“Of course you do. Why can’t he go to a home where he’ll be provided with ’round-the-clock care?”
“Depending on how much money he has in his estate, that might be an option, but until now, there was no way we could’ve afforded it. The only reason I’m able to go to college at all is through scholarships and grants.”
Hearing her talk about her life made me want to reevaluate my own. I’d always felt like a prisoner to the resort, chained to my family’s legacy. All I saw was a lonely future and a life of unfulfilled desires. But now, listening to how hard someone as amazing as Kenny had it, I realized I’d been looking at everything the wrong way. If Kenny left here having only taught me one thing…it would be that opportunities and hardships don’t define us, but rather our attitude about it all is what makes us who we are.
She could’ve easily complained about the added stress of living with someone who needed constant care or the hoops she had to jump through to get a degree, but she didn’t do either of those things. It would’ve been easy for her to have blamed her absent father for any relationship issues, yet instead, she accepted things for what they were and took ownership of her outcome.
Kenny impressed the hell out of me.
She inspired me, amazed me, and motivated me.
“What about you? Have you ever looked into online classes?”
I shook my head and forced myself to hold eye contact. “No, but after this chat, it’s definitely something I will think about. I don’t have a clue what I would go to school for or how I could implement a degree into my life here at the resort, but you’ve inspired me to at least look into it.”
“I have?” Her eyes widened with awe lining her forehead. “How have I done that?”
She made me want more from life, made me want to aspire to be more than I am, have more than I do, and become more than a carbon copy of my dad. But I couldn’t tell her any of that for fear of scaring her off. It was quite a bold statement to make, and I didn’t want to run the risk of her taking it the wrong way. So rather than confess the truth, I simply shrugged and said, “I guess you’ve shown me that it’s okay to make the most of what life’s given me.”
Her eyes grew impossibly wider, though this time, it was excitement shining back at me. “Does this mean you’ll reconsider your stance on marketing for this place?”
I couldn’t help but laugh at the way she practically bounced in her seat like she’d just won the lottery. “It doesn’t mean I will be able to do anything about it. Like I told you already, my dad is pretty set in his ways, but it does mean that, yes, I’ll look into my options.”
This had to have been the first time I’d seen enthusiasm color her cheeks. It’d been embarrassment of some sort until now. And I had to admit, I preferred her eagerness to her humiliation any day of the week. Which might’ve had a little bit to do with the way she grabbed my face with both hands right before planting a very excited kiss on my lips.
I’d do anything to earn those kisses.
And I mean anything.
Chapter Seventeen
Kenny
Drew had acted secretive most of the day. He’d told me that he had something planned for my last night, but he wouldn’t give me any hints or allow guesses. So while he was able to relax and enjoy our lazy afternoon at his place, I was too busy trying to figure out what he had up his sleeve. I’d never been very good with surprises—I loved them, but my impatience didn’t care much for them.
“Are you going to tell me now?” I asked as we set off from his house.
With a Machiavellian smile, he cut his eyes my way and shook his head.
“Oh, come on, Drew. You’ve teased me all day.”
The deep rumbles of humor that rolled through his chest raked across my arms, leaving behind gooseflesh in their wake. “I think you’ll find that you are the only one to blame for whatever torture you’ve endured over this. I’m not the one who’s brought it up over and over again.”
“We’re not playing the blame game here, all right?” I tried to act offended, though it was a futile point. He knew I wasn’t. And what was worse was that we both knew he was right—if I hadn’t obsessed over his plans, then it wouldn’t have been mentioned at all.
“You’ll see soon enough, I promise.” He reached over to take my hand and held it in my lap. Without looking at me, he smiled and added, “We’re almost there.”
To my surprise, he turned into the parking lot for The Feeder. The way he’d acted all day, I had assumed it was more than grabbing dinner at the resort’s restaurant. While the food was good, I just expected something a little…more. However, I wouldn’t complain. Not only was I raised to be appreciative of anyone’s generosity, but I also enjoyed the food here. And I couldn’t complain about the company.
Except, he surprised me when he squeezed my thigh and said, “I’ll be right back.”
“We’re not eating here?”
Either my face had given away too much, or he’d found my expression comical because his lips spread so wide it made him squint. “Good try, but I’m still not going to tell you anything. You’ll have to wait and see.”
Drew hadn’t been inside long, but it was enough time for me to have come up with about seventy-seven different possibilities of what his plans could be. However, at least seventy-five of those were quickly dismissed when I caught him trotting down the wooden steps with two brown bags beneath his arms.
“So we’re eating the food, just not here…” I tapped my chin, earning an amused eye roll.
“You don’t quit, do you?”
“Nope. I’ve been told it’s a good quality to have.”
“True story,” he said as he navigated through the trees.
When we reached the fork in the path, and he went right, toward his place, I really began to question where we were going, especially since we had just come from his house. But by the time he parked the cart on the side, I’d decided to stop trying to figure it out. I assumed we would have a picnic in his living room, which I was perfectly happy to have. Then he led me down the trail toward the dock, and the prospect of a picnic near the water excited me even more. Considering we’d missed the entire movie the last time we were here, I kind of hoped we could have a redo.
But leave it to Drew to knock me off my axis yet again.
Although this time, I wasn’t sure I could ever right myself after this one.
My breath caught in my throat just as I covered my gaping mouth, staring in complete shock at the boat tied to the side of the dock. A blanket covered the platform at the front with a few pillows placed along the sides, a bucket of ice sitting between them. A bottle of wine—or champagne, I wasn’t sure which—was nestled in the cubes of ice.
Drew didn’t say anything. Instead, he stood next to me and studied my reaction. I could see him out of my peripheral vision, though I was too busy taking in the romantic gesture to look at him.
Finally, I turned my wide, dry eyes his way. “When did you do this? How? I mean, there’s no way that ice has been there all day without melting.” I’d been with him at his place ever since he picked me up this afternoon. Aside from using the restroom, he hadn’t left my side. There was no way he had time to put all this together without my knowledge.