“Same as always.” Ava threw back her hair and sunk deeper into the cushions.
“It’s like you always say, Ashford Falls never changes.”
“Oh, I don’t know about that. I stopped at that new coffeeshop on my way in.”
“Yeah? That’s where I met Ben.” Ava smirked.
“Ran into Duncan.”
“Ouch. Wow. That was quick.” Amy’s blue eyes held sympathy. “Still, it’s like ripping the Band-Aid off, right? Best to get it over with fast.”
“He mentioned he’s invited to the wedding.” Ava raised a single eyebrow at her sister. She wouldn’t put it past Amy to play matchmaker.
“Well, I invited all the Knights. I couldn’t very well leave him out, now could I?” Amy sipped her tea and then, far too casually, mused out loud. “Was Tara with him?”
“Tara Willis?” Ava asked, in some surprise. “Why would Tara Willis be with Duncan?”
“I’d heard they broke up.” Amy shrugged, again far too relaxed.
“They were dating?” Ava’s jaw sagged as she remembered their mousy classmate. She couldn’t imagine a bigger mismatch than handsome, sexy Duncan with Tara. “Duncan was with Tara, the one with that awful laugh?”
“She’s a lovely person. Works at the post office now and…”
“She eats like a squirrel.”
“She had her teeth fixed years ago.”
“I suppose she’s coming too.”
“Well, yes…” Amy chewed her lower lip.
“Good Lord, Amy. Did you invite our first grade teacher too?
“Ms. Rossi would be devastated if I didn’t.”
Ava threw up her hands. After less than an hour in their hometown, Ava was hemmed in and trapped. She hated the claustrophobic feeling of being home, where everyone knew everyone else and had forever.
Where there was no escaping the past since everyone lived it right along with you.
“I’m sorry to see Michael isn’t with you.”
“I told you we broke up.” Ava most definitely didn’t want to talk about Michael. Gossiping about their breakup would necessitate telling Amy about her job loss and... well, she wasn’t ready to make it real by telling Amy. Ava’s heart pounded in her chest. She wanted nothing more than to lean on her sister but she couldn’t be that selfish. Her sister deserved the joy of her wedding, unencumbered by worries about her screw-up sister. She could give her that much at least.
“Show me your dress?”
Just then, the back door flew open, followed by the patter of running feet. A little blur with dark hair launched herself at Amy, who swept the child into an exuberant hug. A man with perfectly combed black hair and round glasses followed the little girl into the house and shut the door. Amy stood, still cuddling the child, and gave him a brief kiss. Together, they were a Christmas-card perfect family.
“Ava, this is Ben.” Amy glowed, radiant with happiness as she leaned against her groom-to-be. “And this little monkey is Livvy.”
Through their weekly phone calls, Ava knew the whole story of how Ben and Amy met at the coffeeshop. After discovering that Miss Amy was his daughter’s pre-school teacher, Ben hired Amy to teach him how to play with his four-year-old daughter. After just a few playdates, Amy and Ben started dating for real. In breathtakingly short order, they’d gotten engaged and now were due to marry in only three days. Ava fretted that her usually careful sister was rushing into marriage with a man she barely knew. Now, though, seeing them together, the picture fit. It wasn’t just some whirlwind romance. They looked right together. So content, yet so exuberant—both just basking in the total joy of loving and being loved.
Ava wasn’t jealous. She didn’t begrudge Amy her obvious bliss. Still, she was pretty sure that, even after five years of dating, Michael had never once glanced at her with the unguarded adoration that Ben wore when he looked at Amy. And she hadn’t ever felt as happy as Amy glowed when Ben kissed her forehead and scooped up his daughter for a bath.
A stray image jolted through her mind. She and Duncan, on the other hand, did fit together like two puzzle pieces slotting into place...
Ava cut that line of thought off quickly. Nothing good could come of imagining her and Duncan together. Some shut doors should never be pried open again.
“Why do I need a bath?”
“Because you’ve been swimming all afternoon like a little fish.” Ben laughed as he carried her up the stairs. Amy moved to the counter and cleared her throat.
“Ava, I wanted to talk to you.” Amy twisted her fingers in a dishtowel. “Ben and I have been living here. After the wedding, we were going to find a place but…”
“Why do you need to find a place?”
“Well, this house is half yours too.”
“What would I need with a house in Ashford Falls? I’m never going to live in it.”
Amy hung her head. “I always hoped you’d come home someday.”
“Not for more than a visit. This place is too small for me.” Ava shook her head, surprised it wasn’t more of a wrench to give up her childhood home. Amy and Ben would be happy here, raising a family and growing old together. She pushed aside the melancholy loneliness she felt and gave Amy a brilliant smile. “Now, how can I help with dinner?”
“Go relax. I’ve got this.”
At a loose end, Ava wandered into the family room and perched on the window seat. For long moments, she admired the flowers in the back garden and the butterflies dancing among them. Finally, she rested against the cushions, picking up Amy’s abandoned mystery novel. With so much time stretching in front of her, unfilled by appointments and endless to-dos, Ava could actually read for a bit. She couldn’t remember the last book she’d read for pleasure. Deliciously, she turned a few pages, savoring the tension seeping out of her as she slipped into a nap.
Chapter Four
When she looked back at her sister’s big day, Ava only remembered a series of mental snapshots. Seeing Amy in their mother’s wedding dress. Their father carefully placing two slim gold bands—their parents wedding rings—in Amy’s hand before kissing her cheek. Ava helping Amy put on their grandmother’s pearls, as the clasp tangled in her hair. Holding her sister’s hand on the short limo ride to the church as Livvy bounced on the seat beside them, thrilled to be flower girl. Helping Amy straighten her veil at the end of the aisle just as the processional music swelled.
Ava blinked back tears at what a beautiful bride her sister was before pivoting to take her place at the end of the aisle in the crowded church. The entire time, she knew Duncan was somewhere in the crowd, but she vowed not to look for him. Still, the heat of those whiskey eyes lingered as she strolled past.
The ceremony and the first part of the reception passed in a joyous blur. Ava managed not to cry when she gave her toast. She watched Amy take the dance floor with Ben for their first dance, giggling as he stepped on her toes and when Livvy dashed out to join them. Amy picked her up and they danced together, a family in far more than just name.
While Ava’s heart filled with joy for her sister, her face ached from forced smiling and making idle chit chat with people. As soon as the dancing was well under way, Ava slipped out from under the tent. She just needed a few moments to herself.
Not that she was jealous. Well, not exactly. She didn’t want Ben or Livvy for herself. She just wanted... not to feel so alone. Once outside the pool of light cast by the tent in the park, she slid her heels off, carrying them by the straps as she strolled through the grass toward the lake. On the opposite side of the water, screened from view by towering old oaks, families would be amassing for the annual fireworks display. All piling into temporary risers for the big event.
Ava closed her eyes and smiled genuinely as she reminisced about all the times her parents brought her and Amy to the other side of the lake to watch the fireworks. Amy hated the noise but not Ava. She loved the thrill of the fizzing fireworks and the glittering colors. Later, she and Duncan used to sneak off to the dark sid
e of the lake to steal kisses and eventually even more. They’d spend hours huddled in the bed of his pickup, stargazing and dreaming of their escape from Ashford Falls together.
Here, near the arboretum, everything was still and quiet. Ava could pretend she was the only soul in the world, an impossibility in bustling New York City. Idly, Ava strolled to the gazebo, the white sides glowing in the half-light of twilight. The sweet scent of summer roses that lined the pebbled path to the gazebo filled the air, their fuchsia heads bobbing in the light breeze.
A shadow moved in the gazebo. Ava stopped dead, gooseflesh prickled her arms and her heart hammered in her chest. She froze on the edge of the path, ready to backpedal toward light and safety.
Too late. The shadow snapped its head around and she realized who it was, as though she’d conjured him here with just her memories.
“Following me, Birdy?” Duncan’s low voice, with his slight Southern lilt, caressed the silly nickname only he’d ever called her.
Ava wavered between fight or flight, before finally sighing. “I didn’t realize anyone was out here.” She hopped over the stone path to spare her still bare feet and strolled up the wooden steps into the darkened gazebo. She plopped down on the weathered wood seat, leaving a careful few feet of no-man’s-land between them.
“Why aren’t you in there dancing?” Duncan kept his eyes forward and swung an amber bottle of beer to his lips.
“Could ask the same of you.” Ava held out her hand for the beer. He handed her the frosty bottle. She took a swig, enjoying the burst of citrusy hops on her tongue.
“But I’m not the one in the pretty red dress.”
Heat blossomed over Ava’s cheeks at the compliment. “Thanks.”
They sat in utter silence, both focusing on the fireflies winking on around the lake, their brilliance reflecting like tiny glowing stars in the still water. Before she left Ashford Falls, she and Duncan could talk for hours or sit together in companionable quiet. Now, this awkward, stilted silence was all they had left. Ava couldn’t think of anything to say to the person who had once upon a time been her closest friend and confidante. But that was before. Ten long years ago.
“Beautiful wedding.” Duncan finally volunteered before snagging the beer bottle from her hand. “I liked how you wore red and Livvy wore blue.”
“Very patriotic.” Ava agreed hastily, desperate to keep the chitchat going. “I was worried they were rushing into it. They just met in January”
“Amy’s been really happy. Ben’s the quiet, stoic type but he’s a good match for her.”
“I think they have the real deal.” Ava puffed out her cheeks. “Lucky them.”
Duncan picked at the label on the bottle before offering Ava the last sip. She shook her head and he slugged it back. “So, no wedding bells soon for you then?”
“Ha! No.” Ava shook her head. “And you?”
“Nope. Never even been close.”
“Didn’t think of marrying Tammy?” Ava blurted and then cursed herself. She hadn’t meant to sound jealous. He leaned back to rest on the railing, but the falling dark obscured his expression. When he stayed silent, Ava rushed to explain. “Amy mentioned you’d been seeing her.”
“We went out a few times but it wasn’t serious.” Duncan shrugged. “I’d heard you were living with some guy named Michael. I was looking forward to getting to meet him. Just couldn’t tear himself away from work?”
“We broke up.” She inwardly cursed her big-mouthed sister.
“Oh yeah? Sorry to hear that.” Duncan muttered, though he didn’t sound sorry. He sounded smug and pleased.
“Well, I should head back.” Ava grabbed her shoes.
“Don’t let me keep you.” Duncan nodded. Fleetingly, Ava recalled the way he used to steal kisses from her at every parting. But they weren’t in high school anymore. She stood, just as the first rocket whizzed up from the far side of the lake.
Ava looked up to see a dazzling scarlet waterfall before a blue chrysanthemum exploded against the night sky. They both stepped to the railing, leaning out to watch the fireworks display. Together, they watched as the fireworks whirled, danced, and floated across the sky, their shimmering transient beauty reflected in the dark, still lake.
“It’s gorgeous.” Ava breathed, just as the fireworks paused for the finale.
“Sure is.” Duncan murmured. When Ava glanced at him, his gaze stayed steady on her face, the shimmering glow of the fireworks reflecting over the rugged planes of his. His gaze dropped to her mouth and back up as slowly. As if magnetized, they leaned toward each other. She caught the scent of him, pine woods and campfires, overlaid with the tang of the beer they’d shared. His breath ghosted over her cheek as his warmth washed along her front. She turned toward him, like a flower toward the sun.
When their mouths were just scant centimeters apart, the finale exploded in a rush of booms as fireworks whirled into spirals above them before shattering into sparkling showers. They jumped apart, unable to look at each other.
“I... uh, should get back to the wedding.”
“Right, yeah.” Duncan bobbed his head, gripping the railing and staring into the dark.
“See you around.” Ava fled the gazebo, the pebbles bruising her feet as she ran up the path, away from temptation.
Had she really nearly kissed Duncan? It had to be the nostalgic setting that made her judgment evaporate. But they were always drawn to each other...
And what did it matter? She would go. He would stay. She and Duncan were as ethereal as the fireworks, beautiful and bright while they lasted but not destined to be more.
Chapter Five
Two days later, after Ava waved Ben and Amy off for their London honeymoon, she curled into the cushioned glider on the front porch of her childhood home with one of Amy’s many mystery novels to keep her company. She sipped iced tea flavored with fresh peaches and mint, enjoying the honeybees droning in the roses from her sister’s garden. At late morning, the heat of the day hadn’t hit yet but the deep porch remained shaded and cool. The perfect spot to chill on a simmering, lazy summer day. Ava couldn’t remember the last time she felt so relaxed and content.
The slap of running feet against the pavement made her look up in time to see a shirtless Duncan jog past, bronzed muscles gleaming with sweat that dripped into his incredibly tight shorts. Ava licked her suddenly dry lips. Her heart thumped in her chest, transfixed by pure and simple lust. Duncan was a beautiful man. As he passed, he raised one well sculpted arm and whistled. “Hey, Aims!”
He’d gotten past the gate when he stopped abruptly and turned to the porch. He whipped off his sunglasses and surveyed Ava with those honey colored eyes. “Ava? What’re you doing here?”
“Housesitting.” Ava strolled down the flagstone path to prevent the neighbors from hearing every syllable of their shouted conversation.
“And the stock market didn’t grind to a halt without you there?”
“Ha-ha.” Ava crossed her arms. “I have some time off so I took it.”
“And you’re spending your vacation time in Ashford Falls?”
“Obviously.”
“Voluntarily?”
“Yes!” Ava snapped, peeved at the astonished look on his face. “Why is that so surprising?”
“Amy’s always talking about you going jetting off hither and yon. I figured you’d shake the dust from here as quick as you could to go somewhere exotic. Paris the last time, wasn’t it?”
“Hmm. Interesting that you talk to my sister about me so much.”
“She talks. I listen.” Duncan swiped the back of his hand over his forehead. Wordlessly, she held out her glass of iced tea and Duncan took it gratefully. For July in Virginia, the day wasn’t unpleasantly warm. But running full out in the heat would be miserable. Duncan swigged some tea down and shuffled about. “I don’t ask about you or anything.”
“Okay.” Ava shrugged, feigning indifference and willfully ignoring the thrill that went through h
er. “It’s awful hot to run at midday.”
“I usually run early morning or after sunset, but tonight’s the pancake supper so I figured I’d get it in now.”
“Pancake supper?” Ava’s mouth twisted into a smile as the old memories washed over her. How many pancake dinners had she gone to with her parents and Amy? And later spent time at the Knight family table, as the girlfriend of the fire chief’s oldest son? “Only in Ashford Falls.”
Duncan scowled at her. “I forgot we’re all just country bumpkins to you.”
“No, I didn’t mean that.” Ava sputtered in surprise at his annoyance. Why were she and Duncan always at odds now when they’d once been so in sync? She gave him a quick grin. “Will Chris be flipping his blueberry and bacon special pancakes?”
“Chief wouldn’t miss an opportunity to show off.” Duncan glanced down but then hastily away from her tight tank top. “You should stop on by. You know, if you’re free or whatever.”
“Maybe I will.” Ava grinned, pleased that he’d extended the invitation. He handed her the now empty tea glass.
“Thanks for the drink. I should be getting on.” Duncan waved as he dashed off. Maybe she and Duncan would never recover that deep, true intimacy they’d once enjoyed but perhaps they could still be friends. Anything had to be better than this awkward acquaintance stage. She watched his tanned back flex as he turned the corner. She pressed the glass of ice to her heated face. Maybe it was hotter outside than she’d realized.
By six that evening, the delights of a sedate day on the porch had faded. Ava prowled the house, restless and a little bored with no one to talk to. In the past ten years, she’d been so preoccupied with work that she’d never indulged in aimless relaxation. Sure, she’d taken vacations here and there but they were always a busy blur as she rushed from one tourist site to the next, trying to cram as much fun as she could into her rare, precious free time.
Now, without work to fill her time, she’d never felt so unmoored, restless, or uncertain what to do with herself.
Fireworks Frappe (Cupid's Coffeeshop Book 7) Page 2
