“But you were going to marry him. Is that love gone? Or do you want to give him another chance?”

“Saying I want to give him another chance is kind of more than I’m comfortable with,” she admitted. “But I’m not angry or hurt anymore.”

“I think Shaye’s asking the right questions,” Paisley said firmly, waving her drink. “Dena, I know you’re going to play protective mama bear on this, but it’s not like he cheated or anything. He freaked out, then broke up with her. At least he didn’t go out behind her back. Taking responsibility for making a mistake is huge.”

“Maybe, but it’s not good enough,” Dena insisted.

Paisley raised her eyebrows. “Interesting. What if Toby wants to date her? He broke her heart. Does he get a second chance?”

“That’s totally different. He was a kid, and what happened in high school isn’t his fault.”

“So Toby gets a do-over, but not Jake?”

Shaye leaned toward Reggie. “Are you okay with them evaluating your life this way?”

Reggie smiled. “I’m feeling the love.”

She didn’t mind the discussion. It allowed her to look at her life from a relatively disinterested perspective. She understood Dena’s reluctance to trust Jake and her willingness to give Toby a second chance. In truth, Reggie would rather be dating Toby, but he wasn’t asking. As for Jake, she honestly had no idea how she felt about him.

“Look at it this way,” Paisley said. “You were in love with him, and you wanted to marry him. Isn’t that worth something? At least go on a date with him and find out if any of the old feelings are there. If not, you thank him for a nice evening and you’re done. If they’re still there, then have a go at it. But if you don’t at least try, you may always wonder.”

Dena stared at Paisley. “I hate it when you make sense.”

“I know. Isn’t it great?”

The two women laughed. Reggie glanced at Shaye, who shook her head.

“Uh. I don’t have an opinion on this one. I’m just the new girl. It’s your life, Reggie. What do you want?”

Someone to love, she thought. She wanted to fall in love and get married and have a family. She wanted silly traditions and laughter and Belle watching over their first child as protectively as she watched over Burt.

“I want us to change the subject,” she said lightly. “This is supposed to be a party. So, what are we wrapping tonight?”