Epilogue Two

The end of the day is my favorite part. Some people enjoy new beginnings, but not me. I"ve always been the type of girl who had to read the ending of a book before I could start. I"ve always been obsessed with knowing if things are going to work out or not. It"s a fatal flaw.

One I"ve been trying to correct in my life since I was a youngster, but I still haven"t seemed to learn.

I"m in the back of Get Baked, finishing up my closing procedures when there"s a loud noise. The sound of breaking glass immediately puts me on edge. In the last few months there"s been a rash of break ins and robberies. So far Get Baked hasn"t been targeted, but I"ve definitely felt on edge.

Gripping my cell phone, I come out from the kitchen, glancing back and forth from the glass window that"s now shattered and the inside of my shop. When I can tell there"s no one else inside but me, I collapse into myself. My hands shake, and I take an uneasy breath. Sighing heavily I let the reaction go through me.

"Son of a bitch," I groan as I see that they"ve completely broken the window. It"s seven at night, I don"t know where I"m going to get someone to help me patch this up now.

"Gabby, are you okay?"

The voice of the man who broke my heart, but now appears to be my saving grace. "Barrett? I"m fine."

He comes in through the door. "Things don"t look fine. Did this just happen?"

"Yeah, a few minutes ago. I"m trying to figure out how I"m gonna get it patched up this late at night."

He"s got his phone in his hand, holding a finger up. "One sec, I"ll take care of it." He"s dialing and before I can ask him how he"s going to take care of it, he"s talking to someone on the other line. "Yeah, Colt. I know you"re about close, but can I come get some plywood? Someone broke Gabby"s front window."

My heart is in my throat when I see him nodding.

"Yeah, if you could bring it over, that"d be great. I can call Boone or Abel to help." He pushes his hand through his hair. "Are you sure? I know you need to get home to the family. Okay then, see you in a few." He hangs up.

"What"s the plan?"

"Colt"s bringing some plywood. He"ll charge me for it tomorrow because he"s already closing for the night. He"s got the tools and he"ll help me get this patched up."

Relief flows through my body. "Barrett, I don"t even know what to say."

"There"s nothing to say, Gabs. I lost a year off my life when I saw the window broken out."

Those words warm a place in my chest that"s been cold since we said goodbye to one another. "Thank you."

"No need to thank me. Just remember the next time you accuse me of being too young for you. I"m the one who dealt with this."

And there it is. The elephant in the room. The reason we broke up in the first place...

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Barrett