Page 34 of That One Heartbreak

Hi! Hope all is good with you. Haven’t seen you for a few nights so I thought I’d message. Are you running past tonight? Addy has a drawing she made for you. – Kate.

She was at work when she got the reply. It was Stitch and Snitch day and she was getting the room ready when her phone vibrated in her pocket. She pulled it out, her brows knitting as she read the reply.

Probably not tonight. Give my thanks to Addy. I’ll come over as soon as I can to grab it. – Marley.

It was stupid how disappointed she felt as she read the words. Like they’d formed a fist and punched her in the chest. Of course he didn’t have to come over if he didn’t want to. He was a free man, after all. He could do whatever he wanted.

Maybe he could sense she was getting attached to him.

Oh God, he probably saw her as some kind of millstone. Paul’s poor wife. Nothing more.

He didn’t want her. He felt sorry for her.

And the thought of that made her want to vomit.

She didn’t need sympathy. She’d had more than her share of that. And yes, sometimes she still felt fragile. But she was tryingso hard to rebuild her life. Determined to be the strong one, for her kids and for herself.

Finally, the room was all set up. The chairs were set in a circle. There were only eight of them. She closed the door and checked her watch. Stitch and Snitch was due to start in half an hour. Before they arrived, she needed to go through the book orders for the month, so she sat down at the desk and opened up her library issued laptop.

“All ready for them?” Shana asked, leaning on the desk, a grin on her face. She’d popped in on her way to grab a coffee.

Kate nodded, making herself smile because the last thing she needed was the third degree from her best friend. She didn’t want to talk about Marley with her. Or anybody, really.

And then she remembered their conversation from the other Sunday. About the dating app Shana had signed her up for.

“Can I ask you something?” she said to her friend, a decision forming in her mind. She needed to stop thinking about Marley Hartson. This had to be the way.

“Of course but I might not answer.” Shana winked at her.

Kate took a deep breath. “You know that dating app?”

Shana sighed. “Okay, I’ll delete it. But you’re missing out.”

Kate felt her heart start to thump against her chest. “You didn’t delete it yet?”

“Don’t hate me but no.” Her friend looked sheepish. “I was hoping you’d change your mind.”

Kate looked her in the eye. “I have. Because you’re right. It’s time to start getting out there.”

“Seriously?” Shana’s face lit up. “Oh my God, we’re gonna have so much fun. You should see this guy who matched with you last night. Seriously good looking.”

“You’ve been checking out the matches?” Kate asked, shaking her head. “Why don’t you pay this much attention to your own love life?”

“Because yours is more enjoyable.” Shana grinned. “And I’m officially inviting myself to dinner at yours tomorrow night. I’ll show you how to download it onto your phone.”

“Not in front of the kids.”

Shana rolled her eyes. “Of course not. But maybe it’s time to start dropping hints to them that you’re thinking about dating again.”

It already felt like too much. But Shana looked so excited she couldn’t bring herself to say that.

She’d download the stupid app, and then she’d probably ignore it for a while.

“Come over at six tomorrow,” she told her friend, resigning herself to her fate.

“Perfect.” Shana’s eyes danced with excitement. “I’ll bring the alcohol.”

The weather was so good on Friday that Kate decided to pull out the old barbecue from the garage. They hadn’t used it in over a year and you could tell. It was a little rusty, more than a little dusty, and when she lifted the lid the inside was a whole lot greasy. It took almost an hour to clean it up, but the propane tank was still half full and the burners lit on the first press.

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