbone. “Don’t worry.”

“I can’t help it.” She bit her full lower lip, and he moved from feeling like a jerk to feeling like a predator. “He didn’t want to take any more from you?”

He shook his head. “No. Actually, he wanted to give me my stuff back.”

Peaches blinked at him. He knew how she felt. He’d done a lot of blinking himself. “All of your stuff? Your money and your house?”

“Pretty much, but it’s an offer that comes with a whole lot of strings. Let me finish here and I’ll fill you in.”

For a moment, he thought she’d refuse and demand the details now. But then she shrugged. “Okay. I’ll go get supper on. At least now I won’t be worrying.”

“Shouldn’t take me long. Thanks for cleaning the kitchen.”

“No problem.” She gave him another quick smile, and then she was gone.

He headed for the broom closet to get his supplies. At least now he’d have time to figure out how to explain all of this. Maybe. He was still trying to explain it to himself.

Peaches had a pot of corn chowder on the stove by the time he got there. “No bread this time, but I’ve got some oyster crackers.”

“Good enough. I brought some red ale.” He put the beer down then dropped into his chair at the kitchen table, running his hands over his face. It had been a long, strange day. “Why don’t you tell me your news first? Mine gets complicated.”

Peaches handed him a couple of glasses, and he poured the beer, letting the foam gather at the top. “Okay, it’s pretty straightforward.” She smiled as she ladled soup into the bowls on the table, but lines of tension still gathered around her eyes. “Ruth’s buying Roger’s place or getting a long-term lease, whichever works best. And she’s giving me the chance to buy into the restaurant, to become a partner. Which I’ll be glad to do, obviously. Now you.”

“Wait, wait. That’s terrific. Peaches, that’s wonderful.” He leaned across the table to kiss her cheek. “You won, babe. Congratulations.”

“Thanks.” She bit her lip. “Your turn.”

Colin took a breath. “According to Patrick, there are problems with his little takeover of the family business. Some of Dev’s buddies on the board are pissed, and they’ve challenged Patrick’s argument about Dev mishandling the company. Which figures, because Dev didn’t mishandle the company. Anyway, Patrick and his lawyers have worked out some kind of deal where I come back as Dev’s heir and take his seat on the board. That’ll placate the guys who were Dev’s friends. But then I vote Patrick’s way and he does his takeover.”

Peaches raised an eyebrow. “So basically you double-cross your uncle’s allies?”

“Basically, yeah. I’m Patrick’s Trojan horse.”

“And in return, you get what should have been yours in the first place?” Peaches took a swallow of her beer. “That sounds sketchy.”

“It is sketchy. My first step would be to hire a shit ton of lawyers to look into the whole thing.”

Peaches picked up a handful of oyster crackers, scattering them over her chowder. “You said there were strings. What strings?”

“You mean besides being a traitor to Dev and his friends?” Colin’s smile tasted bitter. “I’d have to be on the board. Not just once, but from now on. Patrick would need me around to exercise his majority. That means I’d have to be in San Diego. More or less permanently.” He leaned back in his chair, watching her. “It means leaving Antero.”

Peaches’s eyes widened. She put down her spoon. “Oh.”

He could see it all in her expression—the struggle not to be upset while her heart was in turmoil, the need to make him feel better about doing this, the need to let him go. Her face was a window to her feelings; she couldn’t hide anything. It made him ache deep inside.

“So I said no.” Colin picked up his beer.

Peaches was blinking again. “No? You’re giving it up? All of it? Again?”

“I already went through the agony of losing, back when I lost Dev. Giving it up a second time doesn’t hurt much.” That wasn’t entirely true, but it was close enough to true that he could pull it off. He picked up his spoon, stirring oyster crackers into his soup. “I don’t want to live in San Diego. And I don’t trust Patrick to do what he said. If I took him up on it, I’d be likely to lose what I have here and get nothing in return. And I value what I have here. I value it a lot. More than anything Patrick could offer, as it turns out.” He risked a glance in her direction.

Peaches still looked slightly dazed. “It’s…you’re giving up so much, Colin. Are you sure?”

He nodded. “Very sure. If the choice is between Antero and San Diego, Antero takes it every time.”

He paused for a long moment, wondering if this was really the right time to tell her. But he couldn’t see the point in waiting. She’d either accept him or not. And it was time. “I love you, Peaches. I want to stay with you. I want to be here, doing what I’m doing. Having money’s good, but this is better.”

Peaches stared up at him, then her eyes filled with tears.

Oh, shit. This can’t be good. “Peaches, I didn’t…”

And now her eyes were blazing. Great. This so isn’t working the way I planned it. “If you say you didn’t mean it, I’ll never forgive you,” she snapped.

He drew himself up. “I wouldn’t say that. I meant every word.”

She blew out a breath, wiping her eyes on her napkin. “Good, because that’s the most wonderful thing anyone has ever said to me. The most wonderful thing anyone has ever done.” She got to her feet, moving around the table to cup his face in her hands. “I love you, Colin. I love you so much.” She leaned forward slowly, pressing her cheek against his. “I wish I knew better words to say, but my brain’s all mushy right now.”

“Those words are good. Believe me. Those words are really, really good.” His brain felt a little mushy, too. He wrapped his arms around her waist, taking in her warmth like wine. Or really good beer.

Her lips trembled into a grin. “What should we do now?”

He rested his forehead on her hair. “Could we have a little more soup? I’m really hungry. And it’s really good.”

“We could do that. I’d like to. I didn’t have much lunch.” He let her go regretfully, and she moved back to her side of the table. They ate in silence for a few more minutes, then he set down his beer, taking another breath. Now for the big question.

“I want to go all the way with this. The only reason I wanted any of that cash from Patrick was to buy you a honking big engagement ring.”

She sighed. “No honking big ring. I’m a cook, remember? If you give me some big, heavy ring, I’ll have to take it off before I put on my plastic gloves. Then I’ll probably lose it, and that’ll break both our hearts.”

He managed a smile while his heart hammered. “So no big heavy ring. But the whole engagement idea—that’s okay, right?”

She gave him another of those slightly teary smiles. “The whole engagement idea is terrific.”

He took her hand in his, his gaze locked with hers. “Just in case there’s any confusion here, I love you, Peaches. Which means I want to spend my life with you. I’m not sure what’s going to happen over the next couple of months—the stuff with Patrick, the future of the brewery, all of it—but I know that much. I want us to be together. Whatever kind of wedding you want, I’ll go for. But I’d like it to be soon. As soon as we can.” He let his lips edge up in a slightly cautious grin.

Peaches was back to being dazed again. Maybe he shouldn’t have sprung everything on her at once. “Okay,” she stammered finally.

He licked his lips. “Okay what?”

“Okay, I love you. Okay, I’ll marry you. Okay, I want to spend my life with you, too. Very much.” She pressed her lips together, blinking back tears again. “And okay, let’s make it soon. This should be enough to get my mama to finally visit Colorado.”

He brought her hand to his lips, kissing the back of her fingers. “Soon works for me. Soon is good.”

Peaches swabbed her eyes again with her napkin. “This is ridiculous. I need to stop crying. I used to have a friend, a chef, who told me I should keep a bottle of champagne around at all times, just in case. Now I wish I’d listened to him.”

Colin returned her smile, one of those generous open grins that made his heart do a little flip. He picked up his beer bottle. “All I’ve got is red ale, but here’s to you.”

She picked up her own bottle and clinked it against his. “Here’s to you. Definitely, you.”