Lighthouse Road (Cedar Cove #1)(32)

Ian asked Cecilia to meet him at the Thai restaurant in Bremerton, where he’d taken her on their first official date. He’d chosen this place on purpose and hoped his wife would remember that night with the same fondness he did.

Cecilia had agreed, although dining out on a Thursday night meant she had to find someone to cover for her at The Captain’s Galley. He was sorry about that, but he didn’t have any choice; he’d had three straight days of duty. The George Washington probably wouldn’t be in dock much longer and this might well be his only opportunity to spend time with her.

He was at the table waiting when Cecilia arrived. He watched her come toward him and was struck anew by her loveliness. She looked better—healthier—than she had in months. After Allison’s death, she’d lost weight. More than she could afford to lose, but it wasn’t just that; it seemed as though his wife had given up caring about herself. She hadn’t bothered with her hair, or her makeup or any of the other things she used to do when they were first married. Their sex life had gone to hell, along with everything else. He’d tried to help her, but everything he suggested had backfired. He’d asked his mother to call, to talk to her, but Cecilia had taken offense at that. Perhaps if they’d met face-to-face…But his home was in Georgia. His mother had offered to fly to Washington—an offer Cecilia had rejected. Ian had tried to arrange an appointment with a Navy psychologist; she’d refused to go. He’d had conversations with her mother but Cecilia had accused him of interfering. He didn’t want to seem critical of Sandra Merrick, but he sensed that her sympathy wasn’t entirely a positive thing. As far as he could tell, Sandra wasn’t encouraging her to recover, to move on. And because Cecilia didn’t know his family, she’d been uninterested in their attempts to help. His own efforts to reach her emotionally had failed. He’d been in pain, too, dammit! Cecilia was angry with him and irrational though her anger was, he understood. But he couldn’t have been with her when Allison died. It was that simple.

“You’re frowning,” she said as she stepped up to the table.

She was probably right. He couldn’t think about the events of last year and not feel depressed.

He stood and pulled out her chair. Ian remembered how she’d told him, after their first date, that those small old-fashioned courtesies impressed her. He had his father to thank for that. Denny Randall had been a stickler for etiquette and taught all four of his sons well.

“I’m glad you came.”

Cecilia smiled as she reached for her linen napkin and set it on her lap before reading the menu. They always ordered the same dish, the Phad Thai, but it didn’t hurt to look.

Ian suspected she was already regretting that she’d agreed to see him. He hoped that once he explained why he’d asked her here, she’d change her mind. It was hard to remember he wasn’t supposed to love her anymore, because he did. He’d never stopped.

The waitress arrived and they ordered. Ian was mildly surprised when she asked for something different. He didn’t hear the name. Perhaps this was her way of letting him know she was willing to try new things, to change. He wasn’t sure if he was simply looking for signs, reading her behaviour too closely—and if it was a sign, was it a good one?

As soon as the waitress left, Ian decided to launch into his proposition.

“I’m really glad you signed up for those college classes,” he said. “How’s it going?”

“Good. Although I feel like I’m a thousand years older than everyone else.”

Actually Cecilia had left high school only four years ago. He was two years older than she was.

“Your car’s not giving you problems, is it?”

“No.” She sounded almost defiant.

“That’s good.” He wanted her to know how strongly he approved of her going back to school. They’d had a number of arguments over her working at the restaurant; Cecilia thought it was because he was jealous of her being around other men. Maybe that was a small part of his reaction, but there was more. He felt Cecilia was wasting her abilities, her potential. She was smart, a whole lot smarter than she gave herself credit for.

She glanced at him, and Ian had to resist an impulse to reach across the table and put his hand over hers. Sometimes he ached just wanting to touch her. It’d been months since he’d held her in his arms or kissed her. After Allison, it seemed that whatever she’d felt for him physically had died, too.

“My car’s only two years old,” he said.

She didn’t respond, as if she thought he was bragging or something.

“I know you’re wondering why I asked to meet you, and it has to do with my car.” He had her attention, he noticed; that was a start. “I want you to drive it while I’m away.” He could see from her reaction that she was going to argue with him. “It’s more dependable, especially in the mornings,” he added quickly, hoping she’d see the wisdom of accepting his offer.

Cecilia shook her head. “I appreciate it, but—”

“Actually you’d be doing me a favor.” Ian could tell she didn’t believe him. “I mean it.”

“But…”

“It’s not good to have an engine sit idle for six months,” he said in authoritative tones. “A lot of guys lend out their cars while they’re deployed for that very reason.” Ian didn’t know if this was true or not, but it made sense.