She took the envelope with a trembling hand. Her future lay in what was in this envelope. Had they recovered enough to give her a new start? He’d said the troops had been very successful. But had TreasureSeeker even found her trust fund? Her 401K?
“You need to review the list and make sure we got everything. If we missed something, we might still be able to retrieve it.”
She steeled herself and opened the envelope. Reviewed the neat spreadsheet, item by item. Her heart thudded faster and faster and her eyes burned then blurred. “You got it all.” Her entire portfolio of liquid assets was included. All of it! She dropped the paper onto the bar, came around and hugged him hard. “Thank you. Oh, thank you!”
He pulled her to him and held her. “I thought that would make you happy, but if I’d known it’d get you into my arms, I’d have told TreasureSeeker to hustle even more.”
She stilled, pulled back and met his gaze. “You want me in your arms?”
He studied her face a long moment. “More than my next breath.”
His sincerity warmed her, thrilled her. “I do like it here.”
“In Christmas Cove?” he asked.
“Yes, but that’s not what I meant.” She was terrified but took the leap. “In your arms.” Was it possible to come to care so much for someone you knew for five years but didn’t really know?
“I like you here, too.”
“In Christmas Cove or—”
“Both.” He leaned forward and covered her lips in a tender kiss.
Apparently, it was possible. She cupped his face in her hands and kissed him back.
Gabby and Plumber talked and talked, moved to the sofa with glasses of wine, and talked some more. He was charming, as blunt as Lys, and he had a wicked sense of humor that appealed to Gabby on so many levels she couldn’t even label them all. And not once did it occur to her to not just relax and speak freely. By his actions and deeds, he had proven if there was anything to know about her, he already knew it. No secrets and nothing to hide was new to her, and she’d often yearned for someone to share with like this, but never had she dared to think, much less to dream, she’d actually find it. Yet, she had in him.
Finally, he sat back. “I’m glad you like Christmas Cove.”
“What’s not to like? It’s beautiful and cheerful and the people are amazing.”
“You went to town.”
“I did.” A couple of times. She couldn’t not smile. “Kelly and Sara showed me around. Lys was on the mountain checking out a poacher complaint.”
“She gets those from time to time.”
“Sara told me.”
“So, they trotted you around and introduced you to everyone.”
“If there’s anyone they missed, I don’t know who it would be.” Gabby chuckled. “Most of them seemed to know about me before we met.”
“That’s one of the challenges of a small town and, frankly, why I spend so much time away from home.”
The secrets he keeps from them.
“That must be hard for you.”
“Sometimes it is. You’ve seen how close family and friends are here. I miss that. But then there are other times when I know I need to do what I’m doing.”
Helping people like her. “It makes a difference.” She wouldn’t be alive without him and the troops. She had no illusions about that. Medros’s henchmen would have killed her the night her father’s house exploded.
“It does. At least, more often than it doesn’t. I’ll take those results.” He nodded. “How is the new-life plan coming along?”
“It was tough to get started, to tell you the truth. But once I made a monumental mind shift, I started making progress. Now, I’m making big strides—which I need to adjust to include all the assets you guys recovered.”
Uncertainty had the skin between his eyebrows crinkled. “Is that a good or bad thing?”
“It’s a great thing,” she assured him. “I have options and choices I only dreamed of before now.”
“Gabby dreaming. I like that.” He smiled. “I’m eager to hear all about your plans, but first, there’s something I have to know for purely selfish reasons.”
“What’s that?”
“During this tour of the Cove where you met everyone in the area, how many jobs did you get sucked into for the festival?”
She laughed. “A couple.”
“Knew it.” He slapped his jean-clad knee.
“I got recruited to help decorate the pier for the blessing of the boats.”
“The fleet,” he said. “It’s the blessing of the fleet.”
“Right.”
“Kelly?”
“Lys,” Gabby corrected him, took a tiny sip of wine. “Kelly snagged me for two hours, manning the hot-chocolate stand during the bonfire.”
“That’s a popular spot then. You’ll be busy.” He chuckled. “What did Sara snag you for?”
“How did you know she did?”
“I know them well.” He pursed his lips. “Triple threat. Always.”
“They’re wonderful.”
“I agree.” He rubbed the rim of his stemmed glass with his thumb. “The good news is they really like you or none of them would have recruited you at all. The bad news is because they like you, you’ll be drafted onto every volunteer project from now on.”
Gabby laughed. “I kind of like that idea.” He seemed a little perplexed. She shrugged. “When you have no one, having a lot of someones, even ones who don’t know you well, is special.” A gift truly, but maybe you had to walk in those shoes to really understand that.
“You should be thrilled then. Just remember, ‘No is a complete sentence’.”
She marked an “X” over her chest. “I will.”
“Great. So tell me more about your new-life plan.”
“That’s the best part. Well, it could be the best part. It depends on whether or not you’d mind me putting down roots here.”
“Seriously?”
“I love it here, Plumber.” She had to remind herself to stick with that name. In her mind, she always thought Shadow Watcher or SW first and then switched to Plumber. The last thing he needed was for her to blow his cover in his hometown. “It’s everything I always wanted and maybe more than I knew I could want. Wonderful things. But I don’t want to intrude on your turf, so if you have any objection, just let me know.”
“Why would I object?”
“Having anyone around who knows the other world you walk in . . .” She let her voice fade and shrugged.
“Gabby, no. I totally trust you.” He lifted a fingertip to her chin, slid it along her jaw. “I’m happy you’re here, and even happier you want to stay.”
Her relief was immediate and intense. “Thank you.” She clasped his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze.
“You weren’t kidding. You’re moving at the speed of light if you have your plan worked out to the point you know you want to stay here.”
“I am and I do.” She smiled, then worried her lower lip with her teeth. “It wasn’t a risk assessment or logical decision.” He’d probably laugh at her for that. “The triple threat welcomed me, went out of their way to help and treated me . . .”