Page 83 of Then Came You

“Yes. Me and two of my friends.”

“I’ve heard a lot of good things about it.”

Gillian gave her a tight smile. “Business is good. I can’t complain.”

“Hey, Dax. What are you doing here?” The other two officers at the booth had sauntered over to join them, making Gillian feel even more inconspicuous.

She tried to slip away, but Carly stopped her by putting her hand on Gillian’s arm. “It was nice seeing you, Gillian. Take care.”

The other two officers eyed her closely like they were putting the puzzle pieces together.

“Thanks.” Gillian couldn’t wait to leave, and she walked away without another word.

She was shaking when she reentered her booth.

“Sorry, sweetie,” Savannah whispered, obviously having witnessed the entire transaction.

“We’ll talk later, okay?”

Savannah nodded, and then Gillian grabbed her purse and hurried off in the direction of the store. She didn’t dare look back for fear that Dax and Carly were still there, but she swore she felt Sam’s eyes on her as she walked away.

Luckily, it was a short walk as the festival had been set up on an empty plot of land behind Main Street. It was midday now, and more people had come out, but she barely noticed them as she weaved her way through the crowd. She didn’t breathe easy until she entered the bookstore and saw Lauren standing behind the counter.

“What happened?” Lauren asked immediately.

Gillian glanced around the store to make sure nobody was within hearing distance. Then she told Lauren about running into Dax and Carly. “I knew it would happen eventually, but the timing couldn’t have been any worse. I was talking to Sam, and anybody with eyes would have noticed the looks we passed.”

“Would it really be so bad if they knew? I mean, it’s been over a year now.”

Gillian sighed. “I don’t know. Who gets to decide the proper amount of time for grieving? Assuming it ever really ends.”

Lauren rubbed her arm soothingly. “Only you can decide that. It’s not up to Dax, Carly, or anybody else. You know what’s in your heart.”

Lauren was right. She did know. Until now, Gillian hadn’t encountered anybody from Owen and her shared past. Sadly, she hadn’t even stayed in touch with his immediate family except to send a Christmas card. Owen’s parents and siblings lived out of state, and after his death, she hadn’t made it a priority to visit them. Of course, they hadn’t made an effort either, not that she blamed them. She suspected their grief had kept them away and seeing her would only serve as a painful reminder.

Running into Dax and Carly had been a shock to her system. It would have been difficult enough if she’d been alone, but the fact that she’d been making googly eyes at Sam made it seem much worse. What would Dax think about her dating a fellow officer? Would he look poorly on her, Sam, or them both?

Then she remembered when Sam had told her that one of his co-workers had been harassing him about “getting lucky.” Could it have been Dax? If it had been, Dax was certainly smart enough to put the pieces together, and now he’d know that Sam had been referring to her.

What of the other two officers that had been working the booth? Maybe they’d known Owen too, even though she hadn’t recognized them. There’d been so many police officers at Owen’s funeral that she hadn’t met, including Sam. Whether the other two had known Owen or not, Dax would probably fill them in, and soon the entire force would know.

This was what she got for dating a cop in a small town where everybody knew everybody. Why couldn’t she have kept her vow about not dating another policeman? Why couldn’t she have met someone who wasn’t in the public eye instead?

She wasn’t sure how long she’d been silent before Lauren spoke again.

“Why don’t you take the rest of the day off? Doreen and I can handle the store, and Savannah can stay at the booth. I’m sure she won’t mind.”

Especially if Brady comes back to visit, Gillian thought. Why couldn’t I be more like Savannah? Then I could have met some random guy that nobody around here knows. Instead, I had to go and fall for the “hot cop,” the town hero that everybody loves, including… Oh no…don’t even think it. Too late!

“Gilly? Are you okay?”

She nodded, even though her head was a mess. “I think I could use some time off. Are you sure you’ll be okay without me?”

“Of course.”

Gillian gave Lauren a quick hug. “Thank you for this.”

“Don’t thank me. Just go home and relax, and try not to worry, okay?”