“Man, so it really is true what they say about small towns, that everybody knows everybody’s business.” Darius shook his head and muttered, “Unbelievable. But I agree with Brent. If you love her, you have to stay and work it out.” He opened his mouth to say something else, but Brent’s phone rang.

“It’s Glenn,” Brent said as he connected. “Hey, Glenn. I’ve got you on speaker.”

“Hey. Everything okay with Gabe?”

“I wouldn’t say that,” Darius called out. “G slipped and fell in love.”

Glenn’s laughter came through the line. “That’s not a bad thing, Gabriel.”

“I can’t be sure,” Gabriel said. For the first time in a long while, he wished his father were still alive. He’d always given Gabriel good advice, and Gabriel could use some right about now.

“I thought things were going well with you and Serenity.”

He filled Glenn in on everything he’d told Darius and Brent, including Serenity’s breakup. “And then there was the whole issue of me maybe going back to Atlanta.”

“We told him he should’ve told her how he feels,” Brent said.

“I don’t always agree with these two, but this time they’re right. If she’s still nursing that broken heart, she’s not going to readily put herself out there. Chances are she’s waiting for you to make the first move.”

Men didn’t want their hearts broken any more than women did, and he was no exception. In hindsight, he realized that maybe he should’ve made that first move and spoken up the moment she made the proposition because he wanted the same thing. “How did you handle it with Toya?”

“I didn’t handle it at first because I refused to believe I’d fallen for her so fast,” Glenn said with a chuckle. “But when I couldn’t go more than a few minutes without thinking about her, I knew something was up. I’d like to tell you that this thing called love isn’t scary, but I’d be lying. It’s scary as hell, but it’s also the best risk you’ll ever take with the right person. Only you know if Serenity is that person for you. Oh, and as far as the issue surrounding where you’ll live, you can do your job just as well in Firefly Lake as you did in Atlanta.”

Darius threw up his hands. “Thank you! That’s exactly what I said. And we’ll have a permanent vacation spot.”

“Ha ha. If you must know, I’d already been considering staying and was heading to Atlanta to let you all know.”

Brent and Glenn chuckled, and Brent said, “It’s about time.”