Still recovering from the shock of thinking Joanna was dead, Mel pushed her hair out of her eyes and tried to imagine what she’d do if Greg was speeding around picking up unknown women.

“Joanna isn’t a girl. She’s forty this year.” How had that happened? It seemed only yesterday they were blowing out fourteen candles on a cake. I’ve made a wish.

Mel hadn’t asked what the wish was. She hadn’t needed to. They’d been at that stage of their friendship where they’d known every single thing about each other.

“I still remember the day she set fire to the kitchen in the Surf Café and put your brother in the hospital. Hard to forget a sight like that.”

Mel hadn’t forgotten it, either. Flashing blue lights. Her mother crying. Joanna crying, too, tears smearing soot across her cheeks.

“She didn’t burn the place on purpose, Mary-Lou. It was an accident. She was cooking a romantic meal for Nate. She was flaming the pancakes—”

“And there was just a little too much flame.” Mary-Lou shook her head. “Your brother was lucky he didn’t lose more than his eyebrows. Those two were inseparable. I was shocked when they broke up and she left town so suddenly. Felt sorry for him. I’d pictured them together forever, you know?”

Mel did know, because she’d pictured the same thing. It had been a sharp and painful lesson that life didn’t always turn out the way you thought it would. “History.”

“Couldn’t believe she went off with that chef when she’d only known him five minutes. Although she was such a terrible cook, maybe it wasn’t such a bad choice. That girl would have starved or blown herself up if she’d been left to feed herself. Still, she certainly got more than she bargained for with Cliff Whitman.”

That was true.

How had Joanna put up with it? The girl Mel had grown up with had been loyal and loving. Yes, trouble had followed her around like a puppy, but that wasn’t all Joanna’s fault and she did plenty of good things alongside the bad. She never forgot a birthday. She baked cookies for people when they’d had a bad day (and some said Joanna’s cookies were guaranteed to make a bad day worse). All she’d wanted growing up was Nate, so how had she ended up with Chef Sleaze?

And what was Nate going to think about this latest development?

“You haven’t heard from her, then?” Mary-Lou picked up the book Mel had been considering and placed it back on the shelf. “I thought she might have reached out.”

“No.” Mel’s mouth felt dry. “She hasn’t reached out. Why would she?”