Shake The Frost (Crystal Lake #6) - Juliana Stone Page 0,17

I thought I could handle the gossip, but apparently, I was wrong.”

“Small minds in small people don’t add up to much. I wouldn’t worry about her.”

“I know, but it’s still hard to hear people talking about me like I don’t matter. Like I’m not a real person. Like they can say awful things and laugh about it and not care that it’s hurtful.”

He shrugged. “People who talk and gossip tend to be people who don’t have a whole lot going on themselves.” He paused. “I’m sorry you had to hear that.”

“Thank you,” Emily replied glumly, wondering how much he’d heard.

“Hey, do you want to maybe grab a coffee? It’s my day off, and my afternoon is wide open.”

“Oh.” She looked at her cart. “I still need a few things.” She glanced back at him. “But you can come by my place. If you want. If I don’t let Bilbo out, she’ll destroy another pillow.”

“Sure. I’d like that.” He smiled, and she found herself smiling in return. “I’ll see you in a bit.” He reached for the apples again. “And Emily?”

She paused, about to head down the pasta aisle. Nothing like a bunch of carbs to make the hurt go away.

“Trudy Styles isn’t worth the dust on the bottom of your shoes. She never was. Remember that.”

After Emily grabbed two packs of spaghetti and some cans of marinara sauce, she headed for the checkout, though she kept a sharp eye on the whereabouts of Leanne and Trudy. Luck was on her side and she didn’t see them in line, or when she left the store either. She stopped at the pharmacy and picked up a few more things before heading across the bridge to her side of town. By the time she turned onto her street, she was in a better mood.

Screw Trudy. Connor was right. For whatever reason, the woman had always been spiteful and plain old mean when it came to Emily, and she was done wondering why or caring about it.

She stopped a few houses from her own when Elise Avery’s dog darted out in front of her car, followed by Elise and—she squinted—Link Major. She barely had time to think about that when she pulled into her driveway and spied a familiar truck parked to the side.

Ethan.

She got out of her car and grabbed the few bags from the trunk before letting herself in the house. The front door was unlocked, and a quick look around told her the place was empty. She dropped the bags onto the kitchen island and was walking toward the family room when she heard barking out back. She peered through the patio doors and spied Ethan tossing a ball for Bilbo to fetch. He was dressed in jeans and boots, with a heavy oat-colored cable-knit sweater and a black knit Sabres hat covering his head, thick waves curled up beneath it.

Bilbo ran back to Ethan, and when he tossed the ball again, the dog jumped like he was aiming for the moon and caught it midair. The laugh from Ethan was loud and boisterous, and a knot formed in Emily’s throat when Bilbo ran back to him. When was the last time she’d heard him laugh like that? He held the dog close and gave him a rub down, talking to the animal, though she couldn’t hear the words.

He looked good. He glanced toward the house, and her breath caught at the smile on his face.

Real good.

Bilbo must have realized Emily was home, because he wriggled out of Ethan’s grasp and bounded for the door, a bundle of fur, flapping tongue, and mad barking. Ethan slowly followed behind the animal, and Emily got busy unpacking her groceries as they made their way to the back deck.

The patio doors slid open, and the packets of spaghetti got real interesting when Ethan followed Bilbo inside. The dog immediately ran for her. After she gave him a kiss and an ear rub, Bilbo downed half his water bowl before jumping onto the sofa and flopping onto his side in dramatic fashion, panting like he’d just run a marathon.

“You’re going to wear out my dog,” Emily said, finally turning to Ethan.

“You still leave a spare key underneath the flowerpot.”

“I forgot it was there,” she replied, turning her back to him as she washed a handful of grapes. She popped two into her mouth before facing him again. “I don’t think anyone’s used it since the last time you were here, that first Christmas after Rick’s