Chapter 13

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

The Sunday crowd was no freaking joke. The coffee shop got packed, and I’m talking about a line all the way to the door, tables filled with teenagers and families, and kids running around making lots of noise. Since I was new, and in training, I felt like I wasn’t much help.

Maybe Emma was testing me to see what I was made off?

I was a fast learner, but not that fast. The safest option for me was on register duty while Emma and Jess got the orders ready. Safe to say, the heels came off after forty-five minutes. I had lots of people give me the whole “Freya, it’s good to see you” standard bullshit.

Oh, I bet . I pretended like I didn’t feel their pity stares.

Some people were bitchier and said how surprising it was that I didn’t turn out like they predicted, while most were happy to have me back .

My deepest apologies for succeeding in life.

“Well hello there,” I said low enough for Emma and Jess to hear me. I didn’t know the man walking in, but he was hot, around my age, and carried himself with confidence. Brown hair, nice beard, warm brown eyes that looked kind, well-built, good height this guy was one of the best looking guys in town. Hunkalicious. He reminded me of someone, but I couldn’t put my finger on it.

“Hello, welcome to Emma’s Coffee where we serve the best coffee in town. How may I help you?” Was I flirty? Yes, I was. I needed a little appreciation from the opposite sex. My most recent ex-boyfriend cheated on me with half a city, my other ex-boyfriend was dating my high school nemesis. I needed something to give me that glee that came from getting compliments from a handsome guy. I needed a distraction, so I leaned over the counter just a little, giving him my best smile—the smile I used to win my customers over when they were scared to be daring. A smile that had gotten me out of many speeding tickets.

The new hunky guy laughed at my flirtatious behavior. “Ah, a new face. I’ll have my usual. Emma knows just how I like it.”

Both Jess and I turned to Emma who stopped what she was doing and froze like a deer caught in headlights. I was a little disappointed just for a second, but then I beamed with glee at the thought of Emma and the hottie in front of me. They’d be so cute together.

“Well, Emma will make it justhow you like it, won’t you, Emma?” I used the same suggestive tone as him. Emma was beet red, but Jess was cracking up.

“I’ll get to it,” Emma mumbled, her head down, looking at the floor like it was fascinating.

The guy studied me, making me feel uncomfortable. “How do you like our town?”

“I’m not new here. Born and raised. I moved back for now.” I held out my hand. “Freya Pratt.” When he shook my hand, I saw the badge on the side of his pants and the concealed weapon at his hip.

“Dex Hendrix.”

“Detective? Did good ol’ Timmy finally retire? How many cops in the precinct, still eight?”

“More like eleven, and you mean Chief Timmy.”

“Here you go, Dex.” Emma handed him the drink without looking at him.

He said bye to Jess and me then. “I’ll see you around, Emma.” I waited until he left the coffee shop before I turned around to jump with glee.

“Oh my God, Emma, he is dreamy, and he likes you.” I was nudging a blushing Emma who kept denying that the prettytown cop had a thing for her. I didn’t see how she couldn’t see it when it was freaking obvious.

“He wants to date you. He wants to—”

“Fuck you.” Jess wiggled her brows at Emma.

“That too, but for the record, I was going to say kiss you.”

“He’s nice, that’s all,” Emma tried to convince herself. Meanwhile, Jess gave me a funny look that told me that the cop probably tried flirting with her all the time, and she didn’t notice. That didn’t stop me from being so happy for Emma that I danced around her softly singing “Emma and Dex sitting in a tree.” I had forgotten I was wearing a crop top, and it had risen just a little, revealing a hint of skin, but it wasn’t like I was at church anymore.

“ Oh my God , I heard you were back, but I justdidn’t believe it.” I stopped midsong and looked up at Abigail Newton, who was standing in front of the counter looking me up and down.

“What can I get for you, Abigail?” my voice was a little clipped.

Just a little.

“A black coffee two sugars,” she said, looking sourly at Jess.

“That’s it,” I said without thinking. “You come to the best coffee shop in town, and you order a black coffee? I’m not going to lie and say it’s not creepy. I read in a study that people who drink black coffee tend to be psychopaths,” I let my mouth run. I knew I messed up by Abigail’s angry glare and Jess’s soft laughter.

“Don’t worry, Emma. I don’t expect this one to have any manners. You should work on your customer service skills if you want to keep this job. There aren’t many available in town.”

Augh. Bitch much?

Emma was bringing Abigail her drink when I felt him. I knew it in the way the air seemed to go thin. I stopped breathing when Max, who had yet to notice me, walked up to Abigail and rested his hand on her lower back.

Familiar.

I shouldn’t watch, but I couldn’t make myself to look away. Through the years, I told myself that it was okay if he moved on. I wanted the best for him, but seeing him now with her, I didn’t realize how much it would hurt. Seeing him hold her, I felt the loss of him holding me. I was cold even though I’d been without his touch for seven years. Wondering if he moved on was one thing because I didn’t put a face to the woman who would take his love. To the woman who would take my place, but seeing it—brutal. It left a scar you couldn’t see, but you felt it every time you breathed.

Sharp pain.

If I closed my eyes, I could still feel him. I could feel his arms caressing my sides until a slow ache took place. I could feel his breath on my skin causing shivers to break out. I didn’t remember our last kiss, but I remembered how it felt when he kissed me, how he would hover right above my lips, and it was heaven and hell because all I saw was him. All I smelled was him. When he finally put his lips on mine, I never wanted the kiss to end but needed the next one to begin.

But Max had moved on, and I should be happy for him, but I couldn’t. All that talk about him deserving the best faded because a part of me screamed that I was the best.

Jess handed me a cup, taking me out of my trance. It confused me since I had given Abigail her psycho drink, but I read the name on the side and cursed myself.

Max.

“Here you go,” I mumbled, interrupting him and his girlfriend. God, the words left a sour taste in my mouth. Acidic. Max looked up, his eyes widening for just a second, but he took the drink I was offering. Again, maybe I expected him to go off on me. Heck, at this point, I would welcome it. It had to be better than the coolness he was giving me.

“Honey, can you believe Freya works here?” I didn’t know why Abigail was trying to make me feel embarrassed about working in a coffee shop when it was honest work. I didn’t work here; I was just helping out, but I didn’t need to let the bitch know that.

“That’s great. Emma reallyneeded help. I’m glad you’re helping her,” Max said with a smile. Seriously, he was going to smile at me? After what I did, he could stand there looking at me without flinching?

What hurt the most was Max being nice. On a rare occasion, I pictured our reunion; it was never like this. I expected Max angry and demanding answers… I expected him to hate me.

Hate evoked passion. But his gentleness, all it did was serve as a reminder I wasn’t worth remembering.

“Well, as lovely as this reunion has been, we have to go. We have brunch with my parents, and we don’t want to be late.” Abigail’s eyes gleamed. Max was about to pay, but she insisted it was her treat. My world stopped for a second when she handed me the cash. It wasn’t because she gave me a hundred-dollar bill and told me to keep the change. Bitch. On her left hand sat a heart-shaped engagement ring. I stood there watching Abigail and Max walk away while I stared at both of them. They weren’t just dating; oh no, they were engaged.

Then I remembered what Jana said at the supermarket. Abigail Newton is getting married. She would get married to Max.

My Max.

Except he wasn’t my Max anymore. He wasn’t anything to me.I made sure of that when I left him. Pastor Ian was right, decisions had a way of setting forth a chain of events you couldn’t predict. This was all on me. I drove Max right into Abigail’s arms.

I watched them leave hand in hand, walking to Max’s Mercedes, and as much as it pained me, they looked good together. Better than we ever did. We were kids back then, not knowing what we wanted. Now he was a man, and he would get married. I felt the warmth of a tear sliding down my cheek. Whipping it away, I noticed that a few people were staring at me.

“I’m going to take a quick break.” I smiled, trying to play off my hurt, but Emma saw past it, giving me a sad smile of her own.

“Take all the time you need.”

I didn’t need much encouragement to get out of everyone’s view. I’d be damned if they saw me fall apart. I walked back so the people wouldn’t see I cracked the seams that I had carefully put back together when I left this town. When I made it to the back, behind the kitchen island, I sank down to the floor. My hands were shaking. I was cold but also numbed. What did I expect to happen? I guess, as silly as it sounded, a part of me held on to hope that one day maybe things would work out, but that was stupid, wasn’t it? I mean, I left town; I had a life for myself, and when I met Ashton, I had a new future with a new guy.

Then why did it hurt more to know Maximilian was getting married than when I walked in on Ashton cheating on me?

I didn’t feel like crying when I walked in on Ashton. I was angry because I felt like the world’s biggest fool, but seeing Max with his fiancée opened my eyes. I saw him standing at the altar waiting for her, then at the hospital waiting for their first child.

I went cold. This was all my fault, and I wanted to be happy for him, but at the same time,I couldn’t help but ask myself if I ever meant anything to him at all. Did he love her more than he loved me? I knew the past was better left in the past, but this fucking hurt because he was mine… but now he was hers.

Sticks and stones, right? Except sticks and stones didn’t qualify for this type ofpain. Sticks and stones didn’t protect you from heartbreak, just bullies.