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“What’s this?” I heard a man say behind me. I turned around to see Ben, his gaze fixated on the sign.
“What are you doing here?” It came out sounding more accusatory than I’d meant it to.
He stood next to me with his arms crossed over his chest, his feet shoulder-width apart. He didn’t look like my boyfriend right then. He looked pissed and maybe even a little bit hurt. “I thought I’d see what all the rumors were about. I thought you were just getting a ‘face-lift.’”
He raised a brow at the sign I’d been so proud of a minute ago.
I swallowed hard. “I decided to rebrand. I needed to save the business.”
“Things were that bad?” His words were deceptively calm.
“Sales were down. I didn’t see how we could coexist, fighting over the same customers. It wasn’t good for us.”
“And when I suggested we work together, why didn’t you tell me about this?” He uncurled his arms and raised a hand toward the store where customers were filing in to enjoy the food and drink.
“I wanted it to be a surprise.”
“Even from me?” The hurt in his tone was unmistakable.
“I wanted to tell you. I planned to, but then you said what you did the other day, and I didn’t hear from you. I thought we were over.” I might have been wrong to assume that, but I thought he’d contact me to apologize.
“I regret what I said to you.”
“You didn’t tell me that.” I took a step back, needing distance from him.
“I was going to; I’ve just been busy with the shop, the new house, and Cammie.”
“You got the house?” It didn’t escape my notice that he hadn’t called me with the news.
“Yeah.” His shoulders slumped.
“Congratulations. I’m taking myself out of the coffee market, not entirely, but my focus will be on the gourmet store in the back and wine and appetizers in the afternoon and evening. It will complement my book club and trivia offerings.” It was what I should have told him weeks ago. If I had, he might be standing by my side and not faced off against me.
He met my gaze without flinching. “I just wished you’d told me.”
“Would it have made a difference?” He’d said the comment that set us apart from each other. He had a kid, and I didn’t. He didn’t think I’d understand where he was coming from. That his priorities were different.
“This is about so much more than one ill-timed comment. I thought you’d grown to trust me, but you didn’t, because you didn’t trust me with the most important thing going on in your life.”
“You were the most important thing going on in my life. Not this. This is just business. We agreed to keep business separate from our relationship, and this is just an extension from that.”
He was quiet for a few seconds. “We never had that discussion. You just assumed.”
I racked my brain for the conversation, but couldn’t find one. “This will be good for us.”
“Congratulations on your new store.” Ben stepped back, and I knew I’d lost him.
I’d been too scared to take a chance and tell him the truth. To let him in fully. We were talking about my present and my future, and Ben deserved to know.
Before I could call Ben back, he was gone.
“Everything okay?” Hailey asked.
I offered a weak smile, dread swirling in my gut. “Yeah, he was just surprised.”
Hailey’s mouth dropped open. “You never told him.”
My jaw set in a stubborn line, and I said, “He said something last week that made me think he didn’t want to be with me anymore. He pulled away first.”
