Page 47 of The Birchwood House

They piled into Michelle’s car and drove out to the Bluewater Bistro. The charming restaurant, which was located alongside the beach and offered a breathtaking view of the ocean, was strung with golden lights and surrounded by a fragrant garden. The sounds of laughter and jazz music spilled out of the restaurant as soon as Audrey opened the front door.

“You’re here for the Birchwood House celebration?” the hostess asked them with a smile at the front door. “That will be on the deck in the back of the restaurant. I’ll show you the way there.”

Audrey felt herself buzzing with excitement as she stepped out onto the deck. Strings of lights twinkled overhead, and the sound of the surf splashing against the beach mingled with the sounds of music and the tinkling of dishes.

Along the side of the deck was a long buffet table, covered in silver chafing dishes that were releasing a variety of mouthwatering smells. Audrey noticed breaded fish, meatballs, noodles smothered in some kind of creamy garlic sauce, clam chowder, roasted vegetables, and mashed potatoes. Her stomach growled slightly and she realized just how hungry she felt.

Before eating, however, she knew she should greet all of their guests and thank them for attending. Although she didn’t quite admit it to herself, she was especially looking forward to locating Evan and saying hello to him.

She began to mill around the deck, shaking people’s hands and thanking them for attending. All of them wished her well with a warmth that touched her heart.

She kept looking around for Evan, and she finally spotted him standing in a corner, chatting with Theo and Shep. He was wearing a dark suit, and she thought with a jolt that he looked especially attractive that night. He glanced in her direction and made eye contact across the deck with an intensity that caused her to blush.

Her heart fluttered as she saw him smile slightly and excuse himself from his conversation. He strolled across the deck toward her, his eyes locked onto her. She thought to herself that he looked incredibly dashing, and she got slightly weak at the knees.

“Good evening, Audrey,” he said when he reached her side, his voice soft. “You look absolutely lovely.”

“Thank you—you look very nice yourself.” After she’d said it, she wished she’d said something a little more concrete—”handsome,” or “becoming.” Still, Evan’s face lit up with a smile when he heard her compliment and she found herself smiling back at him helplessly.

“Congratulations on Birchwood House,” he told her. “It’s so exciting—and I know the whole town feels that way. I hope the three of you enjoy running it. A historical site and a hotel in one sounds like a rewarding endeavor.”

Audrey chuckled. “It seems like a good idea to us. I only hope that we’ll manage to stay open a month,” she joked. “After all, none of us have ever done anything like this before. Maybe it’ll turn out that we don’t know what we’re doing.”

Evan shook his head. “You’re all going to do a marvelous job, I have no doubt about that. It’s a brilliant idea.” He leaned a little closer to her and spoke his next words in a lower voice. “You’re a brilliant woman, Audrey. And a resilient one. I just—well, I hate the idea of you having any self-doubt for any reason. You absolutely shouldn’t. Anyone who made you feel that way is wrong.”

They made eye contact, and her stomach ached with a bittersweet feeling. She knew what he was trying to say to her—that Clark had been wrong for leaving her and that she shouldn’t let it affect the way she saw herself. She hadn’t known how much she needed to hear those words until he’d said them, and she had to blink back tears.

“Thank you, Evan,” she said softly, feeling thoroughly touched. “I appreciate the compliment.”

Evan opened his mouth, about to say something else, but someone called his name. He glanced over his shoulder, sighing slightly as he noticed a boisterous-looking man that Audreydidn’t recognize waving eagerly to him and gesturing for him to come over.

She laughed. “Go on, I’ll talk with you more later,” she promised.

Evan offered her a smile and nodded. “Later,” he said, and turned around to talk to the man who was waving to him.

Audrey looked around the party, wondering if she should start getting something to eat. Although people were still arriving, she’d spoken to everyone that she knew, and she decided that it was time to enjoy the delicious food that the buffet offered. She saw that Penelope, Michelle, and Elaine were sitting together at a table by the deck’s railing, overlooking the ocean, and she decided to sit there with them. She got a plate and made her way along the buffet line, taking a little of everything so that her plate was soon covered with a wide variety of tasty options. She accepted a glass of white wine from a waitress before making her way over to Elaine, Penelope, and Michelle’s table and sitting down.

“This food is so good,” Michelle said, shaking her head after swallowing a spoonful of the creamy clam chowder. “We’ll have to come here for dinner again soon.”

“Try the wine,” Penelope urged Audrey. “It’s amazing.”

Audrey obliged and quickly nodded her agreement. “Just fantastic.”

“There’s nothing like good wine and good food,” Michelle said with a sigh. “When I was leaving the city, one of my friends there said that I’d never get really good food out in a small town. Wow, were they wrong.”

“The food here is better than anything we had in the city,” Audrey agreed.

A few moments later, Harper appeared in the doorway that led from the restaurant out to the deck. Audrey waved at her eagerly, and Harper hurried over to their table with a smile.

“Hi, ladies,” Harper said, setting her bag down in an empty chair. “Mind if I sit here with you?”

“Please do,” Audrey and Penelope said at the same time, and Michelle and Elaine laughed and echoed their agreement.

“I’ll just run through the buffet first,” Harper said. “Any recommendations?”

“All of it.” Michelle laughed. “But I would definitely try the breaded cod.”

“And the mashed potatoes,” Audrey added.