“You seem okay with it.” Gabby’s look was guarded, as if she were waiting for Brooke to break into tears at any point, or stir up old arguments that she had once confided in her sisters.
Brooke sighed and let her gaze fall on the collection of framed photos her mother kept on the built-in bookcases. She gave a small smile, looking back at the best moments of her youth. There was one of them all lined up in front of their pumpkins at the orchard, and another of them all sitting under the Christmas tree. There was one of Jenna at the piano that was sitting at the opposite end of the room, and another of Gabby holding a big bouquet of flowers she’d picked from the yard.
Brooke realized with a start that there was one photo missing—it was her engagement photo. The one that used to be kept in an etched silver frame beside the one of her parents…
But, of course, it would be gone. Long gone. Even though her parents had held out hope that she and Kyle would patch things up, as soon as she decided to leave town and pursue her career, they had accepted the fact that it wouldn’t happen. Since then, she never asked about Kyle and they never mentioned him. They all knew well enough that if she wanted an update, she would ask, and she had refrained, even when some days, like on their wedding anniversary each year, she did start to wonder.
She looked back to her sisters, who were watching her expectantly. “There’s nothing to say. Kyle and I haven’t been a part of each other’s lives in a very long time.” She couldn’t resist the opportunity to find out a little information now, though, just so she was prepared. Back in New York, she had the luxury of not knowing the details of his life, but here in Blue Harbor, she would eventually find out. Best to get it over with from the start. Best to know what she was dealing with, too.
She fiddled with the strap at the back of her shoes, hoping to look casual. “He’s still at the pub?”
The pub had been a sore spot, might have even been the root cause of their breakup, some might say, but she knew that it ran deeper than that. Kyle did too. He’d been happy to settle down in the small town they’d lived in all their lives, and she…well, she wanted more, she supposed.
“Yep. And it’s exactly as you remember it,” Jenna said.
In other words, a local joint that catered more to the beer-drinking, sport-watching, middle-aged men in town. The food had never been the appeal, and most patrons went to have a few drinks, share a few laughs, and shoot pool.
It was dark. It was dated. And it was depressing.
And chances were, it was a money pit.
“I’m a little surprised it hasn’t gone out of business yet,” Brooke murmured. With tourism being such a large part of Blue Harbor’s economy, the restaurant scene was competitive and lively, and Harrison’s had never pulled in many out-of-town guests.
“They have their regulars, of course,” Jenna said with a wrinkle of her nose.
Gabby nodded. “But Ryan’s back now. I think for good.”
Brooke idly wondered how that would work out. Kyle and Ryan had always butted heads growing up, even if Ryan was an all-around nice guy.
Like his brother. Kyle was a fundamentally nice guy. Hometown guy. Small-town guy. The only guy she’d ever known when she married him.
“Ryan’s helping at the pub?” She blinked rapidly, thinking of the irony of it all. She finally returned to Blue Harbor, just when Kyle might be free to leave it?
“That’s what I hear…” Gabby shrugged to show that she didn’t have any more information to share.
“You’re frowning,” Jenna noted.
Brooke perked up, forcing a smile. “Just tired is all.”
Gabby nodded in understanding. “It’s a long trip. And all that traveling today!”
Brooke shifted uncomfortably in her chair. She was eager to get back to the conversation about Kyle and Ryan. “Ryan never showed an interest in the pub before.”
“I hear he’s looking to make some improvements,” Gabby said.
“Not if your husband has his way—” Jenna started and then stopped. She winced. “Sorry, I meant ex-husband.”
Brooke waved a hand dismissively through the air, showing no offense. Because the truth of the matter was that Jenna hadn’t said anything wrong. She’d actually been right.
Kyle was still her husband, in the legal sense of the word.
And that was something no one else needed to know.
3
The cousins had all decided to meet up on Saturday night, something that Gabby had organized, not that Brooke was complaining. They were meeting at the Carriage House Inn Pub—not only because it had always been one of their favorite spots in town but also, Brooke knew, because the chances of seeing Kyle there were remote.
Still, as she entered the cozy restaurant, flanked by Jenna and Gabby who had met her at her new apartment, deemed it had potential, and then insisted that she change from the black sundress to something more “appropriate,” Brooke darted her eyes over the room nervously, only feeling her shoulders relax when she didn’t immediately spot Kyle anywhere.
And why should she? He ran the local watering hole. He would be working. Tucked away behind another set of doors, probably pouring beers and calling out orders over the raucous near the pool table. Nothing for her to worry about. This was going to be a girls’ night, a long time coming, and a perk to being back in town that she intended to enjoy.
“Were you this uptight in New York?” Gabby gave her a funny smile as they slid into a table near the big windows that were pulled
