“We can,” she said. “I thought it was fun too.”

  The time moved by fast, some of it with excitement for her knowing that there would be a guy in the house, the other that she was entertaining and meeting people.

  Sort of. Wasn’t that part of building a new life on the island?

  “He’s here,” Josie said. She’d been looking out the front window and waiting. “It’s so funny watching them jump out of the back of that big car.”

  Must be the SUV again. Josie opened the door before Carter could knock and she was right there to see him standing in the doorway, Doc on a leash, Dopey sitting nicely.

  Josie was so excited she was ignoring Betty, who Avery had in her arms. They had to introduce them slowly.

  “Hi,” Avery said. “Come in.”

  “I’ll keep Doc on the leash. Tell me how you want to do this. That’s a small dog.”

  “Betty likes dogs. She visits with them at the clinic all the time.”

  “I didn’t think of that,” he said.

  “Let’s try Dopey first since he’s so mild mannered.”

  “I feel like my dogs are going to destroy your house if they start playing.”

  “As you know it’s not my house but a rental. I think it will be fine, but we can go on the deck.”

  They moved through the house and got to the deck. Carter was keeping Doc close to his side, while Dopey was sitting politely like he always did. Avery brought Betty close to Dopey and let her puppy get comfortable more than anything else.

  Dopey didn’t do much more than let himself be checked out. At least Betty wasn’t afraid of the massive dog that was bigger and weighed more than Avery did.

  “That was easy,” he said.

  “Doc will be different,” she said.

  She brought Betty closer to Doc who was sitting nicely on Carter’s commands. Betty wanted to be put down and then was jumping around and getting Doc excited in the process.

  It took about twenty minutes, but Betty eventually lost interest and was sleeping on her bed in the shade next to Dopey. Actually Betty was curled against the big dog and Josie was playing with Doc in the fenced-in yard. The two of them ran around and chased each other.

  “Doc is going to sleep well tonight,” he said.

  “Maybe I needed a more energetic dog for Josie, but Betty is perfect.”

  “I’m sure Betty still needs lots of naps,” he said.

  “She does. I’m glad they are getting along though. Maybe we can do this again?”

  She figured she could throw it out there and get a feel for things without Josie interfering.

  “I’d like that if you want to,” he said. “I know your life is probably a little nuts right now.”

  “I think it’s been nuts for a year and isn’t going to stop, but I should have a little bit of time for me. It seems to me Josie likes you a lot. That has to be part of it.”

  “Understood,” he said. “She’s a great kid.”

  “She is. Last weekend was the one-year anniversary of Colleen’s death. Saturday was a rough one. I was thankful Laine came over without me asking. I thought I passed you when we were coming back from the beach where we placed flowers in the water.”

  “You did,” he asked. “You didn’t wave and looked...sad.”

  “I was,” she said. “It’s not easy, but we are getting there.” Josie was giggling loudly.

  “Looks it to me.”

  “Do you have two vehicles or am I losing my mind?”

  “I do. I’ve got a truck for when I don’t have the dogs with me or only one dog. The SUV when I’ve got one or both. Depends on what I’m doing or need at the time.”

  “Got it,” she said. “Working at the clinic you had the truck. But the other times you had the SUV.”

  “Yes,” he said.

  “Carter,” Josie said, running up to them. “We are grilling steaks because my friend Liam said men like beef. Do you like beef?”

  Avery burst out laughing at the confused look on his face. “Sure,” he said. “I’m not a fussy eater.”

  “Good,” Josie said. “And I made you brownies too because I like brownie sundaes. Do you like them?”

  She saw him smile and it warmed her heart. “I do like brownies and ice cream. Did you make them yourself?”

  “I did. You’re the first guest here other than Laine and I didn’t know she was coming, but my mom was a great hostess and I’m going to be one too.”

  Josie took off running after that. “That’s sweet,” he said.

  “I think she might have a little crush on you.”

  “Not sure what to say to that. I’d rather you did,” he said.

  “You wouldn’t be here if I didn’t,” she said, grinning at him. He flushed a little and she figured that was more promising than anything else.

  The night went by fast and Josie never left the two of them alone. Not that she expected that to happen.

  They barely got their few words in about crushes before Josie entertained them the rest of the night.

  Josie was taking care of Betty while Avery walked Carter outside with his dogs.

  “Thanks for dinner,” he said. “It was nice.”

  “It was,” she said. “I would like to have you over again if you want.”

  His hand reached out and touched hers. She figured he wouldn’t do much more than that. “I would like that. And if you ever have time alone and will let me take you to dinner, I’d like that too.”

  “School starts this week. It will be a little hectic. But Josie has art lessons on Thursday for two hours. There will be a kids group starting on Monday nights in two weeks for ninety minutes too.”

  “Monday and Thursday sound like they could fit into my schedule if you want.”

  She squeezed his fingers. “I do want it very much,” she said. She was being bolder than she had before, but damn it all. There were so many things going through her mind and one of them was that she did have to be happy so that Josie could see that too.

  Josie needed to see what a nice normal relationship could be and maybe they both needed to have a man in their life.

  15

  Career Choices

  “Very cute,” Carter said almost two weeks later. He was looking at Avery in her black “overalls”. More a jumpsuit in his eyes. Or whatever they were called.

  It was soft cotton, short sleeve with a deep V neck, tied at the waist showing how tiny she was as the bottom flowed straight to the ground with wide legs. Other than the waist part it wasn’t showing much of her body.

  But it was giving him a glimpse of some cleavage he hadn’t realized she’d had either and he was hoping it was on purpose. Guess her scrubs and other shirts hid that most times.

  “I had to show you that it was okay to wear a one-piece outfit. Come in,” she said opening the door wider.

  It’d taken almost two weeks for this date to happen. School started last week and Avery had been busy, and though he reached out on Wednesday, he didn’t want her to feel any pressure knowing life was starting to get crazier than normal for her.

  He’d felt a little bad waiting the five days to text her, but she had his number too and hadn’t made the move.

  Of course that had him thinking she wasn’t interested but had to remind himself she’d said she was. Maybe she moved as slowly as he did.

  “How has your week been?” he asked. Betty was walking around the house and noticed him and came charging. He bent to pet the little fur ball that was smaller than one of his dog’s chew toys.

  He’d been thrilled Doc was so gentle with the little dog and knew Dopey would be.

  “Busy. Which is a good thing,” she said. “I’ve lost track of the number of people who have said they are thrilled to not take their pet on the ferry. Many brought your name up too.”

  “Me?” he asked. “Why?”

  “That you are the one who mentioned this at the town meeting and then came up with all the ideas for tax breaks and work on the building. Free rent. All sorts of things. Not sure. Laine didn’t go into details. I’m happy to be rent free for two years and have a great building that I don’t have to worry about. When Kendall talks about it being a dream come true, she has no idea what that is like.”

  “No,” he said. “As a business owner, it’s huge. More so on this island.”

  He knew the clinic was on the small side, but the land was big and there was another building in the back. There was always the hope that whoever came to the island would love it enough to buy the property or they’d pay rent to the town. Not his problem. He was thrilled it worked out the way it had.

  “You’re lucky your business has been in the family for years. I’ve been told more than once how hard it is to find a property.”

  “I had to buy the business off my father,” he said. “That’s how he could retire. I’ve got two siblings so it’s not like it could be given to me and I wouldn’t expect that.”

  They all worked for what they had in their life. He had a business loan like anyone else would and then he added to that loan when he built the body shop next door.

  His father worked hard his whole life and deserved to get the money for his business to retire. He’d never take that away and was thrilled that his mother stayed on to work. She wasn’t full time, but everything she did for him was worth her weight in gold and saved him from finding and training some staff.

  “I didn’t mean that anything was given to you,” she said.

  “I know. Just saying. Some people might think that. I’m doing well though it’s not the career some people would want.”

  “You say that a lot, don’t you?” she said, picking up Betty. “You don’t need to justify your career choices to me.”

  He frowned. “I didn’t know I was doing that. Just more like stating a fact.”

  “I like you, Carter. My life is kind of messy right now.”

  “I’m good in messes,” he said.

  She laughed and looked at him, her eyes roaming over his whole body to his hands and his face. “You clean up well though.”

  A slow grin spread across his face. He knew, he felt it. He did the same to her, his eyes moving over her body and then landing on her light blue eyes. Her brownish red hair was down and flowing around her shoulders. It looked soft and silky and he wanted to reach out but wouldn’t.

  “So do you,” he said.

  “Why don’t we go to dinner? I’m kind of on the clock and hate that.”

  “Not a problem,” he said. “I’m sure you’d rather Josie doesn’t know about this.”

  “Actually,” she said. “I wasn’t thinking along those lines. At least the way you might think.”

  She moved and put Betty in her crate, then grabbed her purse and followed him to his SUV. “What were you thinking?”

  “That if Josie knew I was with you, she wouldn’t want to go to art lessons and would rather be with us.”

  “Is that a bad thing?” he asked. He’d never had that happen before, but he’d never dated anyone that had a child before either.

  “No,” she said. “But I find that I want to be a little selfish right now and get to know you without Josie around.”

  “I know she has to come first,” he said. “That’s why I waited to reach out.”

  “I could have reached out too,” she said. “I started to think you moved slowly and didn’t want to pressure you.”

  “I do move slow. Seems you are too. Doesn’t mean we have to feel awkward about reaching out though,” he said. “I’m always around and will reply back when I can. During the day is hard.”

  “You’re telling me,” she said. “I’m glad we are talking about this. I’ll see my messages at the end of the day or on breaks at work, but most know if it’s an emergency to reach me they have to call the clinic. At night if Josie is busy or in bed is when I try to get back to people.”

  “The same,” he said. “I don’t have time to text nonstop with people.” He’d dated women in the past that would blow his phone up and wonder why he wasn’t returning their messages. They weren’t for him.

  “When you get home you’ve got to clean up and take care of your dogs.”

  “Among other things,” he said. “Thanks for understanding. Not many get it.”

  “I’m a vet. I understand that your pets are your family.”

  For once he didn’t feel internally like an idiot or that he was being judged over that.

  He parked at the restaurant he’d decided on. Not one that was owned and operated by a family member or where he’d worry that a family member would see him.

  Which meant nothing on this island, but he would at least try for now.

  They were seated right away. It was more a pub style and they ordered their drinks fast.

  “How does Josie like school?” he asked. “I’m sure it’s much smaller than what she is used to.”

  “You went to school on the island, right?” she asked.

  “I did. There are two elementary schools now on the island. One closer to the north end which is where Josie has to be and one closer to the south end. The middle school and high school are more in the center and two separate buildings now. The middle school was my elementary school back in the day. The high school served as both middle and high. There are a lot more kids on the island now.”

  “It’s nice that she isn’t on the bus as long by having the two elementary schools. She isn’t used to riding a bus either and I am worried about that. But I don’t know anyone else to set up to pick her up or bring her home and it’s not like I can do it. I suppose I could have one of my staff do it, but that doesn’t seem right either.”

  “We didn’t ride the bus,” he said. “My mother would bring us and pick us up and if she couldn’t, my father left to do it. Classes weren’t that big and everyone knew everyone else.”

  “Josie said it’s great having smaller classes. There is one third grade and there are twenty-eight kids in it. So I’d think if the other elementary has the same, that’s not too bad. It’s a very small graduating class though.”

  “More than I had,” he said, grinning. “She’s so friendly, I’m sure she’s making friends fast.”

  “She is. One little girl she has bonded with quickly. Adele Young. Being new to the island, she was pretty vocal about how the move came about and who I am. Adele told her her mother passed away when she was little too. I think Josie needed to see that in her life.”

  “Adele’s father, Seth, is married to my cousin,” he said.

  “Talk about a small world. She’s a doctor and having a baby soon?” she asked.

  “Yes. Ava Mills. She’s due soon. She lives on the island. Not a first cousin. I lose track of it all at times. Seth’s a good guy. He’s the president of the largest bank on the island. There are a lot of branches, but he’s based closer to the north end. I’m sure you’d want to know those things for Josie.”

  “Not what he does or anything, just how they are as people,” she said.

  He liked that she didn’t judge a person by their job.

  “He’s a class act. His wife died in childbirth. He moved here to start over too after a while. Adele was accepted into our family as one of ours from what I heard. I don’t see them much unless they need something in the garage.”

  Both of them drove luxury cars and would come in for the basic things or bring their cars to the mainland for work. He did see Seth once in a while if he had to go to the bank, but his mother dealt with most of that.

  The only other times he saw them was at a family wedding, which seemed to be nonstop lately.

  “It’s good to know,” she said. “I’m sure Josie will be asking for a play date at some point.”

  “You can tell them you know me,” he said. “If you want. If you want this quiet, that is fine too.”

  She grinned at him. “I’m not worried about people knowing we are here today. It’s quickly turning into people recognizing me and they know you too. I’ve caught several eyes on us already in the ten minutes we’ve sat here.”

  He turned and looked around. “To be expected. If it’s someone that is a friend or family, they will come to say hi to me. Otherwise, expect the gossip. My cousin Alex mentioned that someone saw us together a few weeks ago.”

  “Oh,” she said.

  He shrugged. “Nothing major. Just busting my ass over being on a date. I told him it was a thank you dinner.”

  She laughed. “It was a date in my eyes.”

  “I guess I was hoping it was in mine too,” he said.

  They finished with their dinner and went back to her place. She still had forty minutes at this point before Josie’s lesson was done.

  “Do you want a coffee or something? Or do you need to go? I need to leave in thirty minutes to get Josie. I try to get there a few minutes early so that I can see what she did. She’s so excited about it all. I’m glad it’s working out.”

  “Gives us some time for this,” he said. He moved closer to her, she held her ground. One of them had to make the first move.

  As slow as he was at times, he wasn’t dragging this out. He needed to know what she tasted like and the fact she’d been on this island almost a month at this point and he’d been thinking of this moment was fueling him to put it in gear more than ever before in his life.

  “It does,” she said, her arms going up and around his neck. He dipped his head down, his lips touching hers softly.

  It was slow because it seemed everything he did was that way.

  She didn’t want it to be though.

  Her mouth opened under his, his tongue slid in, the two of them tasting each other.

  He could have stood there for days making out like a teen, but they heard some barking and she jumped back.

  “Oh my God. I’m horrible. How could I have forgotten about Betty?”

  She ran to get the dog out of the crate and then let the puppy out to do her business, him following to watch on the deck.

  When the white fur ball was done, she got her treats and was playing with a ball.

  “Don’t worry about it,” he said. “No harm done. I’d like to think you had something else on your mind.”