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I listen to every word she says but cannot stop staring. It’s like I’m standing at a threshold. Okay, I’m literally in her doorway, but if I open my mouth to speak, I’ll say something that could change my life forever.
After making a fuss over giving Boo a cookie and splitting one in half so Madame and General don’t feel left out, my dog runs inside and makes himself at home with his two new friends and a squeak toy shaped like a taco.
Still in the doorway, Lally looks at me with her gorgeous green eyes.
Giving my head a little shake, I say, “You have the key.”
“I do?”
Our eyes meet and time slows down. Nope. It stands still.
The flare inside is blinding. My thoughts race in a jumble. The red flag tries so hard to wave. I must resist her. But the flare inside sets it on fire.
“If you’re wondering why...” I can’t bring myself to reject her directly. “Listen, Lally, I have a lot going on. Have to fix up the cottages.”
“It was your grandfather’s property. I’m sorry for your loss.”
“How’d you know he left them to me?”
“I didn’t exactly. Just assumed since he owned pretty much the entire town and passed away recently. Were you close?”
“We were complicated.”
“Sounds like that’s par for the course in your relationships.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
The look she gives isn’t pity or even understanding. More like she filled in the gaps of what I couldn’t say when I started,If you’re wondering why...
“The flirty texts, us in the hotel room when we stayed up almost all night talking, the wedding. I thought, hoped, it was the start of something. But I see now. You’re not good at relationships. It’s easier to keep people at a safe distance. The way you see it, you can’t hurt them if something happens to you. I get it.”
I stagger backward as if the words pierce my heart with an arrow of truth.
But I don’t see judgment in her eyes. More like sadness in communicating a simple fact. But it’s not immutable. I have to believe that.
“You’re wrong about just one thing. You said I’m bad at relationships. No, I’m terrible.”
“Maybe you haven’t been in the right one.” She turns to call the dogs with a tap on her hip. Then, as she sweeps back around, hair cascading over her shoulders, she adds, “Or haven’t let yourself be in one, period.”
Lally is bold. Never mind kicking down doors, she bashes at my walls. Barrels right through.
No holds barred. Identifies my defenses and calls me out.
Forget wolves and sheep and pigs. Time for me to be a man. I meet her eyes, holding that green gaze like I would a pair of precious gems. “You captured everyone’s attention when you walked down the aisle—”
Before I can finish, she interrupts, “Probably because they heard I fell in the pool the night before. As if that’s the greatest of my problems.”
“You never told me what went viral.”
“You can just look it up online. After all, the internet is forever.”
“Just tell me.”
She squawks a laugh. “And embarrass myself all over again?”
“I find it very hard to believe that whatever happened really, truly embarrassed you. You’re made of tough stuff, Lally McGuiness. You’re courageous. Unafraid to be yourself. Tell it like it is. It’s honorable. Your dignity is a kind of armor. I respect that.”
Her shoulders sharpen slightly and her chin lifts, then she wrinkles her nose. “Well, except that one time.”
