Jace clenched his fists, squeezing the paint can and the paper bag. "I'm not your buddy, anymore."
"Sorry. I thought we were adults and could move on from the past."
"Move on?" Jace glared at Alisha. "You never showed up to our wedding. I stood there like a fool in front of everyone. Neither one of you could take a minute to give me a heads up?"
Alisha looked away. "Hey, Ben, maybe we should get the kids from your parents. We promised them we wouldn't be gone long."
Jace gritted his teeth. "Yeah, maybe you should."
The three of them exchanged awkward glances.
Jace cleared his throat. "So, why don't you guys tell me what happened? I've always wondered, and I think I deserve some answers."
"It didn't work out." Alisha kept her gaze averted.
"Says you," Jace snapped. "I thought everything was just fine. How long were you two seeing each other behind my back?"
"Hey," Ben said. "It's not like that."
Alisha shook her head. "It wasn't my intention to leave you like that."
"Yet you did—even knowing everything else going on in my life."
She turned and stared at him. "What do you want from me? Ben and I are married now. We have two kids—we're a family. It didn't work out between you and me."
"What do I want?" Jace took a deep breath. "How about answers. All these years, I've been left only wondering what went wrong."
Ben took Alisha's hand. "We should get goin', sugar."
"No." Jace stood taller. "You both owe me an explanation. You were my best friend. How could you do this to me? She could've left with some random guy, but she didn't. It was you. What happened?"
Alisha stepped closer to Ben, but kept her gaze on Jace. "Do we have to talk about this here?"
"It's as good a place as any," Jace snapped. "Or would you rather sit down at Sweet Caroline's over tea?"
"Fine." She glared at him. "You changed, Jace. A lot. I thought our love would be enough, but then I saw it wasn't."
"So, you decided to add to everything I'd already been through? My father died of old age, my brother was killed at work, my mama couldn't remember me, and you decided to top off my year with leaving me at the altar. That makes a lot of sense."
"Jace, we were bickering a lot. Don't you remember that?"
"I do," Ben said.
"Who asked you?" Jace glared at him.
Ben rolled his eyes. "You said you wanted to know what happened. Alisha felt abandoned and lonely because you weren't paying her enough attention. We got to talking, and one thing led to another."
"So, you slept with my fiancée?"
"No." Ben's brows came together. "We realized we had a lot more in common than you two, but we also knew that everyone would despise Alisha around here, so we packed a couple bags and headed north to stay with my grandparents."
"Why do you even care anymore?" Alisha asked. "It was so long ago."
"This summer will be four years."
"Oh, my word." She covered her mouth.
"What?" Jace demanded.
"You never moved on, did you?"
Ben gave Jace a double-take. "Are you still stuck on Alisha?"
"No, actually I'm not. Doesn't mean I don't want answers."
"You were too much of a downer for her." Ben's brows came together. "That's your answer. Nobody wanted to be around you with all your moping and complaining."
"Unbelievable." Jace turned to Alisha. "We'd been together since we were fourteen. You left me because I wasn't fun after my life crumbled down around me?"
"We grew apart, Jace."
"Whatever you have to tell yourself so you can sleep at night."
Her mouth dropped open. "Are you serious?"
Ben narrowed his eyes at Jace. "Time to move on with your life, buddy. We're moving back, so it would be best for everyone."
"You mean you."
"We'll see you around." Ben stepped away, pulling Alisha's arm.
Lucille walked over with her dog. "What's going on around here? An unhappy reunion?"
"I was just leaving," Jace said.
"Oh." Lucille looked at Jace. "I wanted to discuss that blind date with Maggie."
"That's a great idea," Alisha said. "Help him to finally get over me. Let's go, Ben."
Jace glared at her. If looks could kill…
"Are you free a week from Thursday?" Lucille asked.
"No," Jace said quickly.
"He's lying, Miss Lucille," Alisha said with a song to her voice. She and Ben walked around the corner.
Lucille smiled. "So, next Thursday?"
"Actually, next never works better for me."
"Alisha's right. It's high time you move on and find yourself a sweet girl, like my Maggie."
"I already—"
"Bernadette!" Lucille called, looking behind Jace and waving. She turned back to Jace. "I have to talk with her about the upcoming charity gala. Press your best clothes by Thursday." She ran off, her heels clacking on the sidewalk.
"I'm busy!"
Fifteen
Sky uploaded her latest video and turned to Pixie. "Wanna go to the pet store?"
Pixie ran around in circles, barking. Not that she knew they were going to Happy Paws, she just got excited whenever Sky said, 'Wanna go?'
Sky glanced in the mirror on her desk, flattened her hair, and fixed her lipstick—just in case she ran into Jace. He did work at the cottages. She sighed dreamily, remembering the night before. Her insides turned to mush as she relived the kiss… again. Not only did he prefer her to Aspen, but he was perfect—gorgeous without being conceited, mysterious without being a jerk, and strong without being intimidating.
How on earth was he still single? It was best not to question a good thing.
Pixie barked, bringing Sky back to the present.
"Right. The pet store. Wanna pick out a new toy?"
The cute little pup danced in another circle. Sky double-checked her hair and makeup before getting up. She grabbed her good camera, hoping the Montgomerys wouldn't mind her taking some photos of their shop for her blog. Her readers couldn't get enough of Sky's pictures of Indigo Bay. She'd spent hours replying to comments asking for more.
Just as Sky clipped on Pixie's leash, her phone rang. Excitement buzzed through her. Maybe it was Jace. She dug the phone out of her purse, and her mouth dropped when she saw the caller ID.
She accepted the call. "Aspen?"
"Hey, sis! How's it going?"
"I'm a little surprised." Sky almost never heard from her twin aside from the social media updates she posted to the world. "Congrats on being in the movie."
"You watched it," Aspen squealed. "It was so hard not to tell you guys. I wanted everyone to be surprised. Now I'm a singer and an actress! Mom and Dad were beside themselves."
"Congratulations."
"So, how's that little town you're in?"
Sky arched a brow. She hadn't told Aspen about her move. "Did Mom and Dad tell you?"
"No, silly. I follow your blog."
"You do?" Sky asked, surprised.
"I gotta keep up with my kid sister somehow, right?"
"Still hanging onto being three minutes older?"
"You know it, baby sis. Well, I have to get going. I'm going to be in a beer commercial. Just wanted to call and let you know I love you. I know I'm busy all the time, but family is first in my heart."
Sky didn't know how to respond. Part of her felt guilty for hating the effects of being Aspen's twin, but she also loved hearing that she was still important.
"You still there?" Aspen asked.
"Yeah. I love you, too."
"Gotta go. I'll try to make it down to North Carolina one of these days."
"South Carolina."
"Right. Love ya!"
"You, too."
The call ended. Sky took a deep breath and watched Pixie chewing on a toy.
"Wanna go?"
She jumped up and wagged her tail furiously.
/> Sky grabbed her big sunglasses from the table next to the door and slid on a denim bucket hat. The hat and glasses probably made her stick out more, but she didn't care. So far, no one other than those girls at Sweet Caroline's had mistaken her for Aspen.
Once out in the humidity, Sky headed for her car for the air conditioning. Then she stopped. "No. I need to get used to this."
She and Pixie headed for Happy Paws Pet Shop, saying hello to those they passed. A few stopped to pet Pixie, who of course adored the attention.
Finally, they made it into the adorable—and more importantly, air conditioned—shop. Sterling was busy painting a brown, curly-furred Labradoodle on the front window. He wiped his forehead, smearing paint on it. "Hi, there. Sky, is it?"
She nodded, removed her sunglasses, and glanced at the window. "Nice artwork."
"Thanks. I went to art school, and this is the only way I get to use my skills."
"I heard that," Violet called. She appeared from around the corner and laughed. "Don't listen to him. He draws and paints more than he does anything else."
"Hey, now." Sterling laughed and went back to painting.
"Can I help you find anything?" Violet set down a bag of dog food nearly as big as she was.
"Pixie's going to pick out a toy, and I need to get some more food for her, but I have a question for you that's going to sound crazy."
"You're in luck," Sterling said. "She loves crazy."
Violet shook her head. "Because I'm married to you, right?"
Sky laughed. "You walked into that one."
"Guess I did."
"So," Violet said. "What's the crazy question?"
"I was hoping I could take pictures of your shop. It's adorable, and I have a popular blog. My readers will love it, and who knows, maybe it'll help bring extra business."
"Hold your horses." Violet smiled widely. "You want to give us free advertising?"
"Uh, basically, yeah. You don't mind?"
Violet turned to Sterling. "Hey, honey. I think I found my new best friend."
Sky laughed. "We all win."
"Let me just dust a few things off while you get the toy and dog food. 'Kay?"
"Sure." Sky took Pixie over to the toys and set a few in front of her. Pixie sniffed and poked at them until finally taking one in her mouth. Then she headed over to the food aisle, grabbed a bag of Pixie's favorite, and took it all to the counter.
"All done." Violet dropped a rag behind the counter.
"Let me pay for these first."
"Are you kiddin'?" Violet shook her head. "No way. Take 'em. It's the least we can do."
Sky frowned. "I can't do that."
"Sure you can. We can't afford to pay you for advertising, but we can afford this."
"But this isn't really an ad. It's just a feature. I—"
"No arguing. Get those pictures taken before I have to dust again."
"Okay." Sky pulled out her camera and planned to leave some cash by the register before leaving. She snapped pictures of the cute displays of toys, even getting a few of Sterling painting and one of Violet dressing a stuffed dog in a football jersey for a display.
Time flew by as she captured over a hundred images.
Just before she finished, another customer came in. Sky tiptoed toward the register to slip the money for her purchase.
"Hi, Miss Lucille," Sterling said. "How are you and Princess today?"
"Couldn't be better." The older blonde woman in a flowered, puffy dress smiled at him. "I got some new shoes, so Princess needs a collar to match."
Sky arched a brow. That was certainly something she'd never heard of before—and Sky was known for overdressing her pup. She slid the fifty underneath a stapler and headed for the front door. The two dogs sniffed each other. Both had bows on their heads, and sure enough, the white dog's collar matched her owner's magenta pumps.
The older woman paid no attention to Sky or Pixie. She turned to Violet. "Remember my great-niece, Maggie?"
Violet nodded. "Is she enjoying her stay?"
"She's talking about staying all summer, though if I have my way, she'll move here. Oh, and I even set her up on a date."
Sky waved to Sterling and Violet, then opened the door.
"Jace Fisher is going to take her out on the town next Thursday."
Sky froze in place. Jace was going on a date with that woman's niece?
Lucille continued. "Maggie's going to show him a good time and finally pull that boy from his shell."
Head spinning, Sky stepped outside before she could hear any more about Jace seeing someone else.
Sixteen
Jace dropped the paint and the bag on the floor and stormed over to the kitchen. Then he marched into his bedroom. He paced, unable to think straight.
Hadn't Ben and Alisha done enough to ruin his life? Why did they have to encourage Lucille to set him up with Maggie?
Actually, now that Jace thought about it, they hadn't ruined his life. They'd done him a favor. If Alisha was really that shallow, he could only imagine how miserable he would be married to her. Not to mention having a cheating lowlife for a best friend.
But that didn't stop the anger. It pulsated through him. He wanted to break something, but that wouldn't accomplish anything. It would just give him something to clean up.
He paced through every room, fuming. How had the day made such a drastic turn? He'd woken up so happy he'd actually whistled. Whistled! Now he felt stupid for allowing himself happiness and hope.
Maybe he was an idiot for getting excited about Sky. It had been one good evening, and two quick kisses. She may have even woken up having forgotten all about it.
Why did he have to run into Alisha, Ben, and Lucille? Was it just life's way of reminding him that he didn't deserve to be happy?
Jace spun around, and before he knew it, his fist went through the wall. He pulled his hand back and shook it out, staring at the hole. Great. Now he'd have to fix that before Dallas saw it. But first, he needed to get outside. If he stayed there, he would only wind up with more holes in the drywall to repair.
His phone rang. He couldn't talk to whoever it was—probably Dallas needing something done at one of the cottages. That would have to wait. Without looking at his phone, he threw it on his bed. He needed to calm down.
He grabbed his sketchbook and pencils. That would be a much better way to work out his emotions. Jace stormed outside and headed for his favorite spot between the trees. The best thing about it was that no one else knew about it. In all of his times there, he'd never run into anyone else.
Once comfortable on the root seat, he leaned against the trunk and studied the scene before him. Despite the beautiful beach, all he could see was Alisha, Ben, and Lucille. Thankfully, they weren't actually there. If they were, Jace would be tempted to do what he'd done to the wall to Ben's smug face.
He closed his eyes and listened to the waves rolling onto the shore, birds squawking, and the sounds of kids in the distance. The children only reminded him of Alisha and Ben's family. Not that Jace cared anymore. Those two deserved each other.
Taking a deep breath, he opened his eyes. He needed to get his mind off everything, and the only way to do that was to start drawing. He pulled out a pencil, not even paying attention to what color it was, and started drawing the waves. They were orange, but he didn't care. They could be blood red for all it mattered.
Time disappeared as he drew the scene before him in a strange array of colors. In a way, he liked it—the orange water, the purple sand, the green sky, and pink birds. He continued picking colors at random as he added more to the drawing. He was about to finish it off with yellow kids in the distance when footsteps sounded.
Jace froze. He never heard that in his spot. Had someone finally found it? He quickly shoved his art into the bag before anyone could see it. His heart sank as he looked over. Then shock took over. "Sky?"
She stood there without her dog. Her eyes widened and her mouth dropped, her expressi
on registering the same surprise he felt. Then her face twisted, almost as though disgusted.
"How'd you find this place?" Jace slid his yellow pencil and the sketch pad into his bag.
"I found it the other day. Pixie and I have been coming out here to get space."
Well, if anyone had to find it, at least it was her. He moved over and patted the space on the root next to him.
She folded her arms and didn't budge.
"I tried calling. Are you ignoring me?"
"No. I left my phone at home."
Her eyes narrowed, almost like she was trying to figure out if he was telling her the truth.
"I come out here when I need to get away from everything."
Sky's mouth formed a straight line.
"You okay?" he asked, pretty sure he already knew the answer.
"Not really."
"That makes two of us, then. Wanna talk about it?"
She opened her mouth and then closed it. Then she started to say something, but then stopped.
"Or you can just sit." He patted the root again.
"I thought last night was special." She sounded angry.
"So did I." Jace wanted to say more, but given that she looked as pissed as he felt, he didn't dare. They'd probably end up in an argument, and she was the last person he wanted to be at odds with. They stared at each other for a full minute.
"Are you seeing anyone else?" she demanded.
He gave her a double-take. "What? No. I meant every word I said last night."
"Then why did someone in town say you're going out with a Maggie?"
Suddenly, everything made sense. Anger ran through him, blurring his vision.
"What's going on?" Sky exclaimed.
Jace took a deep breath and looked at her. "Lucille, Indigo Bay's very own busybody, has it in her mind that her great-niece Maggie and I would make a perfect couple—despite the fact I keep telling her I'm not interested."
"She's convinced you're taking Maggie out on Thursday."
"Then both she and Maggie will be sorely disappointed. The only person I have any interest in dating is standing right in front of me."
Sky held his gaze, her expression slowly softening. "Really?"
He nodded. "Ask anyone in town, I haven't been on a date in years. That's why Lucille has decided to turn me into her personal project. Her timing is spectacularly horrible."
Sweet Dreams (Indigo Bay Sweet Romance Series Book 1) Page 6