one you pulled over the other day who looked at you like he wanted to eat you up, toss you over his shoulder, and then pleasure you all night long. That one.”
Her eyes twinkle. “He did look at me like that, didn’t he?”
“Um, yeah. And if memory serves, I feel like you were giving him the same look.”
“You did hit the nail on the head when you said I had a type, and he is definitely it,” she says with a laugh as the server comes over to take our order. I opt for a chicken sandwich, and Perri chooses a salad. I steer us back to the conversation. “So, Miss Has a Type and He’s It—what’s next with him? You ran into him again, you flirted, you had an epic kiss, and now? Tell me what’s next?” I’m dying to know.
She sighs, and it seems full of import. “Seems he showed up last night on my doorstep, with his duffel, since my brother went ahead and rented the room above the garage to him.”
My eyes bulge. My jaw drops. My head spins. That’s a twist I didn’t see coming. “That means you’re living with the guy you want to bang?”
“Seems the hot guy that I want to bang is now my new housemate.”
“That’s a bit of a conundrum. You definitely can’t bang him if you’re living with him.”
She tightens her ponytail. “Yes, that would seem to be the wise plan. This landlord shall not bang her housemate.”
“The housemate she’s oh so tempted by,” I add, then I smile. “I can’t wait to hear how the non-banging plan unfolds.”
Epilogue
Gabe
Several months later
“Do I look handsome or do I look handsome?” I hold my hands out wide for my pops as we stroll slowly around the grounds, wandering past gardens of daisies and tulips.
He narrows his eyes, giving me the once-over, appraising the pressed shirt and slacks. “You got your good looks from . . .”
I wait for him to say from him or from Emily or from my mom. But instead, he smiles. “You got your good looks from here.” He taps my heart. “It’s what’s inside that matters.”
I smile at him. “Thanks, Pops. But I got my charm from you.”
“No doubt about that. Also, you look handsome as hell, so get out of here and get your girl.”
I walk him back to his suite and make sure he’s settled in with one of his Dashiell Hammett paperbacks, courtesy of Arden. He parks his reading glasses on his nose, opens the book, then glances up at me. “You make sure Emily sees how handsome you look on your way out. She’d appreciate it.”
I don’t correct him this time. I let him enjoy this moment when he’s slipped back in time. “She would, Pops. She would. Love you.”
“Love you too, kiddo.”
When I arrive at A New Chapter and peer through the edge of the window, Arden’s book club is in full swing. She’s expanded her offerings in the last several months, and the Bawdy Ladies—as they’ve dubbed themselves—have become regulars, spending one night a week discussing books here, along with many other topics.
They’ve fully enlisted Arden in their crew now, and tonight she’s running the club.
But I’ve enlisted them as well.
If there’s one thing I know about Arden, it’s that she both loves and leans on the people in her life, from her best friends, to her employee, to these ladies, who’ve become a regular fixture.
As I scan the premises from my lookout point, I note that Miriam has arranged the circle of chairs as requested. Arden’s back is to the door, her hair spilling down her shirt in a beautiful cascade of blonde. I check the time on my watch.
Miriam glances at the door, and I move into her line of sight, nodding that all systems are a go.
Miriam returns her focus to the group, and Madeline, next in line for the plan, opens the door for me.
She flashes me a conspiratorial smile, and I smile in return, moving quietly among the shelves to the back area of the store. Ducking behind the self-help section, I listen to the women as they discuss Liane Moriarty’s Big Little Lies.
“I suppose what this book made me think about most,” Miriam puts in, “is what it really takes to make a marriage work. What do you think, Sara?”
The woman with red cat-eye glasses chimes in. “It takes a whole lot of determination, but kindness and humor too.”
Another voice pipes up. CarolAnn, I think. “A