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“Your feelings are involved,” Charity finished when Faith didn’t speak for several long seconds.
Faith nodded, tears starting to form at the back of her eyes. She’d spent so much time on her makeup, she hated to mess it up, but it felt good to get this all out. Even tears would feel good right now.
“Are you in love with him?” Charity asked.
Faith meant to respond with an adamant no—or at least say she wasn’t sure how she felt at this point. But instead, she found herself nodding, her head bobbing up and down as if it were detached from the rest of her.
“Does he know?” Charity asked.
Now Faith shook her head, although she should’ve shrugged in answer to that one. She had no way to know what Holden was thinking. He might’ve noticed days ago that she was starting to develop feelings for him.
“All my life, I’ve struggled to find my place in this town,” Faith said. “When I went to London, I realized just how...invisible I was here. I didn’t feel at home there, either—I missed Misty Mountain more than I ever thought I would.”
Faith paused, overwhelmed with emotion. It was like, in those few seconds, she was back there in London, knowing nobody and feeling out of place.
That didn’t change when she met Dan. In fact, it seemed to get worse. His parents babied him, and his friends never really welcomed her into their group. Her fiancé’s ex, on the other hand, was always around, always reminding Faith that she didn’t belong there.
“The one thing that made me feel better about being in London was knowing the story it told back here in Misty Mountain.” Faith smiled at the rush she’d felt, imagining people gossiping about her back here. “I was the Ardmore sister who moved to Europe and got engaged to a super-hot English guy with an accent. I used to daydream about what it would be like to bring him home to meet my family. The whole town would be buzzing about me. I’d besomeonefor the first time…ever.”
She may as well have been speaking another language, considering the way Charity was staring at her. It clearly made no sense to her sister.
“You and Ana were always the smart, pretty sisters,” Faith said. “You both were popular in school. Everyone liked you. I was...the oldest sister nobody ever noticed. It was backward. As the oldest sister, I should’ve been the one everyone noticed and used to compare, but that didn’t happen. I guess because this is such a small town.”
“What are you talking about?” Charity asked. “Everyone loved you. Do you know how many times in school teachers mentioned you and said you were one of their best students?”
Faith made a face. That was the first time she’d heard that one.
“It’s not like I was on the honor roll or anything,” Faith said. “I didn’t stand out.”
“No, but everyone liked you. You were fun and friendly and beautiful. You worked hard at your schoolwork and your friendships. You just didn’t see how great you were. You still don’t see it.”
“Part of me knows it’s ridiculous.” Faith laughed. “Most of me knows it, actually. It’s more of a feeling than something I’m consciously doing.”
“So, you unconsciously faked an engagement.” Charity tilted her head slightly to study her sister. She didn’t get it, and how could Faith expect her to? Faith didn’t really understand it herself. “What was the point of it?”
“It was a last-minute decision,” Faith said. “He needed someone to help out with J.J., and I was dreading coming home to a town that would whisper about me behind my back. If they thought I was engaged to the hottest, most successful guy in town, it couldn’t hurt, right?”
Charity’s mouth twisted a little, and Faith struggled to figure out what she was thinking. Then suddenly, she broke into a smile.
“First, Holden isn’t necessarily the most successful guy in town. It depends on what you define as ‘success,’ I guess. But he’s definitely not the handsomest. That honor goes to Nic.”
“Your opinion is a little biased,” Faith pointed out.
“My point exactly. You think Holden is the handsomest, wealthiest guy in town because you’re in love with him.”
Faith gasped. “Am not.”
“Are too.”
“Am not.”
“Are too.”
They devolved into a fit of giggles as they realized they were playing the same game they’d played as kids. But as the giggles waned, Faith let out a sigh.
“I miss Ana,” she said.
Charity nodded. “Me too. Hopefully she’ll be back soon, though. Mom said she and Trevor want to talk to us when this shoot is over.”
