Honeymoon

Chapter 96

I RETURNED WITH my arms full of wood and got the stove going. Then I asked Nora what else I could do to help.

“Absolutely nothing,” she said with a kiss to my cheek. “I’ll handle everything from here.”

I left Nora to herself in the small kitchen and relaxed on the living-room sofa with the only reading matter there, a four-year-old issue of Field & Stream. In the middle of a deadly article on salmon fishing at Sheen Falls Lodge in Ireland, Nora called out, “Dinner’s served.”

I returned to the kitchen and sat down to pan-seared scallops, wild rice, and a romaine and radicchio salad. To drink, a bottle of pinot grigio. Very Gourmet magazine.

Nora raised her glass and toasted. “Here’s to a memorable night.”

“To a memorable night,” I echoed.

We clinked glasses and started to eat. She asked me what I’d been reading and I told her about the salmon article.

“Do you like fishing?” she asked.

“Love it,” I said, telling a little white lie, then found myself elaborating on it. Story of my relationship with Nora. “Let me tell you, when you finally reel in that big fish—the one you’ve been waiting for—it makes it all worthwhile.”

“Where do you like to go?”

“Hmmm. There are some good lakes and streams right in the area. Trust me, you can catch a big one around here. But nothing compares with the islands. Jamaica, St. Thomas, the Caymans. I assume you’ve been down there?”

“I have. Actually, I was in the Caymans not too long ago.”

“Vacation?”

“A little business.”

“Oh?”

“I was decorating a beach house for some financier type. Gorgeous place on the water.”

“Interesting,” I said, nodding. I took another bite of the scallops. “By the way, this is delicious.”

“I’m glad.” She reached out and laid her hand on top of mine. “So, are you having a good time?”

“I am.”

“Good, because I was a little worried—what you said earlier about my being your client.”

“It really has more to do with the context,” I said. “Let’s face it, if it wasn’t for Connor’s death, we wouldn’t be here.”

“That’s true, I can’t deny it. But…” Her voice trailed off.

“What were you going to say?”

“Something I probably shouldn’t.”

“It’s okay,” I told her. I glanced around and smiled. “Ain’t nobody here but us.”

She half smiled back. “I don’t want this to sound insensitive, but if there’s one thing I’ve learned in my profession, it’s that you can fall in love with more than one house. Isn’t it naive to think the same wouldn’t hold true for people?”

I looked deeply into her eyes. Where was she going with this? What was she trying to tell me?

“Is that what this is, Nora? Love?”

She held my stare. “I think it is,” she said. “I think I’m falling in love with you. Is that a bad thing?”

I listened to her say the words and I swallowed hard. And then it was as if everything about the strange night exploded in my stomach.

I suddenly felt sick. A reaction to what she’d said?

Keep it together, O’Hara.

I thought about what had happened the last time she cooked for me. How could I blame this on a bad scallop?

So I said nothing. I hoped it would pass. It had to.

But it didn’t.

Then, before I knew it, I couldn’t speak at all. I couldn’t breathe.