She gave him a whimsical smile and focused on him. “I don’t know. I guess it was a gradual thing. Even as a little girl I organized my toys into order by color. I hated mismatched colors even back then. Everything had to be symmetrical too—something I’ve softened on over the years. But I do remember being in my mom’s kitchen one day and telling her she should arrange her shelves better.” A wistful smile touched her lips and her eyes softened. “She asked me what I meant and I showed her.”
So all of this styling came naturally to her. Interesting. “How old were you, Mia?”
“Seven. I was seven years old.”
“That’s amazing that you figured it out so young.”
“How about you? What made you want to run a bed and breakfast?”
“To be honest, I hadn’t actually thought much about it when I was that young. I was more interested in building things and making something new out of something old. No, it took me forever to figure out what I wanted to do. It wasn’t until this house came on the market that I knew I had to have it so I could put my skills to good use. Once I’d decided, everything fell into place and here we are.”
She glanced around the kitchen. “It’s a beautiful house. And you’ve decorated it so nicely too. You even have my handles on your cabinets and some of my light fixtures too. They make it very cozy and welcoming while slightly modern as well. It’s a very functional and stylish kitchen.”
“Thanks. I read every article I could find about design and refurbishing old furniture to get the look I wanted. Plus I followed your blog to get ideas. If I could’ve tempted you over here, I’d have asked you to style the house for me. I figured you didn’t do that.”
“Not really, no. It’s always been something I like to do, but the business takes all my time. Not sure if I made the right decision, but that’s how it turned out.” She finished her coffee and put her cup down. “Can I see my room now, please, Matt? I think I’d like to freshen up and get my bearings.”
He jumped up, horrified he’d taken so much of her time. “Sorry. I’ve been rambling on. Bad habit. This way.” He grabbed her suitcase and hurried up the stairs, pausing on the landing to let her catch up. “I’ve given you the turret room because it has a larger sitting room with it. Since you’ll be here longer than any of the other guests I have booked in, it seemed the logical thing to do. I hope you like it.”
Stop rambling, Matt. She might be the most intriguing woman he’d seen in ages and he was definitely a superfan of her business but gosh, he didn’t have to prattle on like that.
Her heels sounded on the stairs behind him. “Sounds lovely, thank you.”
Matt opened the door and placed her suitcase on the stool near the window, ready for her to unpack. He walked across the room and opened another door. “Your bathroom. I think you’ll find everything you need but if not, just shout. Dinner is at seven but if you don’t plan on being in, just let me know. Things are pretty casual around here.”
She walked in and paused, her hand resting on the end of the wrought iron bed as she looked around the room. Something fragile about her stance made him feel protective, but he reminded himself to respect her privacy and try not to overwhelm her with his kind of TLC. It was the quickest way to scare off anyone and something about Mia Morgan intrigued him, and it had nothing to do with her designing skills.
“Thank you, Matt.”
“You’re welcome. Spare towels in the bathroom cupboard, blankets in the blanket box at the end of the bed. Wi-Fi password is hopeharbor, all lower case. It gets a bit slow when we have storms, sorry. I have no control over that. Your cell will work everywhere but the lighthouse point of the island.”
“Great.”
“There’re plenty of things to do if you feel like exploring. I can tell you or you can get the information from down at the wharf. Olive is pretty helpful and knows everything about the island.” He moved to the door. “Drinks at five on the front porch if it’s not too windy and I go running at five-thirty every morning before I start breakfast prep if you want to join me, or if you hear strange noises and wonder where I am.”
Mia stared at him blankly for a moment. Had he gone too far already? Tension crackled between them.
“Thanks. I might take you up on that run, but please, don’t wait for me in case I sleep in.”
Matt walked out and left her to it. He hurried down the stairs in case she could see the way his demeanor had changed. The last thing he wanted was to come across all stalker-like but something about Mia Morgan had his heart beating faster than normal and his senses on overload. She’d only been in his house for half an hour and already he wanted to get to know her on a more personal level, which had never happened with a guest before. How was he going to be able to act normal around her for the next four weeks without scaring her off?
She was a business mogul with credentials and experience under her belt. He was a small-time bed and breakfast owner. She was here for a break, not a romance, but that didn’t make any difference to the way his mind tossed over scenarios of how to make her notice he could be more than her host.
Chapter 3
The following morning, Matt tried not to feel disappointed when there was no sign of Mia when he was ready for his run. Last night, she’d skipped drinks but chatted freely
