Page 71 of The Billionaire's Teacher

I flipped open my laptop and started it booting.

“Here.” Clara set my latte and sandwich down, then she pulled out the chair across from me. “You really think I should marry that old man?”

I reached for my coffee and took a sip. “I think there are a lot of things that would be worse.”

She laughed. “That’s not an answer.”

“I guess I’d want to know if you love him.” I looked down at my latte. It was a question I wasn’t sure I could answer myself. Not right now. Then again, Wes wasn’t asking me to marry him yet.

“Of course I do. I’ve loved him for years. My husband loved him, too. Just like I loved his wife. But that’s not the same thing as loving him the way I loved my husband.”

I nodded. “No. Although, I guess I’m starting to realize that love shifts and grows and steadies into different forms over time.”

Clara sent me a long look before nodding slowly. “It does.”

I sipped the latte Clara brought me and the corners of my lips curved. She had a way with them. Nothing I managed at home ever tasted as good. “My mother, for all her dubious other qualities, asked me a good question when I was deliriously in love with Luca and rushing headlong into everything. She asked me to picture two futures—one with him in it, one without. At the time, being in that rush of young love, the one I imagined with Luca practically had cartoon hearts floating in the sky, but I figure you’re smart enough to understand the real point.”

Clara laughed. “How can I imagine a future without Bennie when he’s in my café constantly? He’s not going anywhere.”

“Maybe you should try to picture it anyway.” I glanced over at Bennie. He was working intently on his computer. He ran a property management company on the island—short-term rentals, longer term rentals, vacation properties. I’d also glimpsed his screen and seen some sort of video game happening. Definitely not what I would have imagined for him. But people could surprise you.

“I don’t like it. It’s hard to even get there, but if I do?” Clara rubbed a hand over her heart. “It’s like my husband has died all over again. The ache here.”

“So maybe that’s something to think about.” I lifted an eyebrow and held her gaze.

Clara sighed and pushed to her feet. “Not sure when you got so smart.”

I laughed. “It’s a gift. Invite me to the wedding.”

She pointed a finger at me. “We’ll see. I still have some thinking to do on it.”

“Praying, too?”

Clara nodded once then turned and went back to the kitchen.

I blew out a breath and stared at my laptop. I had Wes’s phone number as well as his email. Calling would be faster. And I’d get to hear his voice.

Was that a positive or a negative?

No. Email was smarter. I could go over what I wanted to say. Make sure it had just the right tone. I still didn’t know—not one hundred percent—what I was hoping would come from this. If I pictured my future without Wes in it, it looked a lot like the last few years without Luca. And I was okay with that. I’d found a reasonable facsimile of contentment.

I had my cottage. A job I enjoyed that let me work when I wanted—or needed. Time to myself. Town was right here when I needed other people. And I had memories of Luca to keep me company, too.

I didn’t need Wes. Or any new man. I’d had such a wonderful marriage, it seemed greedy to expect another chance.

Was that the same sort of thought Clara was having?

I pushed the laptop away and slid the plate with my sandwich close. I picked up half and took a bite, enjoying the sting of spicy mustard as it mixed with creamy melted cheese.

What would life with Wes look like?

I chewed and tried to imagine it. All I could come up with were memories from our boat trip. Diving with him. I smiled slightly, remembering the visible joy that he exuded when we were underwater. He’d been a quick study, too, when I’d shown him different ways to do things—tips that I’d learned diving down here that varied from the skills needed in a pool or freshwater. Even though he’d been diving in the Caymans, he’d been using mostly tourist operations. They did things a certain way—and it made sense for what they were doing—but he’d seemed to appreciate learning from me.

I frowned and took another bite. I didn’t want him to see me as his teacher, though. That implied a power imbalance that made me uncomfortable. And our age difference already caused me plenty of hesitation.

Would a future with Wes be more mother-son than anything else? Not that I was old enough to be his mother, but still. I had more experience if only because of the years I had on him. I didn’t want to always have to be in charge because of that.

I took a sip of latte and moved the sandwich aside. All of this rumination was pointless. I didn’t have enough information to make this kind of decision. The only thing I needed to choose right now, was whether or not I wanted to get back in touch and see where it led.

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