I wondered if there was anything I could do. It wasn’t like I could actually revive a dying newspaper. But there had to be ways to improve it—to make it more interesting to the readership.
The door opened and the man who appeared instantly pulled my thoughts from all things journalism.
Josiah Haven.
His surly expression seemed to suck all the air from the room. It was like the barstools had made him angry and he’d come to collect his vengeance. That should have scared me. I usually shied away from people who seemed mad all the time. But there was something about Josiah’s brow furrow and perpetual scowl that glued my eyeballs to him.
And it wasn’t just his face, which probably would have been quite handsome if he actually smiled. His shoulders were so broad, his chest so wide, his arms so thick. His thighs were like tree trunks in those jeans. His physical presence was so intimidating, I couldn’t stop staring.
His gaze swept over the bar in a quick arc. I couldn’t be sure in the dim light, but it seemed like his eyes might have narrowed when he saw me.
I was probably imagining it. But it left a tingle in my stomach just the same.
Actually, Josiah Haven did scare me. But I kind of liked it.
Sandra let out a dramatic sigh. “If only I were younger.”
“You like big burly angry types?”
“Who doesn’t?” She laughed. “The Haven boys are all far too young for me, but I do enjoy looking.”
I watched, twisting in my chair as Josiah stalked to the bar and took a seat. Rocco came over to take his order. I might have been imagining things, but it almost looked like Rocco was watching Sandra watch Josiah—and he didn’t seem too pleased about it.
“I just realized I don’t know if you’re married.” I turned back to Sandra, hoping she didn’t think I was rude for the way I’d been staring at Josiah. “You mentioned that you have kids, but I don’t think you said anything about a husband.”
“Divorced. He thought he could do better elsewhere. Now he’s alone after being divorced twice and yes, I’m very smug about that.”
“That’s too bad.”
“It is. I shouldn’t have married him in the first place but I was young and stupid. You’re smart to wait.”
“Tell that to my mother.”
“Mothers can be opinionated, can’t they? I’ve tried to let my kids live their own lives but it’s not always easy.”
“How old are your kids?”
“My daughter is thirty-two and my son is almost twenty-nine. They’re both married but neither have made me a grandma yet, unfortunately. Hard to keep my mouth shut about that one but I do try.”
“Do they live close?”
“No, they both high-tailed it out of Tilikum as soon as they could. Some people love this place, myself included, but it was too small for them. They both live in the Seattle area. And I don’t mind, although it would be nice if they were close enough that I could pop in and annoy them.”
A hint of jealousy pricked at me. Sandra’s kids had left their hometown and stayed gone.
“I bet your mom is happy to have you living so close,” she said.
“Yeah.” I paused. “She is.”
She tilted her head. “Let me guess. It’s complicated.”
“A little. It could be a lot worse. I’ve known people with real mother horror stories. We get along most of the time. I just can’t help but think she wishes I would have turned out differently.”
“How so?”
“My dad was a politician, so my parents were very image conscious. The most important thing was always how we looked to everyone else in town. And when I was in school, I played into all that. I was an overachiever. You know, the girl who always got good grades and joined all the clubs. I was a cheerleader and in student government. I made them look good.”
“But?” she prompted.
“They had very lofty, and very specific, expectations. They encouraged me to go to college, but then I was supposed to come back to Pinecrest to serve in city government and marry Colin Greaves, my high school boyfriend, so we could be some kind of small-town power couple or something.”
“Obviously you didn’t do that.”
“No. I broke up with Colin and declared I was going to have my own life and it was not going to be anywhere near Pinecrest.” I sighed. “And yet, here I am.”
“Took a hit to your pride in coming back.”
“That’s an understatement. But I was laid off and I couldn’t find a job. Lou was the first person to reply to one of my applications in months. I’m trying not to let that hurt my feelings but it still stings.”
“It’s tough out there. My son was out of work for a while, too.”
“So tough. My old boss was really apologetic when she had to let me go. She kept saying she knew I’d land on my feet, so she wasn’t worried about me. Little did she know.”
“But you did land on your feet. Just not where you expected.”
“I guess that’s true. And it’s probably good for me to be close to my mom for a while. My dad died a couple of years ago, so I know things have been hard for her.”
“I’m sorry to hear that.”
“Thanks. It was tough but also not unexpected. His health had been deteriorating for a while.”
“How’s your mom doing with such a big change?”
“She seems fine. Honestly, this might sound terrible, but in a way, I think she’s relieved. My dad wasn’t a bad guy, necessarily, but he wasn’t easy to live with.”
“Wait, Young. Was your dad Darryl Young?”
“Yeah. Did you know him?”
“Not personally. But wasn’t he mayor of Pinecrest for years?”
“Oh yeah. Twelve years, I think.”
“I remember his name being in the paper. Your mom, too, I think. Patrice?”
“That’s her. And yeah, I think press coverage was his favorite thing ever.”
The door opened again and I had to do a double take. Colin? What was he doing here?
“Speak of the devil.”
“Who’s that?” Sandra asked, looking over her shoulder.
“Colin.”
“High school ex-boyfriend Colin? You’re kidding.”
“Nope, that’s him.”
“His ears must have been burning.”
Our eyes met and he flashed me a wide smile as he walked to our table. He was dressed similarly to the last time I’d seen him—button-down shirt and slacks. I wondered if he always dressed like that or if he’d just come from the office.
But what was he doing here?
“Hey, Audrey. We keep running into each other.” He turned to Sandra. “Hi. Colin Greaves.”
“Sandra O’Neal.”
“I didn’t think I’d see you here, of all places,” he said. “What are you doing here?”
“I was about to ask you the same thing.”
He glanced around. “I come down here once in a while. Nice to have a change of scenery. I can’t go anywhere in Pinecrest these days without being recognized. Sometimes I just want to have a drink in peace, not give out a bunch of free legal advice to the locals.”
I gave him as friendly a smile as I could manage. “I’m sure that gets old after a while. Enjoy your drink.”
He grinned, like I’d said something amusing. “I see what you’re doing, but you can’t get rid of me that easily, sweetheart. We still need to catch up. Sandra, you don’t mind if I join you.” He was already circling behind her to sit in one of the empty chairs. “How’s your mom?”
I felt like I had to answer. After all, he’d known my parents for years. “It’s been a tough couple of years, but she’s okay.”
“Glad to hear that. I’ve seen her around town. She’s certainly stayed active in the community. I’m sure that’s good for her.”
“She does like to keep busy. How are your parents?”
He leaned back in his chair. “The old man is – well, he’s still my old man. He made the mistake of retiring and now he just stays home and drives my mom crazy.”
Colin’s parents had always seemed like decent enough people, although I’d never gotten the impression that they’d liked me all that much.
I shifted in my chair, finding it impossible to get comfortable. I hoped he’d decide to get up but the silence was a few seconds away from getting awkward and he wasn’t moving, so I rushed to fill it. “And how’s Lorelei? Is she still working at the library?”