Begin Again by Christy Newton Page A

after your ‘girl stuff.’ So again, what did you say to her?”
    â€œI just wanted to see if she is serious about you the way you seem to be about her.” She paused to kick a pebble on the sidewalk. “I like her Ryan, I do. But I’m not so sure she’s the woman for you.”
    Ryan dragged his fingers through his hair. “What do you mean? Did she say something?”
    â€œNo, not exactly. It was just her expression.” Rose sucked her lower lip in and looked at Ryan with sad eyes.
    Ryan shook his head. “I told you before, she has been through a lot. Right now she needs a friend and that is what I’ll be for her. I’ll wait as long as it takes for that friendship to turn into love.”
    Rose reached out and put her hand on his arm. “And what if it doesn’t? I’m just concerned that you’re not keeping your options open.”
    â€œLet me worry about that.” He smiled. “Remember, there was a time I wasn’t so sure about Doug.” Five years ago, Ryan had told his sister that Doug wouldn’t be a good husband since he traveled for business so much. It turned out his sister loved to travel with him, and to this day their marriage was still strong.
    Rose smiled and nodded. “Fair enough. Just be careful, okay?”
    â€œI will. Have a safe drive back.” Ryan hugged his sister. He stood in the driveway and watched Rose drive off. Why did everything with Maisie have to be complicated, including having her judged by his sister?
    Jacob stepped outside. “Great to see your fam again.”
    Ryan nodded. “I think now that they’ve seen the town they feel more comfortable about visiting.”
    Jacob eyed him curiously. “So you really like Maisie, huh?”
    Ryan smirked. “Is it that obvious?”
    Jacob reached out with his good arm and punched Ryan lightly. “So what are you going to do about it?”
    Ryan held the door open for Jacob, and they went back into the living room to sit down. “I don’t think she’s ready for anything more than we’re doing now.”
    Jacob turned the heating pad on and placed it over his ankle. “You know, if it turns into more, you have to tell her about Beth.”
    â€œIf it comes to that, I will. My family doesn’t even know. You’re the only one I told.”
    He sighed. “Man, I can’t believe you kept that from them.”
    Ryan closed his eyes and leaned his head back on the couch. “You know how my family is. After Beth left, I didn’t see a reason to tell them about our engagement.”
    Jacob shook his head. “I can’t believe she took off with the ring. That was just wrong.”
    â€œYeah, about as wrong as telling me on a Post-It Note.”
    Jacob rolled his eyes. “What is it with women taking advantage of us?”
    Ryan sighed. “I don’t know, but I think Maisie’s different. She’s too sweet to take advantage of anyone.”
    â€œMan, for your sake, I hope she is. I’ve only seen a similar look in your eye for one other woman, and she moved to Florida with your five thousand dollar ring.”
    â€œYou need a refill on your soda?” Ryan asked, standing up. While he was over Beth and even had forgiven her for what she had done, he didn’t like to dwell on it either.
    â€œNo, I’m good.” Jacob paused. “You can bring me the ice pack, though.”
    â€¢ • •
    Maisie set the plates of cheeseburgers and home fries down in front of the young couple discussing rather heatedly whether they should get a pet.
    She smiled and offered, “If you’re not ready to commit to a dog or cat, try a hamster.”
    The girl looked at her as if considering the idea. “But I want something I can pet and play with.”
    â€œYou can pet and play with a hamster. If you hold them, they’ll become tame. I just got one myself. There’s even