“Amazing, aren’t they? I got them from my friend Kendall. She bought the wrong size and donated them to the shop. I had to have them, though, so I bought them from her. They’re not too small, are they?”
“They feel good. I’m an eight.”
“Me too. Kendall has freakishly small feet. She forgot about US measurements, much to our advantage.”
“Are you sure you don’t mind me borrowing these?”
“Please. I hate to see a gorgeous pair of boots spend their life cooped up in a shoe box. Those puppies are meant to be worn. And they’re totally sexy on you.”
Sexy wasn’t exactly the look she was going for, but she’d take it.
“I’ll bring them back in the morning, if that’s okay.”
Grace waved her hand through the air again. “No rush.”
“And the jeans and top.”
“Oh, honey. You should keep those. It’s like they were made for you.”
“I don’t know.” Jenna stopped in front of the over-sized framed mirror that leaned against the wall, startled by the sexy ensemble. “Maybe.”
Grace’s cell phone rang on the counter, and she sauntered off with an air of ... grace—how fitting—to answer it. While she took the call, Jenna went back to the dressing room to change.
When she came out, dressed again in her leggings and long teal ombre-dyed shirt, Grace was talking with two women who were looking at dresses. Jenna set her new outfit on the counter and took out her wallet.
“Put that away.” Grace took the wallet from her hand and dropped it in Jenna’s purse.
“You’ll go out of business if you don’t charge people.”
“Actually, just the opposite. You plan on renting the outfit. I want you to buy it all. Except the boots. I want those back.” She folded the clothes and put them in a cute bag, handing them to Jenna. “I’m giving you twenty-four hours to think about it. It’s called being business savvy.” Grace hugged her and gave her an air kiss before returning to the women on the other side of the store.
Chuckling to herself, Jenna left the store feeling semi-good about the reunion tonight. Rushing around to make sure Jerry and the nurses were all set before she retreated to her room to get ready, she tried not to regret her RSVP.
Elizabeth Perry was her best friend in high school, and she needed to commemorate her memory by attending. It would be disrespectful not to. There were a few girlfriends she kept in touch with through email, but no meaningful ones anymore.
It wasn’t that her friendships had turned sour; it was just that she’d taken a different path right out of high school while her friends moved on to college or the workforce. Jenna didn’t regret the time she spent with Tristan, or the sacrifices she’d made.
Actually, she didn’t make many. He did. He dropped out of college so he could spend more time with her. He gave up a degree and possible career in engineering to be with her. He often chose her over his mother, causing a rift in their relationship.
Jenna, on the other hand, hadn’t sacrificed much. She’d never had plans to go to college. Maybe take a few art classes, but she didn’t have a career focus, and her parents were fine with that. They wanted her to be happy.
Being with Tristan, waitressing, spending time with her family was what made her happy.
Pushing the nostalgia aside, she finished dressing and ran a wide-tooth comb through her hair. As if on autopilot, her hands went to work braiding her long, thick mane. Catching another glimpse of the rest of her that had been totally made over, thanks to Grace, she paused letting the three sections of hair fall away.
Moving, taking on the job as Jerry’s caretaker, and diving into her art had given her a fresh start. So why keep reverting back to what was comfortable?
Rummaging through a box she had never unpacked, she finally found it. A wide-barrel curling iron she hadn’t used since ... her wedding day.
Nope. Not going there. She had the right to curl her hair whenever she wanted. It didn’t mean she was reminiscing about her wedding.
Racing against the clock, she spent the next thirty minutes doing her hair. Finally satisfied with the result, she unplugged the curling iron and transferred her keys, license, credit cards, and cash to a small clutch Grace had tossed in the bag.
“Wow. Jenna. You look amazing,” Cindy said as she massaged Jerry’s left leg.
“You’re not running off on me, are you?” Jerry asked from his bed.
“Not a chance. You’re the only man who has the key to my heart.” She crossed the room and kissed the top of his balding head. “I’ll be home tomorrow morning. I’m staying at my mom’s house tonight, but if either of you need me,” she glanced at Cindy, “please don’t hesitate to call.”
It would give her an excuse to leave the party early. It wasn’t fair to go into the night with such a negative attitude. She dressed the part; it could be a fun night. Which was why she made arrangements to sleep at her parents.
She listened to eighties and nineties party music on her way to her hometown to get in the mood for the party. She stopped at her parents’ house to drop off her overnight bag and to visit. The visit being a little shorter than planned since she’d spent extra time getting ready.
“You’re gorgeous, sweetheart,” her mother said as she welcomed her with a hug. Carolyn Snyder was known for her hugs. Human and animal hugs. For the past thirty-one years she worked the front desk at the local animal shelter making minimum wage and loving every minute of it.
Growing up, their house had always been a hotel of sorts for creatures big and small. Three-legged dogs, cats with one eye, talking parrots, hamsters, and even—much to Jenna and her father Frank’s dismay—a boa constrictor.
That was when Frank put his foot down and put a limit as to how many and what kind of animals they’d take into their home. Working for the city’s sanitation department, her father didn’t make much money either, but their wants and needs weren’t much.
Jenna grew up as an only child for eight years before her brother Danny came along. She was always more a second mother, or babysitter, than a sister. They didn’t ever fight, but they didn’t have much in common either.
Danny had a serious case of hero worship when Tristan entered their lives, and he had just as much of a hard time getting over the divorce as Jenna had. Too caught up in her own pain, she never talked much to her younger brother about the grief.
He’d been a sophomore in high school, an awkward and challenging time for any teen, and she hadn’t been there.
In the past few years she’d tried to work on rebuilding their relationship, but Danny was rarely home, only visiting from time to time when he was on leave from the Navy.
She glanced at the wall above the couches at the pictures that hadn’t changed since she was in middle school. Her parents kept her wedding photo up, positioned next to Danny in his Navy whites.
“My daughter’s gone and grown up on us.” Her daddy hugged her and kissed her cheek.
“Ellen stopped by the other night for a glass of wine and said Mindy was coming home for the reunion too.”
“Yeah. She messaged me a few days ago. She’s going to stop by to pick me up. She wants to see you guys too.”
“Sweet girl,” her mother said. Jenna followed her mom into the kitchen and took the cookie she was offered. “I made a batch of oatmeal raisin for you to take home. Can Jerry still eat them?”
“Yes, and he may cast me aside for you as his next bride prospect if he gets his hands on them.” Jenna bit into the cookie with a smile.
“How is he doing? Recovered from the flu yet?” her father asked, joining them at the counter.
“Pneumonia. And I don’t think he’ll ever fully recover. I can see him getting weaker and weaker every day. I’m not sure how much time he has left.”
The three of them stood in silence for a few minutes before her father broke it. “Will you come home when he ... passes?”
That had been the plan when she took the job. It was supposed t
o be a temporary life change for her to clear her mind of everything that reminded her of the past and to recharge. But in the past few years she’d made a new life for herself. New friends. A new beginning.
“I don’t know. I really like my life in Crystal Cove.”
“Where will you live?”
“Living rent free, I’ve been able to save a lot. I have enough for a down payment on something small. Or maybe even rent for a while.”
Grace’s apartment had been passed from Lily to Grace, and with Grace planning a wedding with Brady, it would be available in the spring.
“We’re happy for you, baby.” Her father gave her a one-armed hug as the doorbell rang.
“That must be Mindy.” Jenna greeted her friend at the door and ushered her in.
“Hi Mr. and Mrs. Snyder. It’s been a long time.” They all exchanged hugs and polite greetings, discussing their jobs and families.
They didn’t visit for too long and soon said their goodbyes and went outside to Mindy’s minivan. Since she was just a few months away from giving birth to her second child, Mindy had offered to be designated driver.
At first, when Mindy had contacted her about going to the reunion together, Jenna wanted to decline. Seeing her best friend from high school rounded with maternity would only make her envious and sad.
But she had a good old-fashioned heart to heart with herself, figuratively slapped herself in the face a few times, and told herself to move on. She couldn’t live the rest of her life miserable anytime a friend was pregnant.
It had been hard when Alexis had adopted Sophie as a newborn, but as time went on it had gotten easier to be around her. And it wasn’t her friends’ fault they didn’t know how difficult it was for her to see pregnant women or babies.
“Lucas is finally catching on that Mommy has a baby in her belly. You should have seen his reaction when Phil and I told him he’s going to have a little sister. You would have thought the world was coming to an end.” Mindy carried on about stories of her perfect little life in Massachusetts.
Not that Jenna resented her. She really didn’t. And so she did the polite thing and asked about them. “How old is Lucas now?”
“He’ll be three in a few weeks. Phil wanted to come to the reunion with me and meet all you guys, but we didn’t have anyone to watch Lucas. My mother has been sick with the flu, and I didn’t want to inconvenience her, and Phil’s family ... Well, let’s just say they pretend to be involved with our lives, but it’s just for show.”
“Really? I thought you moved to Mass to be near them.”
“That and because of a job opportunity for Phil. They put on a good show, but not once have they babysat for us. Do you know how much it costs to hire a sitter? Between the sitter, the movie, and the popcorn, it costs us over a hundred bucks to get out for a few hours. Highway robbery. What about you? What are you up to these days?”
She told her about Jerry and her friends she’d made in Crystal Cove.
Mindy pulled into the already crowded dirt lot and parked next to a black pick-up. She undid her seatbelt and rubbed her belly.
Jenna did her best not to stare. Yeah, it was the only thing she and Tristan had heated arguments about. The financial cost of having a family. Both growing up poor, they were used to not having much.
“Oh! I can hear the music already. This is going to be fun. I’m so glad you decided to come tonight, Jenna. I’ve missed you.”
“I’ve missed you too,” she said honestly. They had hundreds of sleepovers over the years. Best friends since kindergarten, the only thing that ever came between them was Tristan. But Mindy had always been so understanding about it. They never had fights over Jenna’s newfound love.
Instead, Mindy had been supportive and appreciative of the time they did spend together.
“Let’s whoop this party up,” Mindy said, grabbing Jenna’s hand as they walked toward the tent. “And I just gotta say, you look freaking amazing. Those boots are killer.”
“Thank you. You’re gorgeous as well.” She squeezed her friend’s hand. “Pregnancy looks beautiful on you. I’m happy for you and your family.”
And she was. She really, really was.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Tristan parked the smoker near the line of tables that held the paper plates, napkins, and cutlery. The reunion wasn’t anything fancy; fancy wasn’t what those who were reminiscing their high school days wanted.
While he set up the cooling dishes for the potato and pasta salads, the DJ set up in the far corner. Tristan hadn’t attended his ten-year reunion. The wounds of his losses too fresh and hashing out the past, answering questions about Jenna all night were not his idea of a good time.
Besides, he didn’t have much time off while apprenticing in Boston. Especially on a weekend. He wouldn’t have minded seeing some of his old buddies again though. He’d been active in sports and the social scene. Until his senior year when he devoted one hundred and ten percent of his time to Jenna.
“Hey, Tristan. Thank you again for catering for us. Jake and Brad were pumped to hear you’d be around tonight.” Kevin slapped him on the back like the good old days.
The four of them had been tight, even with the two-year age difference. When it came to hockey, age was only a number. It was talent that mattered, and the underclassmen were just that. Even more-so than him.
Kevin had been part of the planning committee and had called on Tristan as soon as he’d learned he’d started a catering business. They’d messaged each other a few times over the past year and had made vague attempts to get together.
Once again his schedule prohibited him from the social scene.
“Good to see you again too, Kev. Over a hundred tonight, huh? That’s a pretty decent turn out for a fifteen-year reunion.”
“I think it’s the casual vibe we set up. And maybe having a famous chef cater dinner.”
Tristan snorted. “I’m far from famous.” The barbecue menu didn’t exactly show off his cooking talent either. It didn’t matter, though. Tonight wasn’t about garnering new leads.
He’d make sure everyone was fed and would take off before Jenna noticed him. Just like at the wedding last month. Alexis had said she’d warned Jenna he’d be there; he didn’t have a clue if she knew he was coming to her reunion.
Or even if she’d be there. The last thing he wanted to bring up was his past.
Cook, feed, leave. That was his plan.
The reunion committee hung white lights from the tent then covered the round tables with white and purple plastic tablecloths. Bouquets of white and purple balloons were set on either side of the DJ and at each end of the banquet table. Heat lamps were stationed around the area as well.
“Hi, Tristan. I’m not sure if you remember me?”
He didn’t, but he could read the name on her nametag. “Sure. It’s Lindsay, right.”
She tossed a flirtatious laugh at him. “I used to watch you play hockey.”
Just like the rest of the school. They’d come close to making states, only losing by one goal in the regional play-offs.
“Thanks. It was fun playing for the team.”
“Are you going to be sticking around tonight?” She twirled the ribbon from the balloons around her fingers and batted her fake eyelashes at him.
A few months ago he might have been tempted by her not-so-subtle offer. She was pretty enough, and he didn’t remember her from high school—which meant she wasn’t one of Jenna’s close friends. Tonight, however, he wasn’t the least bit tempted.
“As soon as you’re all done with the food, I’ll be high-tailing it back home.”
“Oh, that’s too bad.” The DJ started the music, drowning out the rest of her reply.
He gave her a polite nod and went back to his van to bring out the rest of the supplies.
It wasn’t long before people started showing up. There weren’t as many places for him to hide at this event. The circus-style white tent offered no private kitchen quart
ers. He’d pulled his van and the smoker up to the corner where the food table was, and he planned on spending as much time as possible hiding in his vehicle, keeping a watchful eye on the food.
And possibly Jenna. If he’d been a better man he would have mentioned the event to Alexis so she could’ve given Jenna a heads-up. But the chance of seeing her again was worth the backlash he’d get from her for surprising her like this.
It wasn’t like the lights went suddenly bright or dim, or the music stopped or got louder, but somehow he knew when she showed up.
Using the door of the smoker as a shield, he hid behind it and watched as she hung on to the arm of a friend, smiles and laughter on both of their faces.
Mindy, if he remembered correctly. Her belly was round and full, just as Jenna’s had been at Christmastime.
It wasn’t the belly that had his heart skipping a beat. It was Jenna. Damn, her hair was sexy the way it curled past her shoulders. Her very bare shoulders.
The red top did nothing to stop him from imagining what was underneath. He let his gaze travel south as he stared at her legs, encased in tight, dark denim and trailed down into a pair of red cowboy boots that would have any man picking up his tongue off the ground.
“Shit.” He scrubbed his hand along the back of his neck and forced his eyes away from her. The balloons didn’t keep his attention for long. He heard her laughter, a sound he hadn’t heard in years, and like a magnet to steel, focused once again on all that was Jenna.
Mindy caught him staring and lowered her gaze. In one quick, swift move, she turned them both, leading Jenna to the far corner of the tent where the bar was set up.
That was good. Real good. As long as Mindy could keep Jenna away from him she would enjoy the night. He loved hearing her laugh, and if she saw him, she wouldn’t anymore.
That time was short lived as soon as the reunion committee took the mic and asked everyone to sit. Tristan followed Mindy’s clever maneuver to make Jenna sit on the far end with her back toward the banquet table.
By the still glowing expression on Jenna’s face, she obviously had no clue he was there. Unless she was more over him than he was her. Maybe his presence wasn’t a big deal to her anymore because she moved on.
Finding Our Way Back (A Well Paired Novel) Page 10