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The light over the stairs flickered on and footsteps approached. Great. Now she was going to be babysat. This was why she’d wanted everyone to be asleep when she arrived home.
At least it was only Gabby. The last thing she needed was to see the face of Daniel’s brother.
Gabby leaned against the stair railing, scrutinizing the mess. Megan glanced up, concern etched in her face. Gabby tried to reassure her. “Oh no! Are you okay? I’m not mad about the frame if that’s—”
“It’s not about the frame,” Megan muttered.
“Then what’s the matter?” She finished descending the stairs and moved closer. “Is it the shop?”
Megan shot her cousin a sharp look. “Why is that the first thing you think I’d be crying about?”
“Because you love that place. It’s your whole world…” Gabby shifted uncertainly. “Is it something else?”
Megan froze. She hadn’t said anything about Daniel. Was her cousin just pretending? Or did she actually not realize what was happening? Her gaze darted to Gabby. “Daniel is a total jerk.”
Gabby didn’t react. That could mean she knew about Daniel and didn’t want to let on or she didn’t know and her mind was blank.
“I told you about that book reading thing, right?”
Her cousin nodded. “You didn’t get it.” It wasn’t a question and the sympathy practically oozed from her voice. “I’m so sorry.”
“Well, guess who did.”
She lifted her eyebrows. “Daniel applied? I didn’t even realize he liked that sort of thing.”
“That’s just it. He doesn’t. But it’s not even that. Apparently, he didn’t even apply. And they just gave it to him.” She swept the last bit of glass into the dustpan and got to her feet. “Can you believe it? I told him to back off and let me have it, and he wouldn’t even do that.”
“Did you think he would?” Gabby hedged.
“Of course I did. He loves me.” Megan froze. Slowly, she shifted her gaze to her cousin to gauge her reaction.
Gabby’s mouth hung open and her eyes widened. She looked just like one of those fishes Megan had seen in documentaries. And now the cat was out of the bag.
Megan heaved a frustrated sigh. “It doesn’t matter so don’t even bother asking. Yes, we were seeing each other—casually, I might add.” She had to downplay this somehow. She couldn’t exactly have Gabby spilling all the details to Bo. Who knew what might get back to the family. “Anyway, they offered to have the reading at his shop, and he told me he’s going to do it even though heknewhow much it would mean to me to have the reading at the bookstore.”
Gabby still wasn’t moving. Apparently, Megan had given her too much credit. The fact that she hadn’t figured it out was strange, it made Megan feel like she’d done something wrong in keeping this a secret from her.
Megan looked away, heat flooding her whole body. “Maybe I should sabotage the store so they can’t have the reading there. What do you think?”
“How long?”
Her eyes darted to Gabby.
“What?”
“How long have you been seeing each other?”
“Does that matter? I said it’s over. He’s trying to sabotage my business.”
“No, he’s not.” Gabby cut in. “What makes you think that?”
Megan gave her a hard stare. “Haven’t you been listening? He’s doing the reading so his coffee shop will drum up more business when he knew that was my plan.”
“That’s not sabotage, Megan.” Gabby moved closer. “I think you need to take a step back and think about this for a minute. Even if you were never romantically involved with Daniel, he would never do something to intentionally hurt you this way. He’s got a shop to run too. You have to accept that sometimes he’s going to make decisions that will keep it safe. Wouldn’t you do the same?”
It was difficult to answer that question and not just because Megan wasn’t sure. Daniel’s words had cut her to the core. He thought she was only capable of loving her business. Was she as cutthroat as he thought she was?
Gabby’s soft voice pulled her from her thoughts. “The funny thing about running a small business is that you have to decide to prioritize certain things. If you don’t prioritize yourself, you might get burned out. But if you don’t make decisions in the best interest of your shop, then it could shut down. It’s all about balance. And it sounds like you’re struggling with that concept.”
