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“Fair warning, though. They’re huge fans of Brent’s. He could do no wrong in their eyes, so even if they’ve been incredibly supportive of my relationship with you, I’m sure they hold out hope—”

“For it to be Brent in the end.”

Allison winced. “Yeah.”

“Everyone loves Brent. I feel like that should be a TV show.”

Allison glanced back and kissed her cheek softly. “They just don’t know you is all. Everyone who does adores you, including me.”

“But I’m not a Carmichael.”

“Neither am I. I’m pretty sure that’s not a requirement in life.”

“Still.” She stared out at the ocean, hating that she’d let their issues follow them to the beach, of all places, and banishing the insecurities from her brain. “You know what? I don’t want to talk about him any more today. I want to enjoy this time with you, and remember it always.”

Allison pulled out her phone and focused the camera on them. “Then that’s exactly what we are going to do.” Megan snuggled her chin over Allison’s shoulder and smiled softly into the lens. “Captured.Forever. There,” Ally said, reviewing the photo, which had come out as a wonderful representation of their afternoon.

They looked happy, carefree, and like a really striking couple, if she did say so herself. Megan marveled. “You know what? We look like we go together,” she said, running her finger over the image, incredibly pleased. “I love it.”

Allison turned back to her, the sunlight illuminating her hair. “Because we do.”

Megan leaned in for a kiss, and when her lips met Allison’s, she closed her eyes and savored every second. Today was a very good day. “Let’s eat.”

Chapter Fourteen

When Allison pulled into her parents’ driveway that next week for her brother-in-law Dell’s birthday dinner, she paused at the atrocious new addition to the yard. Placing her car in park, she gaped. What in the world? She approached thefor salesign that stood in front of the one-story home with the winding sidewalk slowly, not believing it was real. She made an accusatory circle around it as she let the realization settle. Her parents were selling her childhood home? No, no, no. That was the porch where she’d sipped hot chocolate when it rained. She’d Rollerbladed through that garage, making lap after lap while listening to the Spice Girls. She’d not heard a word about selling from anyone and was desperate to find out why and, more importantly, if she could change their minds. Not seeing her sister’s car in the driveway yet meant she’d have a moment alone with her parents to sort out what was going on. She stalked up the sidewalk, let herself inside, and found her mother fluffing the couch cushions in the living room Allison now wanted to weep over.

“Hey there, sweetheart,” her mother said. “Hand me that one?”

Allison picked up a wayward cushion and tossed it to her mother. “So are you going to tell me what’s going on? I’m freaking out over here.”

Her mother straightened and held out her hands to the room. “We’re celebrating! That’s what’s going on.” A happy birthday banner hung across the mantel above the rock fireplace, and several balloons hung in various locations around the living room. In the kitchen, she could see a cake for Dell. None of which was the point.

“I’m talking about the sign in your yard. Mom, what in the world? Talk to me. Please.”

Her mother quirked her lips to the side, as if still in party setup mode. It was a cop-out, a way for her mother to act like nothing big was going on, and the most important thing in the world was which ice-cream scooper to pull out. “Oh, that. Well, we decided it would be best if we downsized. You kids are grown up and out on your own. What do we need with this much space?”

But the home was modest, not at all luxurious, and they’d put the extra rooms to good use. An office for her parents and a guest room for when the aunts and uncles came to visit. “I just feel like this is coming out of left field. You’ve never once mentioned wanting to move or downsize.”

“Just because I haven’t mentioned it to you doesn’t mean it’s not something we’ve talked about on our own.”

Panic struck. They were serious about this. “What aren’t you telling me?”

Her mother opened her mouth to respond, but a voice from the kitchen beat her to it. “We can’t afford this place anymore. After a second and third mortgage, we don’t have any more recourse. It’s time to find something cheaper.”

Ally stared. Numb. Sad. “I knew things were tight, but I had no idea they were this bad.” She turned to her father, because he was the one telling it to her straight. “What about the Dash Bar licensing? If you can just hang on a little bit longer then—”

“The Carmichaels aren’t taking or returning our calls any longer, and I get the feeling that’s not likely to change. Deal is dead. Just how it goes in business sometimes.”

She swallowed, and a sinking feeling came over her. Her limbs went heavy almost as if she was being pulled underwater. Was this because of her?

“This is not your fault.” As if reading her thoughts, her mother rushed in. “I don’t want you thinking that for a moment, okay? Sometimes things just don’t work out even when you really want them to. Part of life.” But she looked sad, and that made Allison feel worse. She swallowed, her jaw tight.

Because of course this was Dalton Carmichael’s vindictive response to her walking away from a marriage to his son. He was apowerful man, and when you were in his good graces, he showed you the best side of himself. When you weren’t, he reminded you of what he could do. She’d heard him tell stories over dinner of going to war with the people that crossed him, as his family nodded their approval, chuckling about his ability to turn on a dime. She’d sat there slightly horrified by his bragging but knew enough to sip her champagne politely and discuss it with Brent later.

“You know that’s not the way I do business, right?” Brent had said, loosening his tie once they’d arrived back at his place one night after a particularly eye-opening gathering at his parents’ house, during which Dalton had regaled them all with a story about one of their vice presidents and how he’d not only been fired for missing an important deadline for the company, but they’d arranged to have him evicted from his apartment building that same day by gently pulling a few strings.

“I know you’re not, but wow.”