Page 38 of Shuttered Hearts

“Of course. You know I love Ashford Falls. I would take any excuse to visit. Plus, Scott has loved your mopey ass for years now. He deserves my awesomeness in his life for a little bit.”

I laugh as I throw my arm around her shoulder. “Did you check any bags?”

“Yeah, just one. I’m not sure how long I’ll be here.”

“You’re welcome as long as you want, but don’t you have to get back to work?”

“I’ve got plenty of saved-up PTO, and I’m between cases at the moment, so this really couldn’t have happened at a better time for me.” Her tone of voice has me questioning if there’s more to it than that, but I’ll let her get away with it—for now, at least.

She studies me while we wait for her bag. “So, anything new going on here?”

“No,” I say, but she continues staring at me. “What?”

“You seem a little fidgety.”

“Fidgety?”

“Yeah, I don’t know how else to describe it.” She crosses her arms and gives me a stern look. “What’s going on?”

I look at her, thinking if I’m ready to talk about it, but decide to tell her. Ava has been my person for years now. Yes, I’ve had Caleb and Scott, but Ava has been the person I tell everything to, since long before my divorce. “I may have kissed Quinn last night. And by kissed, I mean made out with.”

“You may have? You don’t know?” she teases.

“No, I definitely did. In the middle of the town square at the Fall Harvest Festival. Where everyone could see.” I look at her from the corner of my eye, trying to gauge her reaction.

Like me, Ava has heard about Quinn from the Marks family for years, and I’ve definitely started talking about her more since she moved home. But I haven’t really told Ava about my growing feelings for Quinn—not because I want to hide them.

No, Quinn is not the kind of person you hide. I didn’t tell Ava about my feelings because I didn’t even know what I was feeling. I couldn’t put it into words. I honestly don’t know if I can even put it into words now.

“Go big or go home, huh?” I look at her, clearly annoyed by her cavalier tone. “Okay, sorry.” She looks at me. “Wait, onemore. You’ve really got a thing for your best friends’ little sisters, don’t you?” That one causes her to laugh so hard people look at us.

“You got it out of your system now?” I ask.

“I’m sorry, but you have to admit, that was a good one. First Ryan and now Caleb?” She’s still laughing as she rushes to grab her bag from the carousel.

“If I were in a joking mood, I would probably agree with you, but I’m not there yet,” I tell her when she returns to my side, taking the suitcase from her. “Come on, let’s get out of here.”

“Okay, I’m sorry, I’ll be serious.” Ava walks next to me quietly for most of the trek back to my truck. “I know I’ve heard about Quinn from everyone, you included, but you’ve only ever talked about her as a co-worker and friend. What changed?”

“Nothing changed. She’s still very much those things.” I put Ava’s bags in the truck's back seat and open the passenger door for her.

“Okay, but it’s more than that now.” It’s not a question, but I answer her all the same. I’m not surprised Ava has picked up on the fact things have changed for me.

I walk around the front of the truck, climbing in before responding. “I think it’s actually meeting and seeing her with her family,” I say as I get in and start the truck. “Hearing her talk about her students, even the ones that piss her off.” I smile fondly, thinking about our last conversation about Tyler before leaving school Friday. “She really cares. Like in her soul, she cares about all of them.” I look at Ava. “After everything she’s been through, and not just with her mom, but everything in her life, the fact she still cares so deeply blows me away.”

Ava smiles softly. “I knew she was a great woman based on how Scott and Caleb talked about her, but you’ve made me a little jealous. I’d love to have someone talk about me the way you just did Quinn.” She reaches out and squeezes my hand. “I can’twait to meet her.” She pulls her hand back to buckle her seatbelt. “As for kissing her in front of the whole town, if it’s meant to be, it will all work itself out. I have no doubt you will fight to make sure that happens if that’s what you want.”

I look at her for another minute before finally turning back in my seat to buckle my seatbelt. “Thanks, Ava.”

“Of course.” She smiles over at me again. “Are we going straight to Scott’s now, or are you taking me to the inn to get settled?”

“In what world am I letting you stay at the inn? You’re staying with me,” I tell her as I pull out of the airport. “If you’re good with it, we’ll head straight to Scott’s. It’s Sunday, so everyone will be there for breakfast.”

“Yeah, you know I don’t need much sleep to function. As long as they have coffee, I’ll be good to go.”

“I’m really glad you’re here,” I tell her. “I’m not happy about the reason, but I love when you visit, and it’s been a while. I’ve missed you.”

“I’ve missed you too.” She reaches out and squeezes my forearm resting on the center console. “I wasn’t kidding about all the time off I have saved up. I could stay through Thanksgiving. We could celebrate with the Marks instead of going home.”

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