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“Oh?” Gran feigns interest.
“We need to go.Now!” Kinley grabs Willow’s elbow and tugs at her hard enough to unsteady her planted feet. The two used to be really close, but it’s evident that relationship has frayed over time. In fact, the three Gray sisters are all but estranged these past three years according to local gossip. Rumors I always pretend not to overhear at the diner. But, let’s be honest, you can’t exactly unhear that shit.
Willow flickers her gaze to me, a mixture of irritation and hurt causing a blue storm.
“I’ll drop your body bag off at the diner later,” I say, needing her to leave. Needing space to get my head on straight. Needing time to figure out my next move.
Gran waits as the two sisters head to a maroon SUV parked at the edge of the airstrip before she turns her steely gray eyes on me. “You’re not fooling me, Mason.” Her strict tone is laced with compassion, though she’d never outright admit it.
“Wouldn’t dream of trying.” I busy myself with the plane, focusing on my post-flight tasks. I don’t have any flights scheduled for the next couple of days and need to close everything up.
“The sooner she leaves, the better off you’ll be. Of course, there’s always other options. I know a guy—”
I set Willow’s cinder block filled suitcase on the ground and turn to envelope Gran in a hug. She’s raised my sister and me since I was seven years old, after my mom passed. She’s fiercely protective and means well. “Gran, you’re not allowed to hire a hitman.”
“Idolook terrible in orange.”
CHAPTER7
Willow
Why did I lie?
I rest my head against the glass as Kinley drives through town. The past I’ve tried so hard to forget comes flooding back with each building we pass. I used to sit on the concrete steps outside the bank with my sisters and suck on the tiny lollipops we pilfered. Mason stole my first kiss in the shadowed alcove of the library. We celebrated our engagement with half the town at theCaribou Creek Brewerydown the street.
I could’ve come clean about my agent dumping me, but I can’t stand the thought of Kinley or Maggs knowing I’ve failed at my biggest dream. Truth be told, I had planned to tell Mason the truth before he turned to a coldhearted asshole last night. I thought he’d climb into bed with me after fucking me so thoroughly. But no. That jackass slept in his uncomfortable chair, and my walls went right back up.
Now, the whole town’s going to think I’m starring in some movie.A lead role, Willow? Really?Oh well. In a few days, I hope to be on my way back to pick up the pieces and rebuild my acting career. Mason’s right. I’m going to leave. Why make things any harder than they have to be?
“What’s wrong with Grandma Rose?” I ask Kinley, fully expecting her to lecture me before spitting out the answer as she drives us into town.
“I don’t know.”
That causes me to sit up. She’s the oldest of us sisters. The one who took over raising us after our mother ran off with some guy to Vegas. She makes it a point to know what’s going on. A very firm, annoying point. “What do you mean you don’t know?”
“Grandma Rose has been tight-lipped since I showed up. Said she wasn’t telling us anything untilyougot here.” The sharpness of her tone stings, as it should. We were close once. She was going to be my maid of honor, but I didn’t tell her I was jilting. She’s never forgiven me for that. “Jesus, even Aurora showed up before you.”
“Well, I’m here now.”
“Until your next acting role takes you away for another three years. Or will one of us have todiebefore you come home again?”
“You don’t live here either,” I retort, recalling that she last tagged Anchorage as where she lived on social media. She unfriended me after weeks of refusing to answer her calls, but I’ve still been able to stalk a few public details on her profile. Along with a picture of a handsome guy I can only assume is her boyfriend. Of course, if Kinley ran off and eloped in my absence, why would she tell me?
“I meant Alaska.” Kinley slams on the brake pedal at a stop sign, sending me flying toward the dashboard. I catch it with my palm.
“What the hell, Kin—” But my annoyance is all but forgotten when I see the two-story white stone theater all boarded up. Afor salesign in the front show window. My heart cracks in two at the sight of it. Not only have I performed in countless school plays on that stage, but I was also directing them before I left. I was supposed to hold auditions after my honeymoon for a play I’d written and planned to direct.
“Things wither and die when you abandon them,” Kinley mutters, turning a sharp corner. She doesn’t just mean the theater. A block later, we’re at the diner.
“Why are we here? I thought Grandma Rose was sick.”
“Well, if she is, she hasn’t slowed down any.” The full parking lot can attest to that. The second she parks, Kinley’s phone explodes in a series of chimes from the inside of her purse. She closes her eyes and takes a deep inhale before reaching into her purse and shutting off the ringer. I catch a quick glimpse of the nameDerek. Before I can ask, she pushes her door open. “C’mon. Aurora’s already inside.”
The diner looks exactly the same as it did the last time I saw it, more than three years ago. The same as it did when I was a little kid. Grandma Rose always did love the checkerboard floor, red upholstered booths, and chrome accents. Almost as much as I loved the mini jukeboxes growing up. I used to sweet-talk the morning coffee drinkers out of quarters so I could play my favorite songs before the school bus whisked me away.
The nostalgia is almost enough to blind me to the stares. But there’s too many sets of eyes looking up from dozens of tables. The roar of conversation has quieted to a dull buzz. Whispers. I gulp a swallow, and fall into the role of a woman who’s proud to come back to her hometown a winner.
Despite my award-winning smile and friendly waves, I hear murmurs about my stilettos and faux leather leggings. No doubt I look a little like death warmed over from a night spent in a fishing cabin without running water.
