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After I’d dealt with them as politely as I could, I’d returned inside to order dinner. Eugene Braddock had served me but suggested it would be best if I didn’t return. His iciness had been difficult to stomach. He’d always been such a warm, open person. But I hadn’t expected anything less. At least he’d spoken to me. Heather had just glared with open hostility.
My stomach growled. I’d better eat. I went back to the kitchen and opened the paper-wrapped bundle of fries and chicken, serving a portion onto a dinner plate. My personal trainer would have a conniption if she could see me, but I’d already decided I was saying goodbye to Hollywood Kennedy. No more calorie counting and insane workouts. I’d keep in shape, but I’d do it how I wanted. Still, it wouldn’t hurt to stock the pantry tomorrow so I could cook something healthier. For now, I’d enjoy the treat.
I bit into a fry. It crunched satisfyingly. I ate in silence, then cleaned the dishes.
The quiet unnerved me after years of sharing a house with my siblings. When Jamie and Joel had moved into their frat house a few months ago, I’d kept expecting to hear them banging doors or talking too loudly. The solitude had felt strange. Unsettling.
I washed my hands, unzipped my suitcase, and pulled out the faded scrapbook tucked inside the lid. I carried it to the bed, sat cross-legged, and flipped through, perusing the photographs I’d long ago glued into place.
Liam in front of the lookout.
Me with the entire Braddock clan at Eugene’s birthday party.
Me and Summer, arms around each other.
Liam and me at the waterfall.
I paused on that one, my heart aching as I remembered how hopeful I’d been, excited for a future that had never happened.
With a sigh, I set the scrapbook aside and opened the email account on my phone, thumbing through my draft box until I found the one that had been sitting there for ten years. Once I’d finally managed to pull the broken pieces of myself together after my parents’ deaths, I’d wanted to explain everything and let him know how much I’d cared. I’d only ended our relationship because I thought I’d been protecting him. My life had turned upside down, and I’d suddenly found myself unable to come back to him as I’d promised to. By breaking up with him, I’d been trying to prevent him from coming after me and being miserable. He’d always insisted he could never be happy away from Destiny Falls, and I’d no longer been in a position to leave L.A.
But even once the mental fuzziness caused by my grief had cleared, I’d never sent the email. I didn’t think I could have handled it if he’d lashed out, or worse, never replied. At least this way, I’d been able to wonder what might have happened if I’d been braver.
I exited the draft and composed a message to Gray, who I’d visited briefly when I’d first landed in New Zealand. He was a former costar and one of the few genuine friends I’d made in Hollywood. He’d had a rough time in the past but seemed to be coming out the other side better off. He was healing. I suspected his new girlfriend had a lot to do with that.
Kennedy:Safe in my cottage in Destiny Falls. Had my first encounter with Liam. Didn’t go well, but they didn’t run me out of town with flaming pitchforks, so I guess it could have been worse.
Gray:Glad to hear you’re safe. Be careful out there. Don’t forget that you deserve to be treated well.
My heart melted. Gray wasn’t generally a warm person, so his reminder meant a lot. I shot him a quick reply, thanking him, and switched over to my latest text conversation with Blair, my brother and only full sibling.
Kennedy:In Destiny Falls. Still alive. The locals haven’t discovered how to kill with their eyes yet, but it didn’t stop them from trying.
The reply was instantaneous.
Blair:Not funny. Don’t joke about shit like that. Glad to hear you’re okay.
I sighed. While Blair was younger than I, he’d appointed himself my personal protector since I’d risen to fame. His attitude was sweet but a little frustrating. He liked to say that I’d given up my twenties to raise him and our other siblings, so I deserved to have someone watching out for me, but I didn’t necessarily see it that way. Yes, I’d sacrificed a lot when I decided to stay in Los Angeles, but I’d do it again in a heartbeat. My brothers and sister were the most important people in the world to me. I loved them, and I’d never regretted choosing to stay and care for them, even when it hurt. But if it made Blair feel better, I didn’t mind checking in with him. Especially not when I was closer to him than pretty much anyone else on the planet.
Kennedy:Sorry. Bad taste. Booked any gigs lately?
Blair was lead guitarist in a band that fit somewhere between the realms of pop and folk music. They played at bars and clubs most weeks but hadn’t had a big break yet. He could easily have used his connection to me or Malcolm to shortcut the process, but he was determined to make it on his own, and I respected that.
Blair:Nothing major. Does the place where you’re staying lock?
Kennedy:Yes.
Blair:Does it have security cameras?
Kennedy:Not that I’ve seen. But I’m in the middle of nowhere, and no one knows I’m here. I’m safe.
Blair:You’d better be.
I felt a pang of guilt. Part of his protectiveness stemmed from the fact we’d lost our father as kids and then our mother and stepfather as teens. He didn’t want to lose anyone else. He probably thought he was well on his way to losing me simply because I’d left L.A.
Kennedy:Cross my heart. Love you, B.
Blair:Yeah, yeah. Enough of the mushy stuff. Go get your beauty sleep, it must be night there.
