Rachel gave an exasperated sigh. “Sara, I love you, but right now, I’m frustrated. I don’t understand, so explain it to me.”
“Grant told me he’s in love with me. He wants to quit the military, move to Hidden Hollows, and take over his father’s car repair shop.” She hugged herself tighter. “It wasn’t supposed to be like this, Rachel. It was only temporary. Fun and flirting. Nothing more.”
“Are you in love with him?”
That panic surged again, threatening to steal her breath. “No. I can’t be. I refuse to be.”
Her sister drew closer. “Why?”
“Because he won’t stay, Rachel. Grant thinks this is what he wants, but two weeks together is a far cry from real life. In high school, he was counting down the days until he could leave Hidden Hollows. Since then, he’s been living a life of adrenaline and difficult missions with life and death attached. What happens when he’s spending his afternoons coaching little league and cleaning out gutters? Grant’s not the kind of man who would be happy living a quiet life in a tiny town.”
“Don’t you think Grant should decide what’s good for him?”
She turned and glared at her sister. “Why are you on his side?”
“I’m not. I’m on yours, and I’m asking the question.”
“Why does it matter? Love is a choice, Rachel. At least this kind of love is, and I choose not to do it again. It’s too hard. I picked myself up after Jared died and pieced my heart back together, but I don’t think I could do it a second time.”
“Of course, you could. You’re much stronger than you realize.” Rachel was quiet for a long moment. “Sara, you’ll never love anyone the way you loved Jared. But that’s true even if he hadn’t died, and you’d simply broken up. Each love is different.”
“My head gets that. But my heart is another matter all together. Part of me wants to be able to take a leap of faith, but now that I’m standing on the edge, I just…can’t. The experiment is over. Dating isn’t for me.”
“Okay, fair enough.” Rachel lifted her finger. “But I’m going to give you one piece of advice before we end this conversation. You and Jared hit it out of the park in the first round. That’s incredibly rare. It’s difficult to find love, Sara. There’s a lot about dating you don’t know, but I do. I had to kiss a lot of frogs before I found my prince.”
Sara chuckled in spite of herself. She swiped at her cheeks. “I remember.”
“I’ve watched you and Grant. He makes you laugh and builds you up. He wore a yellow cape and a crayon-colored mask, danced around and sang a song about the planets. The man would walk over hot coals if you asked him to. I believe he’s in love with you. Be very careful about what you decide here, Sara. What you have with Grant doesn’t come around every day.”
The words resonated with Sara. They cut through most of the noise in her head. She took a breath and nodded.
Rachel hugged her. “I’ll go grab the plates and napkins.”
“Okay.” Sara chewed on the inside of her cheek. “Hey Rach, do you think…do you think Jared would be upset about Grant and I—”
“Not for a second. Jared loved you, and he loved Grant. Personally, I don’t think he’d want you with anyone else.”
Her sister left the room, and Sara turned back to the window. Everything felt muddled up inside, like a ball of yarn she couldn’t unravel.
Maybe Rachel was right, and she should trust Grant to decide what was best for him. But hadn’t he spent the last two weeks saying Hidden Hollows wasn’t for him? Now she was supposed to believe he’d changed his mind? That he would be content here, with her, forever?
It didn’t sit right.
And what about her? Falling in love meant risking her heart again. Sara had lost so much already. Her feelings for Grant were overwhelming, and it’d only been two weeks. It was terrifying to imagine what would happen in a year.
She rubbed her forehead. Now was not the time to be thinking about this. The Celebration of Reading events were almost over, and they needed her focus. Everything else, including Grant, had to come second.
The afternoon went by in a blur. Sara finalized the last-minute details for tomorrow night’s big bash. The band was supposed to arrive in the afternoon, and each one of the volunteers had been contacted to confirm their participation. The Smokey BBQ Joint verified everything was on target food and beverage wise.
An hour before closing time, Jennie flipped Sara’s computer off at the front desk. “Go home. Get some rest. I’ll lock up.”
“Are you sure?”
Her assistant librarian rubbed her pregnant belly. “Absolutely. Take advantage of me while you still can. Before you know it, I’ll be on maternity leave.”
“If we’re still in business then.”
“We will be. I have a good feeling about tomorrow, Sara. You’ve done a great job.”
She stood and stretched her stiff muscles. “I haven’t done it yet. We’ll see tomorrow.” Sara gave her friend a small smile. “But thanks for the vote of confidence and for locking up tonight.”
Grabbing her purse, she headed out into the cool air. Sunshine splayed across the parking lot, and she decided to take a walk down Main Street. After sitting for so many hours, it would be nice to be outside and moving around.
She hiked her purse up on her shoulder. The scent of cookies from Coop’s Coffee tickled her nose, but instead of tempting her, it only made Sara think of Grant. It made her heart ache. She kept strolling, saying hi to several people as she passed by.
Before Sara realized it, she was standing in front of the car repair shop. Her steps slowed. The front of
