Sea Glass Cottage by Vickie McKeehan Page B

Cooper, had reverted to his birth name, Richmond, officially changing it over the summer. She and her other brother, Caleb, had talked about doing the same. But it seemed a rude gesture to the people who had taken them in and given them a home. In Drea’s mind, taking in three kids that no one else had wanted at the time could only fall into two categories. It was either incredibly brave or incredibly foolish. However anyone chose to classify it, her mother’s brother, Landon, and his wife, Shelby, had done the impossible. They’d given three kids from a dysfunctional home the only stable environment they’d ever known. Going to court to ask for the Richmond name back made for an awkward situation she wanted to avoid if at all possible.
    Not that she didn’t support Cooper’s decision to honor their father, she did. Caleb felt the same way. Layne Richmond deserved better than having a manipulative shrew for a wife and dying at the hands of said shrew. Eleanor Jennings Richmond had taken a .38 and aimed it at her husband’s heart. It wasn’t every florist that could say her mother had killed her father. Drea could. Several weeks back, Eleanor had even called collect from the Santa Cruz jail and wanted to talk. Drea had declined to take her mother’s call.
    She was still chewing on the name change issue when she went into the bathroom to turn on the water for her shower. While the water got hot her mind shifted to Zach. They’d known each other forever, gone to school together. Which made her wonder why they had never gone out before now.
    “Because he’s never seemed one bit interested in you,” she muttered aloud, answering her own query. Stripping off her jeans and shirt, she added, “That’s why you had to be the one to ask him out.”
    But grousing wasn’t what had gotten her a date, audacity and brashness had.
    Later, after spending an inordinate time on her hair, she decided she could only work with the attributes she’d been given at birth—wild hair that couldn’t be tamed unless she used something to take out the curl along with alabaster skin that didn’t bode well in the sun.
    Dressed in her burgundy cocktail dress, she stood in front of the mirror and turned a circle. When the buzzer sounded downstairs she conceded that the outfit showed off her dark mane rather well and even managed to flatter her contrasting milky skin tone.
    The thought of Zach Dennison waiting on the other side of the door gave her just enough incentive to take the steps two at a time. The man had always been a bit predictable, if not staid in his attitudes, even back in middle school. She wasn’t after altering that about him, mainly because she saw his hardworking veneer as a major plus. Her brothers were much the same in their work habits. But was it wrong to want to be the one to add a layer of whimsy to Zach Dennison’s life? To decorate that otherwise bland canvas he seemed to tote around with a splash of color? Like arranging white daisies in the same vase alongside an array of dazzling fall mums, a flash of red and gold might be just the ticket to chisel away his industrious veneer.
    Making a mad dash to the door left her breathless. “You’re right on time,” she sang out.
    “It was a light day. I was able to knock off early.”
    “I’ll just get my wrap.”
    “You look amazing, Drea.”
    “Thanks. I’m glad you noticed.”
    “Hard not to in that outfit.”
    “You work entirely too hard.”
    “I don’t have much of a choice. The pizza place has a start date. Thane’s counting on us to finish the work so it will open on time. Same with Ryder and Troy, they depend on me to carry my fair share of the load. I won’t disappoint them.”
    “What’s on the agenda for tonight?”
    “There’s a place in Santa Cruz that plays live music. I thought we could eat dinner first and drop in for a drink and a little dancing.”
    “Why Zach, I do believe you’ve captured my interest,” she said with a laugh.