Nothing But This (Broken Pieces 2)

Libby sometimes wondered if Tina had bought the place just so that she, Libby, could have something to fall back on. Which would be exactly the kind of impulsive, impractical, mad thing one could sometimes expect from Tina. She hoped Tina wouldn’t be that foolhardy, but Libby wasn’t going to leave her best friend to manage a restaurant without her help. Not after everything Tina had done for Libby and Clara. Besides, MJ’s had potential, and she was sure she and Tina could help it succeed.

Libby hoped working closely with Tina would fix whatever was broken in their friendship as well. Things had been rocky and uncertain since she had moved out of Tina’s flat. They were treading on eggshells around each other, and Tina still seemed a little hesitant around Clara. But this venture felt like a chance for them to rediscover their bond and possibly reinvent their friendship.

It also presented a massive opportunity for Libby. She could be her own boss and create a signature menu. She’d have time to experiment with desserts—her true passion—and really turn the place into a buzzing premium eatery. She could barely contain her excitement at the thought of how much this could change her life. She loved that she could feel excited about her career again. For too long the only emotions she’d had associated with it had been regret and loss.

She had been going through the motions at Chris’s café. But with MJ’s, she felt a thrill whenever she considered the potential, what it could mean to her as a chef, to Tina as a burgeoning businesswoman. How much independence it could give them both.

And it didn’t hurt that the town was gorgeous. The perfect place to raise Clara.

“Tina is giving the restaurant a face-lift. She’s rebranding, changing the menu, and redecorating. MJ’s is nearly unrecognizable now.”

Chris muttered something unsavory beneath his breath and offered her a rueful smile.

“If this will make you happy,” he conceded begrudgingly, “then I cannot stand in your way.”

Make me happy? Libby wasn’t sure what it would take to make her truly happy again. But this shot at independence, a second chance at the career that she’d so willfully abandoned for a man who felt nothing for her, was a good start. She returned his smile, fighting back the ever-lurking melancholy, and put down Clara’s tiny onesie to hug the man who had gone from fun acquaintance to invaluable friend in just three short months.

“You’ve been such a wonderful friend to me, Chris. I can’t tell you how much this has meant to me.”

“It has been my privilege, ma petite,” he said into her hair. “You deserve happiness. You and my precious Clara bonbon both deserve it. I will visit all the time. I do not want Clara to forget her oncle Chris.”

“That will never happen,” she promised and gave him one more huge squeeze before resuming her packing.

“Ugh, this place is falling apart, Libby,” Tina said, wrinkling her nose as she took in the house Libby was in the process of moving in to.

“It just needs a bit of TLC,” Libby disagreed, her eyes running around the tiny living room and kitchen as she mentally cataloged all the work that needed to be done. Instead of feeling overwhelmed, she had a renewed sense of purpose. She was optimistic about this house, about the future. While she had this to focus on, she didn’t have to think about Greyson. About the divorce papers she’d had drafted up. The ones she had shoved into Clara’s nappy bag and tried to dismiss from her mind.

“I got it at a fantastic price,” she said. It had taken nearly all of her savings and a small loan from her concerned but supportive parents, but Libby considered it money well spent.

“Yeah, I can see why.” Tina opened up the kitchen faucet and winced when the pipes groaned and slightly brown water spluttered from the tap in spurts rather than a steady stream. “You and Clara should at least move in with me until you have most of this sorted out.”

“Then we’d be living with you indefinitely.” Libby laughed.

“I don’t see a problem with that.”

“You will when she wakes you up at night again,” Libby said, and Tina smiled slightly in return. Her eyes dropped to where Clara’s baby seat had been placed on the scrubbed-down kitchen counter, before hastily darting away.

Libby wanted to ask her. She really did, but something painful and desperate in Tina’s eyes stayed her tongue. She had once believed she and Tina had no secrets from each other, but this was something huge and potentially emotionally destructive, and with everything else she had to deal with right now, Libby let the moment pass. She wasn’t proud of her own cowardice, but at the same time, she felt resentful that Tina had put her in this position.