Page 26 of A Breeze Over Rosewood Beach (Rosewood Beach #9)

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

Sally wiped down the counter at the Ocean Breeze Café for the third time that morning, although it didn’t need it.

The soft swishing sounds the cloth made across the polished wood were soothing.

It was more about giving her hands something to do than it was about cleaning.

Her mind wasn’t in the café that morning, it was somewhere else entirely.

It was with Oscar. Try as she might, she couldn’t shake him from her thoughts.

She’d replayed their coffee date at least a dozen times in her mind since it happened.

The way his gruff, almost bristly edges had softened, and the way he’d looked at her with tenderness in his eyes.

And of course, the memory of their kisses made her almost beside herself with happiness.

She kept thinking about when Oscar had first arrived in Rosewood Beach.

She’d assumed that he was just another city slicker passing through, counting the days until he could leave.

His impatience, his terse tone, and the way he’d looked around with discontent like the town was too small to contain him had made her feel sure that he intended for his sojourn in Rosewood Beach to be temporary.

I so want him to stay, she thought. And I know we kind of talked about it, but what if he’s planning on leaving again after a little while? Or, what if he thinks he’s planning on staying, but then he decides to leave after all? What if he gets too bored with our little town?

She bit her lip, remembering how her last relationship had ended that way. She didn’t think she could take it again if a man she had feelings for decided he couldn’t stay.

Not that she had feelings for Oscar. It was much too early for anything like that. But she had to admit to herself that she was very capable of developing feelings for him, and that scared her a great deal.

It would be smarter to steer clear of him, she told herself with an achy feeling in her heart. She’d already promised herself that she wasn’t going to let herself get hurt by romance ever again. After her last heartbreak, she’d built walls up around her heart and she’d never really let them down.

But she couldn’t stomach the thought of letting Oscar slip through her fingers any more than she could stomach the thought of more heartbreak. She couldn’t ignore the pull of attraction that she felt toward him.

This is ridiculous, she thought finally, after her thoughts had tied her brain up in knots. I’m calling in the emergency girl forces. I need to talk to Vivian.

Sighing, she pulled out her phone and sent a quick text to her best friend.

SALLY: Hey, are you free right now? Feel like grabbing a bite? I could use some girl time.

The reply came almost instantly.

VIVIAN: Absolutely. Meet you at the Salty Spoon in twenty minutes? I’ve been craving their grilled cheese.

Sally smiled, feeling relieved. Vivian was always there for her in a way that she appreciated with all her heart.

Twenty minutes later, Sally walked into the Salty Spoon, and the familiar sounds of clattering dishes and the smells of frying potatoes and pancakes bolstered her spirits. Vivian was already seated at a booth in the corner, and she waved when she saw Sally.

“Hey, you,” Vivian said, sitting up a bit straighter. “How’s everything going? How was your date?” She leaned forward impishly, as if Sally’s response was going to be as elusive as a frog and she was determined to catch it.

Sally slid into the seat across from Vivian. “It was good. It was very good. And it was definitely a date, which I hadn’t been sure about, really.”

Vivian squealed.

“But don’t get too excited,” Sally protested, groaning. “I’m all tangled up in knots. I don’t know where to go from here, you know?”

“Tell me everything.”

A waitress came by to take their orders and they both ordered grilled cheese sandwiches with bacon and fried onions along with French fries. As soon as the waitress walked away, Vivian leaned in, her elbows resting on the table.

“Okay. The floor is yours, Sally Lipton.”

“Ah, I don’t know what to think.” Sally sighed, twisting her napkin in her hands.

“Part of me feels like I shouldn’t let this continue, even though I want it to.

What if he doesn’t stay in Rosewood Beach?

And he’s such a grump. Do you really think someone that grumpy could date a person as cheerful as me? ”

Vivian studied her for a moment. “You know, Terrence was a bit of a grump when I first met him. He was so fussy and rigid about things.” She laughed. “He was giving ‘stay off my lawn’ energy, as Samantha would say. But he just needed to loosen up a little.”

Sally laughed. “I see what you mean.”

“And look at him now. He has just as much fun as the rest of us, as long as health code violations aren’t part of the equation. Sometimes people just need a little love in order to blossom into a fuller version of themselves. Sometimes they don’t even realize that they need it until they find it.”

“That’s not exactly a foolproof formula, though. Oscar might be a grump no matter what.”

“Of course not. I’m not saying you should dive headfirst into anything. But if you feel drawn to him—and it sounds like you do—what’s the harm in getting to know him a little more?”

At that moment, the waitress arrived with their two golden and gooey grilled cheese sandwiches and two heaping piles of fries. Vivian wasted no time digging in, but Sally sat back, her appetite momentarily forgotten as her mind churned with uncertainty.

“I told myself I wasn’t going to do this again,” Sally admitted, her voice softening. “I’m scared of romance, Vivian. I know it can be wonderful, but I know how painful it can be too. I don’t want to feel like that ever again.”

Vivian nodded sympathetically and then paused thoughtfully as she stirred a French fry in her ketchup. “You also love adventure, though, don’t you? You love the spark of something new. And I think you’re a lot braver than you give yourself credit for.”

Sally smiled, though the ache in her chest lingered. “It’s not about being brave. I know I’m brave enough to try dating Oscar, but I’m worried that it’s the wrong choice.”

Vivian smiled at her friend, a hopeful expression passing over her face.

Sally could tell that Vivian hoped very much that a true romance would blossom between her and Oscar.

“But you could also find something really beautiful. You could find someone who actually sticks around. Someone who chooses you, every day.”

“But I don’t want to get my hopes up,” Sally said, wincing. “That sounds too good to be true, so it probably is.”

Vivian reached across the table and squeezed her hand.

“It is possible, Sal. And you don’t have to figure it all out today.

Just give yourself permission to explore it.

That’s all. I don’t want to push you into something you don’t actually want, but if you feel drawn to him, it couldn’t hurt to get to know him better. ”

Sally nodded slowly, her heart relaxing a little.

Vivian always had a way of helping her see things more clearly, of gently pulling her toward what she already knew deep down.

She picked up her grilled cheese and took a big bite out of it.

She sighed as the gooey warmth helped settle her nerves.

She and Vivian ate in comfortable silence for a few minutes, and then Vivian tactfully changed the subject, steering them toward discussing details about their restaurants.

But in the back of Sally’s mind, Oscar’s smile flickered like a candle she couldn’t quite blow out.

She had a great deal to think about, and process.

She still didn’t know what she was going to do about him, but maybe she didn’t need all the answers yet.

Maybe it was enough to admit that her heart was curious again, and taking some baby steps forward was the right thing to do for herself.