“Who said I’m uptight?” Brooke remarked. It was true, though, that she wasn’t the same carefree young girl, and she didn’t just have her time in the city to blame for it. The life she’d planned on had gone awry, and now, she took extra care in being as prepared as possible for anything that could come her way.
“Ever since we left your apartment you’ve looked like you’re waiting for someone to jump out of the bushes!” Gabby laughed. “Relax! This isn’t Manhattan.”
It was nowhere near Manhattan, and Brooke didn’t feel like pointing out that she’d feel less twitchy walking through the city streets alone than down Main Street in Blue Harbor. Here, everyone knew her story. Or at least, most of it. And back in New York, the only person who gave her anxiety was her boss.
Another person who hadn’t believed in her enough to commit to the long haul.
“I am relaxed,” she insisted, giving them both a forced smile.
A burst of deep, gravelly laughter made her stiffen, and her eyes roamed to the bar, unable to part with thoughts of Kyle against her better judgment. But it was Jackson Bradford. Handsome as ever. And a crowd of people she half recognized from growing up and the rest probably falling under the tourist category. “I’m back in my element. Honestly, it feels like I never left.”
That statement held far too much truth. Ever since running into Kyle, she couldn’t completely shake him from her head. All those memories she had tried to push away were fighting to come back. When she left town, she’d been his wife. She’d loved him. She’d…
She’d been broken-hearted, she reminded herself.
“You tried to wear a little black dress out for drinks tonight,” Jenna said gently.
“You can never go wrong with a little black dress,” Brooke told her. But then, you couldn’t go wrong with great jeans and a black top like she had worn instead, either.
Gabby raised an eyebrow and pulled the drinks menu closer. “You can in Blue Harbor. This is a resort town. It’s casual. It’s slow-paced.” She gave her a mock stern look across the table. “Clearly, you’ve been gone too long.”
“Well, I’m back now,” Brooke said. But Gabby was right. There was no use for half of her wardrobe here in her hometown, where jeans and tees, or capris and tanks, or cotton sundresses paired with flip-flops would do. A little black dress might come in handy for a date.
Not that she’d be having one of those anytime soon.
“So,” she said, after glancing at the cocktail list and deciding on a glass of white wine—the family brand, of course. Like many establishments in town, locals supported each other, and the Bradfords and Conways went way back. “Tell me everything I’ve missed.” Last night their conversation had been somewhat suppressed by their parents, centering on safe topics like the weather, her parents’ future trips, and her Uncle Dennis’s upcoming wedding.
The juicy topics had been shelved, and even though she talked with her sisters regularly, she wanted to be sure she was caught up on everything once her cousins arrived.
“Well, you know that Robbie and Britt are back together,” Gabby said. No doubt that Robbie Bradford would eventually marry Britt, too, finally uniting the two families officially.
“And Amelia and Matt,” Jenna added. Another Bradford, seeing as Matt was Robbie’s cousin.
“And Maddie is now dating Cole McCarthy,” Gabby said, widening her eyes. “The biggest surprise of them all.”
“Nope.” Jenna shook her head. “The biggest surprise is Cora. She’s very close with a man who just moved here over the winter. He’s a single father. Very handsome.”
“And his daughter is adorable,” Gabby said with a sigh. “That leaves the three of us. Single.”
Single. Brooke let that word fall on silence. While she had considered herself single since the day she’d left Kyle and this town, and she assumed that Kyle did, too, she was legally anything but single.
“Well, and all our other cousins are still single, too?” Brooke gave her a smile of encouragement. She knew that Gabby’s love life was a disappointment to her. It came from delivering one too many arrangements on Valentine’s Day and not receiving enough for herself over the years.
“Yep!” Jenna brightened and waved over her shoulder. “And here comes one right now. Over here, Bella!”
Brooke stood up to greet her cousin, pulling her into a long hug, chatting excitedly about the new shop and all of her plans for it. Isabella owned the bookstore in town, and before they had even sat down, she had insisted that Brooke attend the next book club meeting.
“I won’t take no for an answer,” Bella said. “Besides, it will be a good opportunity for you to spread the word about your new business. Everyone must know someone who is getting married.”
Gabby nodded. “I’m happy to keep a stack of your cards on my counter. Most brides-to-be at least come through to get a quote from me when it comes to their bouquets and centerpieces.”
“You’re being modest,” Bella chided. “We all know that you are the most popular florist in the county for weddings.”
Gabby blushed but didn’t argue.
“And I occasionally play at weddings,” Jenna offered. Like Gabby, she was playing down her musical talents, as well as her demand.
