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“I have to go,” she said.
“I won’t wait up.”
The cynical response was almost more than she could bear. She fled down the hall and out the door and all the way to the parking garage. It was at least fifteen minutes before she could leave. She was crying too hard. Quietly. Wretchedly.
Wasn’t it time for karma to give her a break? Or was there no going back from this?
When she was calm enough to drive, she dried her face, repaired her makeup and headed for her parents’ house. Oddly, she never referred to it as home anymore. Even before her wedding day, she had made the shift to being an official adult.
Or so she had thought.
When she pulled up in the driveway, it looked as if every light in the house was shining. Becca came out to meet her.
Cate hugged her sister. “What’s going on?” She was gratified when Becca hugged her back...with surprising affection.
Becca wrinkled her nose. “It always creeps me out to stay here alone. All those doors and windows.”
“But where are Mom and Dad?”
“They forgot their dinner group was meeting tonight. She asked me to tell you she was sorry.”
“Oh.” A little bit more of the sand shifted beneath Cate’s feet. Had she burned all her bridges without realizing it had happened? Was even her own mother frustrated with her?
Becca must have picked up on Cate’s unease. “Come on in,” she said. “I’m actually glad it’s just the two of us. I need to talk to you about something. How’s Harry doing?”
“He’s fine.” Cate was glad she hadn’t convinced him to come along.
After they dumped the trash bags full of Cate’s personal items in her old bedroom, Becca waved her down the hall. “Let’s hang out in the kitchen,” she said. “I made snickerdoodles.”
Something was up. Becca had made her sister’s favorite cookie and wassmilingat Cate. Was the whole world off-kilter?
They settled in the cozy alcove with the bay window that looked out over her father’s neatly manicured lawn. Nothing to see in the dark, but Cate remembered it well enough.
When they first moved here from Blossom Branch, Cate had wanted to plant daisies from Grammy’s house. Her father’s flat refusal had led to the hiring of a professional landscaper.
Now there was nothing cozy or sentimental about the foliage. But it was one of the most immaculate yards in the neighborhood.
Becca brought a pitcher of iced tea and a plate of cookies. “You want something stronger?” she asked.
“No. I’m driving. What’s up, Bex?”
Her younger sister gnawed her bottom lip and sat down with one leg tucked beneath her. “You know how I’ve been trying to convince Mom and Dad to let me take a gap year?”
“Of course. Last time I checked you hadn’t made much headway.”
“True,” Becca said, her expression gloomy. “They want me to sign on the dotted line at the university of my choice and be there in six weeks or eight or whatever. It doesn’t matter,” she wailed. “I have no clue why I would even want togoto college. I needtime,” she said. “Is that so much to ask?”
Cate weighed her answer. “I get it,” she said. “Being eighteen is scary. Heck, I’m barely twenty-five, and look how well I’ve done. Crafting a life’s plan is a lot to ask at your age.”
“So, you agree with me?” Becca had the hopeful expression of a puppy begging for a treat.
“I don’tdisagree,” Cate said carefully, “but my opinion doesn’t carry much weight, especially not now. I’m your sister, not your parent. Huge difference. If they say you have to go to college, well...”
Becca leaned forward. The smudge of cinnamon on her chin made her look more like a kid than a legal adult. “I have an idea, Cate. A really good idea. Mom’s been telling me all about the store you’re buying in Blossom Branch and how you want to open this cute boutique-y place.”
“Wow, I’m surprised. I’ve barely mentioned it to her.”
“I get the feeling she and Daddy are thrilled you have something to take your mind off Jason and the failed wedding.”
