A Time for Us - By Amy Knupp Page 0,10
him. He’d found it difficult to stop watching her—maybe because, in spite of the half-assed disguise, she was so similar to Noelle in looks, if not manner.
Throughout the forty-five or so minutes she’d been there, Cale had kept an eye on her, gauging her reactions to what was said, watching her fight to keep it together. When her mom had stuck her on the publicity committee with him, Eddie and Cale’s sister, Mariah, she’d pulled her hat a little farther down over her eyes and barely nodded her acknowledgment. As the meeting had proceeded, Rachel had become further removed and more emotional, her gaze turning downward. When she’d finally retreated, he hadn’t been too surprised. Just concerned.
He’d noticed her purse soon after she’d hauled ass out of the room. From his place at the far end of the table, he could see the plain black leather bag on the floor next to the chair she’d been sitting in. Instead of taking off after her, he’d counted on handing it to Rachel’s mother after the meeting and letting her take it home to Rachel. The older Dr. Culver, however, had ended up being called away to the hospital less than five minutes after Rachel had taken off and had left Erin, who served as her right-hand woman, to finish up the last few minutes of the meeting.
As everyone began packing up their supplies and chatter rose around the table, Cale jumped up and grabbed the purse without a second thought. He knew the Culver home well. It was no big deal to drop it off on his way home. By the time he got there, surely Rachel would have regained her composure.
He had no desire to intrude on her when she was so overwhelmed by sadness, and hopefully getting out of the meeting had done the trick for her. Even though he inherently understood her sadness—or maybe because he understood it so well—he wasn’t a fan of trying to comfort an upset woman. Former almost-sister-in-law or not.
CHAPTER FOUR
CALE ALMOST MISSED Rachel on his way out the back door of the library. If it hadn’t been for the sudden slosh of water against the embankment—an uncharacteristic sound on the relatively placid bay side at night—he would have walked right on by.
When he automatically glanced out at the water to see if he could spot the boat responsible for the ripple, her blond hair blowing in the slight breeze caught his eye, even though she was camped out on one of two Adirondack chairs deep in the shadows. There was no hiding that hair short of absolute darkness.
Being intentionally noisy so he didn’t give her cardiac arrest, he followed the short path toward the chairs, which sat a few feet from the man-made shore. In daylight, the area, lined by flower beds and native plants, made a peaceful place to sit and read a book or watch the fishing and pleasure boats come in after a day on the gulf. It was one of several spots scattered along the bay on the city property that also held the library. All the others were deserted now that the library was closed and the sun had gone down.
“Not much to see out here at this hour, is there?” he said as he approached.
In spite of his heavy steps, Rachel’s shoulders jerked when he spoke. Cale lowered himself into the chair next to her, but she didn’t spare him a glance.
“You might be surprised.” Rachel’s voice was ragged around the edges, alerting him that she was still emotional.
It was too late to escape now. Besides, he wasn’t that much of a coward. And there was that part of him that felt compelled to ease her troubles somehow. Especially if he could do that just by sitting with her.
A wave, invisible in the dark, splashed the shore again. “Fishing boat go through?” he asked.
“Yacht. Headed for the marina.”
As Cale’s eyes adjusted to the darkness, he was able to make out the serene surface of the bay. He watched for action of any kind—a fish jumping, a kayaker—but nothing broke the smooth, glasslike surface for as far as he could see. “So what are you watching?”
She turned her head halfway toward him but didn’t make eye contact. “Just...this.” With her arm, she gestured toward the entire expanse of water in front of them. “It’s so...tranquil. Beautiful. I forgot how much I love the bay.”
Cale grinned and leaned forward, her purse still grasped in his left hand. “Noelle used