Storm Shells (The Wishes Series #3) Read Online Free PDF

told him. “I wondered if it was something to do with me.”
    He was shaking his head before I’d finished speaking. “No, nothing to do with you. She was having a bad day, that’s all.”
    Gabrielle was the queen when it came to enduring bad days. She taught high school students, for crying out loud. Alex’s weak explanation wasn’t convincing, but quizzing him was pointless. “So what is it, then? What do you have to tell me?”
    He started bouncing the bunch of keys in his hand. “I want you to put things in perspective and keep an open mind.”
    I couldn’t think of anything he needed to tell me that was so dreadful that I needed a pep talk prior to hearing it. “Just spit it out, Alex.”
    He glanced at me only briefly. “Nicole’s back in town.”
    The mere mention of her name infuriated me. I shifted, making the leather seat squeak.
    “When did she resurface?” I didn’t mean to sound so indignant. I wanted to give the impression that I was unaffected by anything to do with Nicole Lawson. As far as I was concerned, my ex-best friend was a thief and traitor who deserved to be left rotting in my past.
    “She’s only been back a few weeks. She feels terrible about what happened.”
    I glared at my father, fighting the urge to slap the side of his head.
    “How would you know how terrible she feels?” I asked sourly. “Nicole doesn’t have a contrite bone in her body.”
    “She’s been working hard to make amends, Charli.”
    “Working here?” My voice sounded higher than usual as disgust set in.
    He nodded but wouldn’t look at me. “She’s always been a hard worker and she needs the money. Everyone deserves a second chance.”
    She shouldn’t have needed a penny. Nicole skipped town with her loser boyfriend and thirteen thousand of Adam’s hard-earned dollars. If Alex had been privy to that information he might have reconsidered his stance on second chances. But he knew nothing about her thieving ways. All he knew was that she’d blown me off and done a runner with Ethan Williams.
    “I believe in second chances, Alex,” I said sincerely. “I just don’t believe everyone deserves them.”
    Alex looked at me. “Keep an open mind, Charli. Hear her out. That’s all I ask.”
    “I’m not interested in making peace with Nicole Lawson.”
    * * *
    Unlike the house, the café hadn’t changed at all. I was glad Gabrielle hadn’t made her mark. The beach café with the chequerboard flooring, dark wood countertop and pale blue walls was still entirely Alex’s domain.
    I perched on the wicker stool at the counter while Alex set about opening up for the day. It was then that I noticed the brand spanking new coffee machine. I rushed around the counter to admire it. Out of habit, I switched it on. “Let me make you a coffee.”
    My enthusiasm stunned him. Alex sat on the stool I’d just vacated and watched silently as I brewed him a near perfect latte, complete with rosetta design in the froth. It smelled divine, and I took the unusual step of making myself a cup too – perhaps to prove that the fancy pattern wasn’t a fluke.
    “Since when have you been such an accomplished barista?” he teased, turning his cup to examine it from all angles.
    “Since I married a New Yorker,” I said, butchering the American accent.
    He grimaced. “I’m confused by the way you talk about him, Charli.” He picked up a spoon and scooped it through his cup, toying with the froth. “You’re not supposed to like him so much after being duped.”
    “That’s a nasty way of putting it, Alex.”
    “How else would you describe it? Would you have married him if you’d known he wasn’t ever going to leave New York?”
    I could feel the conversation heading to a place I didn’t want to visit. Whether he realised it or not, he’d landed on the very heart of the betrayal. We were literally standing at the altar when Adam had reiterated his promise of travelling with me when he’d finished law school. I was in