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The rest of the early evening went by quickly. It was Friday night so I expected it would be crowded. Since I’d been gone, Al had added a small platform area that worked as a stage and a dance floor in front of it. Tonight he had a local band performing live. By nine o’clock the bar was filled with people drinking, dancing, and laughing boisterously. Marlo was working too, and Sam had come by to listen to the band. When he walked in, I gave him a big hug and showed him to Marlo’s section.

“You look great, Tenleigh,” he shouted over the noise.

“Thanks, Sam.” I grinned at him. “You treating my sister good?”

He got a shy, lovesick look on his face. Oh boy. “I try my best,” he said.

I grinned and walked him to a table and then leaned on the back of the chair facing him at the table. “Hey, Sam, before I grab you a beer, I wanted to thank you for what you’re doing for our mama. Marlo says she’s doing really great, and that’s all because of you.”

He glanced away for a minute, something shifting in his expression. Had I embarrassed him? “I’d do anything for your family, for Marlo,” he said after a beat.

I smiled. “I’ve always liked you, Sam.”

He smiled back and pushed his glasses up on his nose and I and went to get him a beer. The guy wasn’t giving up on my hardheaded sister, and he was doing something wonderful for our mama. I couldn’t help but like him—he was one of the few good ones. As happy as I was for Marlo and as much as she deserved a good man who was willing to fight for her, I couldn’t help the despondency I felt as I stood at the bar waiting for Sam’s beer. Would I ever have that? Would someone ever love me that way? Would I ever love someone like I’d loved Kyland? Did I want to ever love someone that intensely again? I’d sworn off love forever after Kyland broke my heart, but that vow hadn’t been sustainable. I still longed for love. I ached for someone to hold me tight and tell me everything was going to be okay, to kiss my forehead tenderly, and reach for me in the darkness.

“Looks like you could use this,” Al said, sliding a shot down the bar to me.

I was jolted out of my reverie. “What is it?”

“Don’t ask stupid questions, just bottoms up.”

I laughed. Al was not opposed to his waitresses doing a shot or two during a shift. Sometimes you needed a little something to get you through a night of being jostled and groped by drunks. Ah, hell, why not? I did need a drink. I needed to quiet my own brain. I threw the shot back and grimaced as the fiery liquid burned down my throat, and then leaned over the bar and grabbed a lime. I bit down on it and turned away from the bar as I sucked out the sour liquid.

For the second time that week, my eyes met with stony gray ones. Kyland. My body froze and I just stared at him, my heart pounding in my ears. Geez, maybe this town really wasn’t big enough for the both of us.

He was standing stock-still right at the doorway, glaring across the space at me, his mouth hanging open before he snapped it shut. And suddenly all the air in the place seemed to be sucked right out the door.

The raucous noise of the bar faded away as we held eye contact. And then, from behind him, Shelly appeared. I took a step backward, the bar hitting my back. Her appearance felt like a punch to the gut. Shelly looked at Kyland and then followed his eyes to me. Something that looked like sympathy came into her expression and I looked away, turning back around to the bar. I took several deep breaths, trying to calm myself. I grabbed Sam’s beer and put it on my tray and walked it toward his table, not glancing toward the door again. Hopefully when Kyland had seen me, he’d left.

Marlo pulled me aside as I was heading back to the bar. “Kyland’s here. You okay?” Her expressive eyes were wide with concern.

“I’m fine,” I insisted, even though I wasn’t exactly sure. “I thought I was the one who was angry, but he seems to hate me.”

“Why would he hate you? For getting out of here when he screwed his life up?”

I chewed on my lip. “I don’t know. Do Kyland and Shelly come in here often?”

“I’ve never seen them in here.”

“Huh. Well, we both have to live in this town. Or rather, I’ve decided to live in this town for now. And so he can deal with it—whatever his problem is.”