EPILOGUE
Maeve smiled and handeda plate full of cake to the next person coming down the table.
“It was a beautiful wedding, wasn’t it?” the older woman said with a smile.
“It was,” Maeve agreed. “Absolutely stunning.” And it had been. Layla had been the perfect little flower girl, Harper had been a stunning bride and Mason, the big teddy bear, had been a handsome and doting groom. The event was everything fairy tales were made of.
She sighed, pushed up her glasses and continued to pass out cake. Maeve absolutely did not want to admit that she was jealous...but she was jealous. She had felt the same way at Aspen’s reception.
Maeve knew she was excellent at hiding it, but she was lonely. She spent her time behind a calculator and a set of glasses she didn’t really need, trying to convince herself that they were all the company she needed, but each night when she went to sleep...the heavy need for more crushed her chest like a two ton weight.
“Oh my gosh, did you see him?”
Maeve frowned at her sister. “Who?”
Estelle sidled closer and dropped her voice. “Mason’s brother...Crew.” She shook her head slowly. “I think that might be the most handsome man I’ve ever met.” She fanned herself playfully. “Too bad he doesn’t live here.”
Maeve nodded. “Yeah...Cali’s a bit of a commute.”
Estelle sighed longingly, her eyes still focused across the room. “Guess that just means I should make the most of tonight, right?”
Maeve knocked their shoulders together. “Right. Go get ’em, Tiger.”
Estelle scowled before waltzing away.
Maeve deflated when her sister left. If only she had the excuse of a long commute...
Laughter caught her attention and she couldn’t help but look. Maeve knew she shouldn’t. After all, she knew exactly who was having such a grand time. But as always, the sound of Ethan’s voice drew her like a scientist to a boiling beaker.
Ethan was dancing on the small wooden floor that had been placed in the middle of the reception hall for that exact purpose. Layla was in his arms and the little flower girl was leaning back, while he spun them in a circle. Dark curls flew through the air and then Ethan would stop, pull the toddler in and together they would laugh.
Maeve’s eyes roamed his face. She could have described it in her sleep. A strong, slightly square jaw that was clean shaven today, though he often left just enough scruff to be attractive. Straight, white teeth that he flashed around all the time, as if his smile wasn’t enough to stop traffic. Medium brown hair that he kept just a little too long, which was perfect for showing off the surfing highlights he got every summer. Instead of large, bulky muscles like Mason had, Ethan was lean, but she’d seen him without his shirt on enough times to know there wasn’t an ounce of fat on his body.
He was the exact type of man that made women flock to surfing competitions. And his easy-going personality caused those same flocks to stay.
Except when he leaves you.
Maeve jolted when she realized that Ethan had caught her. His hazel eyes were more green than brown today against his suit and when their gazes met, he paused, his smile drooping every so slightly.
Normally, Maeve looked away immediately, but today she felt caught. Like a tractor beam that refused to let go. It wasn’t until Ethan’s face turned hopeful and he started to walk in her direction that Maeve was able to gain control.
“Would you like some cake?” she asked, forcing a smile at the next person in line. She studiously ignored the hard stare from the most handsome man she’d ever known, no offense to Mason’s brother.
It didn’t matter that she had known him since he was a young boy. It didn’t matter that he ate dinner at their house three times a week. It didn’t matter that at one point she had worshiped the ground he walked on. He had lost her trust back when they were teenagers and Maeve didn’t have the ability to give it back to him.
His choices that fateful day had nearly cost her her life and Maeve was determined not to let his current choices cost her anything else.
According to her family, Maeve was simply too serious for playful Ethan. She was irritated with his happy-go-lucky attitude and only wanted to spend her time crunching numbers.
Maeve did like numbers. They made sense. She always knew what she was going to get when she added or subtracted or ran formulas. There were never surprises and numbers never left her behind with a laugh or almost killed her.
She pushed up her glasses again. Sometimes they drove her nuts. She didn’t need them. Her vision was just fine, but as she’d gotten older and Ethan had refused to leave her alone, she’d adopted wearing them as a way to create a barrier between her and the persistent neighbor.
It hadn’t worked as well as she’d hoped, but Maeve was too stubborn to admit it and stop wearing them.
“You should take a break and come dance.”
Maeve jumped, nearly dropping the plate she was handing out. “Ethan,” she scolded. “You nearly gave me a heart attack.”
“So you do know my name,” he said with a grin, stepping a little closer. He must have passed Layla off to someone else, since his arms were currently empty.
The soft scent of his cologne hit her and Maeve had to forcefully stop herself from leaning closer. Fate must have a daily laugh at her expense, causing Maeve to fall in love with the one man she couldn’t trust. It was a cruel, cruel joke and Maeve wanted to be free of it.
If only she knew how.
She’d been fighting her growing feelings for years and somehow, over time, they only became more solidified, despite the incident between them.
“Maeve?”
She blinked, coming out of her thoughts. “I’m busy,” she said tersely, turning back to the table.
“I’m pretty sure all these lovely people can pick up their own plate,” he whispered in her ear.
There was no stopping or hiding the shiver that ran down her spine from his closeness. She was completely positive that if she simply gave in, all her loneliness would vanish like one of Aspen’s cakes.
“Why do you fight it so hard?” he asked, a note of pleading in his voice. “Maeve...”
She straightened and stepped away, his words the reminder she needed to snap back to reality. “I’m working, Ethan. Thank you for the invite, but I’m sure you can find someone else to accompany you.”
He sighed and pushed a hand through his hair, messing up the styling job he’d been sporting. “I’ll catch you another time,” he said, turning away.
Someday he’ll get tired of trying,a voice said in the back of her head. And then where will you be? “Satisfied,” she whispered to herself, but the word rang false. The day Ethan moved on to someone more welcoming would be like a sword through her heart, but Maeve didn’t know how to let it go.
She’d almost died, and he’d left, breaking her heart and her confidence in him. That wasn’t something easily rebuilt and each time Maeve thought of forgiving, she broke out in a cold sweat, memories of her near drowning consuming her.
She wanted to be free, but she simply didn’t know how.