Page 36 of The Charming Checklist
“I want you to think about why all of a sudden it became the right time. And don’t give me all that rot about retirement plans and savings. You and I both know this bar could go belly-up at any time. We’re doing well now, but...”
Max stomach clenched and he slammed back his own shot. Buying into the bar was the greatest financial risk he’d ever taken, but he’d have done anything for Cole.
“Are youtryingto give me heartburn?”
“It’s the right time because you met the right woman. She’s right in front of you every single day. And I’ve seen the way you look at her.”
Max didn’t have to ask who Cole meant. It was the bright and shiny light of a woman who everyone loved on some level. Ms. Sunshine.
“She’s not interested.”
“Are you sure about that?”
Max wasn’t sure of anything. If felt like his world had gone off rotation. If this had been a mission, it would have been declared a disaster. Retreat! Surrender. Aw, hell no. Max Del Toro did not give up on anything, or anyone.
“I’m pretty damn sure she is,” Cole said with a smile. “But it’s you who’s going to have to take the risk and find out.”
In the end, the toughest thing about moving the celebration to the lighthouse was informing all their guests of their new location. Ava made the calls, which took roughly half a day. Tippi had only been slightly upset to hear of the double-booking fiasco, but when Ava had been able to segue into their new location, she was appeased. She would have never asked to impose on Cole but appreciated the idea.
With Valerie’s helpful event-planning experience, Ava was looking forward to another successful Charming event.
The hardest part she’d have to do in the next few minutes. But it was time.
A man as wonderful as Max deserved the best and Ava would not fail him this time. Darcie Abbott had graduated from Princeton, too. With a similar upbringing to Ava’s, she hadn’t turned her back on her family legacy. Darcie worked in civil law at the family firm of Abbott & Abbott. She worked for high-profile clients but her own kindness and compassion for the less fortunate had her giving her time to several pro bono organizations. Tall and willowy, she was educated, intelligent, brunette and within Max’s “age requirements.”
She’d done what she promised to do, but Ava’s stomach had been a quivering mess since the day she’d called Darcie and invited her to a party where she’d meet a very special man. Luckily, or maybe not so luckily, Darcie had just ended an engagement to a fellow attorney who’d argued with her on the definition of “fidelity.” Apparently, he thought he’d won in closing arguments. He had not. Darcie swore then that she’d never date another lawyer. Enter Max. He would be perfect for Darcie. The thought filled Ava with an ache she didn’t understand.
She picked up her phone and texted Max.
I thought the mayor’s party could serve double duty. Get ready to meet the most wonderful woman I know. If you don’t like her, there’s no hope for you and I give up. Her name is Darcie Abbott, she graduated from Princeton, and she’ll be at the party.
She waited as the three little dots showed a message was coming. It took longer than she would have expected it to, seeing as it was a one-word reply:Okay.
“Okay? That’s all you have to tell me?Okay?”
Not:Let’s think about this. What’s she like? Did you check the list? I changed my mind. I have a new list and guess what, she doesn’t have to be brunette. Let’s forget the whole thing.
She threw her phone down on the couch, where it landed next to Sub, who was resting comfortably and didn’t move a muscle.
“Is that all who has to tell you?”
Valerie appeared at the foot of the winding staircase holding a box.
The lighthouse was one of Ava’s favorite places in Charming and if Cole and Valerie ever gave up the lease, she’d move right in. There were portholes for windows, and sunbeams left random patches of light. The windows gave a breathtakingly beautiful view of the Gulf. The floors, a teakwood, gleamed.
“Oh, just... Max.” Ava really needed to get a grip. “I told him I found him the perfect woman and he said...he said ‘okay.’”
“Such enthusiasm.” Valerie carried the box to the coffee table made out of one long slab of wood. “And who in the world believes he can have the perfect woman?”
“I don’t know. The perfect man?”
While she thought his idea of a list was stupid, and offensive, she now knew a lot more about the man and understood why he felt as if he always had to prove his worth. Why he’d always worked so hard, and mistakenly decided that he could do the same when it came to the search for a real partner.
Her heart twisted each time she thought of little Max in the fields. Helping his family. Maybe going hungry some nights. Someone who came from that kind of a struggle would never want to go back to it. She didn’t understand...but she could imagine. When she’d been to Colombia, she’d seen real poverty, but Nanny Lucia did all right, largely thanks to how generous Ava’s parents had been. Still, it had humbled her to know how easy she’d had it when others in the world struggled so much.
“Max is many things, but perfect is not one of them.” Valerie opened the box of fairy lights they would be stringing outside to decorate. “And can I see this list?”
Ava picked up her phone, pulled up the text and showed it to Valerie.
