I grabbed a pre-made salad and waited for a chilled latte before heading outside toward the beach, where I managed to snag a small picnic table beneath a tree. Kids laughed while playing in the water, and a boisterous game of volleyball entertained me as I tried to breathe in the nice weather and relax. Now that Nick was finally hiring other attorneys, hopefully my workload would lighten.
“Hi.” Jolene O’Sullivan slipped onto the bench across from me with her sandwich and soda.
I coughed on my latte.
She grimaced. “Yeah, sorry about that.” She spread the napkin out and placed the wrapped McQuirk’s sandwich across it. Today she wore white capri pants, a pretty blue silk shirt, and silver jewelry. Her blonde hair was back in a ponytail, her makeup minimal, and her eyes sparkling. “Not only for that. Sorry I was bitchy the other day. Old habits die hard, you know?”
I didn’t know. Instead, I took another sip of my latte and wondered what mercurial gods had put Jolene smack down in the middle of my peaceful moment.
She took a bite of her club sandwich and closed her eyes, humming in pleasure. After she chewed, she smiled. “Man, I missed their sandwiches while I was in Boston.”
I sipped my latte. What should I do? Did I still owe her a punch in the face for sleeping with Donna’s boyfriend? It was ages ago, he’d been a moron, and no doubt Donna had moved on. But she was my sister, and maybe Jolene was right that old habits did die hard. I wanted to punch her for making my sister cry. Yeah, I’d always thought she was aptly named, and the lyrics forJoleneran through my head.
Jolene smiled. “Okay, fine. Here’s the deal. I wasn’t nice to you, and I know I hurt your sister, but give me a break. That was a long time ago. My folks were fighting all the time and got divorced, and you all were this one big happy family, and I was a jerk and struck out. I’m sorry.”
Well. I’d been much younger than her and hadn’t known about any of her home life. “I was probably a pain in the butt tagging along with you teenagers all the time,” I admitted.
She chuckled. “You were, but honestly, I was a little jealous of how nice Aiden was with you. He only looked at you like a little sister, but he was genuinely amused by everything you did. He really did like you.”
Yeah, I’d thought so. We’d had a friendship that had made me happy.
Her smile made twin dimples show on her pretty face. “I heard that friendship changed lately. Quite a bit.”
I lifted an eyebrow.
She took a drink of her soda. “There are no secrets in Silverville, even for somebody who moved away eons ago.”
Wasn’t that the truth?
“So, are you two dating now?” Her words were a little too casual.
“Why?” I asked.
She shrugged. “Part curiosity and part noticing that he’s hotter than ever. I love a bad boy.” Her face fell. “Although, that’s usually my downfall, you know?”
Did I ever. “I accept your apology, but I really don’t want to talk about my love life,” I said.
She nodded. “I get it.”
“Are you moving back here?” Sure, I was curious.
“I’m thinking about it.” She ate more of her sandwich. “I’m here cleaning out my Grandma’s condo since she passed on, and now that I’m here, it feels like home. Much nicer than the city.”
My heart jerked for her. “I’m sorry about your Grandma.” I hadn’t heard. The idea of losing one of mine made everything inside me hurt.
“Thanks,” she said softly. “Me, too.” Then she finished her lunch. “Okay, I can’t help it. The gossip mill is crazy. Did you really find Aiden and your sister standing over the dead body of Danny Pucci? I dated him, you know. Before I started dating Aiden in high school.”
I swallowed quickly. “You did? Did the two of you stay in contact?”
She took a sip of her drink. “Yeah. You know. We were Facebook friends and messaged once in a while. In fact, he’d said he was coming home, and we made arrangements to meet up in person.”
I leaned toward her, my body going on alert. “Did he say why he was coming back?”
She lowered her voice. “Yeah. You first.”
Darn it. Fine. “I can’t confirm anything, but rumors are usually true. You know that Tessa didn’t kill Danny, though.”
“I don’t see Aiden murdering anybody like that, either,” she said quietly.
