“And Ellie is too polite to say it. But if anyone is slumming around here, it’s that guy,” Jo says, moving his wrinkly pointer finger toward Tommy Bahama. “Now get out!”
Jennifer spins on her heel, wobbling as if she’s lost her balance momentarily, before stomping out the front door.
“Good riddance.”
“Thank you. You know I don’t need anyone fighting my battles for me. I’ll never let her or anyone like her get under my skin again. That girl is long gone.” I lift my chin and watch as Jennifer parades around her companion as if nothing ever happened. “But I appreciate it just the same.”
I need to focus on what’s important. I have good people in my life. Neighbors who’ve helped us to secure this new place to live, Salty Jo, and Pops, for as long as I have him. And Matt is and will always be special to me. I’m sad to see him go, but there was never the promise of more. He’s been clear from the start that his visit is temporary.
Jo looks about the space, ensuring we’re alone. “You listen to me, Ellie girl. The problem here is you.”
My mouth falls agape. Did I hear him right? Jo has never spoken to me like this.
“You may think you’ve grown, but you’re still a work in progress. Hell, we all are. But growth is more than not letting some shallow smart ass get the best of you. Deep down, I don’t think you believe you deserve someone like Matthew Hightower to stick around. You still think it’s us versus them. And in the case of Little Miss Tight Ass, you’re right.” Jo shakes his head and takes a step closer, pushing his index finger into my chest. “But until you believe you’re worth staying for, no one will.”
I splutter, attempting to defend myself, but Jo walks away before any coherent words can escape my mouth. Walking back to the industrial oven to check on the cornbread, I let his words of tough love replay in my head. Maybe he’s right. I thought I’d come a long way from the girl who let people trample her. But perhaps I haven’t done enough. I need to start believing I’m truly worth sticking around for.
Then, maybe someone else will too.
Chapter 27
Matt
“Not bad,” I tell myself, wiping the dust off of my hands as I peer over Ellie’s new back porch. I’d quickly moved the rest of her things from the old unit into this one. But I got an idea once I saw the barber’s chair and sink she uses for Pops’s hair.
I drew up some quick plans for a small back deck at the end of the unit. It’s big enough for her to do his hair on a nice day, with room left over for a chaise lounge and a bistro table and chairs. A couple of the guys were nice enough to help me construct it before returning to Harry’s construction site for the remainder of the day. Harry gave me some grief over it, but I knew deep down he thought it was a good idea. I wanted Ellie’s place to feel like a home for as long as she and Pops are here.
I hated leaving her. She seemed nervous and excited when she offered to make me dinner here. I love that they have somewhere better to stay and that she no longer has to sleep on a pull-out sofa, instead having privacy and a comfortable bed to sleep in. I wanted nothing more than to help her celebrate.
Yet when my Chief called and said one of the guys had to take a leave of absence because his wife had gone into early labor, what could I do? They’d been more than accommodating when I asked to come and help Harry. And as fate had it, my brother had finally located a reliable nurse to spend overnights during the week with Mom.
Sure. I plan to return and offer him some respite. But I couldn’t continue to play hooky from work when they needed me. Even if I wanted like hell to stay with Ellie a little longer. I knew I’d been aloof the last few times we’d spoken or spent any time together. But it was purely in order to protect myself. And her. Leaving was going to be painful enough.
Peering up at the deep emerald sailcloth above me, I smile, feeling a sense of pride. I’d found a place in town that turned remnants from local sailboats into triangular sunshade cloth. I had mounted them from a pillar constructed at the edge of the decking across to the back of the mobile home. It offered a modicum of shade to an otherwise oppressive Candy Cane Key sunny day. I tried to picture Ellie sitting here with a cup of coffee and a book.
Sitting down at the bistro table I’d purchased for her, I penned a quick note wishing her and her grandpa well in their new home. Reading over my words, it felt cold and detached. Not at all how I felt about the vibrant woman who’d be sitting here in my absence. But I didn’t know any other way to handle this. She had obligations here, and mine were states away. I didn’t want to contemplate a long-distance relationship that could go on for years. What if someone who could provide for her came along, but she didn’t give them a chance because we were trying to make an unlikely relationship work?
Signing my name, I leave the note by a small potted rose bush on the table and shove my hands in my pockets.
It’s for the best, Matt. She has big dreams here. And you want no part of Candy Cane Key.
* * *
“You have everything ready to go?”
Harrison hands me a beer after I zip up my suitcase. “Yeah. It went by quicker than I expected.” I take a swig from the amber bottle, the ale doing little to change my mood. “I’m glad you were able to find someone for Mom.”
“Me too. It’s been a long time coming. But Monica comes highly recommended. It’ll be nice to let my guard down a little.”
I follow him to the kitchen and sit on a bar stool at the counter. “This place seems so much smaller than I remember when we grew up here.”
Harrison chuckles. “We’ve grown quite a bit since then.” He does a head-to-toe motion with his beer pointed in my direction. While we don’t share any DNA, we’re both over six feet and muscular. I’m a little leaner than Harry, but we’re both in good shape. “Plus, everything seems bigger when you’re young. Christmas High seems like the size of most big city primary schools now.”
I take another pull from my beer, hoping it won’t take many more to dull this ache in my chest.
“You know. You could always transfer to the Keys. Even if you didn’t move back to Chistmasville, you’d be able to commute to and from work and give it a shot with her.”
“C’mon, Harry. I love my job. And we dated one time. Once. That would be insane.” I take another sip. Still no relief. “I don’t know how you do it. I’m two years behind you, but I’m so ready to settle down.”
