“Which is extremely heroic,” Hadley said.
A little while later, when the last box was finally unpacked, Hadley realized Jagger had snuck out of the room. And it was awfully quiet. “Uh-oh,” she said, looking around. “Where’d my furry friend go?” She envisioned the kitchen torn apart, food scavenged from the counter, Ollie huddled somewhere, frightened.
“Come see this,” Kit whispered, beckoning with her hand from the doorway.
Hadley walked over to Kit, Darla right behind her. There, on what had to be a designer couch in the great room, was Ollie, fast asleep, curled up against Jagger.
“What a sweetheart,” Darla said. “He’s not shy about making himself at home.”
“I’d love to give him a home,” Hadley said, “but he’s bigger than half my apartment in LA.” Knowing that Darla had never owned a dog, she turned to Kit first. “How about some company for Rex?” Rex, a black Lab, had been Carson’s dog.
“No thanks,” Kit said adamantly. “I can barely take care of Ollie and me.”
“Don’t look at me,” Darla said. “I sit in a chair and write all day. I’d be a terrible dog parent.”
Eventually they went back into Darla’s bedroom and poured one more glass of wine before sitting on the floor talking.
“You both are the best, you know that?” Darla said, a little bit teary-eyed.
“Darla, is something wrong?” Hadley’s stomach dropped like a bag of bricks. Between the sudden teariness and the mention of bloodwork, she couldn’t help thinking what if Darla’s cancer was back and she’d waited till they were all together…
Darla sat back against the bed frame. “Nothing bad.” She looked at Hadley. “It’s just…when was the last time we were all together? I don’t even remember. I mean, I’ve seen you both separately when you came to see me during chemo, but when was the last time all three of us were in the same place for a while?”
“Last Christmas?” Kit asked.
“No,” Darla said. “Hadley was skiing in Aspen.”
Cooper’s idea. How had she let him talk her into not coming home for the holidays?
“Well, we’re all together now and I just want to say…I’ve missed you all.” Darla raised her glass to her friends. “Thank you for coming to help me. And for all you’ve done for me over these past two years. I’m so happy to have you as my friends.”
“Hear, hear.” Kit raised her glass next.
They all toasted to the panoramic view of the Atlantic just outside the window. Hadley was thrilled for Darla’s good health and good fortune and for being together with her friends.
“And now I want some gossip,” Darla said.
Kit sighed. “The only juicy gossip I have these days involves who stole a kiss in the play kitchen at day care.”
“Was it the teacher?” Darla asked.
“No. It was two four-year-olds.”
“Then you’re right,” Darla said. “That is pathetic. Aren’t any of us getting laid?”
“Don’t look at me.” Kit shook her head. “I’m a frazzled mom. I’m barely keeping it together.”
“Any potential with the guys at work?” Darla asked. Kit’s job of processing claims and scheduling at the auto body shop was stressful, mainly because of her awful boss. She was biding her time there, saving money with the goal of finishing her psychology degree.
Kit snorted. “Well, one of the auto body specialists did tell me last week that I didn’t need any body work myself.”
“Wow,” Darla said. “That’s a pickup line?”
“Don’t be too hard on him,” Kit said. “He’s only twenty-one.”
Darla blinked and smiled slowly.
“Don’t even go there. Why would I have any interest in a twenty-one-year-old?” Kit rolled her eyes, even as she blushed. “Hadley! Your turn. Please.”
“Hold on a sec,” Darla said. “Why not go for a twenty-one-year-old? Could be fun.”
“No thanks,” Kit said. “I have a four-year-old, remember? I don’t want to date anyone who even remotely makes me feel like their mother.”
“Hadley, how about you?” Darla asked. “Any prospects?”
“Oh, no.” She held her hands up in defense as they both turned to look at her. “I’m definitely not interested in dating. Besides, considering I’m in every grocery store tabloid right now, no guy would dare to come near me unless he wants his face blasted all around the country.”
“It will die down,” Darla said. “It may take until Cooper gets himself in trouble all over again, but it will die down.”
Kit showed her agreement by clinking glasses with Darla. Her friends had never liked Cooper. Neither had Gran, whom he’d constantly called “Granny,” much to her chagrin. Hadley definitely should’ve paid more attention to that.
“What was it like,” Kit asked, “seeing Cam again after all this time?”
Hadley’s heart skipped a beat at the mention of his name, making her far more uncomfortable than she wanted to be. “No big deal,” she said a little too quickly. “I mean, all that was a long time ago, you know?” For some reason, she’d rather talk about Cooper’s bad behavior than Cam.
“That was always so weird,” Darla said, “how he dumped you just like that”—she snapped her fingers—“right before you both left for college.”
“No, it wasn’t,” Hadley interjected. “He was destined to be a phenomenon even back then. He didn’t want his hometown honey getting in the way.” That was the truth, no matter what Cam said now about being an idiot. He’d wanted his freedom, and when he’d started getting all kinds of notoriety for playing football, he’d wanted to play the field. So he’d dumped her.
It still stung. It was also wildly similar to what she’d just been through with Cooper. How had she missed the signs…a second time?
“Cam’s definitely enjoyed the perks of celebrity life,” Darla said. “A different girlfriend every few months.”
“I saw him out to dinner with his sister last week at Stargazer’s,” Kit said. The popular restaurant was just outside of town. “After dinner, he took photos with a family. Signed autographs too. All with a smile on his face.”
“What’s not to smile about?” Darla asked. “I’d love to be a multimillionaire and retire at thirty-five.”
“Not to excuse him,” Kit said, “but it was probably a terrible blow to have to stop playing when he was at the top of his game.”
Darla frowned. “That doesn’t give him the right to steamroll all over Hadley’s grandma.”
“I’m not going to let that happen,” Hadley said. Despite her resolve to save Pooch Palace, she couldn’t help thinking about what it must be like for Cam. Even as a young man, he was determined to succeed. To go places. He worked harder than anyone she’d ever known, and she could only imagine what a blow it must be to never be able to play football again. “I mean, I wish him well.” She paused. “As long as he stays away from my grandma.”