“Indeed they did, sir.”
“Good. Well, you continue to put that smile on her face, then I don’t know that I’ll have much of a job left.”
“Come again?” He couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Did Miller know? There was no way. Drea had said Miller would be understanding, but she would have said something had she actually told him. Maybe it was just a lucky guess. Or maybe even a stab in the dark. Miller saw all sorts of female employees on a daily basis—maybe someone else had an extra bright smile recently and Miller thought he’d put two and two together.
“I’m not saying things are always gonna be easy, or sunshine and roses, but I can tell that it’s a deep down, soul-reaching happiness, and that makes every last bit of it worth it.” Miller slid a spatula under the grilled cheese and flipped it into a to-go container.
“I don’t know what to say to that,” Kyle responded, still confused by Miller’s commentary.
“Just promise me you won’t be a dumbass and that you’ll cherish every moment,” he said, handing the to-go container to Kyle. Kyle took the box from him and smiled.
“That I will, Miller. I promise.”
The heavy door to his room made a loud bang as it swung open and hit the wall behind it. Kyle hadn’t meant to open it with that much force—he just hoped that whoever was currently living next door wasn’t home. He threw the duffle he’d been carrying on the bed, before crashing down on it himself.
He thought about his conversation with Miller as he bit into the sandwich he brought back. The warm cheese oozed out from the bread, requiring him to take another quick bite to avoid a mess. Kind of like how Miller just oozes wisdom sometimes, Kyle thought. He laughed at the thought, but was thankful for the words and sentiment that Miller passed his way earlier. Regardless of whether he actually knew the woman in question was Drea or if he was just speaking in general, it was a comforting feeling to know that someone other than his mother had his best interests at heart.
He hadn’t felt this kind of connection with another man since losing Mr. Willett when he was in college. Even in his late forties, Miller was significantly younger than Mr. Willett had been when he and Kyle started hanging out, but the two men still shared the same innate ability to see right through to what other people were feeling. Neither man had a problem calling people out on it either, but managed to do it in a gentle way that left you feeling cared about in the end.
Finishing up his sandwich, he looked down at his phone. It was eight twenty, a full five minutes after his mother was supposed to call. She always managed to call at eight fifteen, seven fifteen her time, right on the dot, every Sunday. Worried something was wrong, he pulled up her contact info and hit the call button. The phone rang a couple of times before a tired sounding voice answered.
“Hi, baby. To what do I owe the honor?”
“It’s Sunday night, Mom.”
“Oh goodness, it is! Is it that late already? Oh my, where did the day go?”
“Is everything okay, Mom?”
“Of course it is! I just lost track of time, that’s all. How are you, Kyle?”
“I’m good. Just got back from San Juan with Drea.”
“Oh, did you guys have a weekend off? That must have been nice. What’d you do while you were there?”
“It was great—it was really nice to just get away from the resort for a bit, actually. The guests were crazy last week, so when Grayson offered us the cat for the weekend, we took it. We didn’t really go with an agenda in mind,” he answered, trying to figure out where the line was in sharing with his mom. “But we walked around a bunch. Drea showed me the church where her parents got married.”
“Wow. That must have been very special.”
“It was.”
“Kyle, you know I try very hard to just let you live your life without commentary from your mother, but,” she said, pausing and taking a deep breath, “if a woman is showing you a piece of her history like this, she is trying to tell you something.”
Kyle rolled his eyes and let out a little laugh. She had a point—she was pretty good at letting him live his own life. She’d helped him along the way when he asked for her opinion, like in choosing a college, but overall she stayed out of it. When he’d come home with the job offer from Grayson and told her he was thinking of accepting, the only response she had given him was “when can I come visit?” For her to be slipping in her opinion now meant something; it also meant she’d been thinking about it for a long time.
“Just how long have you been holding back an opinion about me and Drea?” he asked her.
“Since just about my first visit down there,” she said with a yawn. “The two of you look at each other like Romeo and Juliet.”
“Mom, are you okay? You sound off.”
“I’m fine, just a little tired,” she answered, dismissing his concern. “Now, are you going to officially confirm my suspicions?”
“We’re,” he paused. Was it fair to tell his mom when he had asked Drea to keep it from her uncles? “We’re testing the waters.”
“Well, fine, be coy,” she yawned again,
“Really, Mom, are you sure you’re okay?”
“Yes, yes. Really, I’m just tired, I promise.”
“You’d tell me if something were wrong though, right? You’re taking your meds and all that?”
“Kyle, who is the parent here? I told you I’m fine. Now, if you just got home you must be exhausted, and I could certainly use a good night’s sleep. So, how about we just catch up later this week?”
“Sounds good, Mom,” he said. “Love you.”
“Love you, too, baby,”
He ended the call and slumped back on the bed. It concerned him to hear her sound so tired, but he trusted that she knew herself well enough to know that she just needed some extra sleep. She’d never been one to not take care of herself, so maybe his concern was for naught.
Grabbing his phone again he sent a text to Drea saying to let him know when she wanted him to head that way. He wanted to make sure she had enough time with her uncle. After hearing more of the family history this weekend he realized just what role each one of them played in her life and he wouldn’t dare take away from that.
Her reply came almost instantly, telling him she was heading to see Miller, and that she needed to find Simone about wedding stuff, but she should be home in about an hour and she’d see him then. He felt like this could be the longest sixty minutes of his life.
After dropping her stuff off inside the cottage, taking a quick rinse-off shower, and changing into a clean sundress, Drea made her way to the resort’s kitchen. She opted for what she considered the long route, walking through the main lobby of the resort, stopping for a moment to take in the space. In her head, she could see it all so clearly, how they could redesign the lobby to house an entrance to the spa. It would lead off the little hallway that currently led to the office, but instead it would just veer to the right, before it reached the employees-only area.
The long hall entrance would be dimly lit, with soft lights highlighting the jewel-toned walls, and the sounds of a water feature luring guests toward the spa desk. Once checked in, they would be led to locker rooms where they could change before stepping into the luxury waiting room, complete with plush couches and instrumental music. She could see the treatment rooms, saunas, and pools all mapped out as well. It was easy to picture guests lounging about, relaxing and taking in the beauty of the view from the resort.