Page 81 of Forbidden Love

“I’m continually coming up with new ideas for festivals and projects we can do to get people excited about their town. I have a feeling you’re the same way.”

“I have come up with a lot of different ideas for fundraising. First the ski equipment, then the dugouts and sports equipment, and now this. I enjoy it in a way I never have anything else.”

“You’re like me. We thrive on helping people. I think we can help each other too.”

“We’ll see how this goes.” I didn’t mention that I’d sent out résumés because I was second-guessing myself. Did I need the validation of a job offer? Proof that I hadn’t screwed up before I could move on with my life and do what I wanted to do? Because this lunch had energized me in a way I hadn’t been in years.

I loved the idea of partnering with the town. With their support, I could do so much good. I wouldn’t have to work as hard to get the word out.

On the sidewalk, I hugged Scarlett and invited her to come out with some old friends I’d made plans with that night.

On the way home, I imagined what my life would look like if I stayed: a job at my family’s lodge, planning events and weddings. A side job of fundraising. It seemed like a life I could get behind. But what about Tyler? Could I stay here if he decided we were just a fling?

My heart ached. I wondered if that was why I’d applied for other places. I’d have an out if Tyler said we were just temporary.

He’d never made any promises or said how he felt. I didn’t know where I stood, and I was too chicken to ask him.

I needed to make some decisions soon. My chest tightened with the enormity of things I needed to figure out, and at the heart of them was where I stood with Tyler.

We’d started with an end date. Was I changing the rules by telling him I might want to stay and make a life here? Was he expecting me to leave?

My head hurt with the possibilities, and I couldn’t even talk to him. Tyler was busy building his house. He wanted it to be done by the end of summer so he could enjoy it. I didn’t want to interrupt his flow by showing up and demanding answers. I was a big girl. I could figure things out.

I’d reached out to some of my old softball teammates. We’d played rec league through the years, and most of us made the high school team. We’d grown up together, and they were the closest things I had to friends over the years. When I moved to Paris, I lost touch with most of my college friends and hadn’t made too many in Europe.

I’d dated Brad and hadn’t bothered to form close relationships with anyone else. That was a mistake. Because when everything went down with him, I had no one to turn to.

I was surprised so many of my old friends still lived in Telluride. Emery got pregnant the summer before college and stayed. The rest went to college and returned home at various times.

When I arrived at the bar, everyone was already there, seated at a high-top table. I hugged everyone and then slid into a seat at the end.

“So, what’s everyone been up to?” I asked as I looked around the table.

“You’re the one no one has heard from over the years,” Chloe said, and I winced.

“I’m sorry. When I left, I didn’t want any ties here at home. I didn’t want an excuse to come back.” I’d never said any of that out loud before. But it was my truth.

Emery gave me a sympathetic look. “We knew you weren’t happy at home.”

“Then we heard you were in Paris, and I couldn’t believe it. I guess I always thought you’d come home and work at the lodge,” Chloe said.

“It was always in the back of my mind, but then I studied abroad and fell in love with Europe. There was all this possibility there.”

“Are you home for good?” Emery asked.

“I’ve been working on a few fundraisers, just trying to figure out what I want to do with my life. It’s a little early to have a mid-life crisis, but that’s what it feels like.”

“I got pregnant at eighteen, so I never had that luxury. I went to school, cared for my daughter, and survived. Now that she’s nine, things are easier. I feel like I can breathe again,” Emery said.

I reached across the table and squeezed her hand. “You’re doing an amazing job.”

“Thank you.”

I wasn’t sure where the father was. She hadn’t mentioned one, and he wasn’t included in any of her pictures online. But if she was a single mother, that wasn’t easy. I couldn’t imagine navigating college and my first job with a little one.

“I have help from my parents and friends.”

“We should rent a cabin and have a girls’ night,” I said, eager to reconnect with these women.

---