My grin widens. I jog over to him and pull him into a hug.
He laughs at my enthusiasm. “Hey, darlin’. We missed you these past two weeks.”
Two weeks? My God. It’s hard to believe it’s only been two weeks since the fire, and since I agreed to Rowan’s offer. The offer itself seems like something that happened in a parallel universe.
“I missed you too. How’s it been?”
“Busy. The boss’s been in a mood the whole time you’ve been gone. We all guessed why after we heard about your new boyfriend.” He adjusts the cap on his head. “Looks like Brett’s finally going to have to come to terms with you movin’ on.”
“It’s about time, isn’t it?” I spent five months telling Brett it was over and that we weren’t getting back together. His stubborn insistence that he wasn’t going to give up on us never made much sense to me, but after the charity auction, I finally understand.
He thinks he’s entitled to me. He felt insulted that I would leave him.Me, a nobody. He thought I’d forgive any and all of his mistakes if it meant keeping him as my boyfriend, but he underestimated me.
“I’m not saying I deserve the world, but I sure as hell deserve better than him.”
Frank grins. “That's the spirit, darlin'. Let's get this place up and running. Carly should be here any minute." He claps me on the back before disappearing into the kitchen, leaving me standing alone in the empty dining room.
My phone buzzes in my pocket.“Can’t wait to see you tonight.”
My heart flutters at Rowan's message, and a familiar warmth spreads through my chest.
"Me too," I say and type back quickly before tucking my phone away.
As I start setting up the tables for the day, Carly breezes in with her usual energy, her blond hair pulled back into a ponytail. She gives me a quick hug before grabbing an apron.
“You look good,” she says with a wink. “I have to admit, I was a bit worried about you when I heard you and Miller moved in together, but I know how it is sometimes. My sister’s husband proposed to her after only a month. I have to admit, I’m a bit jealous you get to wake up beside that fine piece of ass.”
I chuckle, feeling a blush creep up my neck. “It was definitely hard to get out of bed this morning.”
She plugs her fingers into her ears. “I’m way too single to be hearing that. Don’t torture me like that.”
I laugh, and we fall into an easy rhythm of setting up the restaurant together. As we finish arranging the last table, the doors to Frostbite swing open, and Brett strides in with a scowl on his face. Carly shoots me a concerned look, but I give her a smile. I can handle Brett. I’ve handled much worse.
He walks up to me until he’s no more than a foot away. “Blake.”
“Morning.”
“Can I talk to you?”
“Sure.” If he’s decided he’s going to fire me after all, it’s better he does it now instead of making me wonder about it all day.
I follow him into his office, and he shuts the door. It’s messy in here, with paperwork in haphazard piles and his laptop at the center of the desk. Photographs of Brett’s family line one of the bookshelves. One is of him, his brother, and his dad at a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new library. Another one is of his whole family at their cottage.
And the third photo is of us.
My gut clenches.
Did he look at it while he was having sex with Melissa? Or did he at least have the decency to put it away when they did it in here?
My skin crawls. I don’t want to spend a second longer here than I have to.
Brett stops by his desk and turns to me. “I want to apologize. I was out of line at the party. I’d been drinking and said things I shouldn’t have.”
For the first time, I notice the bags under his eyes, and there’s a desperate edge to his voice, like he’s finally starting to realize he fucked up.
Amazing that it took him this long.
My lips purse into a tight line. The old me would have accepted his apology, but this new version, the version that won’t accept being hurt over and over again, refuses to make his life easy for him. So I just say, “Okay. Is there anything else?”
