The Comeback by Abby Gaines

said.
    Julie-Anne blinked. “Zack? You’re right, he’s a sweetie, though not everyone is smart enough to see that.”
    “Trent…it’s hard to believe that much charm could be genuine.” Amber’s father had apparently been a real charmer himself, when it suited him.
    Julie-Anne didn’t appear to get the parallel. Her eyessoftened. “Sweetie, you’re a cynic. Trent’s a doll, through and through.” She reached out and touched Amber’s cheek. Amber jerked away, even though she wanted to stay there and enjoy the caress. Julie-Anne’s expression turned hurt.
    “Chad seems competent,” Amber hurried on. “He’s very like Brady.” In manner, as well as looks. Chad wasn’t gruff, like Brady, but she’d bet he and his dad shared a lot of attitudes. Chad’s wife, Brianna, appeared besotted with him—and vice versa—but they hadn’t been together long.
    Julie-Anne obviously sensed the unspoken criticism, because her voice cooled as she said, “Chad is very like his father. Which is the highest compliment I can pay.”
    Amber began counting plates out from the cupboard that her mom had indicated and then moved on to the opinion her mom was really waiting for. “Brady seems…strong.”
    The sigh Julie-Anne let out sounded more like an infatuated sixteen-year-old than a middle-aged woman. “He’s like a rock.”
    Amber frowned. “Immovable?”
    “Dependable,” Julie-Anne said. “Reliable, protective. If Brady seems offhand with you, it’s because he’s protecting me.”
    “What does he think I’m going to do?” Amber demanded, stung.
    “Nothing,” Julie-Anne soothed her. “It’s just, he knows you haven’t been back in a while, and he’s worried about whether we’ll all get along.”
    Amber pffed as she set out the plates on the counter. More likely, Brady was worried someone might see through his loving-husband act. She clamped down on the uncharitable thought. Maybe Brady was a loving husband. Maybe.
    “Give him the benefit of the doubt.” As if she’d read Amber’s mind, Julie-Anne turned pleading. “Be happy for me.”
    Because my happiness was so important to you? So important that you abandoned me? Amber quashed the bitter accusation. Now wasn’t the time to have that argument. Shedoubted there ever would be a time, if she wanted any kind of relationship with her mother.
    It doesn’t matter that she chose my father over me, I don’t care. She repeated the mantra that had sustained her through the lonely years, gradually creating a protective shell around her.
    “Brady is nothing like Billy,” Julie-Anne said quietly. “I promise.”
    “They both drove race cars.” Then Amber burst out, “I can’t believe you’re back in this world, after everything that happened.”
    Julie-Anne pulled a serving spoon from a drawer. “I love racing, and I have a lot of friends in the sport. You used to love it, too.”
    Amber shuddered. “But he— ”
    “NASCAR didn’t make your father what he was,” Julie-Anne interrupted. “If anything, it gave him a reason to be a better man.”
    They were never going to agree on that. Amber switched tactics. “You don’t look happy.”
    “I don’t—?” Julie-Anne gaped. “Sweetheart, I adore Brady, he’s made me happier than I’ve ever been in my life. Apart from when you were born,” she added. Too late.
    She dug a serving spoon into the cobbler. Steam rose from the golden dessert.
    “You can’t expect me to just accept your judgment of him,” Amber said.
    Her mom paused, spoon in the air. “Why not?”
    “Mom, you made a huge mistake the first time around.”
    “And therefore every decision I make must be equally faulty?” Julie-Anne’s eyes flashed. “It’s been eleven years since Billy died, and you’ll notice I didn’t exactly rush in to another relationship. What I have with Brady—”
    “He swept you off your feet,” Amber said.
    To her surprise, her mom laughed. “He did no such thing. You’ve never seen a man