Sneak Peek!

The Broken Hearts Beach Club

Chapter One

As Emily Jacobs entered The Brewing Bloom, a bustling coffee-shop-slash-floral-boutique in her neighborhood of Inglewood, Tennessee, she struggled to focus through the fog of distress that had been plaguing her for the last three days. Today, she was supposed to be offering emotional support to her friend, Blair Andrews, but given the news that had blindsided her, she was bound to fail miserably. Once she got talking, her own emotions would surely spill out.

She’d had so many plans for the warmer months, but in the span of a few minutes, they’d all dissolved into thin air—gone just like the rest of her future.

Six years ago, she and her fiancé, Will, had chosen this area for their future home. It offered a quieter, residential feel with a sense of community, while still being close to Nashville, where Will was getting a foothold in songwriting circles after scoring a publishing deal. She’d fallen in love with its charming, historic neighborhoods, tree-lined streets, and blend of lifelong residents and transplants.

The previous year, his first published song had made enough for them to make the down payment on a bungalow that sat between two oak trees on a quiet street. They’d planned for the renovations to be finished just in time for their wedding in August. Because of that, she hadn’t renewed the lease on her apartment, and all she’d thought about since was sinking into a king-sized bed in her gorgeous new house and falling asleep without the constant buzz of traffic she’d become accustomed to.

Like everywhere in the city these days, however, Inglewood wasn’t as quiet anymore. And today, neither was her mind. With a lump lodged in her throat, she scanned the busy seating area for a table that would accommodate three.

The coffee shop was lively, with a line of at least eight patrons snaking along the wall toward the register. Two women chatted merrily as they waited. They seemed so relaxed and carefree, one of them throwing her head back and laughing at something the other said. At the counter, the barista greeted a customer, wrinkling her nose in conversation. None of them had a clue about the battle raging in Emily’s mind.

A couple got up from a small table by the window, next to a shelf of silver buckets filled with twine-tied bundles of peonies, lilacs, and lavender. Only two seats, but it was the lone option. Emily loped over to it, quickly dropping her bag in the empty chair and sitting in the other. She scanned the place for familiar faces, but Sienna and Blair hadn’t arrived yet.

Out the window, heat rose from the sidewalk, giving the air a wavy appearance. A pair of women ambled through the haze, pushing strollers with one hand and holding ice cream cones from the shop down the street in the other. The Southern summer had come in like a lion.

Summer was Emily’s favorite time of year. She’d packed up her second-grade classroom and put her blonde hair into a ponytail, where it would stay for the next two and a half months during her school’s summer break. This year, she and Will had planned to use her time off to put the final touches on their kitchen renovations while they began to move their things to the new house. Over the last few weeks, in anticipation, she’d shopped for paint swatches for the cabinets that would bring in muted pops of color—olive green, deep beige, bright white… She’d imagined a mason jar of daises on their wooden table, and an oatmeal-colored runner along the distressed hardwood in front of the sink. Ever since they’d bought the home, she’d been taking tiny steps toward building the perfect place for a growing family. She wanted to have kids as soon as possible—she couldn’t wait to start their life together.

Tears pricked her eyes, and she quickly blinked them away. She’d been so good about putting on a brave face, but her emotions welled up knowing she was about to see the two women she confided in. She’d tell them. She always told them everything. But there hadn’t been a good time yet, and now wasn’t good either.

“Ah, you got a table.”

Sienna Duvall’s voice sounded as if it were at the end of a long tunnel. Emily forced herself out of her thoughts and smiled at her friend.

“Nice job.” A friendly kiss plucked Emily’s cheek and Sienna gave her a squeeze. Her dark hair with golden highlights smelled like jasmine and citrus. When Sienna pulled away, she put her hands on the hips of her fashionable trousers, looking around. “Is Blair here yet?”

But Sienna didn’t wait for an answer.

“Excuse me,” she said to someone at a nearby table. “Are you using this chair?” She waggled a finger at it, her gold bangles jingling.

The patron shook his head and gestured toward the empty seat.

Sienna slid it over to their table, then plopped down. “I have some incredible news. Have you ordered yet?”

Emily dragged herself out of her state of heaviness and focused on Sienna’s dark eyes. “No, I haven’t.” She forced another smile.

“Wait.” Her friend leaned in, inspecting Emily’s face. Sienna noticed right away. She always did. “What’s wrong?”

“It’s okay,” Emily said, fluttering her hands in the air. If she tried to explain, she’d blubber right there in the coffee shop and make a scene. “Just a tough day. Man the fort. I’ll get us coffees and then you can tell me your news.” She hoisted herself out of her chair. “What do you want?”

Sienna squinted at her with suspicious curiosity, but she didn’t ask anything more. “Decaf latte, oat milk, no foam. Decaf,” she repeated.

“Got it.” Emily turned away before her friend could inquire any further. She jumped in line at the back of the shop, glad to have a minute to collect herself.

A few seconds was all she got, though, as Blair entered and stepped up next to her.

“Hey.”

“How are you?” Emily asked, putting on a brave face.

“Good.” Blair waved across the room to Sienna.

If they were up for awards for the worst life event, Blair would win. As a social media influencer, she’d made an incredible living video blogging. She was approachable; she could shoot those bright, airy videos that made everyone else feel as if they were living in a cave; and she was as beautiful inside as she was outside. For nine months, she’d documented her pregnancy online—the stunning nursery she was creating, the preparatory shopping trips, little onesies she was buying in anticipation, and first-time-mom hacks she was devouring. Her ad revenue was through the roof—baby-equipment companies, clothing shops, custom diaper bags all wanted a place in her feed.

Then, on one horrific day, everything fell apart. She lost the baby in her ninth month. She hadn’t posted a video in the six weeks since.

When Blair lost the baby, Emily and Sienna formed a support group for her, meeting her for coffee regularly. They spent most of the time talking about nothing—just everyday happenings. Blair told them the normalcy of their conversation reminded her of what it was like to feel human.

“I’m better than usual, actually,” Blair continued. “My hormones are evening out. The night sweats seem to have finally subsided.”

Blair and Emily moved a few paces in line.

“And I have fewer mood swings, but I still can’t shake the bad days…” She rubbed her temples. “Sorry. By now you were probably hoping to hear ‘fine.’”

“No, I want to hear how you really are,” Emily said.

“I don’t know if the coffee line is where you want me to unload anyway.” Blair rolled her head on her shoulders. “I wish I could feel like myself again. Look at everyone. They’re laughing and chatting. I wonder if I’ll ever be like that?”

Emily opened her mouth to answer, when Blair threw her hand to her head and groaned.

“Listen to me. I’m such a downer.”

“You’ve been through a traumatic event. You are allowed to be a downer with your best friends. We’re here for you.”

“You two make me feel like sunshine for a little bit. You’re the only ones who can get me laughing these days. It’s good for my soul.”

They shuffled forward as the group in front of them finished up.

Blair took a breath, her petite chest rising under her gauzy ivory sundress. The color, against her long honey-brown hair, brought out her tan skin and pink lips. “What’s new with you?” she asked.

“Also not a question to answer in the coffee line,” Emily said, pushing the dread back down where she’d tried to keep it since arriving. Today was about bringing Blair that all-important sunshine. “I’ll tell you later.”

Blair offered an interested once-over and then frowned.

Emily changed the subject. “Sienna’s got news. Incredible news, apparently.”

“Oh? I could use some good news! What is it?”

“I’m not sure. I told her to hang on until I got back with her coffee.”

They stepped up to the barista, put in their orders, and stood among the other waiting customers. Blair pointed at their table. Sienna was wiping the surface with a napkin and straightening the chairs.

“That’s just like her,” Emily said with a punch of humor and fondness for her old friend.

The three women had known each other since college. Emily had been the first to move to Nashville, chasing Will’s dream. Blair, whose husband, Rocko, was friends with Will, followed soon after, once she’d seen Emily’s new bungalow. The two couples became inseparable. Then Emily and Blair lured Sienna to Music City with their endless talk of the booming housing market. A year later, Sienna was living in a condo in The Gulch with glass walls overlooking the city skyline, drinking cosmos with the young and privileged, and caught up in a whirlwind relationship with her now-husband, Tyson.

When their order was ready, Emily handed Blair her coffee, grabbed hers and Sienna’s, and they made their way back to the table.

“If I wasn’t saving this spot for us, I’d have joined you in line,” Sienna said when they reached her. “We could’ve had a full therapy session while we waited, as long as it took.” She eyed Emily with a concerned look, obviously still trying to figure out what had upset her.

“I know, right? It’s swarming with people today.” Emily handed Sienna her coffee, moved her handbag, and sat down.

“Decaf, right?” Sienna asked, holding up her cup.

“Yep.” Blair took the chair across from Emily and grasped her cup with two delicate hands.

“So tell us your news.” Emily immediately diverted the attention from herself to Sienna. “I told Blair you’d used the word ‘incredible.’”

“Wait. First, how are you doing, Blair?” Sienna brushed Blair’s hair behind her ear and put a manicured hand on her friend’s shoulder.

“Decent enough, but I’d love some good news.”

Sienna blinked rapidly in a show of drama. “Okay. You won’t believe it.”

“Do tell,” Emily urged her.

“Remember the three-million-dollar listing I got?”

“Yes…” Emily said.

Sienna was an up-and-coming real estate agent. Her friendly personality, no-nonsense approach, and intelligence gave her an instant trustworthiness. So much so that she’d already jumped ranks faster than anyone at her brokerage, taking on some pretty incredible properties.

Blair leaned forward, poised to hear the news.

Sienna set her cup down slowly, prolonging the drama. “I sold it.”

“That’s fantastic,” Emily said. “Holy moly.”

That one sale probably made her just as much as, if not more than, Emily made in a year teaching school.

“Isn’t it?” But Sienna’s lined lips were spread in a tight smile. Then her eyes suddenly and unexpectedly brimmed with tears.

“What’s the matter?” Emily asked, blindsided by her complete one-eighty.

Sienna tipped back her head, her long lashes bobbing as she blinked away the emotion. “I’m so sorry. I’m just really happy,” she said. But the catch in her throat told a different story.

Was there something in the air? It seemed all three of them needed a shoulder today.

Blair took Sienna’s hand. “You can tell us, Sienna. What happened?”

“I really can’t tell you yet.” She angrily wiped her tears with her free hand, smudging her perfect makeup. “Why am I crying? I don’t cry.”

Sienna was a pro at hiding her emotions. Her poker face was world-class. She hadn’t shown disappointment when someone had outbid her client, and she’d lost the sale she’d hoped would pay for her and Tyson’s honeymoon. No tears fell when they’d all watched Titanic together. And when they’d surprised Emily for her twenty-seventh birthday, Sienna had walked her up to the spa stone-faced—Emily’d had no idea.

Emily had never seen Sienna like this before. She eyed Blair to question if she seemed to have any idea. Blair’s head was cocked to the side, her stare locked on Sienna with a strange expression.

“Yeah, you never cry. That’s not like you,” Blair said, her voice soft. “Your face is puffier than it usually is too.”

Sienna rolled her eyes as she dragged her red fingernails under them. “Great.”

What was Blair getting at? She and Sienna were in some sort of silent deadlock.

“Someone want to fill me in?” Emily asked.

“I don’t know,” Blair said. “Sienna, want to fill her in?”

“I don’t want to.” Sienna sniffled, looking around before fluffing her hair.

“It could just be me…” Blair said. “But if I’m right, it’s okay to tell us. I’ll be fine.”

Sienna snatched a napkin from the holder on the edge of the table and dabbed her tears. “I’m pregnant.”

“I knew it,” Blair said.

Emily threw her hands over her mouth to stifle her gasp. Sienna and Tyson loved their freedom, and the fact that their life was unrestricted and void of emotional vulnerability. Sienna’s independence was the core of who she was. It was nothing for her to go on a 6:00 a.m. run before she spent an hour at the gym and then schmoozed with people all day. A typical night involved cocktails and extravagant dinners with clients. She lived in a high-rise apartment, seven stories in the air. Her furniture was modern, with lots of clean lines and sharp edges. Her life was the opposite of childproof.

“What did Tyson say?” Emily asked.

“He doesn’t know yet.”

“You told us before you told your husband?” Blair asked, her head tilted.

“You think he’ll want to sell the condo and buy some God-awful single-family new construction in a neighborhood called Maplewood or Pine Ridge? He’s going to panic.” She put her fist to her lips as if she were stifling nausea. “I don’t know what this will do to our marriage. I don’t even know if I’ll be a good mom.”

“You might surprise yourself,” Blair said. The way she assessed Sienna, it was as if she were pondering the cruelty of why Sienna would have been given such a gift when a baby was all Blair had ever wanted.

“We don’t even have a dog,” Sienna said. “Tyson didn’t want one. But it’s a good thing because we ended up finding our apartment, which I love. And there’s no way I could truck up and down six flights of stairs to let a dog out. He and I work too much anyway. Neither one of us would ever be home to take care of it.”

“Well, a baby won’t need to pee outside,” Emily offered brightly.

Sienna huffed. “But a baby will need a whole lot more… And I work for a living. What will I do?”

“You can still work,” Emily offered.

“How will I fit a child into our lifestyle? I’m going to fail this baby.”

Emily wanted to tell her that her life would take shape around the child, and she’d love that little ball of joy, but not having any kids of her own, she wasn’t anywhere near an expert. A flash of fear overtook her as her personal issue took hold of her mind again, but she quickly pushed it away.

“What are you going to do?” Emily asked.

“I don’t know yet.” Sienna hung her head. “I’ve thought about the options, and I can’t fathom doing anything other than keeping it. I just don’t know how Tyson is going to react.”

Blair squeezed Sienna’s hand. “I’ll help you. It’ll be okay.”

Sienna’s shoulders fell, and she addressed Blair. “I sound like such an ungrateful jerk. I’m supposed to be lifting you up.” She took a long, slow drink from her cup.

“I’m not the only one in the world with struggles. It’s okay to have your own. I’ve got your back,” Blair said.

Emily leaned across the table and gave Sienna’s arm an affectionate squeeze. “When will you tell Tyson?”

“I don’t know. He’s not going to be thrilled. And I need time to get my mind around us having a baby before I say anything to him.” She looked down at her cup.

“We’re here for you,” Emily said.

As the coffee shop buzzed with activity, the three of them sat in turmoil. Were they headed toward some kind of crossroads in their adult lives? A singular moment where things would change forever? In a strange way, it felt as if they were.