“How does Friday night sound, if he’s free?”Fallon asked.
That seemed soon, but why not?She wouldn’t have time to talk herself out of it.
“Make it happen,” Brooke said with more confidence than she felt.
She stayed for a little longer and they chatted about what she should wear to dinner with Mark.She was already nervous about the date but also tentatively excited.It felt good to be moving forward instead of being stuck in the past.
As she walked into the gatehouse later, her thoughts were wrapped up in the possibility of hitting things off with the handsome lawyer.A light shone from the kitchen, so she assumed her mom was home.
“I’m back,” she called out from the front door as she kicked off her shoes.“And I brought some treats from Posh Bakery.”
She walked toward the kitchen with the box in her hands and a smile on her face, but instead of her mother, Aiden stood at the kitchen sink and looked at her over his shoulder.
She paused in the entryway, surprised to see him in her home.
“Posh Bakery, huh?I forgot all about that place.They had thebestsnickerdoodles.”
His sexy grin caused her heart to beat faster.“What are you doing here?”she asked, as she stepped into the room and placed the box on the counter.
He lifted a wrench in his hand.“The garbage disposal stopped working this morning and your mom asked me to come by and take a look.”
Her gaze shifted past him, and she saw water filling the sink and a toolbox on the floor.“Thanks for helping out my mom, but I can hire someone to handle it.”
The last thing she needed was for him to have an excuse to be in her home, in her space.
“I can’t do that,” he said.“I promised your mother I’d help.”He eased down on his knees in front of the sink.
She ground her teeth together, frustrated with him, his presence, and with herself.“Justgo, Aiden.Leaving is what you’re good at, after all.”On edge, she spoke before she could stop herself.
He flinched and she regretted her impulsive words.She wasn’t mean.In fact, she’d never spoken so harshly to Aiden or anyone else, not even the night he broke her heart.These tumultuous emotions were turning her into someone she didn’t recognize or like.
He stood and turned on the water.Flicking on the garbage disposal, the sound of it running filled the otherwise silent kitchen and he nodded to himself.
“I just had to push the reset button on the bottom,” he said, as he turned it back off.“I didn’t want you to waste money on something I could fix.”
Her chest squeezed tight at his thoughtfulness.“Aiden, look, I didn’t mean that the way it came out.”
“It’s fine.”He picked up his toolbox and started for the door.
“Aiden—”
“It’s okay, Brooke.Really,” he said, and walked out of the gatehouse without looking back.
Alone in the kitchen, she stared at the closed door, her insides feeling as if they’d been scooped out, leaving her empty.She wouldn’t have thought that anything could be worse than the anger and hurt she’d been carrying around, but this hollow feeling trumped it.Andthatwas the reason she needed to go on that date.It was about more than finding a man to love.It was about healing, for both her and Aiden.
All this time, she believed she was the only one hurting.After all, he was the one who’d left.But she now understood they were both in pain, and it didn’t have to be that way.If she let go of the anger that had become her natural response to Aiden over the years, then perhaps he could too.They could both be happy.
They might even become friends again.
Finding a new normal would take work, but if she managed it, she could have one of her best friends back in her life.It would be like the night they spent together never happened.
Chapter Nine
Aiden made itthrough his first week at Sterling Investments and he was grateful it was Friday.After work, he returned to his father’s house.Eventually, he’d start looking for his own place, but for now he was enjoying being home.
He sat at the kitchen island, checking his emails and responding to work colleagues, when Lizzie walked into the kitchen, humming.
“Hi, Lizzie.”
