Sarah Morgan - Some Kind of Wonderful

“There’s room for both of us.”

“I hear he was the one who flew you from the mainland.”

It was inevitable that the manner of her arrival would have been the subject of local gossip, but still the thought of it grated over her skin like sandpaper. “He did.”

“That must have shaken you up some.”

She chose to deliberately misunderstand. “Not at all. The weather was smooth and Zach is an excellent pilot.” He’d been a lousy excuse for a friend and an even worse husband but she didn’t intend to discuss that with anyone, no matter how much they probed and how much she loved them. She tried to turn the conversation. “How are you, John?”

“I’m good, considering. Must have been awkward for you, seeing him again. By my calculation you haven’t laid eyes on the man since he left you all those years ago.”

“That’s why it wasn’t awkward. It was so long ago I barely remember it. I appreciate how much you all care, but no one needs to worry about me. Good to see you, John. I have to pick up a few things from Harbor Stores before I go back to the cottage.” She extracted herself from the inquisition, crossed the road and bumped into Hilda, who had been a close friend of her grandmother’s.

“Hilda!” Genuinely pleased to see her, she gave the old lady a warm hug. “How are you doing? I hear Agnes has moved near you. I bet the two of you never stop talking.”

“Talking with friends is one of life’s pleasures, especially now that my hips won’t let me rush anywhere. Can’t even run away from a handsome man, not that there are too many chasing me these days.” Hilda patted her arm. “And on that topic, I just want you to know we’re all watching him so you don’t need to worry.”

“Watching him?”

“After the way he treated you last time—” Hilda gave her a fierce look that would have repelled the most determined invader. “If he puts a foot out of line, we’re going to deal with him. There are some who have forgiven him everything because he flew that child to the hospital when no one else would, but as far as I’m concerned, he still has to prove himself. And if you ask me, Ryan should be a bit more careful in picking his friends.”

There was no need to ask who she was talking about and Brittany sighed. “Hilda—”

“Don’t you worry yourself. You live your life and leave it to us. We’ve got your back, honey.”

“I’m trying to live my life, Hilda, but people keep—”

“Caring.” Hilda patted her hand. “It’s the least we can do. Protecting our own is one of the perks of island life. Welcome home, pumpkin. Your grandmother would be proud.”

Feeling eight years old, Brittany gave a weak smile. “Thanks, Hilda. You take care now. And please don’t worry about me. It was a long time ago and I have no feelings for him.” She fled and took refuge inside Harbor Stores.

Holy crap.

No wonder so many people left and moved to the mainland. If it carried on like this, she’d be joining them.

If there was one thing she hated it was pity. She’d all but drowned in it after Zach had left her. And what did Hilda mean when she said they were watching him?

She had visions of the islanders setting up a roster to monitor the exact movements of her ex-husband. If it hadn’t been so frustrating it would be funny.

Dropping soap into her basket, she glanced into the street to check no one she knew was about to come into the store.

“Well, if it isn’t Brittany Forrest Flynn.”

Recognizing the female voice, Brittany closed her eyes.

She should have stayed in bed.

Pinning a smile on her face, she turned. “It’s just Forrest these days. I dropped the Flynn.”

“No one would blame you for that, seeing as he dropped you first.”

Definitely should have stayed in bed.

“Hello, Mel. How are you?”

“Better than you, I should think.” Mel Parker, who had been at school with her and now ran Harbor Stores with her parents, eyed her wrist. “I heard you were injured. I’m guessing that’s what happens when you do a dangerous job. I saw Raiders of the Lost Ark a while back. And Lara Croft. Looks like an exciting way to earn a living, archaeology. And dangerous.”

“Well, those are both movies, obviously, and movies remove most of the boring parts. Weeks of people excavating the same piece of earth and finding nothing doesn’t make for gripping viewing.”

“But you broke your wrist.” Mel looked at Brittany’s cast in awe and admiration and Brittany decided she’d better spell out the detail or the next time she came into town she’d be hearing stories about how she’d been chased by natives with a massive boulder rolling towards her.

“I was talking to someone and tripped.” In fact she’d been laughing so hard at one of Spyros’s jokes, she hadn’t looked where she was putting her feet. “I fell into the trench.”

Mel’s eyes went round. “That sounds awful. Were there snakes?”

“No. No snakes. And no angry natives.” Just Spy, also laughing so hard that it had taken him a moment to realize she’d actually broken something. “Sorry to disappoint. And anyway, I don’t mind snakes. Just spiders.”

“We were all real sorry to hear the news.”

“That’s kind of you, Mel, but it will heal.”

“I wasn’t talking about that news. I was talking about Zachary.” The girl’s voice lowered and she glanced around the empty store, even though both of them knew that a store crowded with people wouldn’t have stopped her gossiping.

Deciding it was time to move this reunion on, Brittany dropped several cans of tomatoes that she didn’t need into her basket. “Everything is fine, Mel.”

“Can’t see how it can be fine when you’re living with your cheating ex under your nose.”

Brittany frowned. “He didn’t cheat.”

Why did everyone keep saying that?

“Oh, that’s right, he just upped and left. I guess that’s almost worse.” Clearly not in any hurry to return to the demands of her job, Mel pondered the severity of the crime. “Mom always says that when a man leaves you for another woman, then all it means is he met someone he liked more and you weren’t right for each other, but when a man leaves you for no one in particular, it means he didn’t like being with you enough to stay. That’s got to hurt.”

Brittany contemplated swinging her good arm and decided she didn’t want to be arrested on her first proper day back on the island. “Or it means we were both too young to be married.”

“You were young.” Mel leaned against the aisle, settling in for a long chat. “And to think we were all jealous, because you were the one who caught his eye. We all wanted Zach to be our first. Who wouldn’t? The man was sex on a stick. I still remember the rumors about just how good he was in the bedroom.” She looked at Brittany expectantly, clearly waiting for confirmation and juicy details.

“Nice meeting up with you again, Mel.” She snatched toothpaste and shampoo without looking at the brand and headed to the checkout.

“I’ll ring those up for you.” Suddenly efficient, Mel walked behind the counter. “Zach comes in here sometimes so if you’re looking to avoid him, just send me a text and I can warn you if he’s here. You won’t want to be anywhere near the man.”

“I don’t need warning and I’m not trying to avoid him. I’m just trying to live my life.” And that was turning out to be a thousand times harder than she’d expected. She was tempted to abandon her purchases and run. “But thank you for caring.”

“Thought it might be awkward, what with you making such a giant fool of yourself and all. Throwing in college, marrying the man. You always were a romantic, and so in love with him. Which just goes to prove that even smart people can be stupid when it comes to love.”