Page 7 of In this Moment

“It is great,” Evie agreed. “But I wish he could have a bit more summer fun, too.” Her face fell, but only for a moment before she smiled again and Declan was struck with exactly how hard it would be for her to balance all of the demands that were onher.

“But we’re going jet skiing.” Jonah sat up in his chair. “Mom promised we could try itout.”

He looked over to Evie, who nodded.

“That sounds pretty fun,” his mom said. “Are you going to get Ian to help you out at the Dockside?”

“Of course.”

“Well, I’m sure my oldest would be more than happy to give a great deal to a fellow business owner in town and her hardworking assistant,” Maureen said. “Don’t you think, Declan?”

“Of course. I’ll talk to him and arrange something forus.”

Us? The word slipped out naturally, but as strange as it was, it also felt natural. Declan would like nothing more than to go jet skiing with Jonah and his mother.

Evie shot him a strange look, but before she could say anything, her cell phone rang. “Excuse me for a moment.” She glanced down at the screen in a slight frown. “I really should take this. Do you mind?” She nodded her head toward Jonah, and Declan smiled.

“Not at all. We’re goodhere.”

He watched Evie as she walked through the crowded cafe and out to the sidewalk before accepting the call. She smiled as she took the call, but her face quickly fell into a frown.

What kind of phone call would make her upset? He got instantly and unreasonably defensive.

Declan hadn’t realized he’d been staring at her until his mother spoke, distracting him. “Jonah, I heard that they have really good desserts here and a pretty incredible selection of ice cream.”

The boy’s eyes grewwide.

“Why don’t you go pick something out?” Jonah looked to where his mother had disappeared to. “It’s okay,” Maureen said. “It’s my treat. I’ll make sure it’s okay with yourmom.”

Jonah didn’t need any more convincing than that. Maureen handed the boy some cash and he was off to make his choice.

The minute Jonah left the table, his mother turned to him. “You likeher.”

“What?” Declan almost choked on his sandwich.

His mom laughed. “I know you, son. But even if I didn’t, I would still be able to see it. You likeher.”

There was no point denying it. “I do like her. She’s a really nice woman. She’s a friend.” As he spoke, he looked out the window. Whoever Evie was talking to, it was clearly upsetting her. Her face was screwed up in worry and she continually ran her hands through her hair. Declan’s instinct was to go to her and see how he couldhelp.

His mother demanded his attention. “I think you like her more than that, Dec. I can see it on yourface.”

“Mom, you’re being—”

“I’m not being anything except a concerned mother, Declan. You’re a good man. A very good man and you’ve done great things with your life at such a young age. But there’s more to life than working.”

He sighed and shook his head but his mom wasn’tdone.

“Your brothers are settling down now,” she continued. “Doesn’t it make you want to find someone you can love? Someone you could build a familywith?”

Declan knew that all his mom wanted for him was to be happy. And the thing was, he washappy.

Mostly.

He’d never needed a relationship to complete him. He was satisfied with his work, his friends, his foundation. He was more than satisfied. He didn’t need to try to play house with someone. After all, it wouldn’twork.

It neverdid.

Why bother going through all of that? It was better just to be friends. Sure, along the way, some of those female friends had become more. But it had never been romantic and it was always a mutually agreed upon situation. He’d made it very clear to anyone he dated that he wasn’t looking for anything serious.

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