Always on My Mind by Jill Shalvis Read Free Book Online

on TV, right? This is Lucky Harbor, not Paris. Drop some dough in a vat of grease and slap them on a tray, and people will be happy.”
    “That’s not true,” Leah said. “And it does matter. Each order matters. They have to be perfect, or why would I bother at all?” Leah went still, then set her pastry bag aside and staggered back a step. “Oh my God.”
    “What?”
    She stared at Aubrey in horror. “I’ve turned into my father. Quick. Shoot me.”
    “I would,” Aubrey said, “but I’m not all that keen on prison. Maybe I should just call the people with the white straight-jackets to come get you.”
    “This isn’t funny,” Leah said. “I need sympathy.”
    “I don’t do sympathy. Call Ali for that.” Aubrey strode closer to the displays. “But while I’m here, I’ll take two cannoli. They have lots of calories, right?”
    “Yes.”
    “Good. They’re for my sister. I like it when she’s fatter than I am. And they’re free today since you snapped at the customer and that’s not allowed.”
    Leah bagged the cannoli and shoved her out the door just to get rid of her.
    By the end of the day, Leah was frazzled and on edge. She’d finished her orders, but Jack hadn’t called. His silence felt weighted and suspicious. She opened her back door and peeked out. No one. She stepped out and nearly jumped out of her skin when Ali came out of her door at the same time. “You scared the crap out of me.”
    “Did I?” Ali asked. “Who did you think I was?”
    A big, built, pissed-off firefighter. “No one. Gotta go. Night—”
    “Hold it right there,” Ali said. Clearly she wasn’t done working for the day because she was holding a vase and a sprig of baby’s breath. “Explain about earlier.”
    “Well, the fuses blew, so—”
    “You and Jack,” Ali said. “Explain you and Jack.”
    “Listen, it’s been a long day, and—”
    “Oh no. You’re not going anywhere. Not until you answer my question.” She pointed the sprig at Leah. “You and Jack. Yes or no.”
    Leah sighed. “Yes. Okay? Yes.” Dammit. “Sort of.”
    “Sort of,” Ali repeated. “You take up with the hottest guy in Lucky Harbor and you don’t tell me?”
    “I thought Luke was the hottest guy in Lucky Harbor.”
    “The hottest guy’s best friend then,” Ali corrected. “And don’t change the subject, missy.”
    Leah sighed again. “It’s just pretend, Ali. I made it up.”
    Ali gaped at her, then let out a low laugh. “You made it up? You just decided you suddenly had to have him—which, hello, any woman with an ounce of warm blood in her body would understand—and then you figured you’d just say it out loud and it would be so? How does that even work? Because I’d like to have a million dollars—”
    “This isn’t a joke, Ali. I’m in big trouble here.”
    “No shit,” Ali said on another laugh. “Jack’s pretty laid-back but he’s not a guy you can push around. He’s not going to like being played with.”
    “I’m not trying to play with him. I’m just trying to make his mom happy.”
    “Oh. Oh… ” Ali breathed. “I get it.” Then she shook her head. “Except I don’t.”
    Leah sighed. “You’ve seen Dee. The chemo and radiation are making her sick, really sick. She was feeling down, and I just wanted to…” She shrugged helplessly. “I don’t know, make her feel better. She’s so worried about Jack. She feels bad about some of the choices she’s made over the years, choices that she thinks led to Jack not being big on relationships. She was down ,” she said again, guilt swamping her.
    “Dee’s been feeling down for a very long time,” Ali said gently. “You know that.”
    This Leah already knew. She’d been there in those years right after Jack’s dad’s death. She’d seen Dee slowly fall apart, and she’d watched Jack and Ben—teenagers at the time—have to hold it all together for her; the house, the bills, the memories, everything. Leah had done whatever she