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“Don’t remind me.” Jayne groaned. “See you then.”
Jayne’s voice sounded unnaturally chipper at the end of that. She knew Charity dreaded the parade almost as much as she did. She helped organize that, too, every year, and it never,everran smoothly. It was just a matter of what type of chaos they’d face this particular year.
But anything beat tonight’s drama. At least she wouldn’t have to worry about guarding her heart from her ex. His family never attended the parade, even when the kids were young.
Pocketing her phone, Charity climbed into her car, taking a deep breath once the door was closed. She shut her eyes and tried to take herself back to how she’d felt when she’d last sat in the driver’s seat of her car. It was a time before she’d had a clue her ex was back in town.
She had a feeling she wouldn’t breathe freely again until Nic Winters was gone.
4
Nic was a traitor. Yes, a traitor.
That was his overriding thought as he exited the franchise coffee shop on the strip holding an iced vanilla latte with an extra shot of espresso. He should be going to Joe’s Café, but he was kind of addicted to this exact morning dose of caffeine. Joe’s coffee was inconsistent, to say the least.
“Nic Winters!”
The sound of a male voice cut into his thoughts. He knew that voice. He also knew that voice meant he’d been busted.
“Matt!” Nic called out.
If Misty Mountain’s mayor was driving through the parking lot, maybe it was okay. He could assume Matt was here, buying from this franchise coffee shop too.
Matt was in a truck, his window rolled down. Now he held up a hand and said, “Wait right there.”
Nic stood on the sidewalk, looking around the parking lot, feeling more than a little self-conscious. But if the mayor was going to hop out of his truck and talk to him in the parking lot of the non-local coffee shop, why should he worry? The mayor would get in trouble for it before he would.
Matt approached, hitting the key fob to lock up his truck. Nic scooted over to the left a little, taking another sip of his latte. He didn’t want to block the doorway while people were rushing in and out. That was one thing about Joe’s Café. The pace was slower, the people calmer, but maybe it was because he’d been in there when everyone was celebrating the tree lighting. It might be a completely different story in the morning.
“I didn’t know you were back in town,” Matt said. “I guess a lot of people are.”
Matt had been a senior when Nic was a sophomore, but it didn’t really matter. In a town this size, people knew each other, especially being only two years apart. Besides, it had been tough to not notice Matt. He was a smart, popular kid. Anyone could see he was going places, even all the way back in elementary school.
“Just visiting the folks,” Nic said. “I was at the tree lighting last night.”
Matt smiled. “Yeah, that seems to get better every year. We have some standout organizers.”
His eyes narrowed slightly at the end of that sentence. Nic could almost feel it hitting his brain that one of those organizers was Nic’s ex-girlfriend. He’d be too classy to say anything outright about it, though.
“You know the parade’s today,” Matt said. “Are you planning to attend?”
No. He was going back to his parents’ house to hang out. Maybe later, they’d head to the outlet mall or one of the restaurants in Sawyerville, a suburb fifteen miles away that his mom always gravitated toward.
Basically, anything to avoid running into Charity. That was how he’d managed to do it for the past eight years, anyway. He’d visited for holidays and an occasional week or two in the summer and stayed away from everyone. His mom just didn’t hang out around town.
“Sure,” Nic said.
Yes, that was the word that came out of his mouth. Why had he said that? He had no idea, but it had something to do with Charity’s name passing through his mind.
He wanted to see her again. It was like being on a diet and craving a cheeseburger. He knew that cheeseburger was bad for him, but he’d eat it anyway. Why? Because he lacked willpower when it came to certain things.
A certainperson.
“That’s actually why I stopped you,” Matt said.
Uh-oh. Matt was going to bring up Nic’s ex, after all. But no, he wouldn’t have a clue of the reason behind Nic deciding to go to the parade. In fact, there was no reason to think Charity would have anything to do with that parade.
But that wasn’t entirely true. She and her family had attended every year from the time she was old enough to walk. Maybe before. And once they were old enough, Charity and her two sisters would always ride the Ardmore Bank float, waving to the crowd and promoting their dad’s business.
