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In the morning, she apologized at breakfast for causing such a scene and despite their assurances that she did no such thing, Jenni decided not to spend the morning there but just to head back to Raleigh. She thanked Barb profusely, hugged her and May Ellen, and then headed to her car.
Caitlin followed her and stood by her door.
Jenni put down the window and knew what was coming.
“Jenni, I can’t make you happy,” Caitlin began. “No one can. Only you can do that. But you let everything get to you, and then you act like it’s always your fault. I’ve never seen you with such low self-confidence and self-esteem. It’s just not you.”
Caitlin reached into the car and patted her friend on the shoulder. “I had hoped this weekend would be a breath of fresh air, no pun intended. A new start. We had a lot of fun. Please think about what I’ve said. You have so much going for you.”
“Thanks, CayCay.” A tear ran down Jenni’s face. “It was, as you said, a weekend I’ll never forget. And maybe in time, I’ll only remember the fun parts. I’ll try. And I’ll keep in touch. Give my best to Andrew, and your dad too. I’m sure he was glad to be at home and away from this crazy crew.”
She waved as she pulled out of the driveway, and then headed north on Highway 12.
She couldn’t wait to get back to her own place, to try to put things into perspective, and to get back to work.
She could get lost there and leave the memories of bait, bails, puffer fish, and a certain fisherman, far behind.
Chapter Nine
Jenni was once again confused when she woke up.
Was it time to get ready to go out on the beach?
As she opened one eye and looked out her apartment window, she remembered she was back home in Raleigh and today was Monday. Monday meant work.
She quickly checked her phone to be sure she hadn’t overslept, but actually, she was ahead of the alarm. The last few days of getting up so early had stayed with her. But rather thango back to sleep, she’d use the extra time to take a long shower and reflect on the last few days.
On the drive back from the Outer Banks to Raleigh, which had been mercifully uneventful, she reflected on what had happened to her and her reactions to everything. She also gave credence to Caitlin’s admonitions to her because Caitlin was her dear friend.
Jenni knew she had Jenni’s best interests at heart. But Caitlin also had never had her heart broken as Jenni had, so she really couldn’t put herself totally in Jenni’s shoes.
How long does it take to get over a failed marriage? How long does it take to trust again?
When would she start dismantling the walls she had so carefully built around herself over the last year?
And what about Caleb?
There had been not one negative in her time with him if she was going to be honest with herself.
He wasn’t at all like Compy, though she continually tried to put him in that mold.
But she couldn’t let herself go down that road of hoping or caring or desiring ever again. Clearly, she wasn’t made for a relationship.
She stepped out of the shower and towel-dried her hair.
But why, then, was she still thinking about him? Maybe it was because this past weekend had turned out to be so unexpected. He was just part of all the craziness.
Yes, that was probably it. Today it was back to work atRaleigh Wins,and that would consume all of her thoughts.
Raleigh Winswas an amazing non-profit getting ready to celebrate its fiftieth year. It was a youth-centered organization that she totally believed made a difference in the lives of teens in the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill Triangle area.
She’d met the kids and read the testimonials. She saw the results.
She felt extremely lucky to have landed the position of development director, which opened up as she was moving back from Columbia. The former development director was retiring, and they were looking for a replacement. Jenni had interned and volunteered at many non-profits from the time she was at St. Adrian’s, and had garnered enough experience to get hired.
She loved her boss, Dee, the CEO.
Jenni was happy that she spent most of her days in the office or working from home with donor lists and campaign charts and spreadsheets.
