Page 48 of Sea Glass Serenade

“Fastest dishwasher I’ve ever seen.” Allison nudged him with her elbow as she walked by on her way to the fridge.

Grayson smiled, feeling his heart warm. It had been a long time since he’d been surrounded by people like this, people who were genuinely kind and caring. He found himself understanding why Alexis had wanted to stay in Rosewood Beach more than ever before. The attitudes of the people in that small town were something that he’d never seen in L.A. Theyseemed to value their lives and the people around them in a way that people who were chasing “success” never did.

Fifteen minutes later, Vivian approached him again, carrying a root beer float.

“This is for you.” She patted his shoulder. “You take a break now, son, all right? I’ll take over washing the dishes for a few minutes. Go sit in the office and relax.”

“Okay, thank you.” He agreed reluctantly, even though he was touched by her sweet gesture. He took the root beer float and went to sit in the quiet, comfortable office. He could faintly hear the sounds of the bustling restaurant, and he smiled, feeling a sense of happiness like he hadn’t known in a long time. He took a long, refreshing sip of his cool, sweet drink and sighed.

He finished the root beer float quickly and went back out into the kitchen. Vivian was still washing dishes, moving just as quickly as he had been despite her age.

“I can take over again, thank you, Vivian.”

“Actually, those basketball kids are taking off. It’s going to be a huge job clearing those tables—would you go help Alexis with that?”

“Absolutely.” He grinned. He loved the idea of getting to help his wife with a task.

“Take a tray with you, and a couple of wet cleaning towels.”

He grabbed the supplies Vivian had mentioned and went out into the dining room, where Alexis was beginning to pile dishes onto a tray she already had. Her expression changed from focused to shy when she caught sight of Grayson.

“I’m here to help you,” he said, smiling warmly at her. “I should just pile dishes onto the tray, yeah?”

“Yes, that would be amazing. The trays are non-slip, but be careful anyway, especially with the glasses. And a lot of them are only half-drunk.” She sighed and chuckled, shaking her head.“Those kids. I think they were actually from the zoo, not a high school.”

He laughed. “It’ll be fine. We’ll be done with this in no time, you’ll see.”

She smiled at him gratefully and began to coach him as he started to load his tray with dishes.

“Start in the center and work your way out. I’d recommend plates and bowls together, and glasses on a separate trip. You don’t ever want to pile too much onto the tray at once, in case you lose your balance and it’s too heavy to right it in time.”

“How does that look?” he asked, showing her the tray he’d piled with a stack of plates and a couple of bowls.

“Looks balanced to me,” she said, giving an encouraging nod. “‘A’ plus.”

Feeling cheerful, he carried his tray to the kitchen and she followed him with hers. By the time they were coming back from their third load of dishes, he found himself gazing at her in adoration. He’d always admired her, but he found himself admiring her in a new way that night. He could tell that she was tired and had had a long, stressful day, but she hadn’t let it squash her spirits. She was still moving forward with energy and determination, and even though there were stress lines on her flushed face, he thought she’d never looked more beautiful.

When they reached the table, he set his tray down and pulled her toward him.

“What—” she began, but she didn’t get any farther because in the next moment he kissed her.

“Oh,” she stammered, blushing like a schoolgirl. “I… oh.”

He smiled at her, feeling a wave of tenderness for his wife. “Alexis, I just wanted to tell you how much I?—”

“Whoa, this place is nuts tonight!”

Grayson and Alexis turned to see Dean and Hazel stepping inside the pub. Both of them looked surprised to see how busy the restaurant was.

“It really is,” Alexis said, still blushing a little from the kiss. “It’s going to be a minute before we can get you guys a table, sorry. These have opened up—we had a couple of basketball teams in here just now—but it’ll be a minute before we have them ready for more guests.”

“That’s okay!” Hazel said, smiling at her sister. Grayson noticed that Hazel’s eyes looked a little red, but she seemed calm and determined. “We can help you. What needs doing?”

“Hey, easy for you to say,” Dean protested. “You already had cookies for dinner. I’m hungry. I’m just kidding—I’m in too.”

Grayson and Alexis looked at the twins in confusion for a second, and then Alexis laughed.

“Thank you. You guys are amazing. Things really have been crazy. We’ve got the Rosewood Ladies Society here tonight, we didn’t have a dishwasher until Grayson stepped in about an hour ago, and we’ve just been unusually busy all day. I think a lot of people are passing through town today, maybe on the way back from those basketball games.”

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