I shook my head, knowing that was a lie. Well, he was downplaying how much he had done. “This is why you haven’t been by. You’ve been making sure this was all done. For me.”
For just a minute, his face turned serious and his lips parted like he was going to tell me something important. But then a cocky grin twisted his lips and the moment passed, leaving me feeling deflated.
“Well, it’s all part of the friendship package. Little did you know that when you welcomed me into your bed, you would get such a hero to stand up for you in your times of need.”
I forced out a laugh, trying desperately not to let his words cut so deep. “What would I do without Tuesdays and Thursdays?”
“And pretty much every other day,” he smirked. “Now, you’d better get to work. The town won’t wait forever to check out the new digs.”
I leaned into him, pressing my lips to his in a soft kiss, thanking him for all he had done. He would never trulyunderstand what he had done for me here today, or how much he had hurt me with his words. I desperately wanted to tell him that I wanted this to be more, but I knew that if I said a word, he would walk away and never look back.
He didn’t want a relationship, and sooner or later, he would realize he was already in one. And when he did, that would be the end of us.
“Let’s get those doors opened,” I smiled brightly, burying my feelings deep inside.
I took a moment to look around the store as he flipped the sign on the door, allowing everyone to enter. To my surprise, Bailey Parker was the first one through the door, and she walked straight up to me.
I internally flinched, preparing myself for whatever vitriol she spewed my way, but to my surprise, it never came.
“I’m really sorry about your store, Ellie.”
My mouth gaped like a fish. “Um…thank you.”
She glanced around, obviously uncomfortable being here. I wasn’t even sure why she came. After the incident with Liam, she never set foot in my store voluntarily again.
“I know what you did for me, and I’m sorry it’s taken so long to say I’m sorry.”
Confusion swept over me at her words. “Sorry for what? After what I did, I wouldn’t blame you for never wanting to speak to me again.”
“You did it to help me.” She smiled tightly before looking off to her right. “You have amazing taste. I love this one,” she said, walking over to a dress that I didn’t even choose for the store. “I’ll take it.”
My eyes widened in surprise when I noted that not only was everyone watching what Bailey was doing, but they were taking cues from her. Suddenly, everyone seemed a lot more interested in the clothes hanging on the racks.
And that just stung.
I was grateful, but I wanted people to come to my store because they wanted to be here. Not because Bailey hinted that it was okay. Still, beggars couldn’t be choosers.
She set the dress on the counter and smiled at me. “It really is a beautiful dress.”
“You didn’t even try it on.”
“It’ll be perfect while I try to take off all this baby weight,” she laughed.
I sighed, still feeling frustrated with the whole thing. “You really don’t have to do this.”
“Yes, I do. And not just because I behaved like an ass. I really do like the dress.”
The sincerity in her voice stopped me from arguing further. If I wanted my shop to be a success, I would have to learn to take the help where I could.
Even if it did mean letting the town have their show.
26
RYDER
“Darlene! Make me some coffee!”I shouted to my invisible secretary.
Shuffling through the files on my desk, I found the one I was looking for and stacked the rest in a neat pile for later. I wasn’t used to all the chaos, the disorganization.
