Page 22 of With Every Breath

Her eyes held mine, and my pulse raced. I had to force myself to step back, lifting my hand in a wave. “Catch you later.”

She blinked before nodding. “Thanks again.”

I watched as she climbed into her SUV and drove off before leaving.

ChapterEleven

Alice

Maisie glanced up with a smile. Amelia looked from her to me, offering, “Maisie usually wins.”

“That’s her I-won smile,” Lucy interjected.

I couldn’t help but laugh. “I see.”

Maisie shrugged. “My father is basically a card shark. He was really into gambling, and he was actually good at cards. He also fucked my life up because of it, but the one thing I got out of it is I’m really good at cards. I don’t like to cheat to lose, so I sit out sometimes.”

“Because the rest of us are inferior with our skills,” Madison chimed in from my side.

We were all together in Madison’s kitchen for the card night Amelia had mentioned the first time I ran into her. It ended up being canceled that weekend, but she’d texted me yesterday about this one. Apparently, the group got together a few times a month when it worked out.

I knew Amelia well and had a passing acquaintance with Lucy from when she moved to town in high school. I also knew Holly, Ella, and Susannah. Madison was new to me. She had moved to town recently and was engaged to Graham Holden, who I also knew from high school. While I hadn’t been in the same grade in school with everyone here, most of us had grown up together.

Paisley was also new to town. She was a firefighter and on the same crew as Jonah. I also knew Mae, who, like me, had moved back to Willow Brook more recently.

“Paisley wins sometimes,” Maisie offered as she shuffled the cards and handed the deck to Amelia, who was sitting beside her. “I’m going to pass on this game.”

“The least you could do is give the rest of us pointers when you sit out,” Holly teased, nudging her lightly with her elbow.

“I don’t care if I win or lose,” I said as Amelia began dealing the cards after shuffling the deck again.

“Well, you might after Maisie wins every time,” Madison commented with a grin.

“She’s sitting out this time,” I pointed out, gesturing toward her.

Maisie’s eyes crinkled at the corners with her smile, and her brown curls swung slightly when her shoulders shook with laughter. “I just like to hang out with everybody.”

“When did you move here?” I asked.

“Just over three years ago,” Maisie replied.

“She works at the fire station. She’s like the center of the universe there,” Susannah interjected.

Maisie rolled her eyes. “I handle dispatch, and I’m the main receptionist there. If that qualifies as the center of the universe for the fire station, I guess I am,” she teased.

“And Beck fell in love with her.” Ella offered this with a solemn tone.

“I heard Beck was married and has kids. How many kids do you have?” I asked.

“They have two,” Lucy chimed in. “I’m telling you, I have no idea how you handle two. One is more than enough for me.”

Maisie shrugged. “Once you get through the baby phase, it’s not so bad. It is a lot of work, though.”

I glanced around the table, asking, “How many of you have kids?”

I promptly discovered I was way behind the times upon learning how many of my friends had children. After that update, I glanced amongst the group. “Well, I guess I’m late at this.”

Amelia curled an arm around my shoulder, squeezing before returning her attention to her cards and organizing her hand.

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