Page 34 of Just Let Go

“It’s no big deal,” Jaden said. “Some guy was being a jerk and Grady shut him up.”

“What does that mean, ‘shut him up’?” Carly asked.

“He got in a fight,” Quinn said. “At Hazel’s. Put a hole in the wall, broke a bunch of stuff. So now he’s stuck here doing community service.”

“Oh, yeah, they were talking about this at the nurses’ station.” Carly set her coffee down. “Was that Dad’s idea?”

“Dad and Judge. The two of them together are out to teach this guy a lesson, but he doesn’t listen to anyone.”

Carly stopped, her mouth twitching upward into a nearly undetectable smile. “I’ve never seen you this worked up about anyone before.”

“Knock it off.” Quinn walked to the cupboard and pulled outa travel mug. She could see where this was headed, and she needed to make a quick exit—but she wanted the coffee.

“Good-looking Olympic athlete meets small-town flower shop owner?” Carly raised her eyebrows. “I like it. It has promise.”

“You’re off your nut if you think I feel anything but utter irritation for this guy.”

“Uh-huh.”

“I’m serious.”

“He said he’d take me skiing,” Jaden said.

Carly’s eyes darted to her son. “Seriously?”

“Jaden, don’t get your hopes up. This is the kind of guy who says whatever he thinks people want to hear. He’s probably going to get one of his big, fancy lawyers out here to overturn Judge’s decision, and he’ll be gone before he ever has a chance to go anywhere with you.”

“You don’t know that.” Jaden’s mouth was half-full. He swallowed. “He could totally make good on that promise, take me skiing, fix my turns, correct my form, and send me on my way to the Olympics.”

“Jay.” Carly frowned.

Jaden shoveled another bite into his mouth, then grabbed his lunch and his backpack. “I gotta go.” He didn’t wait around for good-byes.

“Should I give him a ride?” Quinn glanced out the window and saw him walking toward the school.

“He likes the walk sometimes. Says it helps him clear his head.” Carly took another sip of her coffee. “What am I going to do with that kid?”

“Carly, I’m worried about him putting too much faith in Grady. I know Jaden’s been let down in the past, I just don’t want to see him get hurt.” The thought of it squeezed her heart like a vise. She loved that kid. He might as well have been all of theirs—hers, Carly’s, Dad’s. Even Beverly, Judge, and Calvin would claim Jaden as their own.

How could she protect her nephew from getting his heart broken again at the hands of a thoughtless man?

Carly tore a banana from the bunch and stuck it in her open lunch bag. Quinn could see that her sister’s defenses had gone up. After all, in her mind, it was her own actions that had led to Jaden’s heartache. She’d gotten pregnant when she was just seventeen, and her high school boyfriend—Jaden’s “dad”—had all but disappeared. Over the years, Josh Dixon had broken promises to his only son, so many that Jaden now refused to see or even speak to the man.

But none of that was Carly’s fault—surely she knew that.

“I just don’t know what to do with him, Q.” Carly’s eyes were glassy and she blinked back tears. “He hates school, has very few friends. The only thing he has any interest in is skiing, but it’s so impractical. Does he really think he’s going to make it to the Olympics?” Carly grabbed a tissue and dabbed the corners of her eyes. “I don’t get it, Quinn. The first time he ever skied was with Josh—did you know that?”

Quinn shook her head.

“It might be the only time his dad has actually shown up for him. What if he’s holding on to skiing just because it’s the one thing that connects him to his dad?” Her tears betrayed her.

“I think you’re reading too much into that,” Quinn said. “Maybe that’s why he started, but I think now he just genuinely loves it.”

“Like you genuinely love owning Mom’s flower shop?”

Quinn stilled. “That’s different.”

Carly’s nonverbal reply told her that her sister wasn’t so sure.

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