She had her there.
“Rick was a horrible husband, Sadie.”
She hated that Tamlyn called him Rick and she really, really, really wanted to wipe that patronizing smile off her face. Why had Sadie never noticed that Tamlyn’s smile was hard, her eyes calculating?
She’d been such a sucker.
She’d wanted to believe Tamlyn, had needed to believe that Sadie wasn’t the only one who’d thought she’d married one man only to get another.
She’d been so wrapped up in her own pain, in her own anger. Oh, she could justify her actions: her parents hadn’t believed her, neither had her friends so she’d chosen to believe Tamlyn, knowing how difficult it was to see one version of a man and have the rest of the world seeing another.
But in this case, Tamlyn was wrong. And she was also malicious. Carrick wasn’t the bad man she’d portrayed; he wasn’t the abusive spouse she’d claimed. Tamlyn was distorting the facts to suit her own agenda.
Sadie knew Carrick; her heart recognized him. She might even...oh, dear...love Carrick. But more important, she saw him clearly. He wasn’t an easy man and certainly didn’t wear his heart on his sleeve.
But underneath the reticence was a strong, occasionally tender heart, and he was a man who danced to his own song, who didn’t need the approval of others.
He was strong but kind.
Beth touched Sadie’s hand with the tips of her fingers. “We’re just trying to protect you, Sadie. You made a really bad decision before and we don’t want to see you make another one.”
Sadie pulled her hand away and shook her head, tired of Beth reminding her not to trust her own judgment.
Sadie picked up her spoon and drew patterns on the linen tablecloth. Given the information she’d had at the time—Dennis was charming, attentive, sweet and seemed to be totally in love with her—had she made the wrong decision? He was everything she, and every other woman she knew, wanted in a man. So had she really made such a bad decision? How was she supposed to know Dennis would turn into a monster?
She couldn’t, unfortunately, look beneath the surface of a person’s psyche and see the black mess below. That wasn’t a superpower she possessed.
She’d made the correct decision based on all the information she had. She hadn’t done anything wrong...
Dennis, that superb conman, was at fault, not her.
Maybe there wasn’t anything wrong with her judgment. And maybe, just maybe, she should start to trust herself again.
Sadie leaned back and stared out the window of the upmarket bistro, not seeing the wet and dismal day beyond the cold pane. Sadie could feel something uncurling inside her soul, felt her heart starting to stretch.
It felt good, dammit.
More than good, it felt amazing.
And she wouldn’t allow the Sturgis sisters to poison it. Being around them, listening to them, was toxic and she was done. Sadie looked at Tamlyn, taking in her perfect makeup and artfully arranged hair.
Pretty but poisonous.
And Beth’s loyalty would always be to her sister. Sadie understood it, but she needed to break the cycle.
Enough. She was done.
Sadie heard the ringing of her phone from her bag and pounced on the device, thankful for the distraction. Seeing Carrick’s name on her screen had her heart jumping and her lips curving. He made her heart smile. How could that be a bad thing?
“Hey, Carrick.” She emphasized his full name and saw Tamlyn’s eyebrows pull together.
“You left early this morning. Why didn’t you wake me?” Carrick’s deep voice washed over her. Sadie smiled and for the first time since she sat down, she felt at ease. Carrick made her feel like that; Tamlyn and Beth did not.
Sadie saw the look the sisters exchanged and ignored them, choosing to focus on the man on the other side of her call. “I needed to work and I’m leaving for the airport soon.”
“Remind me where you are going and when you’ll be back?”
“Depending on what information I find at the Virginia Museum of History and Culture, I’ll be back the day after tomorrow.”