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I can’t help but laugh at that as well, even as I feel my usual embarrassment at being the center of attention rise to the surface.
“Tell us about him,” Teresa encourages.
“I mean…” I trail off, unsure where to start, and unsure if I even want to give them details. Carter and I haven’t exactly gone public with the fact that we are dating yet, and I’m sure the town gossip mills will start churning when we do. It’s just the way of small towns—anytime someone gets into a new relationship, or gets engaged, or has a kid, or hell, even gets a new job, everyone else has to give their opinion on it. The flipside of this is that anytime someone gets hurt or experiences hard times, the community is there looking out for them and offering support.
“If this was a romance novel, what kind would it be?” Alex asks, throwing me a bone.
“Um,” I say. “I mean I’m not really sure since I don’t read that?—
“An outsider in our midst!” Ann shrieks. “Cat, how could you?”
“Angela is my best friend! And she’s going to come to the next book club and read the book, she promised,” Cat says. I don’t argue because I don’t want to face Ann’s wrath.
“He’s someone I dated a while ago, for a brief period of time,” I say.
“So it's a second chance romance!” Alex says. “My favorite.”
Second chance sounds about right for Carter and I, I just hope we figure it out this time.
“Enough about me, though, who else has man drama to discuss?” I say.
Teresa tells us about the surprise date her husband took her on last week, and Alex hints at a new crush she has on someone in town. Cat talks about the wedding plans for a bit, and then Ann admits that she’s been emailing with an old fling from New York. Only Jacqueline sits there quietly, not saying much.
“What about you, Jacqueline?” I ask. Jacqueline might be a best-selling romance author and Harborview’s biggest localcelebrity, but there’s a reason she only made her identity public last year. She’s pretty shy, from everything I know about her.
She doesn’t answer my question immediately, but after a minute says, “I went to the hardware store the other day.”
And that’s enough to send the room into an uproar.
Years ago, back when they were in high school, Jacqueline Whitimer and Billy Bryce were in love. But they broke up for an unknown reason, and she went on to become a teacher and then a writer, and he took over the local hardware store from his father. I’m guessing Jacqueline has avoided it like the plague for years.
Until now.
But for all Ann and Cat’s cajoling, Jacqueline won’t say anything else. And I find myself liking her more and more. She’s shy, but confident and down to earth, just like I am. A kindred spirit of sorts.
I decide that I’m reading the book for next month, and I’m attending book club. I need to have a life outside of work, and this is where it starts.
31
CARTER
“I swearthe tourists get here earlier and earlier each year,” Jamie says, cracking open his beer. Beside him, Hunter is swirling whiskey around in his glass, and I’ve opted for a pint of stout.
We’re at O’Malley’s, the local dive bar and our regular haunt, and it’s quickly becoming packed despite the early hour. And not just with locals.
“How did they hear about this place?” I ask. “And why would they want to be here?” The summer season doesn’t normally start until the Fourth of July, so there must be an event or something that has drawn so many people to the area.
“Hey! Don’t talk about O’Malley’s like that,” Hunter says, indignant. “It has charm.”
“It does. If charm means smelling like stale beer.”
“Don’t forget the cracked window,” Jamie adds, jerking his head to the shattered glass in front of us.
“I’m coming by with my crew to fix that for them later in the week,” Hunter offers. “The Redwin cousins got into a fight again and broke it.”
“Figures. Those two can’t act nice to one another for more than five minutes,” I mutter.
“I thought they were banned from this place,” Hunter muses.
