“Why are we talking about your balls again?”
“He knew he’d made a mistake. A gargantuan one. If you really loved him like you say you did, maybe this is your chance to make everything right."
I mustered a smile when what I wanted to do was punch him. "I appreciate how you look after me, Ethan. But I am perfectly content running my business and being an aunt to Kira. I even like being your sister, although that might change if you don't stop talking about Sam."
He held his hands up in surrender and gave me a lopsided smile. “Okay. Message received. I just want you to be happy, Kate."
"I am." Mostly.
"I don't think you are. But it’s your life. You have to lead it." He checked his watch. "I've got to get to work. I'm the CEO of MacLeod Capital Investment." He grinned, looking so ridiculously happy.
“Have you told Grandfather?”
“I did. He’s now mad at me for abandoning him. He says I could still take over—”
“God, don’t let him lure you in.”
“I won’t. I’m happy. Jesus, who knew such happiness existed? That’s all I want for you, and despite what you say, I don’t think you’re as happy as you could be.”
“I’m a hell of a lot happier than I have been in the last five years.”
He shrugged in concession and then left.
The best way to push Sam out of my head was to bury myself in work, and luckily, business was busy today. The lunch crowd was filled with regulars and tourists.
I left work around seven in the evening, leaving Samantha in charge. I poured a glass of wine and sat at the dining table to plan a Halloween event at the Sea Siren. My phone rang, and looking at the caller ID, I saw it was Lucy.
"Lucy. Everything okay?"
"You tell me. Ethan is concerned about you. Apparently, that man who drove Noel and Harper to the hospital isn't just their neighbor. He’s your ex." There was an edge to her tone that told me she was hurt that I hadn't told her all this before. Then again, she knew me well enough to know I didn't like spouting all my deep, dark secrets.
"Ethan's a worrywart. All that is ancient history."
She was quiet on the other end for a moment. "I’m here for you if you want to talk. You know that, right?"
"I do know that. But there's nothing to talk about.”
"Well, I still think we should get together for lunch. We don't have to talk about this old boyfriend of yours, who apparently, you were going to marry."
I rolled my eyes. "Maybe we should invite Lane and Anne." Speaking of lunch with the girls made me think of Harper, and again, guilt filled me that I hadn't reached out to find out about the baby. "I haven't heard from Harper. Have you?"
"They had a girl. Her name is Noelle."
"Ah, that’s sweet. After Noel, I presume?"
She laughed. "Yes, Harper was very insistent on that. She and Noel went home today. I heard Mo was very sweet to his new little sister."
It still shocked me sometimes how Harper was a free spirit like me and in less than a year, she married, adopted Mo, and now had given birth to a little girl. It all sounded sweet and perfect. A twinge of envy hit me. But like always, I pushed it away.
We made a date to have lunch and then hung up. I blew out a breath, annoyed but not surprised that Ethan told Lucy about my history with Sam. I hoped they both got the message that Sam was not a topic I wanted to talk about. In some ways, Ethan was right. Sam wasn't completely out of my system. I was committed to remedying that by purging him from my life. That couldn't happen if Ethan and Lucy pushed me to talk about him. No, the best way to get Sam out of my system was to avoid him, not talk about him, and never think of him.
CHAPTERTHREE
Sam
Seeing Kate the other night caused a seismic shift in my priorities. I still had the goal of finding a location to build our next club, but now it supported a bigger priority to win Kate’s heart again. The club gave me a reason to stay in town.
I suspected my odds of winning the lottery were better than winning Kate back. She’d made it clear that she didn't want me around.