“Probably, but you’re the one who asked for my opinions.”
She let out a sigh that hinted she might regret asking me anything at all. “That’s true. Remind me not to do that again.”
“It’s payback for pool. You could’ve told me you were basically a professional player.”
“If I was, I would’ve disclosed it, but I’m not.” She smirked at me. “I’m just better than you.”
“Oof.”
When she laughed again, I decided that it would be my personal mission from now until I left this town to keep making her do it.Fuck, I love that sound.
Eventually, we ended up at the register and paid. An employee wheeled her flat cart out while I meandered beside her, a little disappointed that this outing was over already. The afternoon heat was like a wall as we walked outside, but I forgot all about it when she turned to look at me as we reached her truck.
Fuck, those eyes, man. Seriously.
“Do you want to see what I’m working on?”
My eyebrows shot up. “You mean, your house?”
“Yeah.”
“I’d love to.”
She smiled. “Alright then. Follow me.”
With my heart hammering in my throat, I nodded and headed to Kit’s truck, loading up Frieda’s supplies before I followed Raquel out of town. I hadn’t been in this direction before, but as we drove toward the pass the town had been named for, I realized there was a certain kind of beauty to this place.
The same was true about Raquel’s property. It wasn’t lush or manicured, but it was gorgeous, open desert stretching as far as the eye could see, the entire landscape painted in gold, rust, and faded green. Even the sky seemed bigger and bluer out here, mountains rising in the distance beyond Quartz Pass.
Everything was a little hazy in the heat, a little softer around the edges.Sort of like Raquel herself now that I have her alone.
We rolled past the old barn she’d mentioned, the roof slightly crooked and the paint weathered, but the structure seemed solid. Around the next bend in the windy farm road, a small house came into view with a chrome trailer parked beside it.
I pulled up next to Raquel, ignoring the fresh siding on one side of the house and focusing on the trailer instead. “Oh my God. Is that an Airstream?”
She glanced over at it and smiled sheepishly. “Yeah. I’ve been living in it while I’m renovating.”
Feeling like I’d discovered buried treasure, I walked around it, the bright metal gleaming in the sun and the body beautifully maintained despite its age. “Okay, this is objectively cool.”
She snorted. “I bought it years ago with all these big plans for traveling, but that never happened, so I’ve been living in it for the last six months instead.”
I glanced at her. “It’s still cool, but I’m surprised you never took it on the road. What happened to the travel plans?”
“Life.” She shrugged, but then her eyes drifted to the desert and she inhaled a breath so deep, her chest rose with it. “I like it here in Quartz Pass. I know it’s a small town and that there’s a lot more out there, but after everything with Hunter, leaving felt too much like letting them take something else from me.”
“Yeah,” I said after beat. “You said they live in Tucson now, right?”
“Yep, but their families are still here. Hunter hated that I didn’t want to leave this town and he probably loves that I’mstuckhere now, with everyone knowing what they did, but I don’t see it that way.”
“Small towns do seem to be fun like that, but I think I get what you’re saying. You won’t let the fact that everyone knows or that they still have to come back to see their families run you out of town.”
“Exactly.” A tiny furrow appeared between her eyebrows as she glanced back up at me. “It kind of feels like leaving would make them think they won. At least, that’s what it felt like at first.”
“What about now?”
“Now I just don’t want to go anywhere.” She motioned at the house. “This place is mine. I can do whatever I want to it. I don’t need anyone’s approval or permission, and honestly, I’m having a fucking blast with it.”
I hooked my fingers into my pockets. “Well, let’s go see it, then. You did invite me here to show off what you’ve been doing, so we might as well get to it.”
