Page 11 of Lakeside Longing
“Oh, I’m sorry.” Quinn took another look over her shoulder. “I’d say she didn’t take that well.”
Rebecca pressed her lips together. “No. She was too young for me really. I probably shouldn’t have agreed to meet her, never mind invite her to your mother’s party.”
Quinn’s eyes narrowed. “It wasn’t because of me was it? I mean, how Chloe was with me. Not me, me.” She took a deep breath. “Sorry, my head’s all over the place out here. I feel like I’m on high alert.”
“Do you have any plans for this evening?” Rebecca asked without really thinking.
“Uh, no. No. I’m was going to make dinner and open a bottle of wine.”
“Do you want to do that with me? At my place?” Rebecca doubted herself for a moment. They’d known each other for years, but never as friends. Just as her best friend’s daughter who she’d always gotten along well with. This was a little out of left field, but she wanted to know that Quinn was really okay, and then she could tell Sarah that, so she could stop worrying about her daughter. “I had very similar plans for this evening, so…”
Quinn hesitated for just long enough that Rebecca wished she hadn’t asked, but then a smile tugged at her lips. “Yeah. I’d like that.”
Rebecca looked down at her watch. She needed time to shower, make dinner, and tidy up a small bit. It was almost one now. “Around four sound good?”
“Perfect. I might make a trip to the liquor store while I’m dressed like this,” she said motioning towards her clothes. “I need to stock the house. Anything you prefer?”
“I’m not fussy. Maybe red? It’s finally starting to feel like fall. I think I’ll light the fire and make something wintery. Are you a vegetarian?”
Quinn laughed softly. “No. Why would you think that?” She threw a glance over her shoulder to the tote bag packed with vegetables, a smile still on her lips. “No, seriously, I’m not. I just wasn’t quite ready to brave the supermarket so… It was going to be a veggy meal tonight.”
“No allergies?”
“None. I will eat just about anything,” Quinn said, her hands in her pockets now.
“Good to know. I’ll see you around four then.”
“Yeah. See you then.”
Rebecca gave her a wave and walked back to the market, thinking ahead to what she’d need for dinner. Well, she needed to decide what she was going to cook first.
Her phone buzzed in her pocket as she slid it out, Sarah’s name on the screen. “Hey,” she said.
“Hi. Got plans for tonight?” Sarah asked.
Rebecca found herself unable to answer for a second. “Yeah, I do. Why?”
“Oh? Hot date?”
Rebecca sucked in a breath and whatever way she did it, she ended up having a coughing fit. “I’m fine,” she said after a few seconds, her voice strained. “No date.”
“I was just going to ask you if you wanted to try that new Mexican place. But maybe some other night?”
“Yeah. Definitely.”
They said goodbye, and Rebecca hung up, wondering why she hadn’t felt comfortable telling Sarah that her plans for this evening were with her daughter. Maybe, she didn’t want Sarah to get her hopes up that Rebecca would come away with anything. That was the only explanation really.
7
The sun was low in the sky, bathing Rebecca’s deck in a warm glow, casting long shadows across the weathered wood. Quinn leaned back in her chair, breathing in the crisp evening air. Candle lanterns flickered softly, their gentle light creating a cozy atmosphere around them.
Dinner had been delicious. Rebecca’s homemade lasagna was full of flavor, and the conversation flowed as easily as the wine. They’d mostly talked about what they had in common: this town and growing up here, how much things had changed over the years, but also how little had.
Quinn swirled her Cabernet, watching the ruby liquid catch the fading light. A sense of contentment washed over her, but beneath it, a nagging curiosity grew. She couldn’t shake the question that had been simmering since she’d learned about Rebecca’s divorce and saw her standing beside Chloe at her mother’s birthday party. How had Rebecca known? She’d been married to a man for so long. What had changed?
The wine warmed her veins, loosening her tongue. Before she could second-guess herself, Quinn set down her glass and turned to Rebecca. “Can I ask you something personal?”
Rebecca nodded, her eyes warm and inviting in the fading light.