Merry with a Captain (Love Beach, Holiday Collection)

Chapter 4

4

A northern girl, Robyn had always wanted to visit Savannah. So, when this temporary management position opened up, she grabbed it. It wasn't for long, filling in while the employee went on a sabbatical. It was excellent experience moving into the management level, even though she preferred to be hands on.

Robyn had been so excited with the move to Savannah, and had planned everything she wanted to see and do while here. After that, she would either go back to Love Beach or to another location, possibly closer to home in Vermont. She missed her family.

It was exciting times with opportunities presenting themselves to her. But now her enthusiasm for this new adventure was waning, and all because of the night she spent with Fletch.

It wasn’t like her to allow outside influences to alter her plans. She’d been steadfast on her journey and eventually the plan was to open up her own clinic. Her determination to live her own life was strong. Fiercely independent Robyn, that’s who she was.

She liked how she could walk from the clinic to her apartment and while doing so thought about Fletch. A week had passed, and she still couldn't get him out of her head. Her body remembered him oh so well, and a night didn’t go by without him haunting her dreams in a wonderful hot and steamy way. Had she done the right thing by just leaving with only a note and not giving him her number? They didn't have contact details, and at the time, they were so wrapped up in each other it hadn’t been important. She regretted it now.

It was a lovely walk, and one that under normal circumstances she would embrace. But Robyn was finding it difficult to focus on this move, her new position, and settling herself into her gorgeous new apartment. All the plans she made and places she wanted to visit had flown out the window. Every day she went to work with all the best intentions, but her heart just wasn't in it.

She had to snap out of it. It wasn’t like her to be so unfocused. She’d never been hung up on a guy before, and it was making her crazy. After only one night with Fletch, he’d imprinted on her in such a way that it pushed everything else out.

The little patio in front of her apartment had enchanted her. It was three steps down from the street and a lovely black iron railing ran the length of the hip high brick wall enclosing the patio. A small garden between the sidewalk and fence begged for flowers. Another thing she’d been excited to do.

But not anymore.

Robyn sighed and pushed the key in the lock of the old wooden door. Her apartment was unique and ran the length of the narrow building, so there were windows looking out to the street on one side and to a courtyard on the other, which gave it a bright interior. Right from the start of her apartment hunting, she’d fallen in love with it and was super lucky it was available. Everything had clicked into place.

Inside, she dropped her sweater on the old embroidered chair by the door and hung her bag on one of the many odd iron hooks she found hammered into the walls around the apartment. She took a moment and glanced around the living area.

Yes, it would be easy to fall in love with Savannah, and she had when she’d first done research prior to her move. The list Robyn had made of all the things she was eager to explore — the city’s rich history, restaurants, amazing food — as she settled into this wonderful fully furnished apartment was lost and forgotten in her planner.

This apartment held a life story of its own with the exposed brick and stone walls, ancient fireplace, restored period furniture pieces and those iron hooks driven into the walls. A history she’d been eager to dive into.

She walked through the living area to her bedroom and fancied she could feel the past, hear the voices of the people that had walked these same plank floors all those years ago, and possibly even have a ghost or two as a roommate. Try as she might to rekindle her initial feelings, the excitement for this new adventure was gone.

Robyn sighed, then she took off her work clothes and tossed them in the hamper. Finding a pair of cozy fleece pants, she pulled them on and slipped into an oversized pink T-shirt.

It had taken a week, but she finally accepted the apartment, and its graceful street lined with ancient trees shading the cobbled road, had lost its charm.

And all because of a man.

What was she going to do now?

Run back to Love Beach to find him? He might be gone now.

Pine over him like a lovesick teenager? He may not be giving her a second thought.

Fill the painful void inside her by hooking up with someone else? Nope, not her style.

She padded through the apartment to the kitchen and pulled a bottle of rosé from the fridge. What she needed was a glass of wine and a good book.