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“The movers were a little loud. Sorry about that. I hope we didn’t disturb you too much.”
“Not at all,” she said. “You had a lot of stuff.”
“I was gone for three years and had to furnish an entire townhouse.” He shrugged. “Stuff accumulates. I’m sure you’re realizing that living in your grandmother’s house. I wouldn’t be surprised if she has things dating back to before we were even born.”
“I’m not sure. I haven’t really started to go through everything yet.”
His expression changed; a sympathetic softness filled his eyes and comforted her. “You will. When you’re ready.”
He got her. He always had, better than anyone else. He knew everything for her was a process, and she couldn’t force her hand at anything. She just had to wait until she was ready, like Nolan said.
Tears pricked her eyes, but she refused to break in front of him. She was done crying. Done being weak. Some would argue that she’d gone through a lot in the last few weeks, and she had, but it was time for her to reach for the strength Grandma always told her she had, and be strong.
“Exactly,” she said with a smile. “When I’m ready.”
She’d missed him all along, but it was that moment when she had to admit to herself how much. Whether he cried over her or not, he was the one who left, and it would be no shock to anyone that she still loved him. He was her first love, and she always assumed he’d be her last. The pain of knowing she was the one who sabotaged the future she had once seen so vividly, hurt her heart. Seeing him again was something she had no doubt would be hard; she just didn’t expect it to be this hard.
Harper reappeared with a box of donuts. “Who wants a donut before Milo eats them all?”
Tom hurried over and plucked one out of the box. Isla expected him to take a big bite out of the pastry, but instead, he turned toward her and presented the cream-filled dough to her.
“Thank you, Tom! That’s so sweet.”
Tom smiled at her then gave Nolan a smug smirk that had her taking a bite of donut to cover her laugh. Milo fell into hysterics before walking to the half-built shelf.
Nolan shrugged and threw a smile in her direction. His entire face transformed, reminding her of the boy she fell in love with. She didn’t want to obsess over what she’d lost and constantly wonder what her life would’ve been if she’d made different choices. There was no changing the past. What was done was done. It had been a hard concept for her to accept. She’d wallowed in her heartache for so long, but maybe it was time to let the regrets go.
Nolan was her past, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t have a different role in her future.
It was a small town, and she couldn’t hide in her house forever. If she was going to get used to her ex being home, she needed to start accepting that they were going to wind up in the same places as one another, especially since they had mutual friends and lived next door to each other.
A part of her still loved him, but the other part of her was excited to move on. Who knew? Maybe in the end, they’d become friends.
Chapter 8
11 Years Ago
After grabbing a slice of pizza at Tony’s, Isla, Nolan, Milo, Harper, and Olivia walked down Main Street toward their respective houses. Summer was in full bloom… along with their tans. Isla couldn’t believe there was still a month and a half left before they had to return to school. The days had been long, filled with trips to the beach, crabbing off the docks at night, and many trips to Tony’s Pizza.
Isla walked beside Nolan, and every now and again their hands would brush against each other. She didn’t think either of them were doing it on purpose, but she wasn’t attempting to stop it either. Nolan was one of her closest friends, and she liked being near him.
They hit Olivia’s block first, and she gave a wave before teetering away on the new heels she insisted on wearing, even though they walked everywhere. Before she got to the house, her parents pulled up in their golf cart and gave her a lift the rest of the fifty feet she had to go.
“I need to get me one of those,” Milo said.
“Why, are your feet bothering you?” Harper asked in a mocking tone.
“They are. Do you want to carry me?”
Harper scoffed. “No.”
Milo wrapped Harper in a bear hug from behind, and she let out a squeal. “Milo!”
“Pleeeeaaaassssseeeee.”
“You’re so annoying,” she said with a laugh before bending her knees and lowering her back. Milo hoisted himself onto her, and Harper continued walking.
“That’s real manly of you,” Nolan said, and Isla laughed.
