“Not right now, no.”

“Buddy, she’s got red flags all over the place. Do yourself a favor...”

“This really isn’t your business. You can let it go now. And if you talk to Justine, just tell her no one is hitting me. No one is battering me.”

“Take this information, Scott,” he said, holding out the paper and the business card. “At least take it and think about it.”

“I don’t want it.”

Scott backed into his house and closed the door.

Logan stood for a moment as if anticipating the door might open and the conversation could continue. He was the wrong person to confront Scott, he could see that. But there was no right person. Justine couldn’t do it—Scott would have too much pride at stake to come clean with her.

Scott had made a mistake, and now he was just going to have to either solve it himself or live with it.

Chapter Seventeen

Thanksgiving was at the end of the week, and Adele and Justine had decided on a quiet day with the girls. They were going to cook; it had been a long time since they’d done that together, possibly ten years back when their mother was not only alive but able-bodied and spry.

“Are you going to invite Logan?” Adele asked.

“No,” she said. “I think that would be premature. He’s going to be with his family, I’ll be with mine. I did ask him if he wanted to go for a bike ride on Friday, however. What about Jake?”

“I asked him if he wants to stop by,” Adele said. “He’ll be with his mother, and his brother is going to have his kids for the day. With two ex-wives they juggle the holidays. Jake said he’ll stick close by, help his mother with the cooking and clean up and distract her from the chaos that usually comes with Marty. After all that, he said he’d love to stop by for a slice of pie.”

There was nothing at all off about the day—it was perfectly calm and relaxing, the food was wonderful, soft music played in the background. They turned on the space heater in the living room and after dinner played some gin rummy. Justine excused herself to talk to Logan on the phone for a little while. But Jake didn’t show up until nine. And he was exhausted.

“Marty and his kids would wear down a stronger man,” he said. “And didn’t he just bring a girl. Angie something. She’s a looker, but it was pretty obvious he wanted someone to chase after his kids.”

“And she didn’t see through that?” Justine asked.

“She’s young,” Jake said. “So young. I think she might be twenty-two.”

“Sheesh,” she said. “At least she’s old enough to vote. What’s the matter with young women these days? Doesn’t the fact that he’s had two wives and multiple girlfriends make her wonder if he’s reliable?”

“Apparently not,” Jake said with a laugh. “Not yet, anyway.”

“So, tomorrow Justine and the girls are going for a long bike ride with Logan, her new boyfriend. We could do something.”

“Sorry, Addie. It’s a big day at the store.”

“But Thanksgiving is over. Shouldn’t it be quiet?”

“It’s Black Friday. Everyone is shopping. We’ll have some sales, like the rest of the world. And I promised Jeannie I’d stop by after work to have a look at her plans. You know, her remodel plans.”

“Why?” she asked.

“I have some experience,” he said. “And she knows I have no interest in taking advantage of her.”

“You’re talking about her a lot,” Adele said.

Jake smiled at her. “I’d think you were jealous if I hadn’t already waited a long time for you to even notice me.”

“Now you’re being silly. I’ve more than noticed you. I’m just the slow moving, cautious type.”

“If you don’t pick up a little speed, we’ll both be too old to enjoy life by the time you get into the passing lane.”

“Now you’re teasing me,” she said.

“No. I’m not. We’ve been over this.”

He gave her a kiss on the forehead and walked down the sidewalk.

She noticed his wide shoulders under his leather jacket; his narrow waist. He had his hands in the pockets of his jeans and took long strides down the sidewalk. Jake wasn’t just well built and strong, he was also handsome. But above all, he was kind and honest. For all that Marty was a player, Jake was steadfast.

It was just that he had been her best friend for her entire adult life. Could your best friend also be your passion? Because when she thought about being in love, the image that came to mind was someone exciting. Someone irresistible. Not someone she was already so comfortable with. It would be like dating her brother.

Yet she loved him. She couldn’t imagine life without him.

Justine was sitting on the sofa, idly reading or texting on her phone. The girls were not in evidence, but Addie could hear the distant sound of the TV upstairs.

“I have a question, Justine. If it’s too personal...”

Justine rested her phone in her lap. “I don’t think I have anything too personal left. Go ahead, try me.”

“Were you madly in love with Scott when you decided to marry him?”

She shook her head. “No. We’d been steadies for three years or so. The madly in love part had pretty much settled into mutual respect and affection. It did come back now and then, briefly, when we’d be all over each other like a couple of teenagers, but that in-love part was fleeting. I loved him, though. I always felt pretty secure. Now, looking back, I wonder if he strayed before and was just clever enough to get away with it. Why are you asking me this?”

“Was he your best friend?” Addie asked.

“Sometimes,” she said. “What’s going on?”

“It’s Jake,” she said. “I’d be lost without him. I love him, I do. But I just don’t know if it’s the kind of love that has the power of endurance. Know what I mean? What if I tell him I love him and want to be with him forever and it turns out I really just love him as a good friend?”

“What about physical attraction? What about idiosyncrasies that drive you batshit crazy? Like bad breath or he’s a lousy kisser or he doesn’t like anything you like?”

“I can’t think of anything,” she said. “We even watch Downton Abbey together, though he’d probably rather watch something with a gunfight or something.”

“Then why don’t you take him out for a spin?”

“What if it doesn’t go well? What if I discover it’s not okay? That it won’t work?”

“Then you tell him.”

“So, are you in love with Logan?”

“A little bit,” she said. “But at this stage in my life, I’m not looking for another husband, and he knows that. He doesn’t blame me. He’s not looking for another wife—he was married and has been divorced for years. But we both agree we like what we have. It could last.” Justine smiled. “When I found out about Scott and that woman, I thought my world ended. All I wanted was to survive it. I was worried about the house, about losing it, about not being able to feel confident again. Look what happened. The girls are so happy here. My workload is better and more interesting. I know the whole town. They know me. I thought this would be temporary. I love it. I don’t remember even liking this house when I was growing up. It was just a house. I’ll move if it’s too much for you, but...”

“It’s not too much for me,” Addie said. “I just can’t believe you’re happy in this old house and in this old town. You had a mansion before!”

“It was a nice house, but hardly a mansion. It was Scott’s choice, anyway. I want a quieter life than I had with a big, demanding firm. This is a little like coming home.”

Adele laughed. “Justine, you did come home.”

“Here’s the surprise—I find myself, not even a year after my divorce, genuinely happy. Happier than I was. I didn’t know I wasn’t happy before, but I like that no one tells me what we should do, what I should do. Oh, I’m still pissed off. Scott’s a fool and he made some bad choices, but he’s stuck with it. I’m working on making the choices that work for me. And the girls, of course.

“Addie, you should think about Jake. If he’s a good man and you feel good with him, you don’t want him to get away. Trust me, there isn’t a surplus of guys like that. I don’t think you need a guy to be happy, but the right one can flesh out your life. Just make sure he’s going to support what you want to do and not tell you what you should do.”

* * *

December brought out all the Christmas decorations in Half Moon Bay, and the town glittered. Justine helped decorate the front window of the law practice. People were a little friendlier and happier, if possible. Justine finally got Adele’s agreement on all the tiles and colors and paint; they went together to the appliance store to get new appliances as the ones in the house now were withering with age. They even had time to sit down with a couple of contractors and attempt to plot out the remodel to begin early in January.

Justine had brought Christmas decorations from the San Jose house to adorn the old house, and they put up a tree early. The days grew shorter and the sun was setting by five. And all the lights in town were illuminating the streets.

Justine was just coming out of the law office at five when she heard her name. “Justine,” Scott said. “Hi.”

“Hi, Scott. What brings you to my part of town?”

“I wonder if we could have a talk,” he said, shivering either from the cold or from anxiety. “Would you have a drink with me?”

She looked around nervously. “Is your girlfriend lurking somewhere?”

“No. Just me. Let’s go to Tony’s Oyster Bar. We can walk. Just for a quick drink.”

“Is this about Christmas plans? Because we can discuss that—”