“Cooper deserved it. What kind of guy lies about sleeping with someone?”
I think back to the pimply faced, sixteen-year-old I went on two movie dates with, then learned he’d told his friends I had sex with him in the back of the theater. “Cooper, apparently.”
Charlie grabs a knife and cuts two slices from the quiche. “He went to college out of state and I haven’t seen him since. And he never did find out it was me who told his mom.” Her chuckle is playful and evil. She pats her belly and looks down. “You’ll never do anything like that, will you?”
I help Charlie carry the plates and forks to the table. We sit and eat, our conversation a constant stream of chatter. She tells me about Merch, and I fill her in on what it was like to run a bakery. I don’t tell her about Warren’s family swiping the bakery out from under me. I don’t want to bring down the cheery mood of our reunion.
We finish the food, and she shows me the nursery. It still needs wall hangings and the crib lies unassembled in a box, but it’s getting there.
Before I leave, Charlie invites me to happy hour next week with some of her girlfriends, and I accept.
“They’re all moms. A couple of them are rowdy, but they’ll have two glasses of wine and then go home early because there’s a good probability a kid will be up during the night.”
“Sounds like a safe bunch.”
Charlie tells me she’ll text me when she knows the time and place, and we hug goodbye.
The road to Sweet Escape is just as bumpy as it was earlier, but I don’t notice it as much. Charlie has brought a little sunshine into my life.
* * *
“Mom, hey.”I hold up my phone, my elbows propped on the kitchen island, and my mom’s face comes into view. Her blonde hair is in a ponytail, and her bangs are in need of a trim.
“Hey, baby.” Her eyes rove around my head, taking in my surroundings. “Where are you?”
“Grandma’s.”
“Oh.” The corners of her mouth dip. “Why?”
“I wanted to visit.”
She nods slowly. “Everything okay?”
“Not really, but I don’t want to get into it.”
Her lips twist as she surveys me. “How’s your heart these days?”
“Mom, I just said I don’t want to talk about it.” My tone is gentle. I talk to my mom so infrequently, upsetting her isn’t something I want to do.
She lifts her hands. “Okay, okay.”
There’s a sound behind me, soft like careful footfalls. I sit up and whip around, peering into the darkened living room. I know it’s not my grandma. She wouldn’t be sneaking around her own house.
“Hello?” I call out. It’s probably a guest. “It’s okay. Do you need something?”
I hear the footfalls again, this time not as soft, and they’re coming closer.
He walks into the light, and I see that I’ve assumed correctly. It’s a guest. Just not a guest I want to see, especially after the embarrassing incident at the lake.
“Mom, I have to go. A guest needs something.”
“It’s awfully late,” she complains. She’s always disliked that my grandma runs a bed and breakfast.
“Bye, Mom. Love you.” I press the end button and look back to Brady. “How long have you been standing there?” I hear my tone, and it sounds accusatory. I’m still wary of him, despite the fact I believe him about the wedding band. My senses are heightened around him, and it makes me uneasy.
Brady takes two more long strides toward me, coming to stand a few feet away. He’s dressed in jeans and a hooded sweatshirt. “I’ve been here long enough to know you came to Oregon for the same reason I did.”
I frown. “You were eavesdropping.”
