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With a wry smile and my heart thundering, I bowed my head at him. “Take your best shot, Daniels.”
His smile tugged up on one side in more of a smirk than a polished baby-kisser. “Always do.”
As he walked away and I found my feet, commanding them to carry me to Verna on shaky knees, I thought of about twenty things I should have said. At least five of them were such intense burns, he would’ve needed skin grafts to recover. But I’d been caught off-guard and unaware, the shock of seeing him after all this time shutting down my executive functions.
But I made a solemn vow, one I wouldn’t break.
Next time, he wouldn’t be so lucky.
2
WELP.
DUKE
“This town is the cutest thing I’ve ever seen.”
Evangeline peered out the passenger window of the Escalade we’d rented with an expression on her face I could only describe as doting.
I made a derisive noise through my smile, raising a hand here and there to acknowledge sidewalk gawkers.
“I mean it,” she said, sitting back. “You made it sound like some podunk, backwater, hillbilly town. Lindenbach is undeniably charming. We can use this, you know.”
When I’d properly stifled a sigh, I said, “If you think so, we’ll use whatever you want.”
“Your absolute trust is all I require.” She recrossed her legs, her gaze still beyond the window. “Poppy’s even prettier than I imagined, and she was a stunner in your old photos.”
A spark caught in my chest and burned out. “Jealous?” I asked rather than acknowledge it.
She laughed, her chin lifted. “Only that you got to date her. Her dating you was sheer luck on your part, I’m sure. You’re sure she’s still straight?”
“Nope.”
“I should make a move.”
“I’m sure she’d jump at the chance, especially considering you’re her competition’s campaign manager.”
“And best friend. I’m basically your sister. I was actually going to ask if your parents might consider adopting me.”
“They do love you.”
“A common pitfall of knowing me.”
I paused, sobering. “Did you know she’d be here?”
“No,” she said quietly. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t feel sorry for me. She’s the one who deserves an apology.” The memory of her face when she saw me and the echoing emotion I felt burned like a stone in my chest. “What do we do?”
“That depends on you.”
“How do I hurt her the least?”
She drew a breath through her nose as she thought, her eyes trained on the passing town. “We could try to figure out a way to disqualify her from the race. I assume from what little I know of her she wouldn’t willingly quit.”
“Never.”
“Let me do a little digging and see what I can come up with.” Evangeline reached into her bag and returned with a portfolio while I chewed on my thoughts. “So, the agenda for the rest of the day…” She tapped her pen against her bottom lip. “We’ll go get settled in at your parents’ house and visit with them until dinner tonight in Austin with some of your backers. Charlie can’t make it. He sent his apologies but he can’t get away from the hill tonight.”
“Damn. Schmoozing a political dinner is always easier with a senator at your elbow.”
“Especially when they’re all from Texas. Politics are nepotistic, but Texans take it to a whole new level.” She flipped a page and pulled out her phone to scroll through her calendar. “We have meetings all week with party members, both local and state. Town hall meeting is on Wednesday, then there’s the…”
As Evangeline went on and Main Street fell into my rearview, my thoughts drifted. It had been a long time since I’d been back, and though the familiarity was a comfort, it was a curse too. Memories had already been kicked up like dust. But I reminded myself that Lindenbach was a stop on a long road, the mayorship only interim for me.
No one needed to know that much, especially not Poppy.
Still rattled from seeing her after all this time, I’d replayed the exchange at least six times in the five minutes since I’d walked away from her. I shouldn’t have needled her and hadn’t intended to, but I knew a few things to be true. First, if I kept my cool, the opposition would eat their shoe when they slipped up and lodged a foot in their mouth. Second, rattling her cage would ensure she hopped around with one foot in her mouth for the duration of the race. And third—this was going to be one of the hardest things I’d ever endured, and I had a Harvard law degree.
Instead of our old lively banter, it was knives out. She wanted to act like she was the only one who got hurt. The only one who felt wronged. I might not have handled our breakup like I should’ve, but there was a common thought that her pain outweighed mine, and the lie of it all scratched at my heart.
