Chapter 9

It was bad enough that Eloise had a fear of flying, but at least she could argue it made sense because of what had happened to her grandfather. Her other big fear? It was totally illogical.

Loads of people feared needles, but usually, it was just syringes, not sewing needles. But they hadn’t grown up with a mother who was terrible at putting her sewing supplies away. The number of times little girl Eloise had stepped on needles or pins had scarred her forever. She could tolerate knitting needles because they were big but any other type? No, thank you.

“Ouch!” She gritted her teeth and kept her eyes squeezed shut.

“Sorry, sorry!” the seamstress mumbled, her mouth full of pins as she fiddled with the neckline of Eloise’s pale pink bridesmaid’s dress. “Big boobies, huh?”

“She got them from me. Not that you can tell anymore,” Joanie called as she sipped prosecco while sitting on the lavender velvet couch. Bringing her to the fitting wasn’t Eloise’s brightest idea. But her grandmother had dropped several subtle hints before politely informing Eloise that she’d be coming whether or not she wanted her there.

“Ah, to be young again.” Joanie stood and walked over until she was right in front of Eloise. Her gaze sharpened, and Eloise imagined she was standing under a spotlight.

“Are the others not coming?” her grandmother asked.

Eloise shifted her weight from one leg to the other, earning herself a tutfrom the seamstress. “They’re doing their final fitting later this afternoon, but I’ve got art class and then kids’ sports training.”

She also didn’t need witnesses to her getting squiffy about a few needles and pins.

“So it’s just us gals this morning?”

“Yep.”

“Excellent. We need to have a little chat.”

Joanie knew about the second kiss.

If Eloise had been allowed to lift her arms, she would’ve clapped. Joanie truly was the queen of picking her moment. Waiting until Eloise couldn’t escape was a boss move.

“Oh?” Eloise aimed for nonchalance, but the word came out with a squeak. She braced herself for the interrogation. Someone must’ve seen and told Joanie. Which meant the whole town knew, but what had Eloise expected to happen after kissing Nate on the street? More importantly, what was she going to say now? Yes, she wanted it to lead to something more, but she wasn’t sure where she stood. Joanie would have Lulu on speakerphone before Eloise had even finished her sentence. Or, oh God—even worse—she’d call Nate and demand to know what his intentions were with her granddaughter. And it wouldn’t be a voice call. Joanie would absolutely FaceTime him.

Joanie finished the final mouthful of fizz from her glass. “Never, ever give up your dream for a man. Even if he is a total smoke show. Did I use that right?”

“What are you talking about?” Eloise wished they were alone.

“A smoke show is someone?—”

“I know what a smoke show is!”

Joanie huffed and crossed her arms over the top of her bright yellow quilted vest. “Have you applied for your exchange yet?”

“No.”

“Because …”

“I’m still thinking about it.” Exactly how long did it take to figure out the correct hem length of a dress?

“And does a certain someone who you were making out with outside our house last night have anything to do with this hesitation?”

“No,” Eloise huffed.

“Hmmm.”

“He doesn’t!”

“Darling, I know you’ve been hoping something would happen with Nate for a long time, but you can’t let go of your own dreams.”

Eloise swallowed the bitter taste in her mouth. “That’s not what I’m doing. I can’t afford to go on the exchange, okay? I had the money put aside, but when I wasn’t selected, I used it to buy my car. I can’t just up and leave. Where would I live? How would I afford to eat? The exchange isn’t a paid position.”

“I could?—”

“I’m probably not going to get it anyway.”

“All done now. You can go and change. Watch out for the pins,” the seamstress interjected, and Eloise shuddered.

Once she was hidden in the change room, she released a long, frustrated breath. She closed her eyes and waited for her head to stop pounding.

There was a quiet knock on the door. “Do you need help with the hidden zip?” Joanie asked.

Eloise twisted and turned, fingers fumbling for the zipper. She opened the door and Joanie slipped into the cubicle. “Please.”

“I only want what’s best for you,” Joanie whispered.

“I know.”

“Besides, maybe it’s Nate’s turn to wait for you this time.”

But what if she missed her chance entirely?

* * *

“One more story!”

“I don’t have my books with me.” Eloise chuckled as she led the children who’d signed up for both her afternoon art class and then Nate’s training session to the oval. Sadly, Callum had been missing from her art class.

“You can make one up?”

Several other voices joined in, the sound mixing with the rustling leaves in the tall gums that encircled the field. Up in the distance, Nate was setting out some coloured cones, hopscotch mats and hula hoops with the help of a few other kids and ugh. Eloise sighed. Why was Bianca here again? At least this time she was wearing long workout pants and talking to Teddy, who waved when he saw her and the kids. Nate still had his back turned and she took a moment to enjoy the way his tracksuit pants clung to his perfect ass. Some clothes got all the good jobs, didn’t they?

Eloise bit her lip and imagined sauntering over, wrapping her arms around him from behind and whispering all the things she’d like to do to him once they were finished here. She ignored the chastising voice in the back of her mind that sounded an awful lot like her grandmother.

“Hi,” she said softly when they reached Nate, her cheeks pulling tight as she tried and failed to smother her grin. But really, why shouldn’t he know she was happy to see him? If they weren’t surrounded by a bunch of kids, his brother and freaking Bianca, she might’ve even given him a quick peck.

Lies.

She’d used up all her bravery last night.

“Hey, everyone!” Nate greeted the group. Was it weird that he didn’t say hello to her directly? Eloise shook her head, telling herself she was being silly. He wasn’t going to single her out right now. And her group was a few minutes late.

“Ready to have some fun? After such a great session last week, I thought we could work on our coordination a bit more today. Do you remember your groups?” The chorus of sing-songy “yeses” normally would’ve made Eloise smile, but her stomach was sinking, an ominous feeling creeping over her skin as he avoided her gaze. Something was wrong.

“Let’s see …” Nate tapped on his chin. Made a big show of twisting from side to side as he surveyed the group in front of him. “Okay, you guys”—he pointed to the group to his left—“are going to be with Eloise and Bianca.”

Awesome. That’s exactly who she was hoping to be partnered with. Based on the sour expression on Bianca’s face and Teddy’s frown, the feeling was mutual.

“The rest of you are with me and Ted.”

After a brief explanation of the first activities and a few warm-up stretches, Eloise and Bianca guided their group over to the hopscotch mats.

“Hey, Callum. Missed you at art class today.” Eloise fell into step with the blond-haired teenager.

“Dad figured out what I was doing.”

“Oh?”

“Yep.” The glumness in his tone was hard to ignore.

“Well, maybe you can come along next week.”

The boy shook his head. For someone so young, he’d perfected the thousand-yard stare, his gaze fixed on the old members’ sheds.

“I don’t think so. Dad said I need to focus on footy not some silly painting club.”

“I like both,” Eloise said carefully as they lined up at the back of the queue for one of the hopscotch mats. “Sports are good for our physical and mental health, and being creative helps me express myself and relax. Maybe I could call your dad?”

“Don’t waste your time,” Callum said. “He only sees what he wants to see, and footy is all he cares about.”

Sensing someone’s gaze on her, Eloise turned around. Nate looked away immediately, and Joanie’s words rolled through her mind, mixing with all the stories Charlie had told her about Nate over the years. Neither aligned with what she’d seen when Nate had come back from the States all quiet and shy and—she swallowed—broken. But what if she’d been wrong? And she’d only seen what she wanted to see?