Page 22 of A New Chapter in Rosewood Beach (Rosewood Beach #7)

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

Terrence cleared his throat as he got out of his car. It was a sunny afternoon, with a pleasant breeze that added a refreshing coolness to the summer heat. He was in the parking lot outside the tennis courts where Vivian liked to play, and he felt a rush of nervousness in his gut.

He was itching to see her, and although he didn’t know if she was playing there that day or not, he’d found himself driving there in case he would be able to find her there.

He’d already stopped by The Lighthouse Grill, and she wasn’t there.

He didn’t feel it would be appropriate to stop by her home, in case she was feeling like being alone.

If she was out and about on the tennis courts, however, that was a different matter.

I hope she’s here , he thought as he strolled down the cement sidewalk toward the tennis courts. It’s a beautiful day for tennis.

A gentle breeze rustled the leaves of the trees overhead and kissed his face. It was a soothing feeling, and it helped him feel more relaxed as he approached the tennis court.

There weren’t many people on the court, and his eyes landed almost immediately on a woman playing by herself, wearing navy leggings and a sunshine yellow top.

Terrence’s heart skipped a beat when he recognized Vivian. He thought to himself how well colorful colors suited her, and how attractive she looked with her cheeks flushed and her eyes shining.

She didn’t notice him at first, and he stood next to the court feeling tongue-tied as he watched her. He knew he should speak up and let her know that he was there, but he felt bad about interrupting her—and on top of that, his mouth had become extremely dry.

Then she hit the tennis ball in his direction by mistake. She let out a squeak of alarm when she saw him standing there, and then she froze when she recognized him.

“Terrence,” she said, her eyes a little wide.

“Vivian.” He nodded at her. There were so many butterflies in his chest that he marveled that there was any room left for his lungs. It must be why he was struggling to breathe a little.

“It’s good to see you.” She cleared her throat. “Sorry about the tennis ball.”

He chuckled. “You really do seem to have a hidden animosity toward me.”

“Oh no,” she assured him. “Not at all.”

She was so sincerely emphatic that he felt badly that he’d made the joke. He wished things weren’t suddenly so awkward between them.

“I was only joking,” he said, smiling at her. “Where’s Hazel? Is she coming to play with you today?”

Vivian shook her head. “No, not today. My granddaughter has started cheerleading, so Hazel is busy helping her get ready for that. She won’t have as much time to play with me as she used to, but that’s all right. I can still practice by myself.”

He nodded. He still felt uncomfortably tongue-tied, and he had no idea how to bring up what he had come there to say.

He wanted to tell her that he would like to pursue the potential of a romantic relationship with her, but he didn’t want to blurt that out suddenly.

It was a delicate matter. In the bright sunlight, with the sound of tennis balls being thwacked and people laughing and shouting, he didn’t feel that he could bring up something so important, so personal, all of a sudden.

He would have to speak loudly in order to be heard over the sounds of the tennis court, and he felt he would have trouble speaking at all at the moment.

“Would you like to try to hit the ball?” she asked him all of a sudden, smiling at him in a way that was almost coy.

He blinked at her. “Do I—I mean, I’ve never really played tennis.”

“Oh, come on.” She grinned at him and held her tennis racket out to him. “Give it a try.”

Terrence obeyed, unable to keep from smiling over the way she was behaving so gleefully. “You’re eager to see me fail, aren’t you?”

She laughed. “I’m sure you’ll do very well. I’m eager to help you out if you need my assistance.”

He couldn’t help being struck by her words, since they echoed how he felt about her. He was always eager to help her out if she needed assistance. He felt a desire to tell her so in that moment, but instead he simply took the tennis racket from her.

“So, I just toss a ball in the air and try to hit it with this mallet—I mean racket?”

“Oh my.” Vivian laughed, giggling as if she was unable to stop. “I called it a bat the other day. We’re two peas in a pod, I guess.”

He chuckled. “Well, bat is better than mallet. Apparently, I intend to hit this ball with a great deal of force.”

“Be careful if you do that—you don’t want to send it sailing into the parking lot. It might hit some poor unsuspecting health inspector’s car.”

“Oh, he’d be fine. Those health inspectors are tough cookies.”

For a moment, they stood there laughing. He nearly blurted out that he wanted to talk with her about their conversation the other day, but then she picked up one of the tennis balls and handed it to him.

“Go on,” she urged him. “Give it a try. Just throw it up in the air and then hit it with the mallet.”

He laughed at her joke and tossed the tennis ball in the air. It sailed straight up and he swung the tennis racket toward it. By the time the tennis racket was in line with where he’d thrown the ball upward, however, the ball was bouncing away across the tennis court.

“Ah,” Terrence said, watching it roll away. “It seems I need to move with more speed if I’m going to be successful at this.”

Vivian was almost doubled over with laughter.

“See?” He smiled, delighted by her amusement. “I told you you just wanted to watch me fail at this.”

She shook her head. “It’s just the way you reacted. You’re so serious.”

“I am? I didn’t mean to be—I’m just remarking that I’ll need to move with more speed if I expect to be successful.”

She laughed even harder then, although he wasn’t sure why.

He smiled and threw another ball in the air, managing to hit it that time.

He didn’t hit it particularly well, since the ball mostly made contact with the frame of the racket and sailed away in an entirely different direction than the one that he had intended, but he still felt satisfied with his success.

“You’re right,” he told her. “This is fun.”

“Isn’t it? Go ahead and try another one.”

Terrence hit a few more balls, getting slightly better each time.

After he and Vivian had collected all of the tennis balls that had rolled away, he noticed her looking at him intently.

His heart skipped a beat as he wondered if she was about to bring up the conversation they’d had in the restaurant together.

Instead, however, she asked him an unexpected question. “Terrence? Seeing as how I lost Hazel as my tennis partner, perhaps you would be interested in improving our skills together?”

His eyebrows rose. “You’re asking me if I’d like to play tennis with you?”

She nodded, smiling. “I’m asking you if you’d like to be my tennis partner.”

Spending time with Vivian in the outdoors, getting fresh air and sunshine and exercise? In a way that was pleasant and amusing? There was no doubt in his mind as to what his answer would be.

“Yes, thank you for asking. I would like that very much.”

She smiled, and her eyes traced over his face. He knew that she was thinking about the question that was hovering in the air between them—would they become partners in a different way as well?

He swallowed. “Vivian, I feel that I didn’t handle our conversation the other day well.

I was taken aback by what you told me—I hadn’t expected you to say it, and I knew I had a lot of thinking to do.

But I wish I’d phrased it better. I didn’t mean to hurt you when I told you that I needed more time to think.

You revealed your growing interest in becoming more than friends, and I wish I’d had the presence of mind to articulate my own thoughts and feelings better in that moment. ”

She shook her head, smiling at him reassuringly.

“I understand that it’s a lot to think about.

A lot to process, and a lot to consider.

Dean reminded me that after Frank passed, I needed the space to grieve before I could consider romance.

You gave me that space, and that’s what allowed me to feel the way I do now.

I couldn’t have reached this place if I’d been rushed, or if I’d needed to make a decision before I was ready for it.

Being patient for you while you consider what I told you is the least I can do. ”

“It’s not that I don’t know what my answer is,” he told her slowly. “It’s more that I believe any kind of decision like this needs to be approached with a great deal of thought and care. I wouldn’t want to operate a machine before I was sure I was ready for it.”

Vivian shook her head, smiling. “You’re a piece of work, you know that?”

He laughed. “I believe in safety, and handling everything with care.” His tone became more serious.

“I want to make sure I handle you with care, Vivian. I want to protect your heart in all this. I’m sorry I didn’t do a better job of that the other day, but caring for you is at the forefront of my goals.

” He paused and took a deep breath. He felt nervous to say the words, even though he’d been wanting to say them to her for months.

“I am indeed interested in being more than friends with you, Vivian. I have been for quite some time.”

Her expression took on a glow of happiness along with a flush of emotion, as if a sunrise had spread across her face.

“You have?”

“I have.” He nodded and stepped closer to her. “But I want to take this slowly. And carefully. We already have such a great friendship established, and I wouldn’t want to jeopardize that.”

“I’m more than fine with that,” she said, her voice a little breathless as she looked up into his eyes.

He looked down at her, noticing that there were faint flecks of green in the blue of her eyes. He thought to himself that she had the most beautiful eyes he’d ever seen.

“Good.” He felt tongue-tied again, but this time, he didn’t mind. “Then we’re agreed. We start this venture together, but we take it slowly.”

She nodded, smiling in a way that made his heart melt. She looked overjoyed, and it made him feel on top of the world, knowing that it was because she wanted to be involved with him romantically.

I can hardly believe this is happening, he thought to himself. What a wonderful turn of events. Vivian Owens is actually interested in me.

“So,” she said with a smile. “What do you say we play some more tennis together?”