“I thought I saw Melissa at the church today,” Harlan had said casually after he’d pulled Cody into his office and they were both seated in comfortable leather chairs in front of a blazing fire, glasses of whiskey in hand. At the reference to Melissa, Cody had put his aside without tasting it. He’d feared if he got started, he’d never stop.

“She was there,” he’d conceded, his voice tight.

“Did you get a chance to talk to her?”

“We have nothing to say to each other.”

“I see,” Harlan said. He’d let the silence build for a bit, taking a sip of his drink before adding nonchalantly, “I heard she’s been working at Dolan’s Drugstore, running the soda fountain for Eli. Doing a good job, too. Eli says business is up. The kids are hanging out there again instead of driving to the fast-food place out on the highway.”

Cody hadn’t even acknowledged the information. He’d just tucked it away for later consideration. Ever since, he’d been considering what to do about it.

He could drive into town, march into Dolan’s and confront Melissa about what she’d done to him, something he probably should have done the very night he’d found her with Brian. He could raise the kind of ruckus that would be the talk of the town for the next year. It would go into the textbook of Cody Adams lore that had begun when he was barely into puberty. If half the tales had been true, he would have worn himself out by the time he was twenty.

Sighing, he conceded he couldn’t see much point to adding another wild exploit to his reputation. A scene would only rake up old news, embarrass Melissa—not that he cared much about that—and tell anyone with half a brain that Cody wasn’t over her. Otherwise, why would he bother to stir up the cold ashes of their very dead relationship?

No, for the sake of his own pride if nothing else, it was better to stay the hell away from town. He repeated the advice to himself like a mantra, over and over, until he should have gotten it right.

Even as his old red pickup sped toward town late Tuesday morning, he was muttering it to himself, swearing that he’d have lunch with Luke and Jordan at Rosa’s Mexican Café, then turn right around and go back to White Pines. A couple of beers and a plate of Rosa’s spiciest food would wipe all thoughts of Melissa straight out of his head.

Unfortunately he hadn’t counted on his brothers getting into the act. He’d been certain that they would leave the subject of his love life alone. He hadn’t counted on the fact that both of them were now happily married and apparently intent on seeing that he took the plunge, too.