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“New to town,” Fin said.
“Tourist?”
“Uh-huh.”
“Got a sister?”
“Nope.”
“Shame,” Joe said, slapping his friend on the shoulder as he passed, because it was expected of him. “Gotta get Buzz some food or he’ll start on the furniture again. Then I’m heading back to the bar, and work on rosters. Two down with illness.”
“I gave Buzz a biscuit, he should be good for a while.”
“What biscuit?”
“The one I had in my pocket.”
“You’re carrying biscuits around in your pockets now for my dog? Seriously, I swear this town loves him more than me.”
“Well hell, that’s a given.”
Joe flipped Fin the bird, and continued with his shopping. He left thirty minutes later with four bags of groceries containing a random selection of things that he neither needed nor wanted. Buzz, however, had his favorite biscuits and a large bone that would send him into ecstasy—he’d managed to get his head straight enough to ensure that.
Well, hell.Bailey Jones was back in town, and for some reason Joe had a feeling his life was about to be flipped on its head.
Chapter 2
Bailey wasn’t sure how she got through the checkout, or managed to acknowledge the lady who served her.
“You here for the parade?”
“Parade?”
“It’s the annual end of summer parade.”
She remembered the parade, because she’d once been in it on the school float. What she hadn’t remembered was that it was usually in the month of September.
“I’m not sure I’ll be here.”
“We have a street party after. It’s worth staying for.” The girl had tight blonde curls and a perky smile.Young and innocent, and still full of self-belief. Had she ever been like that? Thinking back, she doubted it.
“I’ll think about it, thanks.”
Parting with some of her precious cash, she then headed out the door, and only when she was back on the street did she breathe easier.
After fifteen years, she’d come back to Ryker Falls, and twenty minutes in, Joe was the first local she’d seen. “What are the chances?” Muttering these words to herself, Bailey tried to regroup. She was no longer a thirteen-year-old girl who thought the sun rose and set because of Joe Trainer.
Friends for life,he’d said to her that final day. Later, when a few years and many miles passed between them, she realized how foolish she’d been to believe that. Life had no certainties. The scars on her arm and hand told her that.
Bailey pushed some hair that had come free off her forehead, and realized her hand was shaking. Making herself move, as she was standing in the main street staring at nothing, she headed to where she’d parked her car.Get a grip, Bailey. You’ve had worse shocks, and you knew coming back here meant there was always the possibility of bumping into him.
She’d seen Joe.
At thirty now, he was a seriously handsome man. Big and broad shouldered, his hair darker, the thick black locks cut short. Piercing green eyes, black lashes and brows, and his face had fewer hard angles than as a teenager, and more chiseled planes and interesting lines now. A strong jaw, high cheekbones, and a nose that started out straight, then veered slightly to the right. His father had done that to him.
Bailey had kept in touch with her childhood friend Maggie by writing a letter each week. Her grandfather had not been able to take that away from her. She’d never asked about Joe though, because no one knew what they had once meant to each other. The urge had been there, but she’d fought it. He was a taboo subject as far as Bailey was concerned.Which begs the question as to why I came back?
“Hey, watch out!”
