Wasted On Us (Bittersweet Echoes Book 2) by Colleen Charles

Author:Colleen Charles [Charles, Colleen]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-08-24T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Thirteen

Eden

“Why is it so much harder now than it was back then?” I grumble into my half-empty rosé.

I made it less than seventy-two hours in that house before I needed to get out posthaste. Rescue came to me in the form of a girls’ night, my sisters meeting me at a local wine bar for some happy hour snacks and drinks.

“Because you tasted freedom and then had to give it back up,” Elowyn explains through a mouthful of cheese fries. “Let me guess. Dad is being overprotective and unreasonable and doesn’t treat you like an adult at all. And Mom—she loves you, and she loves being able to take care of you, but you can tell that she also wants to be left alone to watch The Today Show and read her romance novels on her e-reader, right? Like the fact that you’re there, in the house, breathing, creates an issue for her. Been there. Done that. Don’t envy you in the slightest.”

Nodding, I absently swirl my wine in the glass, watching the delicate rose color swirl against the backdrop of the bar. This place is called The Chilled Grape, a trendy yet cozy wine bar in the heart of Frostvale. The place is decked out with wine barrels for tables, reclaimed wooden shelves stocked with an impressive array of wines, and soft fairy lights that lend a warm, inviting glow to the space. It’s a local favorite for intimate gatherings or just a quiet place to unwind after a hectic day.

The Chilled Grape provides the perfect escape from my currently stifling existence. Its frosty name reflects the quaint, picturesque town we live in, the wine bar offers a sanctuary of warmth and laughter, a stark contrast to the icy chill that seems to have descended upon my life.

But before I can make a snarky remark about how we can’t all get engaged to a hot guy who lives in our apartment building and fixes our lives, Ensley changes the subject. Eldest daughters are the champions of conflict de-escalation.

“So…” Swirling her Chablis in her glass, she levels her gaze at me. She was the only one of us who didn’t settle for the five-dollar happy hour glass of house wine, instead choosing something pricier and more sophisticated. “Has this inspired you to get serious about a career?”

“It’s not that I was ever not serious about a career. It’s that I can’t think of anything I want to be.”

“Well, you did not have to quit your dream,” she counters.

“Of being a translator and working for an ambassador in Italy?” Even just saying it out loud now feels ridiculous. I can’t believe I ever thought I could be capable of such a thing. “I kinda did.”

“Because of Rick?” Elowyn asks, wide-eyed and sad.

“Yes.” I sigh in defeat. “He’s still there in Italy. But he broke my heart. I thought we were getting engaged and instead, we were breaking up.”

Rick was handsome, funny, and smart, and pronounced mozzarella like a native Italian.

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