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Doing her best to ignore the pang of guilt in her chest, Evie shut off her car and joined her sisters.
"All right, Fancy." Hands on her hips, Teagan looked around. "Want to tell us what we're doing way out in the middle of nowhere?"
Evie's pout only lasted a moment. She'd figured Teagan would be the skeptical one, but her sister hadn't even let her explain yet. "We are not in the middle of nowhere, Teagan. We're at the beginning of something."
"Jesus, you sound like Ro. What's going on here, Fancy?"
Ro bounced excitedly. "Come on, show us the surprise already!"
Opening her arms, Evie gestured to the house and the acres of land surrounding it. "This is it."
"You… bought a house?" It was obvious Ro was still trying to act excited, but disappointment rang clearly in her voice.
"Yes. But not for me." Suddenly feeling self-conscious about her decision, Evie turned her back on her sisters and started up the walkway to the house. "I'm working with a shelter in the city. We're going to turn this into a place for abused women and children to come for safety and healing."
Her explanation was met with silence. Since she wasn't looking at them, she couldn't tell what they might be thinking or feeling. Unlocking the front door, she forged ahead. "I loved the cabin. And I really felt like I was able to heal there in a way I couldn't have in the city. Not just because I had you two and Jason and the others. I felt like I could breathe out there. I want other women to have that chance to breathe. And to heal."
Standing in the middle of what once must have been a beautiful foyer, she finally gathered the courage to turn and face her sisters.
Tears, she'd somewhat expected. But where she'd figured they'd come from Ro, she found them instead tracking silently down Teagan's cheeks.
"Is this for real?" Teagan managed, her voice thick with tears. "Where did you get the money for this?"
Ignoring the heat creeping into her cheeks, Evie shrugged. "I was smart enough, despite all signs to the contrary, not to give Branson access to my trust fund. I have more than enough to live on." Evie wrinkled her nose. "Especially since Jason has made it his mission in life to curb my spending."
The bout of giggles from her sisters wasn't unexpected, but she still found herself pouting at them. "It isn't funny! Do you know what he suggested the other day? Do you?"
Her sisters glanced at each other. "No, love," Ro answered with her customary sweetness. "What did he suggest?"
"I need a dress for an event next week. When I showed him the one I wanted, he said I have enough dresses, but if I really wanted a new one, I could go to Macy's. Macy's!"
"Oh, the horror." Teagan's dry response sent Ro into another fit of laughter.
"I thought you were done with that life, anyway," Ro said, wiping tears from her eyes as she tried to compose herself.
"I am. Mostly." The grief that seemed to follow her everywhere now welled up inside of her. "My father's law firm is holding a memorial dinner for him."
"Oh, honey." Every trace of laughter disappeared from Ro's voice. "How are you holding up?"
"I'm okay." At her sisters' disbelieving looks, Evie shrugged. "Some days are harder than others. It helps to have something to do. Between this new project and wedding plans for Teagan, I don't have much time to be sad. I just try to stay busy."
"You need to allow yourself to grieve—" Ro began, but Teagan cut her off with a shake of her head.
"Everyone grieves differently, Ro. And this," Teagan gestured to the house around them, "seems like a healthy coping mechanism. And Jay will be there to keep her from overdoing it."
"True." Ro didn't quite sound convinced, but she dropped it. "Can we see the rest of the house?"
Grateful for the change of topic, Evie happily stepped into her role as tour guide. As she shared her vision with her sisters, she did her best to forget the papers she'd left in the trunk of her car and the guilt pricking her conscience. She'd tell her sisters everything.
Eventually.
