Megan looked at him questioningly. “Everything okay?”
“Sure. It’s great.” He offered a tight-lipped smile but knew his tone sounded unconvincing.
“Brooklyn, take that little bag of yours back to your room and unpack, okay?” Megan motioned to the pink backpack adorned with flowers and a purple unicorn.
Brooklyn grabbed the bag, slipped it over her shoulder with a grunt of effort, and raced off down the hall. “The festival. The festival,” she chanted as she disappeared.
“Okay, now talk to me. Something’s wrong. I can tell by the look on your face.”
“Everything is fine.” He shifted his weight, avoiding her eyes.
“Liar.” She set her lips in a firm line.
“What are we? Six?” He rolled his eyes at Megan, but he knew she wouldn’t let it go.
“You might as well tell me because you know I’ll get it out of you.” She stood with her hands on her hips and a stubborn jut to her chin, daring him to try to dodge her questions.
Connor held up a hand in defeat. “Okay, okay. I’m just not thrilled with the idea of going to the festival. I’d rather stay home.”
She narrowed her eyes. “Why? You don’t even want to go see your work in the art show?”
“About that…”
“Connor, what did you do?” She pinned him with a glare.
“I pulled out of the art show.”
“Why in the world would you do that?”
He clenched his jaw. “I had my reasons.”
“Well, I’m not budging until you tell me,” she demanded.
He let out a long, labored sigh. “Okay, so Amanda arranged for an art critic to come see the artwork. A preview. At that cramped room at city hall, for Pete’s sake. Who does that? Anyway… the review came out, and it was… harsh. Not only of my work, but she insulted everyone’s work.”
“So you let one bad review make you pull out of the show?” Her voice was full of either frustration or reproach, but he wasn’t sure which. Or maybe it was both.
He looked directly at his sister. “It was by… Desiree…”
Realization and knowing flickered in Megan’s eyes. “For crying out loud. Can that woman just get out of your life?”
“Evidently, not.”
“But why would you let anything she says make you change your mind about showing your work?” Megan pressed, her mouth set in a firm frown.
“Don’t you see? She panned everyone’s work to get back at me.” He tried to patiently explain all this to Megan so she’d understand. Agree with him.
“So you pulled out… so she won.” Megan shook her head. “She’s still trying to control your life. And by pulling out of the show… you let her pull your strings. Again.”
“It’s not like that.” He glared at his sister, his voice taking on a hard edge. “And I’m mad at Amanda for going behind my back and arranging for an art critic to come. She never said anything about this being more than a simple, local art show.”
“I wasn’t aware the event coordinator had to get the okay from you for every decision she makes about promoting the event.” Megan rolled her eyes. “Did you at least explain to Amanda why you were so upset? Your history with Desiree?”
“Nope. There’s no need to. Things are over between Amanda and me.”
Megan plopped down into a chair. “You are the most stubborn, pig-headed man I’ve ever met,” she chided, but the words held no real bite. She sighed. “It’s like you work at making your life harder.”
“Gee, thanks for the support, sis.” His voice dripped with sarcasm. Why couldn’t Megan understand? Desiree represented the part of the art world he’d worked so hard to put far behind him.
