Her unspoken words spoke volumes.If I didn’t stay in the area, there was no future for us.“I’m going to go shower.”
Ashlyn nodded, watching me go with a look on her face I couldn’t read.
Or maybe I didn’t want to read it.
I wasthe last one outside, and the laughter and scents of grilled meat and honeysuckle in the air made me smile.I couldn’t linger on my doubts.Not when I had no reason to.Josh and I were barely even together.He wasn’t my boyfriend, and I wasn’t his girlfriend, or any other labels.We were having fun, and if I was falling in love, that was on me, not him.
Josh saw me first, and the smile he gave me reaffirmed my choice to enjoy the rest of the summer and not drive myself crazy.Crazier.
He hugged me to his side when I approached, and Christy offered me a beer.The four of us worked together seamlessly, pulling together dinner that had us leaning back in Ashlyn’s chairs and groaning when we were finished eating.
“Thank you guys for including me today,” Christy said after a few minutes of silence.“I needed to laugh and enjoy the day.”
“Family can drive us crazy, but they’re still the people we always look to for everything,” Ashlyn said.“My dad died a few years ago, and it was so hard.It gets easier, but sometimes that means one day of remembering the good times and one day of being sad.”
“Thanks,” Christy said.“He told me he wanted me to have a good life.That he was proud of me and hoped all my dreams come true.”She sniffed and wiped her eyes.
“What dreams do you have?”Ashlyn asked.“If that’s not too personal for people you don’t really know.”
Christy chuckled.“It’s fine.My dad thought I put my life on hold for him, but I didn’t.I’m divorced.My ex was someone I met at the hospital.He was a doctor and doing his residency here.We dated for two years before we got married.We both made a lot of assumptions about our relationship, and when neither of us was willing to compromise, it ended.”
Josh squeezed my hand.I looked over at him and saw anger on his face.He obviously knew the story and did not like it.
“I didn’t know,” Ashlyn said.
“It happened a while ago.He came here for work, but he never had any intention of sticking around.I never had any intention of leaving.He was in his last year of residency when we realized we had very different visions of our future.We spent the last few months he lived here fighting constantly.He took a job in Ohio without telling me.”
Ashlyn and I gasped.
Josh released my hand and leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees.
Christy laughed softly.“That was pretty much my reaction.He thought I’d change my mind when he left.Or before he left.He thought I would pick him and his future goals over my own.We dragged everything out, but after two years of long distance and neither of us bending, we accepted our marriage was over.I’m pretty sure he was seeing other people before our divorce was finalized, but I didn’t care at that point.We were done.Before that, I’d hoped for kids.We were just starting to talk about starting a family when he told me about the job in Ohio.”
“Seriously?”Ashlyn blurted.“What an asshole.”
Christy barked a laugh.“Yeah, he kind of was.But I thought he was great.He was smart and very capable.He was focused on his work and determined to be a success, but he turned all that focus on me when we were together.It was…”
“Intoxicating?”Ashlyn provided.
Josh relaxed again, taking my hand in his.He wound our fingers together and rubbed his thumb over my knuckles.
“Yeah,” Christy breathed.She cleared her throat.“Anyway, when it ended, I threw myself into work.I had a few other relationships after that, but they weren’t any more successful, and I took a break from it all for a while.I was just starting to date again when my dad found out about his cancer.”
“You still have time for kids, though,” Ashlyn said.
Christy snorted.“I’m forty-six.That ship has mostly sailed.There are times I regret not having kids, but I wouldn’t have traded the time I had with my dad for anything.”
“I don’t blame you,” Ashlyn said.“I’ve always wanted kids, too.I just never found the right guy.”
“Evie is the best thing that ever happened to me,” Josh said.
My heart sank.
Ashlyn knew my position on kids.She slid me a look.“She’s a pretty great kid.”
“Yeah, she is.Even though my marriage was a disaster, I wouldn’t trade it for Evie.”
“Hannah is a piece of work.And Rob was an idiot for not treating you better, Ashlyn, but I knew that before you started dating him.We went out years ago,” Christy said.
