Chapter 3
Wiping his hands on a kitchen towel, Rick ducked out onto the porch of his Hamptons beach home, threw the towel over his left shoulder, and walked over to his daughter, who was stretched out on one of the lounge chairs, book propped up on her thighs. Though she had yet to read any of his works (she wasn't quite old enough for those) Alexis had certainly inherited her father's love of literature, and easily read chapter books far above her grade-level without second thought, which made her father very proud.
"'lexis," he said, calling her attention. "Which veggie do you want with dinner: peas or green beans?"
She momentarily scrunched her nose, as green veggies were her least favorite—no matter the type. "What else are we having?"
"Pork chops."
"Ughh…beans I guess."
Rick smiled, leaned over and bumped his lips against the crown of her head. "One day you will like peas, sweet pea."
"No!" Alexis insisted and her father simply chuckled. Then, he gazed down at the canine sprawled out at the foot of the chaise lounge. Despite Rick walking within a few feet of him, Thor hadn't lifted his head, swished his tail, or made any other movements to indicate he was still alive. Evidently, he'd been thoroughly worn out by their mid-afternoon excursion.
"You're letting Thor rest, right sweetie?"
"Uh huh."
Rick hummed, studied the furry chest of the dog to make sure it still rose and fell with his breathing, and then merely shrugged and walked back into the kitchen. He gazed in the oven to check their main course, and once he saw it was beginning to turn slightly brown at the edges, he decided to alert his other houseguest about the impending meal.
As he walked back towards the office, Rick could not help but smile proudly at the fact that he had successfully convinced Kate and her pup to spend the weekend at his beach retreat. It really had been quite adorable how flustered she'd become when he inquired about her thoughts on his invitation the next time they saw one another at the park. She stammered out several uncertainties before ultimately agreeing to join him so long as she could contribute in some way to the weekend. He agreed, though never intended on making her stick to her word since she was his guest and there was no need for her to offer to help with cleaning or cooking or whatever she intended to help with.
Pausing at the edge of the hallway, he could just barely see her seated at his desk. She wore her dark-rimmed reading glasses and her hair was twisted into a bun at the top of her head. When combined with the way she chewed on the cap of her highlighter, Rick believed it gave her a very studious if not slightly librarian-esque appearance. He felt a few tingles flow southward in his spine, but immediately shook his head, shutting down that notion—at least for the time being since his feelings at that moment were, at best, complicated.
Now that the anger and bitterness that remained after his divorce had finally faded away, Rick believed he was ready to once again embark on a romantic relationship with a woman. He also strongly believed Kate could be that woman, but yet he remained cautious about dating as a single father. He'd read articles and blogs about the topic specifically and one piece of advice he wanted to heed for certain was not to have women drifting in and out of his daughter's life. If he was going to date someone, he needed to do so without that woman meeting Alexis until their relationship was established…
…unless he could date a woman with whom he already had an established relationship by way of a friendship.
Of course, this was far from the only reason he was interested in Kate. She was beautiful, intelligent, and had a smile that made his heart flutter in ways it hadn't since he was a teen. Plus, in an unexpected sort of way, she simply seemed to fit with them. She had ever since that first day at the park, and inviting her into their home had felt completely natural. Yet, at the same time, Rick's gut told him the time was still not right.
Just because he thought he was ready didn't mean that he was. He certainly didn't want to rush into anything only to have it later blow up in his face. Then, at the same time, there was Kate. He didn't believe she was uninterested in him romantically—her smiles and averted gazes when their eyes met told him as much. But there was something…something about her he just couldn't put his finger on. Even with all their dinners and now the twenty-four hours they'd spent in each other's presence, she still remained extremely hesitant to divulge anything remotely personal. Given what else he knew about her, he could not simply brush that off as shyness; there was more to the story and he needed to dig a bit deeper before elevating their relationship to any level above what it was then.
Clearing his throat, he stepped up to the doorway to the office and tapped his knuckles against the doorframe. "Kate?" he called out to get her attention. She jumped slightly and pulled her glasses off the end of her nose as she looked up at him. "Sorry to interrupt I just wanted to say that dinner will be ready in about half an hour."
"Wha—I…" She glanced around at the papers spread out over his desk for a few minutes, clearly disoriented, before looking back up at him and saying, "What time is it? I thought I was making dinner tonight."
"It's after five and really-"
"After five!? Shit! I'm sorry—why didn't you interrupt me?!"
He offered a gentle smile at her frazzled sounding tone. "Kate, don't worry about it. I know you're busy and it's no big deal—just pork chops and some veggies."
She capped her highlighter and tossed it down on the desk. "Well at least let me help you set the table," she said, sounding thoroughly annoyed with herself.
He smiled. "If you want, but take your time; no rush." With that, he turned and walked out of the office heading back towards the kitchen.
Kate let out a small groan as she packed up her books and case paperwork. She was mad at herself for not realizing the time sooner so she could have contributed to dinner. Then again, she had been worried she would not get enough work done that weekend with the Castles and that was certainly not the case, which she was very thankful for. Still, the last thing she wanted was to be an ungrateful guest.
Despite the fact that she was quickly approaching the twenty-four-hour mark of her time in the Hamptons, Kate could still hardly believe she had agreed to join the Castle clan that May weekend. While sitting alone in her apartment trying to come up with excuses that seemed reasonable and believable enough to get her out of the invitation, Thor's incessant staring and whining continually drew her attention away from her plotting and back towards visions of Alexis's smile and her pup's wagging tail as they played with balls or Frisbees. The more she waivered in her plot to turn down the invitation, the more insistently he whined. It was uncanny—almost as if he knew what was going on inside her mind.
Deep down, Kate knew the fears that prevented her from getting close to other people—whether it was in a romantic or friendship capacity—were irrational. She didn't need to be afraid to have anything more than casual interactions with others. She didn't need to isolate herself from coworkers and friendly people she met on the subway or in the park. But every time she tried to convince herself otherwise, the little voice in the back of her head went, "But is it safe? Are you really sure?"
Five years had passed since she heard from her mother's killers; five years since they threatened her life and that of her father. True, the killers had never threatened anyone other than the two of them, but how could she know if she were to enter a relationship that man would not be in danger? Worse—that man and his family? Perhaps if the killers thought she was thinking of going to the police, they would use that man or—god forbid—his child as leverage to buy her silence. If that were to happen, she would never be able to live with herself.
Though she had survived the attack that took her mother's life, as the lonely years passed Kate began to wonder how much that survival was a blessing and how much it was actually too heavy of a burden to bear. Sitting in her apartment as Thor nudged her knee again and again with his cold nose, she thought that perhaps her vow of solitude was too harsh. Just because there were people keen on killing her if she made a move they didn't like did not mean she couldn't live her life. She doubted these people, whoever they are, were stalking her and watching her every move. That seemed illogical no matter how much the taunting voices inside her mind told her it wasn't.
After many hours of wrestling back and forth Kate ultimately decided she could be friends with the Castles, but nothing more. They would be the kind of friends who hung out at the park and on rare occasion ate dinner together, but that was where their interaction needed to end. True, staying at the beach house did elevate them slightly above a barely-friends status, but so long as that too was a rare occasion, no one dangerous would be any the wiser.
Despite settling on that decision for several days to become comfortable with it, Kate still fought nerves when she climbed into Rick's Mercedes the prior day. She second-guessed herself all the way up until they pulled into the driveway of his Hamptons estate. After that she was too stunned to be fearful.
To say that Rick's home was completely overwhelming would have been an understatement. She had been thoroughly impressed by his spacious, two-story loft in the city, but the beach house was downright outrageous with a dozen rooms, exquisite décor, and a breath-taking beachy backyard. It was truly an oasis and she was thankful to be there for even the briefest period of time and wanted to express that gratitude by helping with dinner.
"So what's the case you're working on?" Rick asked her after he'd pointed out where she could find the plates and utensils to set the table. "Or I guess you can't say, can you?"
Kate almost laughed. Surely this man had heard of attorney-client privilege before, but perhaps he was just trying to make conversation. "No, I can't tell you about it, but I doubt you'd want me to—it's about securities fraud. Lots and lots of legal jargon."
He grimaced. "Yikes. I can't even read my book contracts—that sounds like a nightmare. Do you come from a family of lawyers, by chance?"
She bobbed her head. "My parents."
He smiled. "Ah, so that's where you get it from."
She gave a little shrug and then tried to change the subject. "Can I do anything else?"
"Nope."
She gripped the back of one of the chairs a little bit harder than necessarily. "Are you sure? I don't want it to seem like I'm taking advantage."
He tilted his head to the side and gazed at her as though that idea had been one of the furthest from his mind. "But we invited you; you're the guest. Speaking of—you're welcome back any time."
"Oh." She felt startled by the unexpected comment, particularly since she was hoping this event would be once and done—not that she didn't enjoy his home, but it was best for the limited-friendship status she was trying to maintain. "It is lovely here, Rick but I…I shouldn't."
"Why not?"
"I…it's too much. We're just park acquaintances."
He took a few steps closer to her, casually leaning his hand against the kitchen island. "What if I want us to be friends? I invite my friends out here all the time."
"I…" She hesitated while internally cursing. How could she possibly explain that she wanted to be only minor-friends and not good friends without sounding like an insane person? Worse—without feeling forced to reveal the truth she swore she'd take to the grave.
He closed the distance between them and gently brushed his fingertips down the outside of her arm. "Kate—I don't want to twist your arm into something you're uncomfortable with, but you did seem to be enjoying yourself when you and Thor were playing this morning."
She dropped her chin to her chest, trying to hide the smile on her face at the memory of how her dog had pranced through the sand while trying to retrieve his favorite ball. "Well yeah. It's hard not to enjoy this place—it's gorgeous."
"So you'll come back?"
She let out an airy laugh. "You're making it hard for me to say no."
He grinned, clearly proud. "I know. C'mon Kate—it's almost summer."
"But work-"
"You got work done today." He reminded her coolly. "If you don't want to do it for you, do it for Thor. Look how happy he is."
Kate gazed out towards the patio where Rick gestured. She could see Thor sitting beside Alexis's chase lounge, his head resting by Alexis's foot as she stroked one of her tiny fingers down his snout. Looking back to her companion she said, "Thor would be just as happy back in the city."
"Mmm I don't know about that. There are no seagulls there."
Kate laughed loudly as she had never seen her dog as happy as when he was chasing his newfound nemesis. Knowing she wouldn't win any contrary argument in that moment, she rounded her shoulders, let out an exhale and said, "I'll think about it, okay?"
"You might as well just agree—you know you're going to." He winked at her and then, without anther word, turned back towards the stove. Kate remained standing by the dining table as she dragged her teeth across her bottom lip, both annoyed and happy with the fact that the writer had a very valid point.
