Her feet finally synced with her brain, and she slowly backed away, hoping to slip past while Owen and the rest of them were distracted. The ringing in her ears helped to tune out their chatter as she got closer to her destination. Just a few more steps and she’d be free…
“Ava?”
She jolted at the sound of her name. So much for her plan to sneak out while they were busy.
“Sorry, did you say something?” She stopped and looked at Summer, too nervous to make eye contact with Owen again. Her face burned under his heavy gaze on her profile.
“Ava, this squirt here is my nephew. Avery. Avery, this is my best friend Ava,” she introduced the two of them.
“If you’re best friends, why haven’t I seen you before?” Avery turned to face Ava. “Aunt Summer has met all my best friends. I have three of them,” he told her with pride.
She couldn’t form a response.
“Ava hasn’t visited in a long time. That’s why you haven’t seen her, bud.” Owen’s deep voice washed over her, just as rich and warm as the coffee he served.
“Wait, likeAva, Ava? I thought you looked familiar,” the other woman spoke.
Ava didn’t miss the glance she gave Owen before smiling widely at her. She almost looked excited. Ava had not been ready for this scenario when Summer convinced her to leave the cabin.
“Hi, I’m Madeline. Or Maddy. Whatever you want to call me. It’s so nice to meet you.” Madeline approached her and extended her hand to shake.
Ava’s ingrained southern manners made it impossible not to reciprocate as she grasped Madeline’s hand in a firm shake. She tried to smile, but she was sure it came across as a grimace instead. A memory tickled the back of her brain, and she didn’t have the time to explore why in the moment.
“It’s nice to meet you, Madeline.” Ava looked at Avery. The tiniest twinge flared in her chest upon seeing his chocolate brown eyes and too-long hair in need of a haircut.
He looks just like Owen.
“And you, too, Avery.” Ava gave him a small smile. “I’m so sorry, but I need to go.” Ava chanced a glance at Owen, then regretted it when she spotted his frown. His eyes swirled with an emotion she couldn’t read.
I need to get out of here.
Ava turned on her heel and rushed outside. Her neck tingled with the awareness of Owen’s stare tracking her exit. A few paces down the sidewalk, the tightness in her chest loosened, and she gulped lungfuls of air to dispel that nausea that still threatened the back of her throat. When she walked far enough to pass Flynn’s Real Estate, she stopped. She didn’t have a way back to the cabin without returning to the café. And no way in hell was she going back there.
The back of her eyelids burned. From regret. From anger. She pushed down the emotion clogging her throat, and continued putting distance between her and Owen, resolving to pack the cabin and get out of Cedar Falls as soon as she could. The thought spurred her to walk even faster until someone grabbed her arm. She whirled around.
“Ava, I’ve been calling your name. The car is this way.” Summer pointed her thumb over her shoulder toward the café.
Ava shook her head. “I’m fine walking.”
“You are not fine walking. Come on, let me drive you home.”
When Ava refused to move, Summer dropped her hold on her arm. Her shoulders slumped with a sigh. “I’m so sorry. I had no clue we would run into him. Or all of them. He never works on Mondays, I swear to you. I wanted to tell you so badly about Avery, but you and Owen both refuse to talk about the breakup. I was just trying to protect you.”
Ava turned her face away from Summer to compose her thoughts. She wasn’t upset with her. Not really. In a town this small, she was bound to see her ex around. It was the kid that shocked her.
“It’s fine. I’m sorry you had to hide this big part of your life from me. That was an unfair position to put you in,” Ava said.
“Let me drive you home,” Summer tried again.
Ava shook her head again. “I’m fine. I could use the walk to clear my mind.”
Summer searched her face before nodding in agreement.
“OK. Text me when you get back.” Summer pulled her into a tight embrace Ava couldn’t bring herself to return. She let go and walked backward a few paces as if to see if Ava would change her mind. When she turned around, Ava breathed a sigh of relief and kept walking through downtown.
Good thing she was already dusty. The hilly dirt roads were about to add to her disarray. By the time she made it back to the cabin, she was sure she’d look as beat up as she felt inside.
She passed Ida’s Antique Shop, the broken yellow sign creaking ominously in the wind, and started up the hill on Teaberry Lane. Her legs burned from exertion she wasn’t used to, distracting her from her thoughts. Like, how old Owen’s son was and why his wife recognized her by name. She assumed anything Owen had to say about her wasn’t flattering, so why had Madeline smiled so brightly at her?
