AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“You’re going to tell her?”
Talulah drew a deep breath as she sat down. She’d been trying to preserve her relationship with Averil. Something as special as what they’d once had seemed like itshouldbe saved. But at what cost? She’d told Paul about Brant. Now, regardless of the consequences, she needed to tell everyone else. “I think I will.”
Twenty-Five
Charliewasthere. Talulah saw his car as she pulled in and wished it wasn’t too late to cancel. What had she been thinking, accepting this invitation? She should’ve had Averil over to her place so they could talk alone. But the opportunity to finally offer an apology to the people who’d hated her for so long, people who’d been such a big part of her life as a child, had been too enticing.
Besides, she still didn’t know for sure that she’d end up with Brant. It’d be a shame if she told everyone she was in a relationship with him, then went back to Seattle and decided not to give up her life there. If that happened, she’d blow her chance at reconciliation for nothing, and she wanted to put her past behind her at last. She’d come to realize just how much she’d missed her hometown and no longer wanted to feel like an outcast.
It was unfortunate that she couldn’t put Averil on hold for a few months until she figured out what she was going to do with her life. She’d never expected to fall in love with Brant, never expected to be facing the decision before her. But—just like with her prior fiancés—she couldn’t control how she felt. She couldn’t make herself love them, and she couldn’t make herself stop loving Brant.
Gathering her courage, she stepped out of the car, retrieved the chocolate molten lava cake she’d baked early this morning and approached the Gerhart house.
Apparently, Charlie had been watching for her, because he opened the door before she could balance the cake well enough to knock.
Ultra-self-conscious, being under direct scrutiny from only a couple of feet away, she drew a deep breath. “Hello.”
His eyes swept over her with a tinge of contempt, as though he was eager to find any small flaws in her appearance—a wrinkle, a wart, a slight bulge here or there. She wasn’t sure if he found the blemish he seemed to be looking for, but he didn’t return her intrepid smile. He did, however, step back as Averil appeared beside him and exclaimed over the cake. “Oh, my gosh! That looks delicious!”
Talulah let her take it. She was nervous enough that she was afraid she’d drop it otherwise. “Thanks.” Chocolate had been Charlie’s favorite back when they were together. She’d made the cake as a peace offering of sorts, since the carrot cake seemed to have gone over so well.
“Do you serve this one at your diner?” Averil asked.
“I do. It’s one of the most popular items on the menu.”
“Yum! I can’t wait to try it.” She turned to Charlie. “Excuse me. Can you please get out of the way so Talulah can come in?”
Averil sounded slightly irritated with him for standing so close, but he didn’t react to the edge in her tone. He shifted a few feet to the left, and Talulah moved past him into the house, which didn’t appear to have changed much in the past fourteen years. A brick rambler with light blue carpet and drapes, it’d been built in the seventies. Although it was rather dated, Dinah kept everything neat and in good repair, so the house felt lived-in and comfortable rather than shabby.
The scent of rosemary and garlic permeated the air. “Smells good in here,” Talulah remarked, painfully aware that Charlie was still watching her closely.
“It’s my mom’s famous rosemary chicken,” Averil informed her.
Eager to put some more space between her and Charlie, Talulah followed Averil toward the kitchen. “I think I might’ve tried it once or twice in high school.”
“Probably. She’s been making it for years.”
The familiarity of the home and everything in it, including the people, made Talulah nostalgic enough that she was glad she’d come—and once again uncertain whether she should mention Brant. Would Averil bring him up? She wasn’t acting upset that she hadn’t found Talulah at home last night, hadn’t launched any accusations. Maybe she’d only been checking up on things and hadn’t found anything amiss and was, therefore, not suspicious.
Talulah got the feeling that was how it had gone. But she had Mitch’s teddy bear in her car so she could give it back when it was time to leave. She planned to wait until later, though, after they’d had dinner and a chance to talk.
Dinah turned when they entered the kitchen. “Hello, Talulah.”
Although the warmth of her greeting wasn’t what it had once been, she sounded polite.
George, Averil’s father, sat at the table, shucking corn. He looked up and seemed more genuinely happy to see her. “It’s been a while, kiddo,” he said. “How’re you doing?”
Talulah offered him a grateful smile, thankful for his kindness and happy that Charlie hadn’t followed them into the kitchen. “I’m managing, thanks.”
Dinah took a pan of rolls from the oven. “Averil tells us you own a dessert diner in Seattle these days.”
“I do. I wanted to open my own place after I graduated from culinary school, but it took me a few years to make that happen.”
“You did it with a partner, right?”
Considering what Dinah had most likely heard about her, Talulah suspected there could be some subtext in that question, but she decided to take it at face value. “A friend, yes.”
“And he’s there taking care of the place now?”
