Page 120 of Echoes of You

“Maybe you just never knew me as well as you thought you did. Dockside Park or nowhere.”

The park was crowded at this time of day. And Adam wasn’t the type to pull anything in public.

“Fifteen minutes,” he clipped and hung up before I could respond.

I pulled the phone away from my ear, my hand shaking. The café had mostly emptied for the day, but we had a couple of customers left. Aspen had picked her daughter up and brought her back to The Brew. Now, Cady was doing pirouettes across the floor.

I searched out my friend and found her organizing the remaining baked goods in the case. As I approached her, she looked up. Her smile faltered. “What’s wrong?”

“Something happened with Nash that I need to try to fix. Is it okay if I take off now?”

“Of course. Do you need someone to go with you? I could close up early.”

I shook my head. She’d have to bring Cady with her, and this wasn’t something a child should be exposed to. “No. But thank you.” I rounded the counter and pulled her into a hug. “You are such a good friend. You know that, right?”

Aspen hugged me back. “It’s always nice to hear. Is Nash okay?”

I released her. “He will be.” I had to believe that with everything I had.

“Text me if you need anything.”

“I will.” I grabbed my purse and headed for the door.

“Bye, Miss Maddie,” Cady called.

“Bye, Cady. Your spins look beautiful.”

She grinned and waved.

I tried to hold on to the spark of happiness that Cady shared with everyone she came across. And some of the bravery her mother had shown me how to find. I wouldn’t cower in the face of bullies any longer.

I looked both ways and then stepped into the crosswalk. Voices carried on the breeze. Kids chased one another around the playground. Adults laughed as they talked and took in the beautiful view. The crowd was comforting. He couldn’t do anything to me here. I was safe.

I said the words over and over in my mind. But the idea of facing Adam after everything that had happened had nausea rolling through me.

Finding an empty bench, I sat. While I waited, I let my memories of Nash play in my mind. He’d always been my escape when things got hard. I could replay every happy moment and lose myself in them. Only now, I had even more to play on the movie screen of my mind.

I felt Adam before I saw him. There was a shift in the air, and a coolness swept over me.

He lowered himself onto the other side of the bench and leaned in as if he might kiss my cheek.

I held up a hand. “Don’t.”

Anger flickered in his eyes, deepening as they narrowed on the bruising along my hairline. “That never would’ve happened if you were home where you belong.”

I gaped at him. Was he serious? The last time I’d seen him, he’d nearly put me through a wall. “I’m here. Talk.”

He leaned against the back of the bench, casual as could be. “Your indiscretions won’t be easily forgiven.”

“I don’t want them to be.”

He raised a brow in question at that.

I sighed. “We’re done, Adam. We don’t make each other happy. We make each other miserable.”

Surprise flashed across Adam’s expression. “We love each other. Sure, we fight, but that happens with every couple.”

I gaped at him. “Do you honestly think that what happened between us is normal? You kicked me so hard I broke three ribs.”

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