The din of conversation and people enjoying breakfast filled my ears as I stepped into The Brew. A harried-looking Aspen wove through the tables. “Oh, thank God you’re here. We’ve been slammed all morning.”
“What do you need?” I asked as I hurried deeper into the café.
“Do you know how to use a cash register?”
“After-school jobs since I was twelve. I’ve got the cash register covered.”
Aspen beamed. “You’re my new favorite person.”
“That was easy.”
“Easy to please over here. If you could take orders and get people checked out, that would be great. Joe’s in the back working on breakfast orders.”
“Sounds good.” I rounded the bakery case and set my purse in a back cabinet, slipping my phone into my pocket. There was already a line a few people deep, and I quickly got to work.
It only took me a couple of tries to get used to the register and credit card system. Thankfully, the tourists were patient and kind. I shut the cash drawer and looked up. “What can I get for you?”
My gaze locked with an amber one that had a hint of hardness to it. “Hey, Dan.”
He scowled at me. “Heard you were back.”
No “welcome home” or “good to see you.” But nice wasn’t a word I’d ever use to describe him.
“I am. Got back just the other day.”
“I bet Hartley is already panting after you like a rabid dog,” he scoffed.
I stiffened. “Excuse me?”
“Oh, please, Nash has always been desperate to get in your panties.”
If Dan only knew how wrong he was. “Nash and I are friends. You might try it sometime, but that means you’d actually have to show some decency to another human being.”
Dan’s eyes hardened. “Watch your mouth, you little—”
“That’s enough,” Aspen snapped, moving toward the counter as she glared at Dan. “You talk to the staff like that again, and you’ll be banned from this establishment.”
His dark gaze snapped to Aspen. “What happened to the customer is always right?”
“Not when they’re being borderline abusive to staff, they’re not.”
Dan’s jaw ticked. “I don’t need this crap. Your coffee sucks anyway.” He turned on his heel and left.
I released my grip on the counter, my hands trembling.
Aspen sent me a worried look. “Are you okay?”
I nodded but knew my forced smile wasn’t exactly convincing. “He’s always been a piece of work.”
She glanced out the windows at the front of the café. “He’s never given me the warm fuzzies. Hopefully, he doesn’t come back.”
“I’m sorry I lost you a customer on my first day.” My fingers curled into my palms, nails biting into my skin. It wasn’t exactly a great first impression.
Aspen waved me off. “If you lost me him, I’ll thank you for it. There’s nothing I hate more than cruelty.”
Something flashed in Aspen’s green gaze. It was as if shadows flickered there for the briefest of seconds.
“I’m not a fan of it either.” I’d spent too much time in the presence of it over my lifetime. I didn’t need any more.
“Then I say we have a no-assholes rule at The Brew.”
I chuckled. “I can get behind that.”
My phone buzzed in my pocket, and I pulled it out to quickly check the screen. I’d put a call into the Victims’ Rights board to find out when my father’s parole hearing was since my mother hadn’t been forthcoming.
I hated the idea of him breathing free and being back here in the place that was supposed to be my refuge. But I wouldn’t give up Cedar Ridge for him even if he did get out. I wouldn’t give up family dinners with the Hartleys and time with Nash. And if I knew one thing about my father, it was that he wouldn’t stay out of trouble for long, so I doubted his parole would last.
I scanned the screen, my muscles tensing.
UNKNOWN NUMBER
You think you can block me?
I didn’t even have time to react before another message came through.
UNKNOWN NUMBER
You need to remember that I can get to you anywhere…
“Maddie?”
My head jerked up.
Concern filled Aspen’s expression. “What happened? You went really pale.”
My fingers fumbled at the side buttons on my phone, trying to turn it off. “Just my stupid ex.” I tried to force a laugh, but it came out choked. “He would not be allowed in here because he’s definitely an asshole.”
Aspen’s jaw tightened. “Do you think he’ll show up here?”
Dread pooled in my belly. God, I hoped not. “I don’t think so. His work pretty much consumes him.” But he’d hate what my leaving would do to his image.
“Maybe you should show me his photo just in case. That way, I can keep an eye out. I don’t want anyone giving you a hard time.”
I winced. “I actually deleted them all off my phone. I don’t even have a single one.”
A grin spread across Aspen’s face at that revelation. “A cathartic cleansing. I like it. What about social media?”
My thumb trembled slightly as I hit the app and punched in Adam’s username. I breathed a sigh of relief as the first photo that appeared was geotagged Atlanta. It looked as if he were at a fundraiser for his charity. The second photo on his grid was an old one of the two of us. It had been taken the day I moved to Atlanta. He was tipping me back in an exaggerated dip, and I was laughing with such abandon. How had all that promise turned to this?
Aspen squeezed my arm. “I got a good look at him. You can close it.”
“Thanks,” I whispered.
She sent me a little smile. “Have you tried burning his clothes in a bonfire? I’ve heard that can be a good one.”
“You’ve got an asshole ex, too?”
Those shadows flitted across Aspen’s eyes again. “No, but I know the type.”
I leaned my shoulder into hers, wondering if she was telling the truth. I couldn’t imagine how hard it would be to get out of a difficult situation with an ex and have a child to care for at the same time. It made me feel like a bit of a wimp for the pity party I’d been throwing myself the past couple of weeks. “I’m sorry for whatever you went through.”
She shook herself out of whatever memory held her captive. “Thanks.” Her gaze cut to me. “Never put up with anyone treating you with even a hint of cruelty. It’s always a sign of bad things to come.”
I studied the woman next to me. She was right. And I’d rather be alone for the rest of my days than put up with that again. There was freedom in that. For so long, I’d desperately wanted a family of my own. To belong to someone. But the truth was, I already had it. In the Hartleys, with Wren, and with Nash. And I would only build more of that now that I was home. It might not look like the families on TV or in the picture books I’d read at the library. But it was sweeter than that because it was real.
A smile spread across my lips. “I think we’re going to be good friends.”
Aspen grinned back at me. “I think so, too.”
I arched my back as I flipped the sign on the door to Closed. Aspen had left a couple of hours ago to pick up Cady, and I was fighting the urge to sink to the floor and take a nap. My feet hurt, my back ached, and my ribs were in agony.
“The sooner you wipe down these tables, the sooner you’ll be out of here.”
And now I’d stooped to talking to myself, too. Whatever it took to make it through the day.
I pulled my phone out of my back pocket and turned it on, bracing myself. The second it powered up, a million dings sounded. My stomach sank. Sixty-three new text messages.
Nash’s words about Adam wanting a reaction echoed in my head. Fingers shaking, I blocked the number. Then I pressed the edit button and deleted every single message without reading any.
I stood there, staring at my phone. The device that I suddenly realized had been holding me hostage—a tool of Adam’s torture.
He didn’t get to win. Not anymore. I pulled up my music app and selected a sixties soul station. My Girl spilled from the tiny speaker, and I let out a breath.
I wouldn’t allow anyone or anything to steal the happiness I’d found in coming home. Not Adam. Not my dad possibly getting out of prison. Not jerky customers. I had a house. A job with amazing coworkers and free food that tasted incredible. Friends that had my back. I was building a life for myself, and it was going to be a wonderful one.
I let The Temptations, Aretha Franklin, and James Brown carry me through my cleanup. It didn’t take that long at all. I switched off the music and slipped my phone into my purse. Tugging the strap over my shoulder, I headed for the door.
The afternoon sun fought back the chill that typically filled the air. If I wasn’t so exhausted, I would’ve opted for a long walk when I got home. Instead, I planned to soak in the tub and maybe splurge on a movie to watch. Maybe I could force Nash into watching something with zombies with me.
Rounding the corner, I moved toward my SUV. My steps faltered as I took it in. Something about the image in front of me was wrong. But it took me getting up close to realize what it was. Someone had slashed all four of my tires.
