Harbor Street (Cedar Cove #5)(53)

Corrie’s thoughts came to a grinding halt as she saw Linnette’s neighbor in a booth across the restaurant. Gloria was sitting there with Chad Timmons.

“Oh, no,” she whispered, setting her fork down.

“What?” Peggy asked, looking around for whatever had alarmed Corrie.

“Over there,” she whispered, bending toward her friend. “See that couple on the other side of the room?”

Peggy’s eyes narrowed. “Isn’t that Dr. Timmons? Bob and I met him the day the clinic opened.”

“The one and only,” Corrie muttered. “The woman with him is my daughter’s neighbor. Gloria something. I can’t recall her last name.” Corrie’s heart raced with anxiety. “Linnette really likes her, and I’m pleased about that. A friend is exactly what she needed to feel comfortable in Cedar Cove.”

“I agree.”

“The thing is, Linnette has a crush on this doctor. She’s turned a blind eye to anyone else.”

“By anyone else, you mean Cal Washburn.”

“Exactly,” Corrie said more loudly than she’d intended. Heads turned. Unfortunately, some of the attention came from the other side of the room. Flustered, she immediately focussed on her meal, lowering her head and not looking up.

“She saw you,” Peggy said.

“Oh, great.”

“What do you want to do?”

“Nothing,” Corrie muttered. “It isn’t like she’s trying to hide the fact that she’s having lunch with Dr. Timmons. Besides, Linnette has no hold on this man. In my opinion, she’s being utterly foolish.” What Corrie hated most was the possibility that Linnette’s friendship with Gloria might be threatened by this. Corrie certainly wasn’t planning to mention it to her daughter.

“So what happened with Linnette and the horse trainer?” Peggy inquired.

Pinching her lips together in irritation, Corrie shook her head. “She told him she was interested in someone else.”

“That’s too bad.” Even Peggy was disappointed.

“It’s her decision, of course. I just wish it had worked out. I like Cal.”

“I do, too.”

They were so involved in their conversation that Corrie didn’t notice Gloria walking across the room. Not until her daughter’s neighbor reached her table and spoke did Corrie glance up.

“Hello, Mrs. McAfee.”

“Hello, uh, Gloria,” she said, startled. She smiled brightly to compensate for her awkwardness. “Have you met Peggy Beldon?”

“No, I don’t think so.”

The three exchanged small talk for a few minutes. Corrie noticed that Dr. Timmons had already left.

“I didn’t want to give you the wrong impression,” Gloria said, after a brief silence. “Dr. Timmons and I aren’t seeing each other.”

“Why would it matter?” Corrie said blithely. This really wasn’t any of her business.

“He had a question for me, about a police matter, and wanted to take me to lunch. I wouldn’t have gone, but he insisted. I know how Linnette feels about him.”

Half the town probably knew of Linnette’s feelings toward the doctor, since she hadn’t made the slightest effort to hide her attraction. But Corrie figured that if Chad Timmons was interested in her daughter, he would’ve asked her out by now. He’d obviously set his sights on Gloria, not Linnette.

“Linnette is a good friend,” Gloria went on to explain, “and I don’t want to do anything to put our friendship at risk.”

“That’s very considerate, but I don’t think you should worry about it.”

“Perhaps not, but my friends are important to me, and I’ve come to treasure Linnette.”

Corrie just hoped her daughter appreciated what a good friend she had in her neighbor.

After a few words of farewell, Gloria departed.

“She really is very nice, isn’t she?” Peggy said when Gloria was gone.

“She is.” Corrie nodded.

“Did you see how they were looking at each other?” Peggy asked. “I could feel the electricity all the way over here.”

Corrie frowned at her remark. This was even worse than she’d thought. All she could do was hope that Linnette came to her senses and realized she was on a path that led to heartache.

Twenty-Seven

Grace Sherman had seriously considered Olivia’s advice and decided to take a stand with Cliff. It was time to end this erratic relationship. She never seemed to know whether they were on or off, casual friends or practically engaged. It varied from one encounter to the next.

In her heart, she believed Cliff loved her. But he wasn’t sure he could trust her, despite everything she’d said and done since her Internet dalliance with Will Jefferson. Still, Grace was secure in her own feelings for Cliff. And she wanted to be with him, as his wife. She’d seen the difference in Olivia since she’d married Jack; she’d seen the changes in Jack, too. Grace decided that if Cliff loved her, he’d agree they should be married. If he didn’t feel he could move forward in their relationship, then she needed to know that now. Yes, proposing might be outrageous, maybe risky, but Grace wanted to discover his feelings—and his intentions—once and for all.

Never having asked a man to marry her before, she wasn’t sure how to go about it. Her first inclination was to invite him to a fancy restaurant, the way she’d seen it done in the movies. That would create the requisite romantic setting, with champagne and classical music, but it wouldn’t allow them much privacy. And if they went to The Lighthouse, elegant though it was, she’d be sharing one of the most intimate moments of her life with far too many of her friends and neighbors.