Once Mallory heard the door to the family wing close, she turned to Sam. “You know we have to do something, right?”
“Mal, what are we supposed to do? She seems pretty set on moving on.”
“Did she?”
He frowned. “Um…”
“There were a lot of flimsy excuses in there but at the end, she admitted that she loved Colton. There’s still hope!”
“It’s really not our place…”
She punched him in the arm. “Just…leave it to me. I’m going to go home and talk to Jake. Considering Colton works for him, I’m sure he can get some insight into how he feels about the breakup.”
“How do you think he feels, Mal? He proposed and got turned down. I can pretty much guarantee he’s not feeling great.”
“Don’t be so snarky,” she snapped. “I think we give them both today to let things sink in and then Monday Jake will talk to him.” She paused. “Or…”
“Oh, no,” Sam said, taking a step back. “I am not going to be the one to go talk to Colt. Nuh-uh. No way.”
“Come on, Sam! Don’t you care that Mom’s hurting?”
“Of course I care! I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t!”
“Then won’t you please…”
He held up a hand to stop her. “If I do it, it will be when I want and how I want. You are not going to dictate it to me. Deal?”
She smiled sweetly up at him. “Deal.”
“Jake? What are you doing here?”
It was a stupid question. Colton knew exactly why his boss and friend was here.
He was just embarrassed that he felt the need to come check on him.
Jake Summerford stood on Colton’s front porch looking a little uncomfortable even as he offered a small smile. “Mind if I come in?”
Stepping aside, Colton motioned for him to step inside and once they were in, he offered Jake something to drink.
“Thanks, but I’m good,” Jake said, taking a seat. Once Colton was seated on the sofa opposite him, Jake gave him another small smile. “You doing okay?”
Why lie?
“No,” he said glumly. “Not really.”
Jake nodded. “Mallory told me what happened. I mean, not everything, just…well…that you proposed and…”
“And Susannah turned me down and broke up with me.” He paused. “Yeah.”
Leaning forward, resting his elbows on his knees, Jake let out a long breath. “I’ll be honest with you, Colt. I’m not even sure what to say.”
“I’m still a little dumbfounded myself.”
“If you need some time off or…anything,” Jake offered, “just say the word. I know this can’t be easy for you.”
“Thanks.” He paused and knew what he needed to ask if he was going to have any peace. “How is she?”
“I didn’t see or talk to her. Mallory stayed over at the house last night and Sam was over with them this morning.”
“They’re good kids,” he said solemnly. “They mean the world to Susannah.”
“And she means the world to them,” Jake replied. “For what it’s worth, Colt, Mallory said Susannah’s hurting too. You have to know the decision wasn’t easy for her.”
All he could do was nod.
“You know she didn’t have a great marriage…”
“It was over twenty years ago,” he argued, but there was no heat behind his words. “She’s an amazing woman who has overcome so much and she has this amazing future in front of her with the inn, then you and Mallory getting married, and I’m sure Sam’s not far behind. I don’t get why she keeps looking back at something that clearly only made her stronger.”
Jake didn’t seem to have a response to that.
“I know I probably should have thought all of this through – maybe should have felt her out a little to see how she felt about marriage. I just never thought her first marriage would still be an issue.”
“Yeah, I get that,” Jake agreed. “But sometimes it’s not an issue until…you know…something like this comes up. Maybe she just got spooked. Maybe you guys should take a couple of days and then sit down and talk again.”
It was something Colton had thought about while lying in bed last night, but he shot it down because he didn’t feel strong enough to face rejection from her a second time.
With a shrug he said, “I don’t know. Maybe.”
“It’s something to think about.” Jake studied his hands for a moment. “But seriously, Colt, is there anything I can do for you? Anything you need?”
“Right now, I don’t know. I think my head’s still spinning a bit. It’s like I don’t even know what to do with myself. For almost a year, Susannah and I have seen each other every day. As a matter of fact, we were supposed to go to the big warehouse store down in Wilmington today to do the final shopping for the inn’s pantry.” He shook his head and looked up at Jake. “The thought of not seeing her or talking to her again is just…it’s killing me.”
“Well, it’s not like you’ll never see Susannah again. Magnolia’s a small community and…”
“It’s not the same and you know it. Running into her in the grocery store or seeing her across the street while walking around in town isn’t what I’m looking for.” Standing, he began to pace. “I don’t know if I can stay here, Jake. I don’t know if I can handle what happens from here.”
Rising, Jake walked over and put a hand on his shoulder to calm him. “Don’t make any rash decisions just yet. Like I said, take a few days to let everything settle in. You’ve lived here your entire life and you didn’t move after your divorce, so you know you can do this.”
“Again, it’s not the same. When my marriage ended, there weren’t any hard feelings. Dana and I had simply grown apart. And besides, she moved away.”
“Oh.”
Stepping away, Colton moved to stare out the front window – practically willing Susannah to show up and say she’d made a mistake. Hands in his pockets, he knew it wasn’t going to happen. “I just want you to know that I’d give you plenty of notice,” he said solemnly. “Like I wouldn’t just pack up and leave without telling you.” Looking over his shoulder, he offered Jake a weak smile. “You’ve always been a good friend and a fair boss. I won’t leave you hanging.”
“Colt, that is the last thing on my mind. I’m worried about you – as a friend. The work stuff doesn’t mean squat right now, okay?”
He nodded.
They stood there, side by side staring out the window when someone pulled into the driveway. Beside him, he heard Jake chuckle but Colton had no idea why. Without a word, he stepped around him and went to open the front door while he waited.
A minute later, Sam came strolling up the front path – his hair in disarray and looking all kinds of intimidating.
Until he was standing a few feet away.
Then he smiled.
And then that smile grew when he spotted Jake in the doorway too.