A Touch of Fate (BWWM)

2 | Unexpected Reunion

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Imani

Imani looked at herself in the mirror and splashed cool water on her face before taking a big breath. Suddenly, she wasn't looking at herself. Garrett's spirit was next to her.

He was taller than everyone else, standing at 6'5. The cute teen she saw when they were both younger wasn't there anymore. A new guy had taken his place, and he was just as she had imagined him to be—dark, terrifying, and attractive.

He continued living without her, too.

She leaned on the sink as her stomach dropped. A long time went by since she saw Garrett last. Not since the night he tore out her heart, walked all over it, and then left her at Holden Creek. Imani felt awful when she thought about the early summer rain and the salty tears that were running down her face as she watched his taillights fade. Thankfully, the edge of the sink provided a firm grip for her fingertips to hold on to.

She collected herself, poured water on her face again, and then grabbed a towel. Imani quickly dried off and put her hair back into a tight braid before taking one last look in the mirror. An unrelenting wrath had made her typically dark cheeks scarlet. Her gaze intensified.

Garrett made it back to Holden? Screw him. She no longer cared at all. He meant less than nothing to her, and no way was she hiding how the past affected her. She considered steering him away from her by telling him how she truly felt. That part had been growing for nearly eight years. She might eventually have to let go of that mentality.

When she went back to the bar, he was gone, and the room was almost full of early customers eager to take advantage of the half-price chicken tender special. She looked closely at the bartender, Axel, feeling a little down.

"Everything okay, Nini?" he asked from the other end of the bar. Aaron was his actual name, but his friends called him Axel. Imani stopped caring that he nicknamed her Nini after they started working together.

She gave an "okay" nod, even though the word didn't show how she felt.

"Can you serve the big table near the stage?"

"Sure."

She grabbed her tray. Since Monday mornings were slow at the animal shelter, Imani worked part-time at Paradise Lounge during lunch. After returning to Alabama, she could only afford a fixer-upper near the Beaumonts. But since it reminded her of unhappy moments spent in their company, she chose to renovate the house where she grew up instead. She had many wonderful memories in the cute older house, but it needed so many repairs that she gradually ran out of money.

A semblance of composure returning to her features, Imani strode confidently toward the table. Garrett's surprise return left her with no time to contemplate. He was minor compared to other people and events in her life. She may never see him again because he was only in town temporarily.

She found it intriguing that some people were lucky. And unlike those particular folks, Imani wouldn't be able to find a golden horseshoe if it hit her on the head. As expected, her luck ran out when she saw her ex-fiancé for the first time in eight years.

* * *

If no one noticed the inch of water on the kitchen floor, Wednesday started like any other day. After cleaning, hiring a plumber, and turning off the water, Imani got her son Dylan to school and arrived at the shelter five minutes early. His father's death a year earlier left both of them heartbroken, but she knew they could overcome it.