Chapter 19

CHAPTER NINETEEN

It had only taken six weeks, seven construction projects, a hundred hours of manpower, and about seventeen thousand emails, texts, and voice memos from Dorothy, but Lori was finally getting some potentially interested buyers into the Burrows house.

"You can't fault the house for the view, can you?" joked one of the clients at her viewing, looking out over the crashing Atlantic below. He was a distinguished looking gentleman of a certain age and not—surprise, surprise—a young twentysomething like the models Dorothy had dragged in here.

"You certainly cannot," agreed his daughter, a kind-faced young woman in her thirties who carried a baby on her hip.

This family, Lori had learned, was looking for a place that three generations could live together: the older parents, the daughter and her husband, and their three kids. The grandmother of the family had some mobility issues that meant leaving the house was an ordeal, so having more family, including the little ones, around would make her feel less confined by this restriction as well as making sure she had help whenever she needed it.

After thirty years in the real estate business, Lori wasn't often surprised anymore, but she found she liked this surprise. She'd anticipated that the house would generate interest from older couples, but she liked that this older couple intended to bring some young blood in with them. She hoped the house ended up working out for them.

Both father and daughter turned to face Lori.

"Well," he said, "I'm convinced. It's a beautiful place. The next step will be to bring in my wife and her other half," he tilted his head toward his daughter, "to see if they like it too. Amy and I are scouting out places first before we make my wife travel around too much," he added as an explanation. "So if we could find a time to set up another viewing, I'd appreciate it."

"Of course," Lori said instantly. "You don't need to explain. Lots of people want second, or even third, viewings before they decide on a big purchase like a home."

"Well, it may be typical, but we appreciate it anyway," added the daughter, Amy, with a smile. "We'll check in with everyone's schedules, which will take a minute because, you know, kids, but then we'll call and set up a next appointment if that's okay?"

"That's perfect," Lori agreed with a smile. She showed them to the door, each party exchanging polite thank yous for their time. They waved as Lori closed the door behind them. She had a good feeling about this.

Less than a minute after she'd bid the father and daughter farewell, she heard a knock at the front door. Frowning, she hurried to reopen it.

"Did you forget some—"

It wasn't her clients. It was Hudson.

Operating on pure instinct, she closed the door again hurriedly.

"Um, nobody's home," she called, then made a face at herself. Real smooth, Lori, she thought.

"That's weird," Hudson said, his voice not even muffled by the door between them. "Because I'm looking through this window and I can fully see this woman I know. Lori Sims? Maybe you've heard of her?"

She glanced up at the window cut into the top portion of the front door and, sure enough, Hudson was tall enough to look right through it. Drat.

She pasted on a smile and opened the door again.

"Oh, hey, Hudson, I didn't see you there," she said airily. "Come on in."

He entered and she fought the urge to make another face at herself as she closed the door behind him. Bad enough that she had just done… everything she'd just done. She didn't need him to also see her goofy expressions.

When she turned, he was clearly struggling not to smile.

"Lori," he said. "You know I think the world of you, so don't take this the wrong way, but… Don't take up acting, okay? It's not your calling."

Any saucy retort she might have managed died at the phrase I think the world of you . Did he? She knew he liked her, of course. They'd been working well together and then he'd asked her on a date, after all. But that was less than I think the world of you .

As nice as the sentiment was, it did not, unfortunately, help the embarrassment that still lingered after her, um, mild total freak-out at the end of their date.

"I am sure I don't know what you're talking about," she said primly.

And because it was Hudson, this made him smile.

"No, certainly not," he agreed with a laugh. "Just like how it's not at all related when I ask… Can we talk?"

She swallowed hard. She knew she couldn't avoid him forever. It wasn't practical. Whale Harbor was a small town, and their daughters were friends. On top of that, she didn't want to, not really. She liked spending time with him.

Just… would it have been so hard for him to let her avoid him just a little bit longer? She didn't think so. Would've been considerate.

She sighed, letting her blasé act drop.

"Yeah, of course," she agreed. "Want to sit out back? It's nice out there, just like always."

"That sounds great," he said.

They moved quickly to the back porch. Despite her profession, Lori didn't like hanging out in empty houses when she didn't have a clear task. It always felt like the house was missing something important, that special thing that made it a home. That thing was, she supposed, the happiness of the people who lived there.

The back porch had no such problems, however, not with the occasional shrieking cry of seabirds and the sun that defied anyone to feel anything less than perfectly cheerful when it shined so brightly.

"So, Lor," Hudson began, tucking his hands into his back pockets. He made no move to sit and neither did she, despite the roomy Adirondacks that were only a few feet away. "I was hoping we could talk about our date the other night."

She knew her smile probably looked more like a cringe. "It was a great date," she said. This was true, even if she knew it wasn't what he was really talking about.

"It was," he agreed, and the admission sent a warm feeling coursing through her chest. The other shoe had to drop, however. And it did, in short order. "Which is why," he went on, voice light and not accusing, "I'm kind of curious to know why you bolted out at the end like I'd set you on fire."

Her expression was definitely a cringe now.

"I, uh, told you," she said. "I had a work thing."

It didn't sound any more plausible now than it had that night.

"I would never accuse you of lying to me, Lori," Hudson said, his tone playful. "But let's say, you know, hypothetically, that you didn't have a work thing. Which I might know, hypothetically of course, because you and I have been working together. Here, for example," he added, waving his arm at the house.

She was blushing. It was the redhead's curse.

"Right," she muttered. "That."

There was an uncomfortable pause and then Hudson sighed.

"Listen," he said. "I don't want to put you in a tough spot, I really don't. And I'm a grown man. So if you just want to go back to being friends, we can do that. You don't even have to give me a reason if you really don't want to, although I do admit it's been keeping me up at night, just a little."

She glanced at him a little shyly, surprised that he would say something like that. Surprised that it sounded like it was true.

"For what it's worth though," he said. "I like you. I like you a lot. And heck, that's kind of scary! I mean, we've been through things in life, you and me. We know that taking that leap isn't as easy as the storybooks make it out to be." He gave her a slightly rueful, soft smile. "But scary or not, hard or not, I want to give it a shot. I want to see where things go between us. I'm not saying this to pressure you, of course, but I also don't want to hold back only to regret it later. I like you a lot, Lori, and I'd like to be in a relationship with you, if you're interested in that too."

Lori's mind raced. One part of her wanted to jump and squeal like a teen in those 80's movies she loved so much. But another part of her felt so nervous it was almost panic. When she opened her mouth, she wasn't sure what she was going to say.

What came out was the truth.

"I'm good at being alone," she said, rushing forward before this could sound like a rejection. She was pretty sure it wasn't a rejection. She had to get through all the noise in her head to be sure. "I've gotten used to it. But lately I've been thinking that I've actually gotten stuck in it… stuck in my ways."

She took a deep breath. Hudson reached out and squeezed her hand quickly in a show of support, then let go, gave her the space to figure out what she needed to say.

"I think that skill, being good at being alone… I think it was important, back when I first lost my husband. It was necessary. I had to figure out how to hold things together for my girls. But I don't have to just hold things together anymore. I don't have to, and I don't want to."

He was starting to look hopeful. She was starting to feel hopeful.

"I used to take risks and I want to do that again. I want to figure out how to be a free spirit again. I want to be open to hope and love and spontaneity. And, if you'll come along with me, I'd like you to be there with me."

"Darlin'," he said. "I would love to go along with you." He paused. "As long as you mean risks with your heart, not, oh, I don't know, jumping out of planes or something." He shuddered. "I don't do heights."

She laughed, free and delighted. Oh, goodness, it felt like it was already working.

"Hudson Boone, you must be crazy if you think I'd even consider jumping out of a plane. If I died in some crazy stunt, who would bug my girls to give me grandbabies, huh?"

He laughed too, then reached out and wrapped her in a hug. Lori let herself be pulled into his warm, sturdy frame, feeling like she was taking a full breath for the first time in ages.

"We can still do all that, sweetheart," he said, smiling down at her. "Haven't you heard? Old dogs can learn new tricks."

"Don't call me old. Or a dog!" she scolded, shoving at him halfheartedly, not really wanting him to move away.

"Okay, okay." He chuckled. "Let me say it this way instead. It's never too late."

"Yeah," she agreed, resting her cheek briefly against his chest. "I like that one better."

They stood in their comfortable embrace for a long moment before Hudson's next words interrupted the quiet.

"You know what? Let's dance."

Lori tilted her head back to blink up at him. "What? Here?"

His grin was mischievous and oh so tempting.

"Why not? You can dance anywhere… and I do mean you , Lori. I've been wanting to dance with you ever since I saw you walking down the sidewalk, rocking out to whatever was playing through your headphones."

She dropped her face into her hands with a startled laugh. One thing she had to like about getting older was that her self-consciousness had diminished significantly. When she was younger, knowing that her dorky dancing had witness would have been mortifying. Now, it was just silly.

Though she had to admit that maybe it was the admiring smile Hudson was giving her that made her feel more confident, not just her age.

"Sure," she said, lifting her face to grin at him. "Why not?"

She had said she wanted to be more spontaneous, hadn't she?

He tugged her by the hand back into the house, setting up in the nearly empty living room, the light pouring in from the wide windows leaving the room just the right level of bright for an impromptu dance party. Hudson crossed over to the mantel and fiddled with his phone for a few seconds. Then, as he headed back toward Lori, the upbeat, poppy sounds of rock from the 80s began to play, echoing happily throughout the space despite the slightly tinny quality of the small phone speakers.

Lori let out a laugh in a burst of unbridled joy. And then they danced.

Despite her big talk, she did feel a little self-conscious to start. But the feeling dissipated quickly, especially after she saw that Hudson's dancing was at least ten times as dorky as hers could ever hope to be. His shimmies were always a little offbeat, and she was pretty sure that if their kids had been present, they would have been hiding fondly teasing smiles.

But none of their daughters were present, so she let herself loose, bopping and grooving however felt right in the moment. When the song changed to another fast-paced hit from their youths, they got even sillier, imitating all the old, corny dance moves they could remember. The lawn mower, the shopping cart, the sprinkler. They kept trying to one-up one another, getting more and more ridiculous, until Lori found herself laughing so hard that she couldn't manage to do the vogue.

Then the song shifted, a slow, crooning ballad replacing the dance numbers. Hudson held out a hand and Lori stepped into his arms without even thinking about it. They slow danced their way around the living room, his arm around her back, her head resting upon his shoulder.

"This is really nice," she murmured as the song faded away. Another fast song started, but neither of them made any move to step away from the other.

"It is very nice," Hudson agreed. He gently reached out and tipped her chin up so that she was looking at him. "I do have one question though."

"What's that?"

His smile was sweet, teasing, and full of promise. "If I kiss you again, are you going to run away on me?"

She raised an arched eyebrow. "Why don't you test it and find out?"

And that was how Hudson discovered that, no, Lori Sims did not have any intention of running from him. Not ever again.