Big Girls Don’t Cry (Dundee, Idaho #6)(52)
Author: Brenda Novak

But as she read about all the fees associated with the adoption, she knew better than to waste her time. She couldn’t afford to spend $160 on a dog right now, not when she could still be facing a stack of vet bills for the pet she already loved.

“Too bad,” she said, and closed the window.

The good manners her mother had instilled in her as a child dictated she thank Isaac for trying to help. But she wasn’t convinced he’d done it for the right reasons. She preferred to believe he considered her some kind of challenge. If he could win her friendship, his takeover of the town would be complete.

She wasn’t going to allow him such a victory. If she held out, maybe he’d eventually pack up his sister and her children and take them all back to California.

LIZ SAT in the darkened living room, staring at the moonlight spilling through a crack in the drapes and onto the carpet. The four and a half months she’d been living in Dundee had been the most difficult of her life. Too guarded to make friends as easily as Isaac, she felt isolated and alone. She was always on the defense in case she ran into Reenie or a member of Reenie’s family. And now her renters in California had presented her with an offer to purchase the house, and she had to decide whether or not to let it go.

Sometimes, when the stress of her current situation really got to her, she called Dave Shapiro. He made her laugh, which eased the tension. She wanted to call him tonight but thought better of it. Isaac was still awake and would be coming up to bed in a few minutes. She didn’t want her brother to know she was speaking to Dave as often as she was. She knew getting involved with a twenty-four-year-old womanizer wasn’t the wisest thing in the world for an older, brokenhearted divorcée to do. Besides, he’d probably try to convince her to keep the house just so she’d eventually come back. But she knew returning wouldn’t be best for her kids. They were doing well here, where they could see their father regularly.

Their father…With a grimace, she finished her tea and set the empty cup on the side table. Once Keith had begun to realize that he couldn’t save his first marriage, he’d started calling and coming over more often. He claimed he wanted to see the children. But Liz could sense the not-so-subtle change in his focus. Soon he was bringing her gifts, taking her out to eat, touching her. Although their marriage had been annulled, she’d welcomed his attention at first. The last time they’d been together, she’d even gone home with him—and had soon found herself in Reenie’s old bed, staring up at the ceiling while he moved on top of her. She’d felt very disconnected from their lovemaking. She’d missed him terribly. But she could never completely escape the knowledge that he’d chosen Reenie over her, that she’d always be second-best. That night was when she realized she was worth more than what he’d given her. That was also when she’d caught her mind drifting, imagining he was Dave.

“Liz? You still up?”

She turned at the sound of Isaac’s voice coming from the doorway and smiled. “Yeah.”

“What are you doing?”

“Just thinking.”

“About what?”

“Keith. Reenie. This town.”

He slipped into the room and sat across from her. “Keith’s been calling here a lot,” he said, watching her carefully.

Folding her arms, she leaned back in the chair. “The kids are getting to see a great deal of him. Which is good.”

“You’ve been seeing a lot of him, too,” he pointed out.

“Not so much,” she said. “At least not anymore.” She’d told Keith the night they made love at Reenie’s old house that she’d never let him touch her again.

“What does that mean?” Isaac asked.

“It means that there’s no danger I’ll ever go back to him.”

Isaac’s smile revealed a certain amount of relief. “I’m glad to hear that. For a while, I was really regretting the fact we came here.”

“I’m glad we did. If we hadn’t, it would’ve taken me much longer to get over him.”

Isaac’s eyebrows arched up. “You sound pretty definite.”

“I am. He’s tried to get back with me, and I’ve tried to resurrect what I once felt. It’s just…not there, anymore.”

“That’s great.”

She felt a flicker of guilt when he responded so positively, knowing he wouldn’t approve of her being in contact with Dave Shapiro. But after everything she’d been through, her late-night talks with her old tennis coach were a guilty pleasure she wasn’t ready to give up. She couldn’t move back to L.A. without tearing her children away from their father, which she didn’t have the heart to do. So maybe she was worried about nothing. She couldn’t get herself into too much trouble with Dave nearly a thousand miles away.

The images she’d begun to entertain of him called her a liar, but she knew nothing would come of their relationship. She’d never get involved with a man who was so much younger than she was. Especially one nowhere near ready to make a permanent commitment.

“I received an offer on the house in L.A.,” she told him. “The renters want to buy it.”

“Really? Are you going to sell?”

She shrugged. “I could use the money.”

“Do you have much equity?”

“Not a lot. But it’d get me through a year or so.”

“You don’t have to sell,” he said. “We’re managing.”

“Thanks to you.”

“I’m happy to help.”

She twirled a lock of hair around her finger. “But you won’t be here forever.”

“No.”

“I ran into Reenie the other day,” she said.

“You always run into Reenie.” He stretched out in the chair and crossed his legs at the ankle. “In this small a town, it’s tough to avoid her.”

“This time I ran into her in the literal sense.”

He scowled. “Not with your car…”

“No. When I dropped Christopher and Mica off at school last Wednesday, I realized that I’d forgotten it was Chris’s turn to share snacks with the class. So I ran over to the grocery store, gathered several boxes of cookies and rushed toward the checkout. Next thing I know, Reenie comes around the corner and, bam, we collide.”

“You’re kidding.”

“No.”

“What’d you do?”