Page 18 of The Breakup Broker

Gloria set fresh glasses before us, then pulled out a bottle I recognized as her special reserve. “If any day deserves the good stuff, it’s this one.”

“Mom.” Maddy’s eyes widened. “That’s your birthday wine.”

“And my only daughter’s best friend had to deliver someone else’s breakup to the love of her life.” Gloria’s voice carried that mom’s tone, which broke down all defenses. “I think that qualifies as an event.”

“He wasn’t—” The lie died on my lips as the wine loosened my tongue. “God, who am I kidding? Of course, he was. Still is, probably. How pathetic is that?”

“Not pathetic.” Ivy squeezed my hand. “Human.”

“You know what’s pathetic?” The words spilled out faster now, helped by Gloria’s expensive wine. “I kept the napkin. The one where he drew out our future. Little house by the river, room for a garden, space for my books.” I laughed, and the sound edged with hysteria. “I built my entire business doing the opposite of everything we planned, and I still kept that stupid napkin.”

“Honey.” Gloria reached across the bar, her hand coolagainst my flushed cheek. “That’s not pathetic. That’s hope.”

“Hope is dangerous.” But even as I said it, I could feel my walls crumbling. “Hope makes you keep a napkin for five years. Hope makes you wonder if there was a good reason why the guy you loved disappeared.” The room swam as I reached for my glass. “Hope makes you look into his eyes today and still see everything you lost.”

Maddy and Ivy exchanged a look over my head. The same look they’d given each other the night Henry disappeared when they’d found me in the bookstore.

“Maybe,” Maddy said, “hope keeps us human.”

“Then I don’t want to be human anymore.” The words came out slurred. “I want to be professional. Untouchable. Not this ... mess who just told a client his girlfriend was right to leave him.”

“You’re not a mess.” Ivy’s arm slid around my shoulders. “You’re feeling things. Finally.”

“I don’t want to feel things.” But the tears came anyway, hot and fast. “I don’t want to wonder why he looked relieved when I delivered Caroline’s goodbye. I don’t want to think about that ring; it’s so perfect and wrong. I don't want to remember how his hands shook, the way he takes his coffee, or how he smells like..." I hiccuped. "Like home."

“Okay.” Gloria started putting away wine glasses with purpose. “That’s enough public emotional processing for one evening. Maddy, Ivy—make sure she gets home okay.”

“On it,” Maddy said, slipping an arm around my waist.

Ivy flanked my other side. “We’ve got you, Sav.”

The cool night air hit my face as we stepped outside, the short walk to the bookstore stretching endlessly before me. Maddy and Ivy kept me steady, their quiet presence a lifeline as Main Street swam in and out of focus.

“Almost there,” Ivy murmured as we approached the familiar storefront, the ‘Closed’ sign glowing softly in the window.

They each grabbed an arm to help me up the stairs to my apartment above the shop, but I stopped shy of the door. “Okay, thanks, but I’ve got it from here.”

Maddy narrowed her eyes at me. “No way. We’re coming in.”

“I appreciate it, but I’m fine,” I insisted, tugging my arm free from Ivy’s grip. “I need to face plant into bed, and you two don’t need to babysit me for that.”

“You can barely walk straight,” Ivy countered, her voice sharp with worry.

“And yet, I can still walk. Trust me, I’ll text when I’m in bed. Go home.”

They exchanged glances—one of those silent best-friend arguments that don’t need words—before Maddy huffed, “Fine. But youbettertext.”

“I promise,” I said, fumbling for my keys.

“Goodnight, then,” Ivy said reluctantly as they backed down the stairs, still watching me like I might topple over at any second. “Call if you need anything. And I mean anything.”

I nodded, watching as they disappeared down the stairs and into the night, their voices fading as they walked back up Main Street. Leaning heavily against my door, I tried again to fit the key into the lock, the ghost of Henry’s relief-filled eyes haunting me.

CHAPTER SEVEN

Henry

I shouldn't be here. That's all I could think as I watched Savvy struggle with her keys, the glow from River Bend Books' window casting shadows across her face. All those years of wondering, regretting, and telling myself it was for the best. And now, I was hiding in the darkness like a stalker.

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