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“I mean, Grant went over to his workshop yesterday and saw him packing up all his gear. Took his dog and said he was going back to Texas.”
My stomach turns to stone and sinks. I blink, speechless. He just… Heleft?
“I thought you knew,” Fiona says.
“But he was still here last night,” I protest. “He was at the restaurant.”
“Actually…I saw him driving off,” Trina says slowly. “His trailer was hitched to the truck. He must have left after grabbing his food.”
We all turn when we hear a knock on the library door. It cracks open, and Mia’s head pokes through. “Oh. Sorry to bother you! Your sister told me you were here.”
I put my mug down and stand up. “Hey, Mia. Have you met everyone?”
She enters the space and introductions are made. They all know each other by sight, but it sounds like Mia has mostly kept to herself apart from getting coffee from Four Cups once in a while.
“I went over to see how your renovations are going,” Mia says, “and your sister told me you were over here. I needed to stretch my legs, so I said I’d come see you. Are you okay? You look upset.”
“Her high school sweetheart showed up in her life after twenty-five years, messed up her head, then left,” Simone summarizes.
Mia’s brows jump. “Oh. I thought you said you were done with men.”
“I am,” I say.
“Of course you are, honey,” Simone says, patting my arm.
I slump back down onto the sofa, throwing a hand over my eyes. “I don’t even know why I’m upset. Men only make things more complicated.”
“You can say that again,” Mia answers. “If it makes you feel any better, I recently deleted all my online dating profiles.” She sits down on the sofa’s arm next to me and shudders dramatically. “The internet is hellish. We can be bitter old spinsters together.”
I give her a tired smile. My mind is still reeling from the news that Sebastian is gone. It’s what I wanted, though…right?
“My niece Allie was telling me about a new dating app called Blind Date,” Trina says. “There are no photos on the profile, and you have to connect with people through a minimum number of messages before you’re allowed to exchange any pictures. She said it’s the anti-Tinder. You should try it. You could both try it!”
“Barf,” I reply.
Mia wrinkles her nose. “I don’t know.”
“We could start a convent,” I grumble. “That’s the ultimate anti-Tinder.”
“Honestly, that’s more appealing.” Mia laughs. “Sorry ladies. You can all be happily married with your gorgeous men and leave us to our bitterness.”
Bitterness is exactly what I feel. Sebastian told me he’d planned on staying in Heart’s Cove for the summer, and I hadn’t realized how much I was clinging to that fact. Now that he’s gone…
My phone rings, sending my heart into overdrive. When I see my sister’s name on the screen, that same heart immediately plummets. It’s not my possessive Texan telling me he’s on his way back to win my heart and own my body. “Hey, Piper.”
“Hey. You coming? Grant and I have a few questions for you.”
“On my way,” I answer. Hanging up the phone, I give the ladies around me a tight smile. “Duty calls.”
I dump the rest of my coffee, wash my cup, then walk across the street with Mia, leaving the other ladies in the library.
After Mia disappears into her shop, I stand in front of my gallery and let out a long sigh. Now that I know Sebastian is gone, the sight of my new project doesn’t fill me with quite as much excitement.
And isn’t that just a whole bunch of bullshit? I haven’t learned my lesson at all. Why would I care whether Sebastian is here or not? I have dreams and plans and projects! I don’t need blind lust. I don’t need the sound of cowboy boots crunching on gravel. I don’t need that drawl whispering dirty things in my ear.
Iamexcited about my new project. Iwillmake it a success.
Whether or not Sebastian Finch is here to witness it makes no difference to me. None at all. Not even a little bit.
