Harbour Lights. Sherryl Woods
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caffeine,” he guessed. “It’s a dangerous combination. Sally’s is a couple of doors down. Why don’t I buy you a cup of coffee before you try to break something else?”
Embarrassed, Shanna shook her head. “I think I can control myself until I figure this out.”
He hesitated, looking oddly torn, then stepped all the way inside. “At least let me take a look at those instructions,” he offered. “Maybe I’ll have better luck. I’m Kevin O’Brien, by the way. My sister owns the flower shop next door. Any idea where she is? There’s a closed sign on the door.”
Shanna shrugged. “Not a clue. I haven’t met a soul on the block yet. I’ve been totally focused on trying to get this place ready to open. I’m Shanna Carlyle.”
“I’m surprised Bree hasn’t been in here pestering you for information about your plans. She prides herself on knowing everything going on in town.”
“This all happened pretty fast,” Shanna said. “There was a waiting list of people looking for retail space on Main Street. I got a call that the prior occupant wanted to move to a bigger space and I could take over her lease. That was two weeks ago, and here I am.” She was babbling, but something about this man made her as nervous as a teenager meeting the sexy new kid in school for the first time.
“You’ve accomplished all this in two weeks?” he said, his amazement plain as he took in the fresh coat of paint and the stacks and stacks of boxes.
She gave him a wry look. The place was a disorganized mess. Still, it did look as if something might happen in here soon.
“I’d done a lot of my homework, knew the kind of inventory I wanted to carry and where to get it. All I had to do was establish my credit, which thankfully is good, and make some calls to vendors.” She shrugged. “Besides, I couldn’t afford a lot of downtime once I signed the lease. I need to get money coming in if I’m going to keep up with the rent on the shop space and the apartment upstairs.”
He surveyed the room and the piles of boxes. “What’s your target date for opening?”
“A week from Saturday.”
He looked skeptical. “Then you need help.”
“I can’t afford help.”
Once again, she noticed a faint hesitation, as if he thought he was going to hate himself for uttering what came next.
“Then it’s a good thing I don’t need to be paid,” he said eventually, his hands shoved in his pockets, his expression bland. “I have a little time to burn while I wait for Bree. I’d be glad to pitch in.”
Shanna stilled. Big-city jitters kicked in. Kevin O’Brien was definitely intriguing. And probably safe enough, if his sister owned the florist shop next door. She’d heard the name O’Brien around town, knew that a man named Mick O’Brien, in fact, had been the architect who’d designed and built Chesapeake Shores. The woman she’d dealt with at the management company had been an O’Brien, too.
“So, are you one of the O’Briens?” she asked. “I’ve read a little about Mick and I met Susie.”
“My father and my cousin,” he told her.
That was reassuring, but still, old habits kept her cautious. “I appreciate the offer to help, but I probably should do it myself. I have to figure out the placement for all this stuff as I go. And, as you can see, the shelves aren’t in yet. They’re not coming till tomorrow.”
He didn’t seem especially disappointed by her refusal. In fact, he almost looked relieved.
“Okay, then, no coffee from Sally’s, no help in here,” he said easily. “How about the cappuccino machine? Want me to take a crack at that?”
Not wanting to seem ungracious, Shanna finally nodded. “Sure. If you can get it working, your first purchase is on me.”
“You shouldn’t be offering to give books away,” he scolded as he studied the instructions, then sorted through the tools she’d spread out until he found the one he wanted. “Though my son will be delighted. Picture books are among his favorite things. I’m sure we’ll be frequent customers.”
Her heart did an odd little stutter step. She couldn’t have said for sure if it was disappointment or delight. Kevin was an attractive man, after all, but she loved kids. She was hoping the store would draw a lot of them.
“You have a son?”
He nodded. “Davy. He’s two.”
“Well, you or your wife will have to bring him in as soon as I open. I have a huge selection of picture books on order.”
For an instant, it looked as if Kevin had been frozen in time, almost as if he weren’t even breathing. Then he exhaled slowly and frowned as he concentrated on the cappuccino machine. Shanna could tell instantly that she’d said something wrong, but she had no idea what it might have been. Perhaps it was mentioning his wife. Maybe they were divorced, but wouldn’t she have their child? It sounded as if the boy lived with his dad.
Then she remembered. When she’d first come to Chesapeake Shores for a visit a year ago, recovering from her own very complicated and shattered marriage, she’d stayed at the inn. It, too, was run by an O’Brien. And the whole place had been buzzing because the owner’s brother had lost his wife in Iraq and had just moved home with his son. Her heart had ached at the news, not just for the man who’d lost his wife, but for the little boy who would grow up without a mother.
That man was Kevin—it had to be. She felt awful, but had no idea how to apologize, especially since her inadvertent mention of his wife had caused such a strong reaction. Maybe it was better to let it pass.
Even as she was debating with herself over the best tactic, he stood up. “Where’s the nearest plug?”
She gestured toward a table she’d set up temporarily to hold the machine. The foam cups, gourmet coffee beans, and supplies were already sitting on it.
Within minutes, he had the coffee brewing, the rich aroma filling the space.
“Milk?” he asked.
“In the refrigerator in back. I’ll get it.”
When she brought it back, he deftly frothed it to perfection, poured it on top of a cup of fragrant coffee and handed it to her. “There you go,” he said with a grin. “You’re all set.”
“I’m eternally grateful,” she said, meaning it. “The coffee’s fantastic.” She met his gaze and asked impulsively, “What are you doing a week from Saturday? If you’ll man this machine, I’ll not only give your son his pick of any book in the place, but I’ll pay you, too. I can’t afford to hire anyone even part-time just yet, but I can certainly pay you for one day just to keep the customers in coffee.”
His expression closed down as if the offer offended him. “If I’m around, I’ll help out, but I don’t want your money.”
“You work, I pay you,” she said, not sure why she was so insistent that it be a business arrangement. From what she’d gathered, the O’Briens were probably not in need of the kind of paltry money she could afford to pay. Still, paying her way was a matter of pride to her. Accusations from her former in-laws that she’d been a gold digger were still a little too raw. She didn’t want to start her life in Chesapeake Shores feeling indebted to anyone.
“Let’s table that discussion until we see if I’m around.”
She studied him curiously. “Commitment issues?”
“Something like that,” he said evasively. “I’ll be in touch. It was nice to meet you, Shanna.”
“You, too, Kevin.”
But as he walked away, she had the strangest sensation that she still knew next to nothing about him beyond his name and her speculation that he was the man who’d lost his wife in a war