“I can carry the bag.”
“I know you can.” He reached for her hand and wove their fingers together. They continued their exploration of the small town, going in and out of stores, buying souvenirs, and arguing happily when Rennie insisted that Graham buy a whale cut from driftwood.
“It would look amazing over the bar, and you know it. You can’t deny it.”
The salesclerk looked at Graham and Rennie expectantly.
“You’re right. We’ll take it,” Graham told the young kid behind the counter.
Rennie beamed when Graham said we. She thought they’d make a good team, that she could make him happy. She already knew he did the same for her.
When they left the store, Rennie carried the wooden whale sign. It was long and bulky but lighter than the books, and she was secretly elated to carry it. Graham had bought something she loved, and that made her smile.
They crossed the road and went down a side street. Graham stopped them in front of Lou’s Lavender. “This summer, when we come back, we’ll go to the fields. Right now, everything is dead, but I want you to see what they do here on the island with the lavender.”
Rennie rubbed her hands together. “Show me.”
He opened the door and motioned for her to go in. Inside, soap, lotion, perfumes, and sprigs of lavender surrounded her. Rennie turned toward Graham. “You know purple is my favorite color,” she stated as she held a sprig to her nose and inhaled.
He nodded. “I know, Ren.”
Graham took the whale sign from her and set it by the door with her books. They browsed together, smelling the lotions and perfumes, adding soap to their handbasket, and flipping through the photos of the fields.
“I wish it wasn’t winter.”
“It won’t be in a few months,” he told her.
Wherever Rennie went, Graham followed. And when she would stop, she knew he was right next to her. His hand would rest on her back, or he would bend toward her and examine whatever she showed him.
After an hour, Rennie settled on a bottle of lotion and a half dozen bars of soap. She took a business card from the stack on the counter and thanked the clerk, who happened to be the owner, for creating such amazing products. They collected their other packages and headed back out into the crisp air.
“I have one more place I really want to show you,” Graham said to her. She linked her arm in his and told him to lead the way.
He led them down the street and back toward the marina and into a small ice cream shop. “We’ll take one of each, please.”
Rennie went to tell him she didn’t like people ordering for her, when she finally read the menu. They only served two flavors: lavender and lavender with honey.
“Lavender ice cream?” She wasn’t really asking Graham or the young woman behind the counter, but both of them laughed and said yes. “I really feel like I’m in an alternate universe here.”
Graham paid and took their two dishes over to the small white wrought iron table-and-chair set. “Dig in.” He pushed the cup of ice cream toward her.
Her first bite was small, enough to whet her palate. She let the ice cream rest on her tongue before she swallowed. “Okay, it’s good, but . . .” She couldn’t find the right word.
“Floral tasting, like you’re eating flowers?”
She pointed her spoon at him. “Yes, that’s it. I do like it, though. Can I try yours?”
Graham pushed his spoon into his cream-colored ice cream and scooped some out. He held his spoon near Rennie’s mouth. She kept her eyes on him as she wrapped her lips around the plasticware until the ice cream touched her taste buds. “Mmm.”
“You like?” Graham asked.
“So good. Definitely my preference of the two.”
Without hesitation, Graham swapped their cups. The act seemed so innocent yet stuck out profoundly for her. She didn’t have to ask; he just did it, because that was how good of a man he was.
“We can share,” she told him and pushed her cup to the middle of the table. She was all set to start eating, when Graham held his spoon out again. This time, both flavors sat there. “Seriously?” She leaned forward and took the offering. She smiled and covered her mouth. “You know what would be even better?”
“Chocolate,” he said.
She pointed her spoon at him and nodded. “Yes. You know me so well.”
Graham didn’t reply, but he winked. And sometimes a wink meant more than anything.
TWENTY-FOUR
After they stopped for ice cream, Graham and Rennie strolled the streets, going into boutiques, where Graham became the catchall for their bags while Rennie shopped. They laughed at the whimsical names for the coffee shops and delis, such as the Bait Shop, which promised the best fish and chips for miles. Considering the town they were in was only one square mile, Graham and Rennie found the claim humorous. Graham told Rennie everything he knew about Friday Harbor and San Juan Island, which mostly boiled down to “When we come back this summer.” He really wanted to take her to see the lavender fields. To him, they rivaled Skagit Valley’s tulip festival.
By the time they arrived back on the boat, they were both exhausted. Rennie took her books down to her room and hollered over her shoulder that she was going to take a nap. The idea of a nap sounded like a good idea to Graham. He waited for her door to shut before he decided what to do, but she left it open—his thoughts started to run rampant. He was back to playing the what-if game.
All throughout the day, they’d flirted with each other, and it felt good. For the first time in forever, Graham felt a deeper connection with her. They were a cohesive unit, always aware of where the other person was, thoughtful, and flirtatious, and she made him feel desirable by the way she would lean into him, stroke his arm, and always look at him with parted lips, which was a tell for her. Rennie didn’t have to be a casual hookup; they could build a strong relationship. Of course, she had said she wanted financial independence and didn’t want children—but if he was being honest with himself, having children was an idea his mother planted and not one he had ever really considered. Otherwise, he could be the right man for Rennie. He loved the idea of her working in the bar with him, and he could easily return the favor if she needed the work.
Work.
For the past few days he had forgotten about the possibility of someone suing him. He had a sudden urge to know more and made his way down the small flight of stairs and into Rennie’s room. He knocked once, even though the door was open, and found her lying on her side, flipping through a book.
“Hey,” she said as he entered. Graham sat on the bed and mirrored her position.
“Can we talk work for a minute? I know you’re on vacation, but I’m curious about a couple of things.”
“Of course.” Rennie closed the book, and when Graham saw the cover, he smiled. It was the book he had shown her, which featured his bar. The fact that she chose to read his book sent his heart soaring. “What’s going on?”
“This case against me. How will I know when they’re suing me?”
“My criminal law is rusty, which is why I’m going to ask my colleague Jefferson to help me again. But from what I remember, the other side needs evidence. You can’t just go to a lawyer and say, ‘I want to sue someone’ without having facts and evidence to back up your claim. I’ve seen the notes, and unless Donna is hiding information, that’s all there is so far—just her notes on what the client has told her.”