Page 79 of Perfect Together
“Tyler?”
She nodded.
“He’ll be back,” Nicole assured her.
“How do you know? Have you spoken with him?”
“No.” But they needed to have a private talk when all this was over. One that put things between them to rest, once and for all.
Macy propped her chin on her hands. “Then how do you know for sure?”
At that, Nicole couldn’t help but grin, thoughts of Tyler’s time in Serendipity flashing through her mind. “He went shopping. He wore shorts. And he followed you around town. He’ll be back.”
Macy grinned. “Here’s to getting our men.” She raised her glass, and Nicole tipped hers, clinking them together, toasting as much to Macy’s words as to her new friend and her life here in Serendipity.
They spent another half hour talking, then made their way over to a group of people, some Nicole knew, others Macy introduced her to. As much as she enjoyed herself, she couldn’t help thinking that she would rather be with Sam. But she needed to make friends, and she was Macy’s ride home, so she didn’t say anything.
“I’m beat,” Macy said at last. “Do you mind if we head home?”
Nicole shook her head, relieved it wouldn’t be a late night. “I’m ready when you are.”
They walked back to the bakery, where Nicole had parked her car. Once they were on their way, Macy pulled off her high heels and sighed. “Whoever invented these things should be shot.”
Nicole grinned. “I wear them a lot less here than I did back in New York, and trust me, I do not miss them.” On her feet now were a pair of bejeweled sandals with less than a quarter-inch heel.
“Stay straight on this road for a while,” Macy said, obviously remembering Nicole needed directions.
“Are you working early tomorrow?” Nicole asked her.
“Not until lunchtime, thank goodness.”
She glanced up at the rearview mirror to check the car behind her, annoyed by the bright lights reflecting there.
“Something wrong?” Macy asked.
“The car behind us is driving too close,” Nicole muttered, squinting and keeping her gaze on the road in front of her.
She came to a complete halt at a four-way stop sign before continuing. Out of nowhere, another car approached from the right and sped right through the stop sign, plowing into them before Nicole could blink. Her car spun and took another hit from the vehicle behind her, which had obviously stayed on her tail.
Macy screamed. Nicole gritted her teeth and held on to the wheel as the back of her car skidded into a lamppost with a sickening crunch.
***
Sam paced throughhis house, moving idly from one room to the next, unable to sit still or get comfortable. He didn’t expect Nicole to be at his beck and call, but he’d sure hoped she’d want to see him after a long week apart. He could have gone to Joe’s, but that would have been too obvious.Hemight be desperate to see her, but she didn’t need to know that.
Another glance at her dark house told him she hadn’t come home, although he’d been keeping watch and already knew as much. He was already mentally lecturing her about not leaving inside lamps and the porch lights on. It was safety 101 for anyone, but Nicole wasn’t dealing with a normal situation. Just because they thought they knew where all the players were in her situation didn’t mean she should be lax with the basics.
He glanced at his watch and blew out a long breath. Nine wasn’t that late, and he needed to chill. He started upstairs when his phone rang.
Pulling it out of his pocket, he glanced down, surprised to see the police station’s main number. “Marsden.”
“Hey, Sam. It’s Burnett.”
“What’s up?”
“Just doing you a solid. I thought you’d want to know your girlfriend was in a car accident at the stop sign on Maple. No serious injuries, but the car’s in pretty bad shape. They’re lucky.”
Sam narrowed his gaze. “They?”