Would the people in Magnolia Grove accept someone like me if they knew what I was? Probably not. That was why I didn’t want any of them to know what I was, even if it kept people safe.
It was best to keep that part of my life hidden.
The stabbing pains in my chest grew with each passing second. The more I thought about Elijah and my past, the more the aches magnified. I knew it was the grief and guilt eating away at me.
I was supposed to go over to Ayla’s for dinner in just a few hours. I couldn’t be around her like this.The last thing I wanted was for her to see how fucked up I was.
Grabbing my phone, I walked into the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of whiskey from the pantry. I poured a glass full and downed it quickly, sighing with relief when I felt it go down.
Only a couple of contacts were on my phone, Ayla being one of them. We had exchanged numbers after the Fourth of July Festival. I pressed the call button and held my breath until she picked up.
“Hey,” she answered, her voice smooth and sweet as honey.
Just hearing it made the tightness in my chest lighten, and it made me wonder if Ishouldsee her tonight. Maybe she was what I needed to help me get through all the shit going through my mind. Then again, I didn’t want to screw things up with her.
“Hey,” I replied, knowing I couldn’t mask the uncertainty in my voice.
“Uh-oh, you sound like something’s wrong. You okay?”
I hung my head and stared into the empty whiskey glass. “I think we need to reschedule our dinner tonight.”
“Oh no, I hate to hear that. What happened?”
There was only concern in her voice, whichmade me feel even worse about calling dinner off. Most men would consider me an idiot for canceling on a woman like Ayla. She was everything a guy could want. And there was no denying how much I wanted her. An undeniable attraction had been there from the very beginning.
“I’m not in the right headspace,” I admitted regretfully.
The line went quiet for a few seconds. “Do you want to talk about it?”
A part of me wanted to spill everything to her, but I couldn’t get the words out—not yet.
“I will soon,” I promised. “Just not tonight. There’s a lot going on in my mind, and I don’t want to ruin the night.”
Her voice was soothing. “I understand. We’ll push off dinner to another night.”
“Thanks, Ayla. I really am sorry.”
“No worries at all. I’ll talk to you soon.”
She hung up, and I stared at the phone, knowing I had probably made a giant mistake.
Chapter 10
Ayla
Eating dinner alone last night wasn’t on my agenda, but I could tell the second I heard Declan’s voice that something wasn’t right with him. Was I disappointed? A little. But I knew he’d been having issues dealing with his brother’s death. The situation was tragic, but there was obviously a lot more to the story.
What I hated was not knowing the next move. We’d left things open-ended. Our dinner could be rescheduled for tomorrow or a week from now. Dating in my twenties seemed a lot easier back in the day—less complicated. Now I’m thirty-two and most people my age were already married with kids. I didn’t want to date a bunch of men. The truth was, I liked Declan. I wanted to get to know him more,spend some time with him, date him, even. From the small amount of time we’ve spent together, I knew there could be the potential for more; there was chemistry between us last night, and I know had the fireworks not interrupted us, the kiss would have turned into something more passionate.
I wanted to find the right one and settle down.
Since it was already blazing outside, I slipped on a pair of denim shorts and a bright yellow tank top. The dental office was closed all week, so I could actually meet my mother and her friends for coffee. When I moved to North Carolina for dental school, I left a lot of my high school friends in Magnolia Grove. All of them were married now with families. I was probably the only one in my high school graduating class that wasn’t. It was hard to reconnect with those girls when we had nothing in common anymore. Hence, why I was meeting my mother and her friends. They kept things interesting with their gossipmongering.
Instead of walking, I decided to drive so I wouldn’t be a sweaty mess. I had my Acura TLX’s air conditioning on full blast the entire way. When I parked in front of Jitterbug Coffee, I could already see my mom and her two best friendslaughing inside. It made me miss Kat and all the fun we’d have going to coffee shops during our class breaks.
My mother saw me and waved me in, holding up a steaming cup of coffee and pointing out that it was mine. I hurried in and took a seat in the empty fourth chair at their table. Jitterbug Coffee was one of my favorite places to hang out before I left for college. It was a little different back then, with more small-town charm, but now it had a vintage vibe you wouldn’t expect in a small Alabama town. All the tables were black with dark metal chairs. The tiles were all white with beige décor and pops of green everywhere. I loved the change.
“Good morning, ladies,” I announced, leaning down to breathe in my hazelnut coffee.
