Page 16 of Falling for the Grumpy Stranger

“The chimney expert is coming at three today,” he said. “I’m looking forward to some fires in this dust dungeon. Of course, it has also occurred to me that I need to start the fires.”

I covered my full mouth and snickered. I swallowed. “You just remembered that, did ya? The two things generally go hand in hand.”

He nodded. There was no smile, but a light crease formed on the side of his mouth. It made him even more attractive, and Iwas taking it as a win toward coaxing a smile. “My last house had an electric fireplace. One push of a button and a yellow, blue and entirely manufactured fire lit up the hearth. They don’t produce much heat either.”

“I always wondered about that.” I took another bite and nodded my approval. “Bravo on the topping.”

Rhett followed suit. “It really does add a layer of goodness to a food that my ten-year-old self already considered close to perfect, orange cheesy powder and all.”

I sat back and looked at him. “So, you were a boxed mac and cheese kid, too? Good to hear. For a moment, I wondered if you were from some really rich family like Margaret.”

“Oh?” he paused mid-bite. “What made you think that?”

I shook my head. “I don’t know. There’s just something about you. Anyhow, I’m glad to know that you’re just one of us regular folk. Not that super rich people are all bad. My sister, Isla, is dating a wonderful man named Luke. He’s as rich as a bowl of whipped cream, and he adores my sister.”

Rhett nodded. “Luke Greyson?”

I looked up in surprise. “Yes, do you know him?”

He shrugged. “Might have met him. You’re right. He’s a great guy.”

“Wow, small world,” I said. I had no idea in what capacity they would have met but decided not to be nosy. Besides, I could just ask Luke.

“Are you getting any farther on your story, your first assignment?” Rhett asked.

“Not sure. I’m learning quite a lot about Margaret. For example, she used to have two gray wolfhounds, Troy and Harold. She loved them dearly, and since she was rich, each dog had their own four-poster canopy bed that was covered with downy quilts. Apparently, Troy suffered from hip troubles, and she wanted him to be comfortable. The kitchen staff preparedthem meals with fresh rabbit, quail and chicken. At first, I thought, ‘Why, that’s so darn eccentric,’ only then I reminded myself that we had a big gray cat named Biscuit while we were growing up. Nonna found him down on the beach, wet and hungry and lost. We treated Biscuit like a king, and every Sunday Nonna would open a can of tuna, so he could eat dinner on his little stool near the kitchen table. We slept three to a bed in the cottage, and Biscuit would crawl in between Isla and me. We would each have a sliver of the mattress because Biscuit would stretch his paws straight out in front of him"—I stretched my arms out—"and steal as much room as possible. It wasn’t his own four-poster bed, but in his mind, he was a king.”

“Three to a bed. Sounds familiar. When I was eight, my Aunt Sherry moved in with us, and she had twins, Jason and Jeremy. They were six, and they were holy terrors. They had their own bed, but it never failed that one of them would have a bad dream and crawl into my twin bed. I’d spend the rest of the night dodging rogue punches and kicks. They were wild sleepers.” We took a few more bites. Boxed mac and cheese was notorious for getting cold fast, even under a layer of toast crumbs.

“You said it was Nonna’s cottage. Your grandmother? She raised you?”

“Yeah.” I took the deep breath that was always a necessity before talking about my mom.

“Didn’t mean to pry,” he said quickly.

“No, it’s fine. I don’t mind. Our mom died suddenly back when we were little girls. Dad traveled for business, and Nonna took us in. She was wonderful. She’s gone, too.”

“I’m sorry. How many sisters?”

“I have four sisters. My sister, Aria, owns Whisper Café. She mentioned you came in.” I rolled in my lips. “Not that we were talking about you,” I added lamely. “It’s just nobody has lived in this house for years, and you?—”

“Were the strange, grim sucker who bought the place.” He wasn’t angry, but I still shrank down some in my seat. I was never going to forgive myself for being so judgmental.

“I’m such a big mouth.” I shrank down even more. I peered up at him, and our gazes came together.

“You’re not a big mouth, Ella. You’re honest. I can’t tell you how refreshing that is.”

I didn’t know how to respond, so I took another bite of food. I was having lunch with the biggest puzzle of a man I’d ever met. And I knew so little about him.

“Where did you move from? And why Whisper Cove?” I asked.

“I lived in the city.” Vague answer but I sort of expected it. “And why Whisper Cove?”

I giggled. “Did you just pick up a dart and throw it at a map?”

“Something like that. I guess you could say this house found me, and the town came with it. It’s a beautiful town, by the way. Have you been here your whole life?” Rhett was expert at turning the conversation away from his life and back on to mine.

“Yes, my whole life. I know the gulls by name,” I joked. “Oh, just FYI, my sister Isla will be opening a bakery this spring. It was her recipe I used for the cookies. She bakes wonderful pastries and breads, too. Everyone is waiting anxiously for the door to open.”

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