Page 109 of Just One Kiss

“What about me?”

“It’s just, Jaden’s getting older. I hate the thought of him going off to school—or training, whichever—and you being here alone.”

Carly shrugged. “I’m a big girl, Q. I can take care of myself.” She forced a smile, but her throat had tied itself into a knot. Shewasperfectly capable of taking care of herself—and another human being—so why did the thought of being alone settle so poorly on her shoulders now?

“I know you can,” Quinn said. “But it would be nice if someone else took care of you for a change.”

Yes, it would.

Carly pulled into a parking space in front of Hazel’s Kitchen and looked up at the ceiling to keep from crying. She couldn’t allow herself to entertain the idea. She couldn’t let herself think of Josh mowing her lawn, weeding her flowerbeds, buying her a newstate-of-the-artmower. She hadn’t said so, but that old mower was one she bought secondhand and it was always a crapshoot whether or not it was going to start.

He’d obviously known that. And he hadn’t asked—he’d just done what needed to be done.

Why couldn’t you have done that for the last sixteen years?

It didn’t matter. Carly had spent her whole adult life becoming the woman who needed nobody but herself. Nothing had changed.

And yet, everything had changed.

It was as if Jaden’s diagnosis and treatment had shone a spotlight on her own fragility. Was it possible she wasn’t as indestructible as she thought she was?

They each opened their car doors and stepped out. Quinn was telling her about the Parisian flower markets when she stopped mid-sentence. “Is that Josh?”

Carly followed her sister’s gaze across the street, where she spotted Josh exiting Dandy’s Bakery with a leggy blonde.

The woman was young, slender and clearly spent a lot of time in the gym. And she was beautiful.

And all at once Carly wished she’d taken Quinn’s advice and changed her clothes. Fixed her hair. Put on some makeup.

She grabbed Quinn’s arm and pulled her into the hardware store.

“Who isthat?” Quinn’s eyes followed Josh and the blonde as they walked down the street in the opposite direction. They stopped in front of the fudge shop and went inside.

“I have no idea.”

“Is he dating someone?”

Carly pretended not to care. “Beats me.”

Maybe he was. Maybe this woman loved Josh and wanted to marry him. Maybe she’d surprised him because he’d been gone too long and now he was doing the polite thing and showing her around his hometown.

But then that meant he’d been lying to her. Had everything he said last night on the porch been a lie? And why did it matter? It wasn’t like she wanted those things to be true.

“We came here to shop,” Carly said. “Not to spy on Josh.”

Amusement washed over Quinn’s face. “Okay.”

“Can I help you girls?”

They spun around to find portly Ed Delancey, owner of the Harbor Pointe hardware store, staring them down. He wore a plaid shirt, denim overalls and work boots, same thing he wore every single day, Carly suspected.

Once when they were kids Quinn had swiped three root beer barrels from the candy counter and their dad made her bring them back in and apologize. Ed Delancey had been suspicious of them ever since.

“We’re good, but thanks,” Carly said, pushing Quinn toward the door.

Quinn giggled as they went back outside.

“All right, little sister,” Carly said, needing a distraction. “What’s left to be done for this wedding of yours?”

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