Greg scowled at him. “When did you become such a stuffed shirt?”
Ethan knew that’s how he sounded, but he’d made his decision. He had to defend it. “Do you know how quickly I had to tap-dance around the whole issue just now with the parents of the kids in Project Pride? A couple of the moms were eager to pull their kids out of the program, but I persuaded them that this was just a crazy misunderstanding. I tossed Cora Jane’s name around quite a bit, since there’s nobody around here who doesn’t respect her, no matter how much mudslinging goes on.”
Pam regarded him incredulously. “So you used Samantha’s grandmother to get yourself out of hot water? Nice going, boss.”
“I was getting Samantha out of it at the same time,” he protested. “I told them Samantha had every bit as much integrity and trustworthiness as her grandmother, that they shouldn’t be judging her based on a prank. I defended her.”
“A pretty convincing argument,” Greg agreed. “Too bad it didn’t persuade you to overlook this newspaper fiasco.” He shook his head. “I hate to say it, but I wouldn’t blame Samantha if she never forgave you for not going to bat for her, maybe raising a ruckus with the paper. Did you even consider doing that? You’ve known Ken forever, same as me. Of course, he always was a little weasel.”
Ethan’s own scowl deepened. He hadn’t gone to Ken because this whole mess, unfair as it was, had worked for him. It had given him a cowardly way out of a relationship that terrified him. What did that say about him? Nothing good that he could think of.
“Of course you didn’t, because it didn’t suit your purposes,” Greg said, answering for him and hitting the nail smack on the head. “Geez, man. What has gotten into you?”
“I don’t get it, either,” Pam said, regarding him with unmistakable disappointment.
Debra looked indecisive, then winced. “I’m with them,” she admitted. “You blew it.”
He probably had, Ethan conceded to himself. But he’d felt a thousand times safer once he’d sent Samantha away.
He couldn’t help wondering, though, if safe was the way he wanted to live anymore. He had a hunch it was going to get awfully lonely.
* * *
Samantha hadn’t been able to shake her conversation with Cora Jane the night before. Truthfully, she hadn’t been happy in New York for a long time. And while being in Sand Castle Bay still felt new to her, it also filled her with hope. She liked being around her family. She was hooked on being an aunt. She didn’t even mind so much the shifts she put in at Castle’s to fill her spare time. The customers were friendly, and the locals made her feel welcome.
And if this summer was supposed to be about some big transformation, she imagined that it ought to be about more than changing career directions. There hadn’t been much about acting that was within her control. Now, though, she had a chance to take charge of her own destiny. She needed to do it.
She was winding up another shift at Castle’s when her father and Sophia arrived and settled into the family booth. Her father was wearing casual sports clothes she knew with absolute certainty weren’t part of his wardrobe in Raleigh. Sophia looked as if she’d stepped out of an ad for expensive designer resort wear. Despite that, they looked perfectly at home in the restaurant’s casual seaside atmosphere, where other patrons were mostly wearing bathing suits with coverups and flip-flops.
“I saw the paper,” her father said without preamble.
Sophia gave her hand a squeeze. “You must have wanted to go over there and rip into them, but believe me, it serves no useful purpose. Just have a little patience. This will blow over by next week’s edition.”
“Unfortunately, there have already been repercussions,” Samantha told them, explaining about Regina Gentry’s withdrawal of her support, and then, after taking a deep breath, about Ethan’s reaction.
Her father regarded her with indignation. “Nobody cares what Regina Gentry thinks,” he said with certainty. “But I’m shocked by Ethan. I thought he was a stand-up guy.”
“So am I,” Sophia said. “He’s being totally unreasonable.”
“He’s not really judging me. He’s just retreating into his shell,” Samantha said in his defense. “We all dragged him out kicking and screaming. This gave him the excuse to go back to his nice, staid lifestyle.”
“That’s a crying shame,” Sophia said. “I like him.”
Tears welled up in Samantha’s eyes. “So do I, but it was probably bound to happen.”
“Forget about Ethan,” her father advised. “None of this changes the bottom line where your future is concerned. I’ve worked out a budget with Tommy. He’s ready to start on those renovations as soon as you say the word.”
“No,” she said, not quite ready to take the leap, after all. She had to think about this, determine how badly she wanted it. Was it enough to fight for it?
“I don’t know if I want to go forward,” she told them. This whole incident had shaken her more than she’d realized.
“Of course you’re going forward,” Sophia said firmly. “Backward is never a good option in life. Remember that we were with you yesterday. Your father and I both saw how much this whole project means to you. You were bubbling over with ideas and enthusiasm. If you walk away because of a spat with Ethan or because of a commotion in some silly little local weekly, you’ll never forgive yourself.”
“It’s not a spat,” she told Sophia. “And the commotion isn’t silly, not to some people around here.”
“Ethan will come to his senses,” Sophia argued. “If he doesn’t, he’s not the man any of us think he is, and you’ll move on without him.”
“You sound so sure of that,” Samantha said.
“Oh, there are plenty of things in life to keep me guessing, but this isn’t one of them. I’m pretty good at reading people. He loves
