Page 142 of As a Last Resort
“Ivy’s myformerassistant,” I corrected.
A proud smile bloomed across her face.“I head up marketing for Sam’s new division now.”
“New division?”Austin turned to me.“Is it really true?You’re coming back here?”
Ivy answered for me.“Short story is, yes.Samantha presented an alternate plan called the Lighthouse Project to the board at Goodrich.”
Lexi’s eyes lit up.“The special project you’ve been working on?”Lexi asked.
“It finally came together for me while I was in New York.”I leaned into Austin as his hand wrapped around my waist, his mouth so close I could smell the champagne on his breath.
“Samantha’s pitch centered around keeping the integrity of the island,” Ivy continued.“The charm and traditions of the island were center stage.After hearing the pitch about the island and her vision, the board was totally in.”
Ivy continued, “Rock Island is the first location of the boutique resort collection and Sam will be here every step of the way, making sure it gets done right.”
“I’ll be here most of the time, but I’ll be searching for locations for future developments too, so I’ll still travel a ton.”
Austin squeezed my side.“Glenn doesn’t seem like the type to let go of control that easily.”
“He doesn’t have a choice.Board already voted.Samantha’s in.Complete autonomy.She doesn’t report to him anymore.”
Austin’s jaw dropped.The corners of Ivy’s mouth curved up.
Finally, I had the freedom to run the project from the ground up without Glenn looking over my shoulder, dictating what’s best and making decisions based solely on financial gain.I turned to face Austin.“I’d like to take another shot at calling this place home.”
He looked at me with that steady expression, his eyes sparkling.But then a small shadow of worry flickered across.“What about your mom?”
My heart swooned at his concern.“I’ll tell you the long version later, but let’s just say I’m hopeful for new beginnings.”
He cupped my face and pulled me near, the warmth of his palms spreading down my neck to the tips of my toes.“So, it’s not gonnabe easy.It’s gonna be really hard, and we’re gonna have to work at this every day.”
I laughed at hisNotebookreference as tiny puddles of water pooled in my eyes.“You really are a closet romance addict, aren’t you?”
“Shhh, I’m not done,” he whispered into my lips, “But I wanna do that because I want you.I want all of you, forever.You and me.Every day.”His smile stretched so wide it felt like the whole world brightened.
And as I kissed him again in response with my heart pounding, I realized I wasn’t just choosing him.
I was choosing home.
43
AUSTIN
My face was warm and fuzzy from champagne.Of all the ways I pictured tonight going, this was by far more than I could have hoped for.After the rehearsal dinner, Lexi, Sam, and I sat on the seawall looking out over the ink-black water, the silver path from the moon shining across the top.The waves lapped against the shore in a steady rhythm.
Most of the guests had left, excited to rekindle the party for the wedding the next night.The ice swans stood tall in the center of the lawn, droplets falling to the ground from the tips of their melting wings.The band had gone home.The only sounds were the waves against the sand and the clinking of abandoned wineglasses and plates as the caterers cleaned up around the last mingling guests.
Rex and his sisters were laughing at the only table not folded up for the night.They were talking about the time Rex hid frogs in his oldest sister’s bed because he didn’t want his mom to set them free.
“They seem like a lot of fun.”Sam looked over at the table where they were all trying to catch their breath.“Tomorrow’s going to be beautiful.”
She leaned into my chest and closed her eyes.
“You’re beautiful,” I whispered into her ear as I laced my fingers through hers.
“Cool it, you two,” Lexi interrupted.“This is my weekend.”
“I don’t know what you did, Scuttle, but you finally got this boy to loosen his reins.”Patrick came up behind us and clapped me on the back.He plopped down right next to Lexi.“Did you hear that you can call meCapt’nBolt from now on?”
