The ex.
I grip the edge of the counter, fingers digging into the cool stainless steel.
Gracie lowers her voice. “I can’t believe she showed up here. They were, like, serious. LA power couple kind of serious. Sheused to post pictures of him on Instagram with captions like ‘my warrior.’” She makes a gagging sound. “They broke up right before he dropped off the face of the planet. It was a whole thing. When I was researching him, she was the one who everyone talked about in relation to him.”
I can’t breathe.
Of course everyone was obsessed with them.
Look at him.
Look at her.
She might be the ghost I’ve been feeling between us all this time. The shadow in his silences.
And now she’s here.
Back.
“What the hell am I supposed to do now?” I whisper. The words slip out before I can stop them, ragged and raw.
Gracie’s face softens. “Jo…”
I shake my head, blinking hard. “No, it’s fine. It’s…” My voice cracks. “It’s not like we were official or anything, right? I mean, it was just…”
A date. Lots of magical nights together. A whole damn future growing inside me.
Gracie steps forward, her hand brushing my shoulder. “You deserve better than a man who can’t see what’s right in front of him.”
I want to believe her.
But right now?
All I see is Knox turning away.
Savannah’s laugh still echoes in my head.
And the weight of a secret pressing against my ribs, heavier than ever.
I step back from the counter.
The kitchen is suddenly too warm. Too loud.
“I need some air,” I murmur, already moving before anyone can stop me.
Because if I don’t get out of here, I’m going to fall apart.
And I don’t want to break where he can see me.
Not when he already looked at me like I didn’t matter.
The cold night air hits me hard.
I don’t have a coat. Don’t have a plan. Just my apron still tied crooked around my waist, and the desperate urge to be anywhere but here.
I take the long way home, letting the quiet streets of Silver Peak wrap around me like a blanket. The twinkle lights on Main Street blink in cheerful contrast to the ache in my chest. I pass Cold Snap Café, dark now, the chairs stacked, the windows fogged with the memory of laughter, and think about how small this town suddenly feels.
Too small.
