“Well, it paid off. You went to law school. And now you have the career of your dreams.”
“Oh, now, I wouldn’t say it’s the career of my dreams.”
She faked surprise, though the truth was she couldn’t believe he’d admit such a thing. Doug had always been defensive and still was from what she’d seen. But there was a softer side to him, too. One she was just starting to notice.
“Are you telling me that you don’t enjoy helping people dissolve their marriages?”
“Believe it or not, I’d much rather see people live happily ever after. I just know that isn’t usually the case. Eventually…well, eventually life has a way of getting the better of people.”
“You sound like you’re speaking from more than just professional experience,” she noted, wondering if there was more to Doug’s attitude about love than he was letting on.
“Take your teen heartthrob over there for example,” Doug pointed out. “You thought he was the greatest guy in the world and look at him now. Imagine if everything had gone the way you had hoped it would. He asked you to the prom, you had a magical night, you started dating, got engaged, maybe even married. He’d still be who he is.”
She glanced over her shoulder at Chad, who was now making a sloppy effort of hitting on hamster girl.
“He certainly changed,” she observed.
“He didn’t change,” Doug said. “He’s just a bigger form of the jerk he was back in high school.”
Chad’s earlier taunt came back to her. She opened her mouth to ask Doug about it and then stopped herself. In school, Doug had been lanky, not exactly athletic, and more interested in books than sports. She hadn’t considered that he might have been picked on for that. That maybe, it was part of the reason he was so firm with his opinions in places where his words were heard.
“I didn’t realize Chad was that way. I guess…” She frowned, thinking back on her cousin’s words. How the right guy could be in front of her all along and she wouldn’t even notice it.
Same went for the wrong guy too, it turned out.
“I guess I just saw what I wanted to see,” she finished.
She glanced up at Doug, her breath catching at the way he was looking at her, wondering if he realized that something about tonight didn’t just make her see Chad for who he was.
It made her wonder if she’d misread Doug all this time, too.
Chapter Nine
Gabby was just putting the finishing touches on a birthday arrangement for a sixteenth birthday when the bells over her shop door jangled. She braced herself, knowing that Candy liked to pop in on Mondays when the café was closed, but right about now, she was almost happy to look up and see her future aunt and most high-maintenance client walk through the door. The rain had been falling all morning, meaning that aside from phone orders, activity had been slow, leaving her alone with her flowers, her work, and her overactive mind, which seemed to be on repeat mode, replaying Saturday night over and over until she’d almost forgotten she was still standing at her workbench.
So Doug had turned out to be a surprisingly good dancer; it wasn’t like she had many others to compare him to. And she did like to dance. Didn’t have the opportunity to do it often enough. Really, she had just gotten swept up in the moment. It was easy to do so at weddings…
She finished fluffing out the rest of the greenery and set the vase to the side for delivery. Wiping a hand across her brow, she smiled at Candy, who was smoothing down her wet hair.
“Hello, Candy! What brings you out on a day like this?” She wagered Candy’s motive was an even split between wanting to change her centerpieces or discuss Gabby’s love life.
“Oh, I was looking in some of the shops for bridesmaid gifts,” Candy began. All four of Uncle Dennis’s girls would serve the role. All, Gabby had been told by Brooke, who had been asked to design the bridesmaid dresses, would be dressed in pink.
“How nice,” Gabby said, knowing that Candy’s true motive was yet to be revealed. “Did you find anything special?”
“Oh, well, since they’re all so happily settled into fulfilling relationships, I thought maybe something like…a wedding planning book of their own.”
Gabby burst out laughing. “But none of them are even engaged!”
“Yet.” Candy put a finger in the air. “And you know it’s just a matter of time.”
Gabby couldn’t disagree with her there, even though she was rather sure that her cousins wouldn’t appreciate Candy meddling further in their personal lives. But Britt had been back together with Robbie Bradford, her high school sweetheart, for about a year now, and Amelia wasn’t far behind with Robbie’s cousin Matt. Even though Maddie and Cora were settling into newer relationships without a previous history, it was clear that both were happy and in love.
“Yes, I do think they have each met their perfect match.” She felt her smile slip a little, as the old feelings of self-pity reared. She imagined being in the same position, to have someone to talk to at the end of the day, share a meal or a glass of wine with, laugh over the good things, cry over the bad.
Lately, the only person she’d confided in was…well, Doug didn’t count. He was just someone she knew well enough, and saw often enough, to have some things to bond over. There was nothing more to it than that.
Firmly, she reminded herself again of his difficult personality, his infuriating need to be right all the time, even though he had sort of softened on that stance, never mind the fact that he was a divorce attorney and a confirmed bachelor.
Her lookbook was on the counter, and now Candy leaned forward with interest.
“These are pretty…” Candy tapped a finger on a photo in the binder. Gabby prickled at the tone, knowing
