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“For once!” Carly said with a smile. “I swear, I’ve only seen you two times since you started there! Don’t they give you weekends off?”
I nodded. “They do…”
Carly gave me a sympathetic smile. “I get it. It’s the curse of the small town.”
“Pretty much.”
The air museum was only a few minutes’ walk from the coffee shop, and I knew Aaron and Jack made daily pilgrimages for breakfast or lunch. And if Jack’s schedule was anywhere close to what it was when we were together, he worked most every weekend. It wasn’t worth the risk.
“I’m sorry,” I said, sagging down onto the counter. “I feel like a terrible friend.”
“You’re not.” Carly soothed. “You’ve had a lot going on.”
“Yep.”
“You want anything to eat? Drink?”
I smiled. “You know me so well.”
I placed my order and we made small talk as she worked to get everything together. When I had my coffee cup and plate in hand, she followed me out to the patio. Her part-timer had already left for the day, but from the patio, Carly could see if anyone came inside. She took the seat that had the best view of the store and I took the one looking out at the ocean. “How is the new job?” she asked, pinching a bite off the scone on my plate.
“It’s really good. I wasn’t sure how I’d feel working for someone after all the years working for myself, but it’s been great. Everyone is super nice and professional but in a relaxed way. I think I can see myself staying for a long time. There is going to be a ton of growth and new opportunities ahead.”
Carly smiled and popped the scone into her mouth.
I nibbled at the edges, getting the most frosting for my effort. “Have you seen him?”
Carly nodded. “He comes in with Aaron most days.”
“Is he…all right?”
“I think so.” Carly hesitated like she wasn’t sure how much to say. “Aaron came in the other day, solo, and we chatted for a few minutes. He didn’t mention any concerns. But then again, he knows you and I are thick as thieves so maybe he wouldn’t…”
“Probably not.” I sighed and leaned back in my chair. I pushed my hair out of my face as a sudden breeze carried it in a hundred different directions. “I might be moving soon. My boss has a rental property becoming available soon and he’s offered it to me. I don’t know the price tag, but from the description he gave me, it sounds ideal.”
“Will you still be in Holiday Cove?”
“A little outside.”
“Hmm. Well, I suppose that’s for the best. You can…move on. Ya know if that’s what you want to do.”
I smiled sadly. “I suppose.”
After the breakup, Carly and I’d had a long, wine-fueled conversation so she knew all the ins and outs and reasons why, but I wondered if it still didn’t make sense to her. To anyone. Hell, sometimes it didn’t make sense to me.
I sometimes wished I could bury my head in the proverbial sand and pretend everything was fine. After all, Jack had finally offered me the thing I thought I wanted—a wedding date. But by the time he seriously gave in—it was too late. The other cracks in our relationship had been revealed and I didn’t feel secure anymore. A wedding wasn’t going to patch that up. It would be like super gluing a pricey vase back together. By no means permanent, and definitely not pretty.
No, I’d done the right thing by leaving. Even if it hurt like hell.
My phone rang and I hurried to answer it, wondering if Noah needed something and couldn’t reach me at the office as I’d left early. My heart jumped into my throat at the name on the screen.
Carly gave me a pointed look. “Do you need to get that?”
“It’s Jack.”
“Oh…”
I sighed. “Do you mind?”
She shook her head. “Not at all.”
I took the phone, and left everything else at the table, and paced to the end of the patio as I clicked onto the call. “Hello?”
“Hey, Holly.”
I squeezed my eyes tight as the sound of his voice washed over me. “Hi, Jack.”
“Do you have a few minutes?”
“Sure.”
He paused, like he wasn’t sure what to say, even though he was the one who’d initiated the call.
“Is everything okay, Jack?”
“Yeah. I was hoping we could get together for a coffee or something, so we could talk a couple of things over.”
“Oh. Okay. Sure. I’m actually at Carly’s right now. If you’re free…”
Silence, then finally, he said, “All right, sure. I can be there in about ten minutes. Should I bring Princess?”
Tears pricked at the back of my eyes, even as I smiled and nodded. “Sure. I’m sure Hunter would love to see her.”
“Okay. We’ll be there soon.”
We ended the call and I returned to the table. “He’s coming over. He says he needs to talk about a couple of things.”
