The Inn at Eagle Point (34 page)

*
* *

Trace had never intended to fall in love with Abby all over
again. He certainly hadn't expected to be crazy about two pint-size imps with
tempers that matched their strawberry-blond hair. Well, Carrie's did, anyway.
Caitlyn was a bit more even-tempered. She must have gotten that from her
father, because Abby had more fire than any woman he'd ever known.
It was time, past time probably, to make his intentions clear. He thought they
already had an understanding of sorts, but he wanted it all this time—marriage,
a family, happily-ever-after—and he wanted it now. He'd intended the purchase
of the house to make his point, but that had pretty much clouded the issue.
He'd have to remember that surprises might be fine, but
big
surprises
could backfire.
He left the bank, walked over to his place and took a look at the Harley he'd
owned ever since high school. He shook his head. It wasn't exactly a family
vehicle. Pulling out his cell phone, he called his sister. "I need a ride.
Can you pick me up at my place?"
Still grateful to him for interceding with their father, Laila didn't waste
time on questions. "Give me five minutes."
Once he'd told her where they were going, she kept shooting speculative glances
his way. Finally she lost patience. "Are you going to tell me or
not?"
"Not," he said at once, chuckling at the look of annoyance on her
face.
She turned into the car dealership, parked, then followed him as he walked
straight over to a minivan. "What do you think?" he asked.
Sudden understanding dawned on her face. "You're going to ask Abby to
marry you, aren't you? You're buying a family car."
"Did I say that?"
She elbowed him in the ribs. "You didn't have to. There's nothing else on
earth that could persuade you to give up your Harley."
"Okay, you got me. Now tell me what you think of this one?" He
pointed inside, staring in amazement. "It even has a DVD player for the
backseat. Can you imagine that?"
She gave him a wry look. "Cars have a lot of accessories these days that
don't come with a bike. It's about time you grew up and discovered them."
He frowned at her taunt. "It has nothing to do with growing up, Laila. I
just never had to think about owning a car in the city."
She tucked her arm through his. "Fair enough. Are you sure you want to buy
the first one you've looked at?"
He shrugged. "It's a car. It functions. It looks safe enough for the
kids."
Laila rolled her eyes. "You are hopeless. Okay, if this is the one you
want, let's go inside and you can sign the papers. I have to tell you, though,
it's going to kill some poor sales guy that he can't use all his bargaining
skills on you."
When they were halfway across the showroom floor, a salesman started heading
their way. Laila jerked him to a stop. "Do not pay sticker price,"
she warned him. "It's a rip-off. Let me handle this."
Trace regarded her with amusement. "Be my guest."
To his amazement, she managed to bring the price down significantly and an hour
later, Trace was crossing the lot with the keys in his hand.
"You going to see Abby now?" she asked.
He nodded. In fact, he had the ring tucked in his pocket, though something told
him she might be more impressed with the car.

*
* *

Rather
than going straight to the inn, Trace parked the new car in the driveway at the
house he'd bought, then walked down the road to the inn. He found Abby in the
office, juggling several phone calls. She barely glanced up at his arrival.
When she finally hung up on the last call, she gave him a weary smile. Trace
stood up and held out his hand.
"You need a break. Come for a walk with me."
To his surprise, she stood up immediately, took his hand and followed him
through the French doors and across the lawn toward the beach.
"I can't be gone long," she said as they walked along the sand.
"The phones have been ringing off the hook today with locals wanting to
make reservations for out-of-town guests."
"Jess's inn. Jess's problem," he told her as he led the way along the
beach for the half mile it took to reach his new house. She seemed oblivious to
where he was taking her.
A frown knit her brow. "But I'm just—"
"Trying to help. I know. So does she, but that doesn't mean it's not grating.
The inn's taking off. Bring in the bookkeeper and let Jess run the place from
here on out."
"Do you really think she can do it on her own?"
He met her worried gaze. "Do you?"
She hesitated for a heartbeat, then nodded. "I really think she's ready."
"Good. Then my mission is accomplished and you and I can move on to other
things, like what's next for the two of us."
She studied him with a narrowed gaze. "You're basically admitting you
deliberately kept me here for your own nefarious reasons?"
"Nefarious?" he protested, not liking the way it sounded. "I
wanted another chance with you."
"You wanted revenge," she corrected, then grinned slowly and wound
her arms around his neck. "Funny how things can backfire, isn't it?"
He lowered his lips to hers. "Indeed it is, but you'll never hear me
complaining."
He broke off the kiss. "Come with me."
She glanced around and seemed to realize where they were. "The house you
bought."
He met her gaze. "Our house, I hope."
He led the way up the steps to the yard, then around the house, where the car
was sitting in the driveway. "Our car."
Her mouth dropped open. "You bought a minivan?"
"I can hardly ride the girls around on the back of the Harley." He
winked. "I still hope to get you on there from time to time, though. The
car's just to prove how responsible a stepfather I'll be."
A soft smile played on her lips. "Never a doubt about that," she told
him.
He took a deep breath, then launched into the speech he'd rehearsed.
"Look, I know you're not sure you want to stay here and if you don't,
that'll work, but this house is right for us. Your dad built it, so it seems to
me an O'Brien ought to live in it. If we only use it for vacations or on
weekends, that's okay. All I care about is the two of us being together."
"Me, too," she said. "Before you get too carried away with all
the sacrifices you're prepared to make to win me over, you should know that I
took a new job today."
Trace stared at her blankly. "A new job?"
"Running the Baltimore office. The traffic back and forth, by the way, is
a total pain, so we might want to consider an apartment nearby, but this is
home, Trace. This house, right here, with you. I think it's just been waiting
for us to come home."
Trace couldn't stop the grin that was spreading across his face. "You
didn't even wait to see the ring or hear the proposal. I was planning to wow
you. I intended to tell you that I've been in love with you for longer than I
can remember. I want to marry you and be a dad to your girls, and maybe even
have a couple of kids of our own. And just in case you're worried about it,
Carrie and Caitlyn approve. I've already asked their permission, though I'm not
entirely sure they knew what was at stake. Your grandmother and Mick have given
this a thumbs-up, as well. I haven't gotten to your brothers yet and given the
way we used to get along, that may be just as well, but I'll win them over,
because I know that's important to you."
There were tears in her eyes when he finished, happy tears, he hoped.
"Okay, now you've wowed me," she whispered. "The answer's
yes."
"And the ring? Do you want to see it?"
"Oh, I want it," she said. "But only because it's a sign that we
belong to each other."
Still not quite able to believe it had all come together the way he'd dreamed
it would so many years ago, he slid the diamond solitaire onto her finger.
"Have you thought about when you want to get married?" he asked,
drawing her down beside him on the steps of what would be their first and only
home together.
"Soon."
"And where?"
"At the inn, of course. Nefarious designs by a stuffy old banker aside, it
brought us back together. Besides, I wouldn't want to risk Jess's wrath by
having it anywhere else."
Trace laughed. "I love you, Abby O'Brien Winters."
"And I love you, Trace Riley. I think I'm beginning to see what Mick saw
when he planned this town. It's the perfect place to fall in love and raise a
family. I think there might be something in the air."
Trace took a deep breath, but the only aroma he could detect was lilacs. Funny
thing, too, since they'd been out of season for months. Maybe there really was
a bit of magic in the air.
ISBN: 978-1-4268-3080-8
THE INN AT EAGLE POINT
Copyright © 2009 by Sherryl Woods.
All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or
utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic,
mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including
xerography, photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or
retrieval system, is forbidden without the written permission of the publisher,
MIRA Books, 225 Duncan Mill Road, Don Mills, Ontario, Canada M3B 3K9.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either
the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously, and any
resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events
or locales is entirely coincidental.
MIRA and the Star Colophon are trademarks used under license and registered in
Australia, New Zealand, Philippines, United States Patent and Trademark Office
and in other countries.
www.MIRABooks.com