Coming Undone by Lauren Dane Page A

her face, but if Elise wasn’t mis-taken, an air of challenge lurked there. Great, probably an ex- or not so ex-girlfriend.
    “Elise and her little girl live across the street. She’s the one who helped him when he got hit,” Erin explained as she came up with Ben. “I saved us a table right there.” Erin pointed.
    Cope leaned back against a nearby ledge and sipped a beer. “Pool, huh? We play every other Friday at the pub just around the corner from the shop. You should come along sometime.”
    “Thanks for the invite. I don’t have a lot of Friday nights free. I have a little girl, so I stick around home a lot.” She didn’t have the free time they did, but it was still nice to be asked.
    “When she’s not working in her studio. You should see her dance. It’s pretty freaking amazing.” Brody touched the small of her back. Just a casual touch, but it relaxed her a bit.
    “Momma! I’m hungry. Can we eat?” Rennie led the charge of the pack of children she’d been playing with.
    “I’ve got a platter of burgers and dogs right here,” Brody called out to a cheer.
    “I’ll get that.” She took it and looked over to the kids. “Why don’t you all come over here to this table where the plates are so you can grab something?”
    In the midst of the chaos of grabbing hands and pleased sounds from the kids, another woman came to help. “I’m Maggie, Arvin’s wife. Those two are mine.” She pointed out her kids.
    “Elise.” She motioned to Rennie. “That one is mine.”
    “I’ve seen you dropping her off at school in the mornings. If you ever want to take a morning off, or if you need to trade off, let me know. I teach at the school. Fourth grade. So I’m there anyway.”
    The two women, along with another mom and a dad, got the kids situated, and it wasn’t until she’d moved back, standing in the autumn sunshine, that Elise realized it had been four years since she’d had a barbecue with friends, two since she’d really had close friends of any type.
    Rennie and Nina had become fast friends in the way only girls their age could. A year ago, Rennie had been prone to nightmares about losing her mother. And now she could be in a backyard, eating freshly cooked burgers and giggling with a girlfriend. Elise had done the right thing to leave and move west.
    “Here, you forgot this.” Brody handed her the plate with her salmon, and he’d added some pasta salad on the side. “You’ll waste away if you don’t eat.”
    She looked up at him, knowing the smile on her face made it pretty obvious there was more between them than just being friends.
    But he made her happy and she genuinely liked him. Judging by his return smile and the way he squeezed her hand, he wasn’t feeling too shabby either.
    “I’m pretty sure I’ll be okay, but I can’t turn down lunch.” She let him lead her to a table nearby where the kids had settled, and they both sat along with Erin and her two men. Two . Awesome.
    “This is a great yard.”

    “Thanks. It’s been a project for the last several years. I take something big each season and do it. The most recent thing was the water feature near the back corner. I like working with my hands.”
    Gah, she really wished she could control her blushes better. She may as well wear a sign that said, Yes, we totally did it.
    Erin changed the subject. “I looked you up online. I admit it. I love dancing and I got curious when Brody had said you danced with NBT. I watched several clips of you on YouTube. I’m really impressed. You’re an amazing dancer. You did Giselle several times, that’s a big deal.”
    “It is? Why?” Brody leaned in for her answer.
    Pleasure and pride flushed through her. “It’s a plum role. The role you go up through school dreaming of dancing. Very dramatic story. Love, heartbreak, death, revenge, forgiveness. You’re not only dancing but you’re acting too. Technically it’s very difficult, so many of the greatest dancers have taken up