The thought didn’t keep the butterflies from whipping around in her belly.
Inside, things looked pretty much like she remembered. Couches filled the big lounge in what had once been the inn’s front lobby, and the registration desk still actually stood at the back of the room. Photos of the club members filled the wall by the mess hall door. And on the other side, she could just peer into the big rec room where the bar was and most of the partying happened.
Voices spilled out of the mess hall, and she followed Maverick in, those butterflies getting a lot more active.
A couple of the guys greeted Maverick right away. She hung back as he shook hands and gave a few of those one-armed hugs men did. He made introductions, or re-introductions in a few cases, and everyone acted totally normal towards her.
“Alexa?”
She turned to find a woman . . . who looked a lot different than she remembered. “Haven?”
Nodding, Haven laughed as she settled a big platter of grilled burgers, hot dogs, sausages, and chicken legs in the middle of the table. Beside her, a woman with shoulder-length blond hair was putting down an equally big platter of grilled vegetables. “The hair, right?” Haven asked, smiling.
“Yeah,” Alexa said, remembering the hip-length pale blond hair she’d had when they’d first met. Now it was light brown and hung in soft waves to her shoulder blades. “It looks really great.”
“Sometimes change is good,” Haven said.
The words sure hit home for Alexa. “Yeah. Sometimes it really is.”
“Alexa, this is my best friend, Cora,” Haven said.
Cora’s smile was immediate. “Hey, there. Nice to meet you.” They shook hands.
“You, too. Can I help at all?” Alexa asked, feeling more and more comfortable with each passing minute.
“Sure,” Haven said, waving her into the kitchen.
They passed through the swinging door, and then Alexa’s gaze snagged on the chair where she’d sat that day, bruised and bloodied, while Haven knelt in front of her and cleaned her up. It felt like yesterday and years ago all at the same time.
“Alexa Harmon. How are you, honey?” Bunny asked.
“Hi, Bunny,” she said, so happy to see Maverick’s mother whom she’d always liked, even if she was also nervous about what the older woman thought of her. Despite having hair that was so pale blond it was nearly white, you’d never guess that Bunny McKeon was in her early sixties. She wore a stylish pair of dark wash jeans and a form-fitting black T-shirt. “It’s really good to see you.” Though it was equally hard to see the nearly healed but still visible scratches and bruises on Bunny’s face.
“Well, come on over here and give me a hug, young lady. It’s been too long,” Bunny said, holding open her arms.
The welcoming gesture made the backs of her eyes prick with tears that Alexa blinked away. They hugged for a long moment. “I’m sorry for what happened,” she said.
“It’s a crazy world,” Bunny said, her voice quiet.
Alexa nodded. “Yes, it is.”
Bunny pulled back from the hug and held Alexa’s face in her hands. Light blue eyes examined her. “You doing okay?”
“Much better now,” Alexa said.
“Good. Well . . .” Bunny patted her shoulder. “Let’s get these boys fed before there’s an uprising.”
They all laughed.
Dinner was a lively, raucous affair full of funny stories, snarky retorts, and at least one roll-throwing incident. Alexa hadn’t laughed so much or so hard in a long, long time. God, she couldn’t even remember when the last time was. Not that she’d ever had a big family, but that’s what it felt like. And it made her even more certain that she’d misjudged things five years before. She wanted to go back in time and shake herself.
Emotion suddenly crashed over her, like a wave unexpectedly swamping her in the ocean. She excused herself from the table and rushed into the kitchen and then out onto the big back porch. Lounge chairs filled the long space, which had a stunning view of the mountain and the valley beyond. Bracing her hands on the railing, Alexa stared at the vista until it went blurry.
The screen door quietly closed behind her, and Alexa batted away the wetness on her face.
“You okay?” Haven asked.
Alexa released a long breath. “Mostly.”
“Yeah,” Haven said, coming to stand beside her. “Isn’t this view the best? I love to sit out here.”
“I’ve always loved it,” Alexa said, her thoughts a jumbled mess. “I just wish it hadn’t taken me so long to see it again.” Not just talking about the view. Obviously. She could almost feel Haven’s questions, and she finally turned to look at the other woman. Haven appeared younger than Alexa was, though there was something about her eyes—the brightest blue Alexa had ever seen—that read as older, like maybe she’d seen way more than she should’ve at her age. “Messing up really sucks.”