Page 10 of Seeing You

“You’re not…?”

“Plus, if you’re so over her, why are you so mad right now? If it was such an amicable breakup,” Max pondered, “I think you would’ve been mildly surprised, had a friendly but perhaps a little awkward conversation, and then come home. The fact that you’re angry…”

“And covered in muffin crumbs,” his father interjected.

“Tells me things maybe were not quite as amicable as you’ve made them seem.”

Pinching the bridge of his nose, he silently convinced himself not to give them what they were looking for. He refused to take the bait. Instead, he walked over to the kitchen sink and washed his hands, brushed off the rest of the muffin crumbs, and joined them at the table.

“I was surprised, that’s all. If you had simply given me a heads-up, I still would have gone,” he lied. “Besides, why bring this up after so many years? If anything, I haven’t talked about Billie since right after the breakup. Why would you think it would matter now? I’ve got my life—which is freaking awesome—and she’s got her own life.” Then he snorted. “If you can even call it that.”

Wordlessly, Max placed a piece of coffee cake in front of him along with his coffee.

“Billie was a damn genius in the finance world. I’ve never seen anyone with a mind that worked like hers. She understood the stock market, interest rates…she knew when to invest, when to sell, when to transfer, and she was never wrong. It was a thing of beauty to watch. And to think she just threw it away because her family hounded her to come home.”

He took a bite of the cake and wanted to be angry at how delicious it was, but he knew that was ridiculous.

“She seems very happy,” his father said. “The coffeehouse was going to be a success because of the way Jade designed it.She makes a hell of a cup of coffee, and her selection of books is impressive. But with the addition of the bakery? People come from twenty miles away for the things Billie makes. You ask me, she knew what worked for her.”

“But she gave it all up, Dad,” he countered. “She could live comfortably anywhere in the damn world. Why would she choose here?”

“When she first moved back, she managed the bank here. I think she was there until around five years ago. Then she was teaching finance at the community college. So it’s not like she left you and her career and started baking. If you ask me, she figured out her priorities. There’s nothing wrong with that.”

Why didn’t anyone understand? “But her life would be easier—so much easier if she’d stayed in finance. She could be the head of some major banking firm by now, making six figures a year before bonuses!”

“It’s not about the money for everyone,” Max murmured. “I think more people would love to have careers they enjoyed rather than what paid the best.”

Marcus was already shaking his head. “You’re crazy. Everyone wants to make money. You can’t pay the bills with happiness and joy. Money makes the world go round.”

“Maybe,” his brother said, shrugging. “Besides that, if you talk to anyone in town, they’ll tell you how close the Donovans are. It doesn’t look like she’s here under duress.”

“She’s not,” his father commented. “Levi even moved back. He’s married to Jade. They’ve got a couple of kids, and he’s got an advertising firm here in town. Ashlynn’s married to a local firefighter and has a hair salon in one of the old buildings that they rehabbed.”

“I’m not asking…”

“Chloe just got married. She’s a kindergarten teacher and she married a fellow teacher.”

“Yeah, great, but…”

“Their father was living down in North Carolina, but last I heard, he moved back now that everyone’s married and having kids.”

Was Billie married? He didn’t look to see if she had a ring on her finger, but he supposed it was possible. It had been over ten years, so…

“And Marie is still Marie,” his father went on. “She’s a nice enough woman, but she still gives me the stink eye every once in a while, thanks to you.”

“Seriously? That’s just childish. And how do you know it’s because of me?”

“Because whenever I get close enough, I can hear her mumbling about my jackass son.”

That almost made him laugh. “Maybe she was talking about Max.”

“Hey, don’t drag me into this,” his brother said with a chuckle. “You’re a big enough jackass for both of us.”

“This is getting us nowhere,” he huffed. “I’m here because we have decisions to make about our family. I don’t give a damn about the Donovans, okay?”

They ate in silence for several long minutes until Marcus thought he’d go mad.

“So…where are we starting?” he asked. “Have you had a realtor come through here to appraise the house or…?”

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