Page 87 of The Secret to a Southern Wedding

“She isn’t and my dad isn’t going to force her to listen.”

“Maybe he’ll get a chance at the St. Patrick’s Day Festival this weekend,” Joshua said hopefully. “They’re both volunteering for the guild. Maybe he’ll get the chance to get back with her then.”

“Maybe so, but he won’t make a scene. If she refuses to be around him, he’ll go the other way.”

The chime above the door went off. Cyril looked up. He was no longer anxiously waiting for his aunt to come through the door. Not after talking to Daryl. Which was why he felt as if he’d been gut punched when his gaze collided with hers.

He straightened. “Aunt Gayle!”

Preston looked at Cyril before spinning around in his chair toward the door. Gayle looked from Cyril to Preston and then back.

“Hello, Cyril.”

Cyril tried to remain calm while inside his emotions bounced all over the place. He’d been waiting for this confrontation, but after talking to Daryl, he’d hoped that she would drop everything and go back. He wasn’t ready to talk, and honestly, he didn’t want to have a confrontation with his aunt.

“What are you doing here?”

She looked at Preston. “I came to see him.”

Preston stood up. He smoothed down the front of his pale yellow linen shirt before lifting his chin. “If you came here to try and make me feel bad you’ve wasted your time Nothing will make me feel worse than I already do.”

Gayle came across the room toward him. The bar wasn’t as full as it would typically be, but there were enough people for Cyril to wish they were alone. Monique, who worked with Tracey at the inn along with the owners of Books and Vibes were there. He didn’t want to air out his family’s dirty laundry in front of people he knew and respected.

“Aunt Gayle, now isn’t the time,” Cyril said.

Gayle held up a hand. “I just left your ex-fiancée,” she said.

Preston’s body stiffened and he scowled. “Why are you bothering her?”

“I went there to warn her about you,” Gayle said. “But she already knew the entire story. Said she knew the story from the start. I don’t know why she broke off your engagement, but I’m still glad she did.”

Preston took a step forward. “She knew from the start?”

Gayle grunted. “You don’t deserve a woman like her. After all of this, she’s still defending you. You don’t deserve to be happy.”

Preston pressed a hand to his chest. “I know more than anyone that I don’t deserve this chance to be happy.”

“But you tried anyway,” Gayle accused. Her eyes glinted with unshed tears. “You tried to be happy and live when my sister isn’t here.”

“I wish more than anything that Vera was still here. Every day, I wish she was still here.” Emotion made Preston’s voice thick.

Gayle pounded her fist to her chest. “Then why are you trying to start over? Why are you moving on when my sister can’t?”

“I didn’t look for this. I didn’t try to do this,” Preston said sounding frustrated. His shoulders slumped. “I just fell in love.” The last point came out in a tired voice.

The fight left Gayle’s eyes. “You don’t deserve love after you killed my sister.”

Cyril stepped forward, but before he could say anything Patricia and her husband, Van, stood up. Patricia stepped between Preston and Gayle.

“That’s enough now,” Patricia said. “Mr. Dash had nothing to do with that.”

Van moved next to his wife and nodded. “That’s right. They got the person responsible and he’s behind bars.”

Cyril blinked and looked between the two. “You know the story?”

Patricia nodded. “Of course we do. Do you really think no one in town looked into you all when you moved here? We understand what happened, and we know it had to have been hard. That’s why we didn’t pry.”

Cyril looked around the bar. Other patrons nodded along with what Patricia said. His chest tightened as he realized just how nosey the people in Peachtree Cove were. And how much they cared. Of course, they would know. They’d been so afraid of being judged like they’d been back home, when, in reality, the story wasn’t a secret. People knew, accepted them anyway and even stepped up for them. If he didn’t love Peachtree Cove before he damn sure loved the town and its people now.

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