“I don’t think so, no. And you wouldn’t either, if you had no money.” His tone was short.
“I’m going to make the pier work. I’ll do whatever it takes.”
He sighed. “Let me at least arrange a meeting with the buyer. Let him tell you what he has to say. And if you decide to not go ahead, then I’ll stop asking. Okay?”
“I don’t know.” She shook her head, looking out of the dusty window to the pier beyond. “I’ll just be wasting his time.”
“Let him be the judge of that. Just do this for me, sweetheart.” His voice softened. “This way I’ll know that I’ve done everything I can. And if you make a decision with all of the choices in front of you, we’ll both know you’ve made the right one.”
“Okay.” She sighed. “I’ll talk to him. Give him my details and we’ll set something up.” Once the charity day was over, she’d call him, invite him over, then find a reason not to sell. It was simple, really.
She wanted to stay here. Of that she was certain.
“Thank you. That’s all I ask. And Autumn?”
“Yes?”
“I love you, sweetheart. I miss having you here.”
She parted her lips, a ghost of a smile curling at the edges. He was aggravating as hell, but he was still her dad. “I love you, too.”
Autumn looked up to the sky, closing her eyes as the sun warmed her face. It was the first time she’d been back to LAX since she’d arrived all those weeks ago. She felt like a different person. Lighter, even though all the walking and surfing had put some additional muscle on her lean body. And so much more relaxed than the uptight recent-divorcee who’d wheeled her luggage out into the Californian sunshine.
As she stepped into the crowded atrium, Griff’s arm slung casually around her shoulders, there was a huge smile on her face.
She was buzzing at the thought of seeing Lydia. Of introducing her to Griff and showing her around Angel Sands.
“Her flight arrived a little early,” Griff said, glancing up at the arrival screens. “Unless she has a lot of luggage, she should be here pretty fast.”
“Lydia always travels light. She hates waiting for anything, including the luggage carousel.”
The glass doors beneath the arrivals sign slid open and a group of travelers walked through, pulling cabin-sized suitcases. Autumn spotted Lydia almost immediately. She was dressed for the sun, a pretty flowered Bardot top exposing her smooth shoulders where her blonde hair cascaded over them. Her denim skirt had metal buttons down the front, the hem ending halfway down her slender thighs. Her eyes scanned the crowd until they landed on Autumn and Griff, and a huge grin split her face. Abandoning her suitcase in the middle of the crowd, she squealed and ran to them, throwing herself into Autumn’s arms.
Autumn couldn’t help but laugh, though it came out a little strangled thanks to being winded by her sister’s onslaught. A man wheeled her suitcase over and passed it to Griff, before walking away, shaking his head.
“Oh my god, you look so different,” Lydia said when she finally released Autumn from her grasp. “Your hair, it’s down.” She ran her fingers through Autumn’s light brown tresses. “And you’re wearing shorts. Actual shorts. I hardly recognize you.”
“It’s so good to see you, too,” Autumn said with a grin. “And this is Griff.”
He held out his hand to Lydia, but she enveloped him in a bear hug. “Oh god, I want to climb you like a tree,” she told him, tipping her head up, her smile radiant. “Come here.” She pulled his head until her lips pressed against his. “I’m so happy to finally meet you.”
He hid any shock well. Autumn reminded herself to congratulate him later. Lydia was enough to surprise anybody.
“Are you okay now?” Lydia asked him. “Autumn told me about your accident.” She traced one of the cuts on his face. “Does it hurt?”
“Only if somebody touches it.” He grinned.
“Oops.” Lydia quickly pulled her hand away. “Sorry.”
“Let’s head to the car,” Autumn said. “Unless you need the bathroom?”
Lydia shook her head. “Nope. There was a cute flight attendant in my section, so I made it a point to go pee every five minutes.” She pulled a piece of paper from her pocket, showing them a phone number. “We’re meeting up when I’m back in New York.”
Griff grabbed her bag as Lydia slid her arm through Autumn’s, and they followed him to the parking lot. “Oh my god, sun!” Lydia said as they emerged from the building. “It was raining in New York. You should have seen all the looks I got wearing this at the airport. Who’s the loser now?”
Autumn could see Griff’s shoulders shaking with laughter.
“How’s New York?” Autumn asked her.
“Same as when you left it. Boring. Stuffy. Cold.” Lydia wrinkled her nose. “I’ve stayed there for too long. I’m planning on flying to Hawaii when I leave here.”
“What about your date with the flight attendant?” Griff asked.
She shrugged. “I’ll contact him the next time I’m back.”
And he’d come running. Autumn was certain of it. Her sister was different, that was for sure, and that allure seemed to hook men like bait hooked a fish. They wanted to tame her, but she’d never be tamed.
Didn’t stop them from trying.
When they reached the truck, Griff slid Lydia’s case into the flatbed and opened the passenger door. Lydia clambered onto the backseat, her bare legs squashed as she tried to get comfortable.
“You want me to sit in the back instead?” Autumn asked her.
“Nope. You sit next to your man.” Lydia grinned. “I can interrogate him from back here.”
Griff raised an eyebrow as he started the engine. “I’m an open book.”
Lydia clapped her hands together. “Oh good. I can’t wait to ask you all the questions.”
Autumn bit down a smile and let the sun warm her face through the windshield, the same way her sister and Griff were warming her on the inside. She was surrounded by people she loved and it felt so right.
“This view of the ocean is wow,” Lydia said, pressing her nose against the glass doors that led to Griff’s balcony. “I’d sleep out here every night so I could hear the waves. So much better than listening to traffic.”
Griff poured a glass of wine for Autumn and her sister, then grabbed a beer for himself. “Autumn’s view is better. Her cottage opens onto the beach. You can hear the Pacific from her bed.”
Lydia turned her head to give him a cheeky grin. “I bet that’s not all you can hear.”
Autumn shook her head. “Lydia.”
“What?” She shrugged. “I’m just telling it how it is.” Griff passed them the wine, winking at Autumn as she rolled her eyes at him.
“Sorry,” she mouthed.
He leaned forward to press his lips against her brow. Her love for her sister shone out of her. It was in her smile, her amused exasperation, and most of all in her eyes. “She’s right, babe,” he told her with a grin.