“That one can be just as tricky.”
“Tell me about it.”
She reaches for my tumbler. “You done with this?”
“Yeah. Thanks.” I nudge a twenty-dollar bill across the counter.
She grins, propping one hand on her hip. “Is that for me to leave you the fuck alone?”
Was I being that obvious? I wince inwardly. “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to be rude.”
“You’re fine. I have no intention of prying…but can I leave you with one piece of unsolicited advice based on a situation I know absolutely nothing about?”
I muster a slight chuckle. “You’d lose your bartending license if you didn’t, right?”
“Exactly.” She grips both hands on the counter and leans in to deliver whatever life truth she sees fit for me. “Everyone makes mistakes, and everyone is capable of changing.”
“Let me guess,” I interrupt. “Next, you’re going to tell me how everyone deserves a second chance?”
She shakes her head, her gray ponytail swinging behind her shoulders. “Not at all, Mr. Benson. What I was about to say is that most peopledon’tdeserve a second chance because most people either won’t admit they made a mistake, or they won’t do the work necessary to genuinely atone for whatever they’ve said or done.”
“Oh.”
“But every once in a while, someone comes along whoisworth making an exception for. They take accountability for what they did, and they take concrete steps to get their life back on track.” She pulls back, and her eyes have turned glassy.
“Sounds like you’re speaking from personal experience.”
“I am,” she says softly, taking back the medallion, twirling it between her fingers for a moment, then sliding it back into her pocket. “Before I got sober, I ruined a lot of lives. It cost me my marriage…and my kids. I have a granddaughter I’ve never seen and a son who doesn’t want anything to do with me.”
“I’m sorry to hear that.”
“Life isn’t fair, hon. That’s why if you find someone who’s worth it, do everything you can to fight for them so that you don’t end up alone with nothing but regrets to haunt you.”
“That’s heavy.”
“It is.” She smiles sadly and starts to move away. “Anyway, hope that helps a little. I’ll back off now.”
“Hey, Bunny,” I call out.
She stops and looks over at me. “Yeah?”
“I’m sorry your kids aren’t prepared to giveyoua second chance.”
She smiles. “Thanks, hon.”
I put down another twenty and take off.
Avoiding Jackson was the wrong move.
Locking the door to my office so he can’t bring me a coffee and note each morning. Taking meetings in cafes in town. Slipping out at different times in the afternoon so we didn’t run into each other. That’s not very mature of me.
The only exception was working from home the day his cabin was demolished. I couldn’t be there for that. I knew Clancy and Pip were helping him move, but seeing him as his house got torn down would have been too much to bear. I know how much that place meant to him.
Steering clear of him has only made me miserable, and it’s done absolutely nothing to actually resolve the issue. If I have an expectation of honesty, that cuts both ways. I need to tell him how I feel, too.
I’m going back to the sanctuary, and neither one of us is leaving until we’ve hashed this thing out once and for all.
The front door swings open just as I approach it, and who am I standing face-to-smug-face with other than the last person in the world I ever want to bump into?
