Total pages in book: 53
Estimated words: 50080 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 250(@200wpm)___ 200(@250wpm)___ 167(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 50080 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 250(@200wpm)___ 200(@250wpm)___ 167(@300wpm)
I’m about to tell my fiancé that Evangeline is no one, but my dad says otherwise.
“She’s the one his mother wanted him to marry.”
FIVE
EVANGELINE
The sound of the heat kicking on has me jumping for joy and Noelle yelling hallelujah. After two days with no heat, we’re both beyond excited to have something spurting out of the radiator. George, our local repair man, laughs from the other room. Whatever he’s done has fixed the issue which means I’ll be able to sleep in my bed. I love my parents, but I’ve missed my own space and my office.
George comes out of the backroom with a big, cheesy smile on his face. He winks, causing Noelle and I to giggle. George may be our go-to for repairs, but he’s also our town Santa, and he’s always flirting with us.
“To avoid this next year, I’ll have the missus remind me to come out in September or October to bleed the lines.”
He said this last year, but I don’t bother to remind him. The furnace is old and if I want to avoid this in the future, I should buy a new one.
“Sounds good, George. I’ll see you on Saturday?”
“I’ll be there with bells on.” He laughs and holds his hand over his belly, even though he’s not sporting the traditional Santa belly. The last I knew he stuffed his red pants with one of those fake stomach paddings. That’s how serious he takes being Santa.
“Will I see you at the tree lighting on Friday?” he asks.
“I’ll be there,” Noelle says.
“Of course, I’ll be there, too. Why wouldn’t I?”
“I just thought with Zane back . . .”
Hearing the words Zane and back in the same sentence shakes my foundation. Not much, but enough to make me pause and question whether I heard George clearly.
“What do you mean?” It's the clarity I need.
“I stopped by Bernie’s this morning. He said Zane is here for Christmas.”
“Oh.” I haven’t seen this man since I left him on the train platform, with stupid promises of how we’d make the distance work. The first weekend he was supposed to come home, something came up. And then something else. And something else again.
“Well, it’ll be good to see him.” It won’t be but I refuse to let him ruin my holidays. The past is the past, water under the bridge. It was clear then as it is now, Zane was meant for whatever he found in New York City. I’m not going to let his return take up space in my head.
As soon as the door closes, Noelle slams her hand down on her desk. I glance at her, unprepared for her wide eyes.
“Girl!”
I shake my head.
“Did Bernie say anything about Zane coming home?”
Another shake. “No, and I think he would’ve mentioned it to my dad or me. We’ve been sending staff over there to help because Bernie can’t do it alone.”
“Do you think Zane is in trouble? That’s why he just showed up?”
Unfortunately, the idea of Zane being in trouble makes me smile. It’s evil, I know. And not very much in the spirit of the holidays, but I can’t help it.
“You know, all those big city attorneys are always getting in trouble with drugs and . . . stuff.”
“Stuff?”
Noelle shrugs. “You read People magazine. You know what stuff I’m alluding to.”
Sadly, I do and am very thankful I chose to run a small-town practice. I’d rather help people and see the good I’ve done on a daily basis versus having a client who is nothing but a number and paycheck at the end of the day.
I can’t imagine Zane being in some type of trouble, but then again, I haven’t seen him in ten years. Who knows what kind of man he is these days. All I know is, I’m not the same person I was when he left for his fancy internship.
Or maybe I am.
“The stuff, as we’re calling it, I don’t see someone like Zane doing anything to hurt others. But yes, I’ve read a ton of stories where corporate law has some shady characters and are often arrested for drug possession.”
“Maybe that’s why he’s back. He needs to visit his dad before he goes to the big house.”
I roll my eyes at Noelle’s drastic assumptions. Whatever the reason, my ex is back, and his timing couldn’t be worse. If this were any other time, I’d take vacation and let Zane be here without me being in his face. As it is, chances are, as soon as I walk outside, we’ll run into each other. Unless he’s not planning to work at the store while he’s in town.
Noelle gives me a smirk and I shake my head. The best thing for me to do is ignore what George said and if I run into Zane it might be wise of me to pretend I don’t know him. Although, I suspect that won’t go over very well. But then again, maybe he doesn’t care to see me because he’s the one who left and never returned. He didn’t even bother to come and clear out his stuff from our Boston apartment and left me to deal with the lease that I couldn’t afford by myself.