RUTH
The next day while I prepared lunch, I danced around my kitchen as the stereo in my family room blasted “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” by Cyndi Lauper. I didn’t care that Nick occasionally glanced toward the house and shook his head, laughing at me.
He was the reason I even felt like dancing.
I couldn’t remember the last time I had felt so alive. It was like I had been sucked into a big black hole for ten years and had forgotten that the sun even existed.
Nick was my sunshine.
He made me smile, for many reasons, including the pot of Black-eyed Susans on the kitchen counter that he had given to me first thing this morning.
“No charge,” is what he had told me, winking.
I argued with him that I was going to pay him for the flowers since he said he’d plant them for me, but Nick said they were a thank you gift for my business.
What a bunch of bull.
Especially since there were five more pots on the ground outside.
How could such a stubborn man make me smile?
Thoughts of that kiss in the water played nonstop in my head.
I had never been more distracted in my entire career. I still hadn’t gotten much work done, unless you counted the time I took to plant organic tomatoes and red bell peppers in my new planter boxes while Nick watched and gave me even more goosebumps on the back of my neck.
“Dancing Queen” by Abba started playing and I began to dance again.
Nick yelled from the backyard and waved his finger at me. “No, no, no!”
I walked over to the screen door and slid it open, hands on my hips. “What seems to be the problem?”
“Your music selection. If I’m going to be subjected to your tunes while I work, I would like to hear something different.”
“I’m not taking requests. And what’s wrong with Abba anyway?”
“Everything. I can put up with Cyndi Lauper and Aretha Franklin. And what was that other song? The one where you were waving your arms in the air and singing about being afraid and petrified.”
“That was “I Will Survive” by Gloria Gaynor. And you were watching me?”
I knew he was, but I just wanted to hear him admit it.
Nick blew out a breath, like he couldn’t believe I had to ask. “Of course, I was watching you. Have you seen yourself in the mirror?”
“Not recently,” I lied.
“Well, go look. Then you’ll know why I can’t take my eyes off of you. How could I not watch you?”
“Am I supposed to answer that?”
“No. Anyway, where was I?”
“Abba.”
“Right.” Nick crossed his arms. “Abba is where I draw the line.”
“Duly noted. Are you going to work today or just criticize my excellent taste in music?”
“I hope he’s going to work!” Brandon yelled from the back of the yard, as he tried to position a new palm tree in the huge hole he had just dug. “I could use some help over here.”
Nick took a few steps toward me. “Of course, I’m going to work.” He leaned in and whispered, “I just used the music as an excuse to come over here and kiss you.”
He kissed me on the lips.
Oh, my.
Nick grunted and clapped his hands. “Good! I’m glad we got that straightened out!” He winked and turned to go help Brandon.
“Nice try,” Brandon said. “I saw you kiss her.”
I laughed as another Abba song came on after the first one.
I turned it up louder and continued to dance in the kitchen, glancing out the window as Nick shook his head again, smiling.
I blew him a kiss.
A few minutes later as I ate my sandwich, I grabbed my buzzing phone from the kitchen counter.
I hadn’t heard from Dee today yet, but she had a good excuse since she had been at the dentist all morning. She joked that she chipped a tooth falling on the beach after witnessing our kiss in the water. The truth was she was getting a root canal.
Dee: I’m back from the dentist. Root canals suck.
Ruth: You poor thing. Are you in pain?
Dee: Lots, but I’ll survive.
Ruth: I will survive! I was just dancing to that song in the kitchen.
Dee: You were dancing at home?
Ruth: And singing.
Dee: Wow, this is serious. I want to be your maid of honor.
Ruth: You’re putting the high heel before the garter.
Dee: Sounds like your head is still in the clouds from that kiss.
Ruth: You should see the view, it’s great from up here.
Dee: Well, don’t forget you have the company party tonight at six.
Ruth: Crap. I forgot.
Dee: That’s why you pay me the big bucks. To remind you of things, which includes how amazing I am.
Ruth: Nick and I had plans tonight. Not good.
Dee: Looks like you’ll have to take him with you.
I had hoped that Nick and I would be doing something romantic this evening, a real date, since it hadn’t happened last night. We both had wanted to spend more time together after the reunion, but I had to get back to work and Nick had spent almost three hours helping clean up and break down everything on the beach after the reunion was over.
I wasn’t really looking forward to the party, unfortunately I couldn’t skip it.
And taking Nick wasn’t even close to romantic, but I didn’t want to cancel on him either.
I wanted to see him.
Walking back over to the screen door, I slid it open and stepped outside.
Brandon and Nick were finishing up the soil around the first palm tree they had just planted.
Nick glanced toward me and waved me over. “I’ve got something for you.”
“What is it?”
“You have to come here if you want to find out.”
I followed him to the gazebo and waited while he opened a cardboard box, pulling out beautiful wind chimes with long silver tubes. He undid the fasteners that held them together inside the box and carefully hung it on the hook above his head.
He stood back and grinned. “It’s a Himalayan echo wind chime.”
“It’s beautiful.”
Nick nodded. “Many practitioners of feng shui believe a wind chime’s sounds can have a positive effect on the energy around your house.”
The timing of the ocean breeze was perfect, moving the wind chimes just enough to give off a pleasant, peaceful melody that made me want to kick off my shoes, close my eyes, and listen for a while.
I smiled. “It’s working. I feel positive.”
“Me, too.”
I stepped closer to Nick and hugged him. “Thank you.”
“My pleasure. No charge.”
I smacked him playfully on the arm with the back of my hand. “Quit saying no charge.”
“Hey—I like to have things crystal clear with my clients, so there are never any misunderstandings.”
“Your clients . . .”
Nick hesitated and leaned closer. “That’s not all you are to me, but we can discuss that when I see you this evening.” He winked.
“Speaking of that . . . I completely forgot about a work event that I need to attend. Actually, it’s a party.”
Nick’s face went blank. “Oh . . . okay.”
“I want you to come with me. It’s Stansfeld’s company cocktail party to celebrate closing two of our deals, Amsterion and Caltonic. It’s customary for us to have a party after every big transaction and milestone and this time it’s for the two deals that I collaborated on.”