Harbor Street (Cedar Cove #5)(40)

He froze and instantly released her.

Linnette lurched backward. “I’m sorry. I’ve known Chad Timmons for some time and well, I accepted this date to make him jealous. That was wrong. I apologize.”

He stepped away from her as though in a daze. Because of his Stetson she couldn’t see his eyes. She didn’t need to. She felt his disappointment, his frustration—his pain.

“I feel dreadful.” She shouldn’t have told him about Chad. It was too hurtful, too cruel. “Will you forgive me?”

Without a word, he turned and strode out of the kitchen.

“I’m so sorry,” she said again. But his only response was the slamming of her door.

Cal was gone. So much for letting him down gently, for not wanting to mislead him. If Linnette had been feeling sick earlier, it was nothing compared to the knot in her stomach now.

Twenty

Charlotte wasn’t sure she was doing the right thing, but she wanted Ben’s children to accept her—and to like her. She also wanted to reassure them that she had no intention of replacing their mother, and to convey to David and his older brother, Steven, whom she had yet to meet, how much she loved their father.

David had called her two days earlier, on Monday afternoon. That was when Ben had his monthly get-together with other Navy retirees, so he’d been out of the house. It was one of the rare times they were apart. Charlotte had been baking sugar cookies for the Convalescent Center when David called. He was in Seattle on business again, and had invited her to lunch on Wednesday. But just her—he’d made that clear. He’d asked her not to let Ben know about it. In spite of her natural honesty, she’d agreed.

Charlotte decided to meet David at The Lighthouse restaurant. She was so proud of Justine and Seth, and she felt that meeting them would prove to David that she had a good family, too. She hoped this would assuage any fears he might have about her.

When she’d made the reservation, she’d discovered that Justine was working on Tuesday afternoon and Charlotte was glad of it.

“Grandma,” Justine said hurrying toward her as Charlotte waited in the restaurant lobby. “It’s great to see you!” She smiled, apparently surprised that Charlotte was alone. “Where’s Ben? Wasn’t your reservation for two?”

That was the uncomfortable part. Charlotte hated misleading Ben. She’d said she was going Christmas shopping and it’d be best if he didn’t accompany her. Following lunch with David, she would indeed do some shopping. Her Christmas buying had been completed long ago, but she wouldn’t outright lie to Ben. This was merely a sin of omission. Still, small as the lie might be, Charlotte felt guilty about it.

“There’s a young man meeting me here,” Charlotte said, gesturing at the dining room.

“Are you stepping out on Ben?” Justine teased.

Charlotte giggled. “Oh, hardly. This is Ben’s son and he asked to meet me.”

“Without Ben?”

“Well, yes. I have a feeling he wants to get to know me for myself, but…” She hesitated, unsure how much information about this clandestine lunch she should reveal to her granddaughter. “David must be afraid of offending his father because he didn’t want Ben to know about this.”

“And you agreed?” Justine’s tone made Charlotte feel like a disobedient schoolgirl.

“I did,” she said, somewhat defiantly. “David’s a fine young man, but he’s had a falling out with his father.” Charlotte didn’t feel she was to blame for that. Their disagreement was over the money David wanted to borrow. As she spoke, she scanned the dining area. Sure enough, David sat at a table by the window overlooking the Cove. He stared into space, a drink in his hand. “That’s him there.”

Justine frowned, but said nothing. She escorted Charlotte to the table; David stood as she approached.

“David, it’s lovely to see you.” Charlotte kissed his cheek and as she leaned close, she could smell the alcohol on his breath. Stepping back, she introduced him to her granddaughter. “Justine and her husband own The Lighthouse,” she boasted. “They’ve made a wonderful success of it.”

David exchanged an enthusiastic handshake with Justine, who then left them to their lunch. Knowing the menu as well as she did, Charlotte didn’t bother to open it.

The waitress was by a few minutes later for their drink orders. David asked for another malt whiskey and Charlotte requested hot tea. It was barely noon yet, far too early to be drinking, in her opinion, but it wasn’t her place to chastise him.

After their drinks were delivered, they ordered lunch. Charlotte chose the Northwest Salad, a recent addition to the menu. This was a Caesar salad, heaped with sautéed clams, shrimp and scallops. David decided on a rare roast beef sandwich.

The waitress left, and Charlotte poured her tea. David, she noticed, had quickly gulped down his second drink and seemed ready for a third.

“I imagine you’re wondering why I asked to see you,” he said conversationally as he sought the waitress’s eye. When he saw Justine, he raised his empty glass to indicate he’d like another. “My glass seems to have developed a leak,” he teased the waitress when she promptly returned.

The woman smiled, obviously charmed by his humor and good looks.

“I think I’ve figured out why you wanted to see me without Ben,” Charlotte said, stirring her tea.