Sea Glass Island (Ocean Breeze) - By Sherryl Woods Page 0,65
her from that forever,” he agreed. “But for now, I only want her to experience the most positive things possible.”
“And you don’t think you can trust me to be real with her without crushing her spirit?” she concluded.
“I trust you,” he insisted. “I’m just worried for her.”
“So, what’s the bottom line? Will you get us together or not?” She held his gaze. “You do know if she wants this badly enough, she’ll find another way to get to me. Even with all the tourists, Sand Castle Bay is essentially a small town. She’ll know where to look if she wants to cross paths with me.”
He gave her a wry look. “No question about it,” he acknowledged. “So, if you’re still around after the wedding, we’ll work something out.”
“Not this week?” she asked, disappointed. Cass was one of the people she’d envisioned as a test case for this acting school idea.
He frowned. “I get the sense that you’re almost as eager to see her again as she is to spend some time with you. Is there a reason for that?”
Samantha wasn’t ready to reveal her plan just yet. For one thing, she didn’t begin to have everything worked out in her head. For another, ironically just like Cass, she wasn’t sure she was strong enough to hear from any naysayers. It was possible Ethan would be a big booster, but she wasn’t quite ready to find out.
“Just an idea I wanted to run past her,” she said eventually. “I’m still working out the details.”
He didn’t look overjoyed about being left in the dark. “When you have them all worked out, fill me in,” he replied. “Then we’ll move forward.”
“You’re a tough negotiator,” she said.
“Thank you.”
“I’m not so sure I meant it as a compliment,” she grumbled.
In fact, right this second, it seemed as if he was standing in the way of her dream.
* * *
Something was going on with Samantha. Ethan had seen it in her eyes when he’d insisted on knowing more before he brought her and Cass together. He couldn’t imagine, though, what she felt the need to hide from him. He did know it hurt that she wouldn’t confide in him. However, since he was the one who’d put the brakes on getting too close, he supposed this was fair turnabout. But he didn’t have to like it.
“You look cheery,” Greg noted when he walked into Ethan’s office. “Somebody steal your morning coffee?”
“Nobody made my morning coffee, come to think of it,” Ethan said. “Where is Debra?”
“She took the day off,” Greg revealed. “Didn’t she mention it to you?”
“Apparently she’s not speaking to me. Any idea why?”
Greg settled into a chair across from him, shook his head and gave him a pitying look. “No wonder my wife thinks men are oblivious.”
“Oblivious to what?”
“Our receptionist has a serious crush on you.”
“She’s a kid!” Ethan protested.
“She’s twenty-three, which makes her a woman and old enough to have a serious, if unrequited, crush on her boss.”
Ethan frowned. “This isn’t good.”
“Well, it’s not exactly great, but it’s not a calamity,” Greg said. “The good news is that she knows nothing is ever going to happen, not only because of the age difference, but because you’re not the kind of guy who hits on an employee.”
“You’re sure she’s clear about that?” Ethan asked worriedly.
“A hundred percent. We’ve talked about it. Just yesterday I told her she needs to move on, find someone her own age and fall crazy in love.”
“Well, that answers one question,” Ethan concluded. “I wondered why she was barely looking me in the eye yesterday afternoon and bolted without saying good-night.”
“Yeah, she wasn’t real happy about the wake-up call I delivered in my most fatherly, compassionate way.”
“Did she come to you, or did you take it upon yourself to step in?”
Greg grimaced. “Do I look like the kind of guy who wants to get all tangled up in some woman’s emotional stuff? She came to me, of course. As soon as she opened her mouth, I regretted not having had a drink with lunch.”
Ethan chuckled. “Sorry she put you on the spot.”
“Better me than you,” Greg replied. “At least I have a reputation for diplomacy. You’d probably have ticked her off so bad she’d have quit.”
“Probably,” Ethan agreed.
The door to Ethan’s office opened, and Pam stuck her head in. “Anyone in here planning to see patients today?”
“He will,” Greg said, then grinned at him. “You owe me. I think I’ll go surfing.”