“You came to the wrong establishment.”
Fair.
MacKenzie’s expression softened slightly. “You see her yet?”
“Not officially.”
“Mmm.”
That sound alone carried entirely too much meaning.
“I heard your auction package is a romantic helicopter ride to Baltimore.”
“Yep.” Blaze took a slow sip of bourbon. “I’m thinking about letting Jo cancel.”
Ryan’s head snapped toward him. “The hell you are.”
MacKenzie narrowed her amber-colored eyes. “Braxton Carter.”
Blaze frowned. “What?” He knew her friends had to be responsible.
She brushed a hand over her short pixie haircut. “Don’t let fear make decisions for you.”
Her words landed because fear was exactly what this was. Not fear of rejection. Not entirely. Fear of reopening something he never fully recovered from in the first place.
Ryan leaned back against the stool. “You know what your problem is?”
Blaze snorted. “I’m sure you’re about to tell me.”
“You still think Johanna sees you as that teenage boy who lefttown.”
The words hit too close.
Blaze stared down into his drink.
Because maybe that was true. Back then, he’d had nothing. No stability. No real direction. Just big dreams and an aching need to become more than the unreliable men in his family before him.
Leaving Sheraton Beach had felt necessary. But leaving Johanna… that had nearly destroyed him.
“You’ve been back in town three months.” MacKenzie rested her hands on top of her belly. “If she loved you once, she could love you again.”
Nobody had ever loved him like Johanna did before.
Or after.
A loud burst of laughter erupted from a nearby table while servers rushed past balancing trays overhead. Outside the front windows, Main Street glowed beneath the afternoon sun while tourists wandered between storefronts.
Sheraton Beach looked peaceful.
Familiar.
Home.
But somehow, after all these years… home had never fully felt right without her in it.
Ryan nudged his shoulder. “So, what are you going to do?”
Blaze stared toward the television mounted above the bar, but he wasn't really seeing it. He was thinking about Johanna. Her smile, her eyes, and the way she used to fit perfectly beneath his arm during late-night walks along the beach when they were teenagers dreaming about forever.
