Page 24 of Just Let Go

“You just what?” Hailey asked, her eyes kind.

“I just want to prove that I’m good enough.”

Lucy’s shoulders sank. “You don’t need this contest—or your mother—to tell you that, Quinn.”

Of course she would say that.Shehad a mother who’d at least bothered to stick around.

“You don’t have to prove anything to anyone,” Hailey said.

But they were wrong.

“I think you should plan a trip,” Lucy said. “On an airplane. There’s a whole world outside Harbor Pointe, and you haven’t seen any of it.”

Quinn waved her off. “Maybe once I get my bearings at the shop.” But there were reasons Quinn didn’t travel. She had to stay put—just in case.

“Hailey, I need to talk to your brother,” Quinn said.

Hailey hooked a thumb toward Ryan’s table. “He’s right there.”

“I know, but do you think he’d mind if I picked his brain about some renovations I want to do?”

“Ryan?” Hailey spun around and faced him.

He stopped mid-bite on his hash browns.

“Would you mind if Quinn picked your brain about some renovations she wants to do?”

He set his fork down. “No.”

Hailey turned back to Quinn. “He doesn’t mind.” She stood. “I’ll go get our breakfast.”

Ryan sat looking at Quinn, who suddenly felt on the spot. She’d first met Hailey and Ryan Brooks down at the beach one summer when they were growing up, and while the Brooks kids didn’t live in Harbor Pointe, they spent plenty of time there. Ryan had always been that charming, good-looking older brother who made Quinn feel like a doting little sister.

Even now.

“Quinn?” Lucy whispered.

“Right. Well, I’m the new owner of the Forget-Me-Not Flower Shop, and I’m wanting to make some changes.”

Ryan nodded.

“I just wondered if you might be able to point me in the right direction.”

Lane Kelley—gorgeous Lane—appeared in the doorway. She carried a sleek black bag over her shoulder and two big binders in her arms. She sat down across from Ryan, leaned toward him, and kissed him a quick hello.

Lane had spent enough time in Chicago to look a little out of place back in Harbor Pointe, and the beautiful ring on her left hand made her look even more so.

Ryan smiled at Lane, the kind of smile that made Quinn swoon. It was obvious in the way he looked at her how much he loved her. And for the first time in years, Quinn wondered what it would be like if someone looked at her that way.

It was a stupid thought. She knew better than to romanticize romance. It was always fleeting and never—never—lasted. It was one recipe for heartache she didn’t need.

Besides, in the five years she and Marcus were together, he’d never once looked at her that way.

Perhaps she should’ve realized it sooner.

Still, she didn’t wish her cynicism on the newly engaged couple—she hoped they’d be the ones to beat the odds.

He turned his attention back to Quinn. “I’d be happy to stop by later.”

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