Chapter 28

28

DAPHNE

I always had fun at Eric's garage. The few guys he had working for him were nice, always including me in their joking and banter, and despite how hard they all worked, they never let it get to them.

My brother had created a truly happy working environment and I was proud of him for that. If I had any sort of passion for oil, engines, and the things they belonged to, I might've even asked him for a job full time, but it just wasn't for me. I was always going to be here when he needed help, but that was where it ended.

As I packed up for the day, I smiled and waved at the team of them gathered around some hunk of junk that had come in earlier today.

"Good night, gentlemen," I called on my way to the door. "Good luck with that. If I was you, I'd just tell the owner it's time for an upgrade."

"This is a classic Dodge Charger. There's no such thing as upgrading from it," Eric called after me, disbelief in his tone as he shook his head.

I laughed, skeptically eyeing the faded black paint job and the hood currently lying on the floor next to it. "Okay. If you say so. I'll just leave it at wishing you luck, then."

"Thanks, sis," he said. "Also, thanks for helping us out today. You're sure you're okay?"

"I'm perfect," I replied as I slid my coat on and wrapped a scarf around my neck. There was a storm rolling in and the wind had been picking up all day. "Good night!"

"Good night," the chorus rang out as I left and they returned their attention to the car.

All day long, Eric had been asking if I was okay. I knew that he knew he'd walked in on something this morning. He just didn't know what. Once he heard about Sterling asking me to dance up on stage, he would probably get even more suspicious, but for now, I was just hoping that the whole thing died a quiet death.

To the outside world anyway.

For me, it was never going to go away. I was still on cloud nine after waking up with him this morning, and while I was doing my level best not to let my daydreams run away with me, it'd been a night worth being on cloud nine about.

Sterling had coaxed sensations out of my body I'd never felt before and desperately wanted to feel again—as often as I could for as long as I could. We hadn't talked about getting together again, but I was hoping it would happen.

After wrapping the coat and scarf tightly around me, I crossed my arms and raised my shoulders as I headed out of the garage to my truck. The wind roared in my ears, its bite slicing through my skin wherever it was exposed. Fall was here in full force.

My face and hands were frozen by the time I climbed into my car. I rubbed my palms together after shutting the door behind myself, blowing hot breath onto them in an attempt to coax the feeling back in. As soon as I could, I turned over the engine and switched on the heat, relaxing when warm air started filling the cab.

On my way home, I stopped at the grocery store, those bubbles of elation still making me feel light as air. I hadn't been able to stop thinking about last night, but as I walked into the store, pushing a cart ahead of me, a familiar voice knocked me back to reality.

I'd just turned the corner into the fresh produce aisle and I stopped short, blinking hard as I found myself face to face with Fiona and her bitchy friends. It seemed time hadn't separated their pack, and as always, Sterling's ex was flanked on either side by her minions.

"Well, well, Daphne LaSalle. What are you doing here, honey? You can't be in town for the reunion. Yours is still a few years away, isn't it?"

My insides shriveled up and the bubbles popped. The last time I'd seen the gorgeous redhead who'd ruled our school with an iron fist had been the night of that party. She and these very same friends who were with her now had been making fun of Rachel and me, even going as far as deliberately bumping into Rachel and dumping a drink on her.

They'd been the quintessential mean girls, and that night, I'd just snapped. I'd had enough of them calling us names and mocking us. We'd never done anything to them, but with Rachel having started a flirtation with Jake and me being Eric's sister, I supposed our proximity to the guys they'd viewed as theirs had put targets on our backs.

Naturally, that had meant I'd thrown my drink in Fiona's face instead of running off and crying like they'd thought we would. She'd deserved it, but I was still embarrassed that I'd gone that far. At the time, I hadn't been thinking about her coming back to town ten years later for their reunion.

She'd left soon after and I never considered the possibility of having to face her again—until now. I felt the color draining from my cheeks under the intense scrutiny of her gaze, but I didn't back down.

I didn't have a drink to toss at her if she started with her old bullshit, but I supposed I could push the cart into her legs. Squaring my shoulders, I looked her right in the eyes. "You're right. I'm not in town for the reunion. I live here."

"You never left?" Her reddish, extremely manicured eyebrows swept up. After exchanging an amused glance with her friends, she grimaced at me. "How sweet. I've been based in San Francisco for the last few years and I'm considering taking a job in New York City, but staying in your hometown while everyone else has moved on to better things is cute."

Heat rushed to my face and my ears were suddenly ringing a little bit. I tightened my grip on the cart, seriously considering crashing it into her and then making a run for it. "That's great, Fiona. It was good to see you, but I need to get going."

She flipped those smooth red locks over her shoulder and arched an eyebrow at me, clearly not intending on letting me go just yet. "How's Eric? We haven't seen much of him since we got in."

Probably by design , I thought. As much as these girls had been those popular beauty queen types that every boy in school had aspired to fool around with, my brother had always been annoyed by them.

Eric never had been the type to do something just because everyone else was doing it, though. Over the years, he'd had many, many girlfriends, and while none of them had stuck, I'd learned that he liked a more normal kind of woman—not the sort who had an overinflated sense of self and wouldn't be caught dead at his cabin in the woods.

"He's doing well," I said sweetly, batting my lashes at her. "Actually, he stayed in town too. I'm sure he'll appreciate hearing that you think it was so cute of us not to leave. You have a good night now."

Fiona's nostrils flared and one of her bitchy friends in particular looked horrified as I stepped around them and started walking away. I'd barely made it five feet before she called after me. "I'm not the one who said that!"

I didn't bother acknowledging her protest. Eric wouldn't care and I probably wouldn't even tell him anyway. Fiona and her minions would be leaving again soon, and in the greater scheme of things, I knew it shouldn't matter what they thought.

Unfortunately, they'd successfully managed to make me feel just as small as they always had. Logic had nothing to do with it. I did know that it shouldn't matter, but it still felt like it did.

Those women had lives away from here. Lives that were happening in big cities with bright lights. They probably had great careers as independent women who were achieving things far more important than learning how to bake and knowing how to make a good cup of coffee.

I sighed, hanging my head as I focused on my breathing and reminded myself that I was here because this was where I wanted to be. Still, as I left them behind, I wished I could also leave behind their words and the pitying looks on their faces.

I'd never wanted to live someplace else. I'd always been perfectly happy right here, but every so often, I wondered what it was like out there. It was like Fiona had seen that most vulnerable part inside of me and then she'd swung a sledgehammer at it, allowing all the insecurities to break right out.

I started my shopping, striding slowly from aisle to aisle as I went over the mental checklist I'd made of things I needed to remember to pick up, but I was moving on autopilot. Those words and the looks on their faces were front and center in my mind. I wondered if maybe, just maybe, I'd made a mistake never leaving.

After I'd gotten my degree, I hadn't even looked at possibilities outside of Allisburg. As if it had been meant to be, one of the elementary school teachers had retired the summer after I'd qualified and my mom had immediately let me know.

I'd applied for the position and I'd gotten it. Everything had fallen into place so perfectly that I'd thought this was where I belonged, but I'd also always known that this was the time of my life to explore a bit if I wanted to.

I'd simply never wanted to enough to actually go. Sometimes, late at night, I browsed through teaching positions available all over the country and even internationally. I'd thought about taking a year to teach English in some remote village on an exotic island, but I'd never even started the application process.

Eventually, I wanted to get married and start a family, and when that happened, I knew I wanted to be here. This was where I wanted to raise my children and whatnot, but as I walked through the store, I wondered if perhaps it was worth at least giving some serious thought to getting away for a year or so.

After I got home, I packed away the groceries and made myself some spaghetti for dinner. Then I carried my bowl and a cup of hot tea to the desk in my tiny second bedroom. I used it as a workspace whenever I needed one, and my laptop as well as some stationery lived here.

I sat down, opened my computer, and ate while I waited for it to come on. Once the screen was alive, I clicked into my internet browser, but even that felt wrong. My insides were at war—my heart rebelled against the mere thought of looking at available positions with the intention of possibly actually applying for one, and my brain told me that now was the time to do it.

Just take a look. You don't have to apply. Just look if there's something out there that seems interesting.

Scrolling while I ate, I visited a few of the sites I knew advertised teaching positions all over the world, but before I could start thinking about it too much, my phone rang. I set down my bowl and stood up, darting to where I'd left the device in the kitchen.

I smiled when I saw it was Rachel. I picked up, my tone teasing to hide the relief washing through me that I'd been interrupted. "How did you know to call me right now?"

"Daph," she murmured, her voice wobbly and thick with tears. "I need your help."

Instantly on high alert, my smile vanished and so did all my insecurities. I raced to my front door, grabbing my keys and purse on my way out. "I'm coming. Are you at home?"

"Yes."

"I'll be right there," I promised, my chest tight and my heart hammering. "Just sit tight, Rach. I'm on my way."

I had no clue what was going on, but receiving a teary phone call from a very pregnant friend warranted urgent attention. My laptop would still be here later, and so would all those potential jobs I didn't know if I wanted, but I forgot all about those terrible feelings Fiona and her friends had stirred up as I left my place.

Rachel was in trouble, and right then, she and her baby were the only things that mattered.