CHAPTER 1
Harper
“I’m telling you, Fee. I know that Darius can do this.”
My cousin sighs. “Harper. We need this done and we need it done quickly since both of our businesses are going to be a mess until it’s done. I can’t just go with your bestie because he’s your bestie, you know.”
Huffing, I glare at my pretty blond cousin. “I’m not trying to convince you to go with someone unsuitable for heaven’s sake. Darius has been doing this kind of work forever. The man knows what he’s doing with wood.”
Fee’s brow lifts and she grins wickedly. My pale skin heats up quickly. Shoving my caramel curls behind my ear, I huff and turn away from her. “Stop!”
“I know you’ve always wanted to find out about his wood but I didn’t realize that you’d been on a test drive with him.”
“Don’t be gauche,” I growl under my breath, bending down to pick up a box at my feet. We’re in the middle of unloading our delivery for the day. The fresh flowers are already set out in display or in the chiller in the back where we keep floral deliveries until they’ve sold. “My relationship with Darius is nothing like that.”
“Not that you wouldn’t like it to be, right?”
Grief pushes the anger washing over me out. I whisper, “Darius is barely functioning right now. He’s not in a good place. H-He’s wrecked.” Swallowing the lump in my throat, I shakily set the new order of vases out on the shelf, my eyes not even seeing the beautiful swirls of vibrant color in the crystal. These are going to be perfect for Mother’s Day gifts.
“This is what I’m talking about, Harp. He’s barely functioning. I need someone that’s on the ball to keep this project on track.” She reaches over and hugs me and tears prick at my eyes. Sighing, I close them, pushing the weakness back with a vengeance. Now isn’t the time to let my emotions whirl out of control.
If there is anything that can do it. It’s my bestie. We’ve been attached at the hip since we were kids. We met in first grade and as soon as I saw the brown-haired boy with the wild curls and the easy grin on his lips, I think I fell a little in love with him.
I couldn’t stop myself from spending every minute of the day with him. We played cops and robbers, trading off who was the bad guy and who was the hero. I never cared about frilly, girly things. As long as I was with Darius, I couldn’t care less what we did or what I looked like doing it.
Until senior prom. I thought we were going together and my burgeoning feelings for him were starting to feel a little bit more than friendly.
And then he showed up with a smile on his face and Angela DiCasto on his arm. All my strange new feelings for my best friend shriveled up and died a horrifying death right then and there.
He didn’t even notice. Just asked me to keep Angela company for a minute while he went to get her an ice cream cone at the Dairy Cool. She barely noticed me until he walked away and then her dark eyes spit fire at me as she eyed me up and down. “So you’re his best friend, huh?” Her eyes sparkled withan evilness that I never expected. “Well, I’m here to tell you that you might as well go find yourself a new friend, Chica. Because I know what you’re hiding even if he doesn’t. He doesn’t like you and it’s just pathetic that you think that if you hang around him long enough, that’s gonna change.” She straightened her narrow shoulders and smiled brightly when he held out her ice cream.
My face burned. My eyes burned. My whole body felt like I was on fire. I knew that Darius didn’t know how I felt about him but I had no idea how Angela knew.
I figured out later it was just a lucky guess and she’s just a huge psycho bitch.
But at the time I’d been horrified that maybe Darius knew my truth and he was disgusted. Like maybe he’d mentioned it to her and they laughed about how stupid I was.
That last year was the hardest of my life in my hometown. That’s what sent me traveling the world trying to find anything that felt as good to me as being around Darius did.
I traveled to Paris and worked at an art gallery, learning french from the native speakers around me and studying art history from a place that felt like where it sprang forth.
Then I traveled to Rome and Greece. So many places that they all blurred together.
Meanwhile Darius got a football scholarship to Penn State and moved away. And Angela, the captain of the cheerleading squad followed him. They seemed so happy from all that I saw and heard on my infrequent trips home that I sadly blocked all thoughts of my lost friendship and love.
Then they got married. And seven months later, they had a little baby girl.
I cried myself to sleep in a little apartment in a shady place in the back streets of Paris, heading back to my old haunts to study more.
Art became my salvation. My paintbrushes fused to my hand for late nights and long days with tears in my eyes and a heavy heart.
But I made it through and now, seven years later, I’m finally studying in college instead of around the world.
And then I saw the notice in the papers. A little local article about Darius and his little family. His little lost family.
“Hey, Harp.” Fee shakes my shoulder and I’m standing back in my little hometown and I’m still alone, still lost.
“I know that you think I’m a fool, Fee,” I growl harshly, ignoring the way she jerks and pales. Pain streaks through my chest and right into my foolish damn heart.
