Page 7 of A New Chapter in Rosewood Beach (Rosewood Beach #7)
CHAPTER SIX
Terrence pushed open the front door of Main Street Auto and wrinkled his nose slightly. Although he held mechanics in high regard, he was not a fan of the way auto shops always reeked of car tires and various oils and fluids.
Dean has done well for himself here, he thought as he looked around the lobby with a smile.
The auto shop was clean and well-organized, and photos of smiling customers in front of their cars lined the walls, giving the place a cheerful atmosphere.
Terrence had a feeling that one of Dean’s sisters had talked him into that idea, but he thought it was a great one.
Probably Julia, he reflected. She was so good at marketing and things like that.
Terrence was there to pick up his car, which he’d dropped off earlier in the day. It needed the battery replaced with a new one, and he’d been pleased when Dean had called him to let him know that the problem would be easy to solve and not terribly expensive.
As if summoned by Terrence’s thoughts, Dean appeared in the doorway leading into the lobby.
“Terrence,” he said warmly as he approached the older man and gave him a handshake.
“Welcome back.”
Terrence had been to many of the Owens family dinner nights as a special guest of Vivian’s, and he was on friendly terms with all of Vivian’s children and their partners.
He’d barely gotten a chance to speak to Dean that morning when he’d dropped off his car and he was eager to have a moment to check in with the young man.
“Thanks for taking care of that so quickly,” Terrence said as he followed Dean to the front desk so that he could pay his bill. “I appreciate it.”
“Of course.” Dean grinned at him. “We pride ourselves on our good service here. Can’t have you stuck without a car too long. Most people in town can get around on foot pretty well, but I know you need to drive to other neighboring towns for your health inspections.”
“That’s very true.” Terrence nodded, pleased that Dean had been thoughtful enough to consider that. “I do a lot of driving. What do I owe you?”
Dean told him a price with a grin on his face, and Terrence frowned.
“That can’t be right. You told me it was at least a hundred dollars more than that.”
Dean shrugged. “Friends and family discount.”
Terrence made a face as he took a hundred-dollar bill from his wallet and wiggled it determinedly into the tip jar. “I want to pay you for your work.”
Dean laughed. “You’re a stubborn man, Terrence Rawlins. We appreciate you.”
“I appreciate you. It’s good to have such a reliable auto shop here in town. I’ve lived places where there were four or five mechanic shops, and I didn’t really trust any of them.”
Dean smiled. “Thanks for saying that. I want to make sure our customers feel like they can trust us. Not only to do good work, but to not overcharge them or anything like that.”
“You’re undercharging, in your case,” Terrence said with a chuckle.
He finished writing out a check for the amount that Dean had quoted him and then handed it to the other man with a smile. “How have things been with you, Dean? How have you been feeling?”
As a close friend of the Owens family, Terrence knew all about Dean’s struggles with osteoarthritis. He cared sincerely about the young man’s wellbeing, and he hoped that Dean was finding it easier than ever to handle his physical ailment.
“I’m doing okay.” Dean smiled appreciatively at Terrence. “It’s getting easier to stay rested. Noelle is really helping me with that.”
“She’s a great girl,” Terrence said warmly. “She cares about you very much.”
Dean nodded. “I didn’t expect to get diagnosed with early-onset osteoarthritis or fall in love with my physical therapist, but I’m really glad the second part happened.” He laughed.
“I don’t think most of us expect to fall in love when it happens,” Terrence said, a touch wistfully.
The two men were quiet for a moment and then Terrence cleared his throat.
“I ran into your mother the other day at the store. She was trying to pick out tablecloth colors for Julia’s wedding, and I helped her out a little. ”
“Yeah? That’s awesome. Mom will tease Julia about being indecisive about wedding things, but I guess she’s indecisive too.
” He laughed. “Julia’s lucky to have a mom like ours helping her out.
She loves helping to plan the wedding, and whenever Julia is too busy to take care of all the little details, Mom volunteers to do some of it. It works out great for both of them.”
“Your mother is a kind woman.” Terrence felt his heart stir as he said the words, but if his tone sounded overly puppy-like, Dean didn’t seem to notice.
“She really is. She’s also been making meals for Alexis almost all the time.
Even though the baby hasn’t been born yet, she wants to make sure that Alexis and Grayson don’t feel stressed right now.
And heaven knows, Alexis has been eating like a bear getting ready to hibernate.
” He laughed, and Terrence chuckled with him.
“It sounds as though your mother isn’t just kind, she’s also very busy. How does she find the time to do all that and also run The Lighthouse Grill?”
“I hear you. She blows my mind. It’s easier for her now that Julia is also doing a lot of the managerial work, and it’s not like she needs to be there every day.
But it seems like most days she is there, and then still finds time to cook for Alexis, help Julia with preparing for the wedding, give Samantha homework assistance over the phone, check in on me and bring me snacks, and stop by Hazel’s work with books for her to read during her down time. I think she’s
super woman or something.”
Terrence whistled, his admiration for Vivian growing even further. “That really is something. It shows how much she cares about you all.”
Dean nodded. “We care about her too. We just bought her a present, to thank her for everything she does for us. We all pitched in and bought her a spa day for her, at a place in Providence.” He grinned.
“She said it was too much, but she looked really happy about it. And it isn’t too much. She absolutely deserves it.”
“I agree.” Terrence loved the idea of Vivian getting a day to treat herself. “That’s great that you kids did that for her. I would have agreed that she deserved it even before finding out how much she helps so many people out all the time.”
“She’s a mom, that’s for sure.” Dean grinned and then he noticed the time when he glanced at the digital clock hanging on the wall. “Let me just grab your car keys for you—they’re still in the office. Then you’ll be all set. I’m sorry it took an hour longer than I’d originally told you it would.”
Terrence scoffed and waved his hand through the air amiably. “Not a problem at all. It was still done in a very efficient manner.”
Dean grinned. “You’re a lot more easy-going than you used to be, Terrence.”
Terrence chuckled, accepting the good-natured remark gracefully, and not feeling offended in the slightest. “You’re probably right.”
He is, he thought as Dean disappeared into the office, thinking of fond memories of when he’d first started to feel more laid-back about details and schedules. And I do believe that a certain attractive widow definitely has something to do with that.
As soon as he’d had the thought, he reprimanded himself gently. He shouldn’t let himself feel so attracted to Vivian, since the two of them were just friends.
Dean reappeared, holding Terrence’s keys. He handed them to Terrence with a playful flourish, and Terrence laughed.
Vivian certainly raised some great kids, he thought. She must be so happy to see them all doing so well.
“I’m sure your mother is very proud of you, Dean,” he said as he pocketed the keys. “She must be thrilled to see all you kids thriving personally and professionally.”
Dean offered a bittersweet smile. “Thanks, Terrence. I appreciate that. In truth, I’m starting to get spread a bit thin, but I have a couple of guys coming in tonight for interviews, so I’ll have to see how that goes. We’re hoping to hire a new mechanic to take on some of the extra work.”
“That sounds promising.” Terrence clapped Dean on the back reassuringly. “I hope it all works out beautifully. Maybe one of these guys will be just what you need.”
“Maybe.” Dean’s tone made it sound as though he didn’t quite believe it, but he smiled anyway.
“Best of luck. I’ll have to stop by The Lighthouse Grill sometime to ask your family about it and hear how it went.”
“Do you need an excuse to stop by the pub?” Dean chuckled.
Well, I guess not, but I keep trying to come up with excuses to go there so that I can see Vivian, Terrence thought, wondering if the tips of his ears were starting to turn a bit pink.
Dean and Terrence exchanged friendly goodbyes, and then Terrence went out to the parking lot, where his newly-repaired car was waiting for him. He turned the key in the ignition, thinking about how nice it had been to catch up with Dean and hoping that everything worked out well for the young man.