“I did.”
“His family’s okay with relocating to a remote small town in the middle of nowhere?” Polite conversation to express interest?Check.
“Don’t,” Marc said so firmly is caught Sadie off guard.
“Don’t what?”
“Don’t go fishing for information.” Marc let out a heavy sigh that was closer to a groan. Shoving his hands in his front slacks pockets, he added, “Conner’s a good man. Just leave him be, okay? It’s a miracle he’s coming at all, and the last thing I need is you ruining it.”
Sadie forced herself to swallow hard—twice—andstillneeded to bite her tongue. She wasn’tfishingfor information about this Conner’s marital status for her own sake. Polite conversation managed?Uncheck.
If Cody hadn’t been standing right there, reminding her with his very presence that repairing her relationship with Marc would take time, she would’ve slipped up for sure. Ran that troublesome mouth of hers and only made things worse. She wanted to say something—anything that would make the situation not so tense—but instead, she turned to Cody. “Can I talk to you for a minute? Please?”
Cody nodded.
Marc turned abruptly and marched off toward their parents.
“I’m proud of you,” Cody said.
“That wasn’t easy,” Sadie muttered as the distant roar of an engine echoed in the sky. “But that’s not what I need to talk to you about.”
“What is it?”
“I need to apologize.”
Cody’s eyebrows drew in confusion. “For what?”
Sadie sucked in a deep breath and let it out even slower. Her words, however, came out in a quick jumble. “I’m the one who told Jenna to let you go to Maui. I’m the reason she told you she didn’t want you to stay. I have a feeling you already know that, but I needed to tell you. I needed you to hear it from me. I’m sorry, Cody. I never should’ve interfered. I was worried you’d stay here and resent the decision later—”
“Hey,” Cody said, placing both hands on her shoulders, waiting until she looked up at him. “I forgive you.”
Sadie looked at him suspiciously. “Just like that?”
“You’re right, I already knew. But I’m glad you told me. It took courage, Sadie.”
Maybe it was a sign of maturity that she felt she was getting let off the hook too easily. “But I could’ve ruined everything.”
“But you didn’t.” Cody glanced at the plane touching down, watching with Sadie as Chase, Laurel, and their newly adopted son, Eli, stepped out of the plane. Sadie’s heart warmed again at the sight. Seven-year-old Eli fit perfectly into their clan from day one. He’d stolen all their hearts with his zest for adventure, infectious smile, and never-ending thirst for knowledge. For the first time in her twenty-six years, Sadie considered having kids of her own someday.
“You really forgive me?” Sadie asked Cody as Liam took off again to pick up the last round of passengers, which would include Cody’s bride-to-be. “You’re not just saying that so I’ll stop being a pest on your wedding day?”
“I chose to come back because I was miserable away fromallof you. Not just Jenna.”
“But most importantly Jenna.”
“Yes,” he said with an easy laugh that allowed some of her tension to dissipate. “I was running from my feelings. I was the only one who could bring myself back to face them.”
For years, Cody showed absolutely no interest in ever settling down. Let alone getting married. But the way he looked at Jenna . . . “Do you think I’ll ever find someone who’s actually good for me?” Sadie asked honestly.
“Yes, I do.”
“You sound so sure of yourself.”
“Because I am.”
“But how?” Sadie had a proven track record of bad relationship decisions. She seemed to be hopelessly drawn to the wrong sort of man and paid dearly for it with each crushing heartbreak. Yet she still longed for someone who would sweep her off her feet and make her forget about all those mistakes. Cody was the only person she’d been honest with about that.
“Stop looking for him,” Cody said, using that all-too-familiar nonchalant tone that drove her mad.
