Waterfront Weddings (27 page)

Ashley sat back down at her desk after Justin left. She couldn’t remember ever feeling so conflicted. Part of her wanted to throw caution to the wind and see where things with Justin could go. But the more practical part of her knew that wasn’t a good idea.

The front door opened, and Summer walked inside, followed by Jefferson. Ashley hadn’t been especially charmed by the guy when he’d stopped by earlier to see Summer. There was something about him that she didn’t trust. “Hi,” she said.

Summer set a bag from Cupcake on her desk. “For you.” She grinned. “It’s chocolate. I already had mine, and let me tell you, it was worth the calories.”

Jefferson laughed like that was the funniest thing he’d ever heard. “I’d better get back to the office,” he said. He glanced down at Summer. “Chin up, Sunshine. Things will get better.” He turned to Ashley. “And it was nice to meet you.” With a wave over his shoulder, he walked out the door.

Summer sat down at her desk and turned her attention to her computer.

Ashley bit her tongue. It probably wasn’t her place to tell Summer what she thought about Jefferson, but holding it back didn’t feel right either. “So what was that all about?”

Summer looked up with wide eyes. “What was what all about?”

She jerked her head toward the door. “Jefferson. Swooping in and giving you cupcakes and a pep talk.”

Summer made a face. “You make it sound like something inappropriate happened. We’ve been friends since we were in diapers. He moved back at the beginning of the summer. I see him every now and then around town or at my parents’ house.”

Ashley stood up from her desk and walked over to lean against Summer’s file cabinet. “I know you’ve been through a lot and all that, but do you really think spending time with another man is a good idea?”

“You make it sound like I’m sneaking around and doing something I shouldn’t.” Summer’s normally calm face flamed with anger.

Ashley raised her eyebrows. “I want you to recognize that the path you’re on could be dangerous. I’ve seen it happen too many times. It starts out innocently, but soon you’re confiding in someone who isn’t your spouse.” She met Summer’s narrowed eyes. “That’s what happened in my marriage. Brian told me later that he’d never intended on being unfaithful. That he’d run into an old friend and they’d caught up. And then that turned into them talking about their problems. And eventually it turned into something more.” She sighed. She knew she was jumping to conclusions, but Summer wasn’t in a good place right now.

“I’m sorry that happened to you, but just because it happened to you doesn’t mean that’s what is going on in my life.”

Ashley nodded. “There was something odd about the way Jefferson sauntered in here looking for you. I get the feeling that he sees you as some kind of prize. I think you should keep your guard up.”

Summer didn’t say anything. Finally, she stood. “You’re entitled to your opinion. But there’s nothing to worry about. In fact, I’m meeting Luke this afternoon at the counselor’s office.” She slung her bag over her shoulder. “See you tomorrow.”

Ashley watched her walk out. Were they good enough friends that they could be totally honest with each other and it not have a negative impact?

Only time would tell.

L
uke carried his bag and guitar into Justin’s apartment. “Thanks for letting me stay here. I was going stir crazy on the boat.”

“What, it’s not a luxury liner?” Justin asked.

Luke set his things down in the living room. “It’s nice, but it was starting to get a little cramped. I honestly thought the walls were going to close in sometimes.”

“I can’t imagine. That’s the kind of thing that probably sounds like fun until you actually do it.”

Luke nodded. “So when is Colton going to be moving in?” He’d been surprised when Justin had filled him in on what was going on with Samantha. Talk about a lifestyle change. Going from being a single guy to a full-time guardian would be an adjustment.

“Actually, next week. I’m trying to get the spare room turned into some kind of kid’s room,” Justin said. “My mom has a big plan to paint the walls with pictures of animals playing sports.” He chuckled. “I have no idea how that’s going to turn out, but I told her to do whatever she wanted.”

Luke had to admire his friend for his willingness to step in and do what needed to be done for Colton. “Is Colton excited?”

Justin shrugged. “I’m not sure that he even understands what’s going on. I suspect I’m going to be in for a difficult time at first. I’m not the only one whose world is about to change, you know?”

Luke nodded. “Kids are resilient though. He’ll probably adjust just fine.”

“I hope so.”

Luke tapped his watch. “We’d better go.”

“I think we’re getting better, don’t you?” Justin asked. “Last week I actually thought we sounded as good as some groups on the radio.”

Luke nodded. “Yeah.”

They walked out the door and got into Luke’s truck.

“You given any more thought to that songwriting contest I mentioned awhile back?”

Luke bristled. He had given it thought, but it wasn’t going to be the answer Justin was hoping for. “I’m not interested. I have too much other stuff going on in my life right now.” He merged onto the James Island Connector. “Honestly, I’m starting to regret even signing on to play at the Sand and Suds on a regular basis.” He shot a quick glance at Justin to gauge his reaction.

“Fine by me. I was just along for the ride anyway. And now that I’ll have Colton, that means either finding a babysitter every Friday night or depending on my parents to keep him. And honestly, if I’m going to have to do that, I’d much rather it be because I’m going out with Ashley.”

Luke sighed with relief. He’d been afraid Justin might be upset. Now if Jimmy and Will felt the same, he could tell Charlie to find a replacement. “How are things with Ashley, anyway?”

“We seem to have hit a brick wall. I’m not sure what happened. One minute I thought we were on this really good track, and the next we veered totally off course.” Justin sighed. “It’s so frustrating.”

Luke was all too familiar with veering off course. When he saw Summer and Jefferson together earlier in the week, he’d felt like someone punched him. And even though Gram tried to assure him that nothing was going on, he’d still been so upset that he’d called and canceled their counseling session. Summer had acted as if she understood, but he had his doubts.

His plan to win her back had already been set into motion though. All he could do now was wait.

Summer walked into the office on Monday resolving to make it a good day. She and Ashley had talked things out on Friday, and there were no hard feelings. Granted, Ashley’s accusation that Summer might be getting too close to Jefferson had stung, but she knew her friend’s concern was coming from a genuine place.

Still though, the conversation had played heavy on her mind all weekend. Jefferson did have a habit of popping up out of nowhere and saying the right thing. Ashley thought his moves were more calculated than spontaneous.

But Summer couldn’t imagine him being that vindictive. Even so, she’d decided that it might be best to curb their friendship. Because if Ashley thought it was suspicious, others might as well. And Summer never wanted to give anyone the wrong impression.

“Morning.” Ashley walked into the office wearing a frown.

Summer held up her coffee cup. “Surely it’s nothing a little coffee can’t cure.”

Ashley flung herself into the chair across from Summer’s desk. “I had a date this weekend. And it was
awful.”

“What happened?”

“You know how I said Justin was way too young? Well, this friend of mine from church called me last week and asked if I was dating anyone. When I said no, she said she had someone she wanted me to meet.” She shook her head. “I should’ve said no. But I thought maybe this would be the guy to make me forget all about Justin.”

“But he wasn’t Mr. Right?”

“That’s an understatement. He wasn’t even Mr. Someone I’d Be Friends With.”

Summer couldn’t help but smile at Ashley’s dramatics. “That bad?”

“He’s forty. Which I thought was great at first. But that means his children are almost grown, and he made it very clear that he has no interest in having more. And then he proceeded to explain his fitness regimen in detail and ask me how I planned to stay in shape as I age.”

“Wow.”

Ashley nodded. “I know. The whole night made me sad.”

“Because it was such a bad date?”

“No. Because it reinforced how strong my feelings are for Justin.” Ashley leaned forward and put her head in her hands.

“I still think you should be totally honest with him. You might end up pleasantly surprised.”

Ashley shrugged. “Maybe you’re right.” She got up and walked to her desk. “But I do have some good news at least.”

“Oh yeah?”

“We got our first client through the new website.” She smiled broadly. “Cool, huh?”

Summer nodded. “Very. What’s the deal?”

“You’re not going to like it, but I think we can pull it off.”

“Why does the sound of that make me nervous?”

Ashley giggled. “It’s a pretty quick turnaround.”

“How quick?” Summer raised an eyebrow. She liked to have as much time as possible. In fact, she preferred six months to a year.

“Two weeks from Saturday.”

Summer stopped what she was doing and looked up. “You have got to be kidding me.”

Ashley shook her head. “Nope. But the place where they want to have the ceremony is available. You know that resort over in Mt. Pleasant? The same place the Jennings wedding was earlier in the spring?”

Summer nodded. “That’s a nice place.”

“Well, it just so happens that it’s available,” Ashley said. “And get this—the couple who wants it is giving us free rein to plan the details. As long as we come in within their budget, they don’t want any input. Their
generous
budget.”

Summer’s eyes widened. “Seriously?”

Ashley nodded. “They say they’ve looked at some of the weddings we’ve done and can tell we have great taste. So since they’re from out of town, they want us to take care of all the details.” She grinned. “Can you imagine? All the details. So we get to pick out the flowers, the colors, the food, the cake. . .the whole nine yards.”

“Cool.”

Ashley stood and brought the information sheet over to Summer. “And I think
you
should be the one to do it. Since you and Luke tied the knot at city hall, this will be like your chance to put your dream wedding together.”

Summer took the sheet of paper from her. At least it would take her mind off of things. Like why her husband had really skipped out on their counseling session. And how it was possible that he’d been on the boat for four weeks yet she still missed him as much today as she had on the first day.

L
uke finished his explanation of Civil War artillery pieces and hung around to take questions.

“Thanks for your time,” an older man said to him. “That was a great talk. Do you have any idea what time I have to be back on the boat? I think they announced it, but I didn’t hear.”

“Enjoy the rest of your visit here. You still have fifteen more minutes until the boat departs.” The only way to get to Fort Sumter was by boat and they were very strict about departure times.

“Luke,” Mr. Young called. “Can you come over here for a second?”

Luke made his way over to where his boss stood. “Yes sir?”

“I wondered if you’d thought about the position we talked about.”

He’d been thinking about it a lot. He nodded. “I’d like to accept the responsibility. I think it’s something I’m really going to enjoy.”

Mr. Young nodded. “I’m very glad to hear that. I know you’re going to do a great job.”

“Thanks.”

Mr. Young walked toward the museum with a wave.

Luke wondered what Summer would say about his new responsibilities when she found out about them. These days he wondered what she’d think about a lot of stuff. She was the one big piece missing from his life now.

Even after Rose and Dave had come back from Disney, Luke had continued to visit Daddy. He’d even had a moment of clarity the other morning and had known Luke was there. It seemed like many of the pieces of his life were starting to fall into place. But the missing piece was Summer.

He’d finally started talking to God again. At first he’d mainly apologized for being such an idiot. But soon he’d started praying specifically for things in his life. And then he’d started to thank God for his blessings and to praise His name.

And even though he didn’t expect life to be perfect, Luke knew that he had the tools to deal with the disappointments and the failures that were inevitable parts of life.

He couldn’t wait to share the changes in his life with Summer.

And he hoped and prayed that she’d give him the chance.