She moved into his embrace and melted against him. “Right. Here.”
***
August
“You’re gorgeous,” Viv gushed as she and Kalista looked at their reflections in the mirror. They were getting ready for the wedding in the nursery room at Clementine Community Church.
“I don’t hold a candle to you, Viv.” She’d read the phrase in one of the many novels she’d read over the summer, and it was true. Kalista felt pretty enough in her peach-colored maid of honor dress, despite all the ruffles on the hem and the sleeves. Totally Viv. But Viv was beyond stunning, her simple off-the-shoulder wedding dress fitting her perfectly.
“I’m finally going to be Mrs. Bo Wilson in an hour!” Viv giggled.
Kalista hugged her. “I’m so glad I’m here to see it happen.”
“Me too. I’m sure your dapper young man won’t be able to take his eyes off you.”
She grinned. Tylerwasquite dapper in his black suit and peach tie. He wasn’t in the wedding party—Mr. H. was Bo’s best man, and he and Kalista were the only attendants—but he’d been happy to match her dress. After spending almost every spare minute with him over the summer, she was head over heels, and she refused to think about what she inevitably had to do in a few days—go back to California. Her summer with Viv was almost over.
She had a plan, though. At least a semblance of one. She was going to college to major in graphic design. Evelyn Margot had been kind enough to show her how to draw graphics and set advertising and had encouraged her to pursue a degree.“You’ll be great at it,”she’d said.
Kalista wasn’t sure about that, and she had doubts that she’dsail through college. She’d missed a lot during high school, and she’d probably have to get a tutor. But she was determined to get her degree. Her father was on board, and they were now talking weekly—something she’d instigated shortly after she and Tyler got together. She was even cordial to Bettany, but not by much. Maybe they’d grow closer when she returned to LA.Baby steps.
Sadness overcame her. She didn’t want to leave Clementine, but she couldn’t impose on Viv either. California was her home. And then there was Tyler. How could she leave him behind?
“We can talk on the phone,”he’d said, cuddling with her on Viv’s front porch swing the other night.“I can come visit, and you can do the same. We’ll make it work.”He’d sealed the promise with a tender kiss, and then they stopped talking altogether.
“Someone’s waiting to see you,” Viv said, going to the door. She blew Kalista a kiss. It was fun to see her so giddy. “See you in a bit.” She left, and a man walked in after her.
“Daddy!” Kalista ran to her father and hugged him. “What are you doing here?”
“Viv invited me.” He grinned and held Kalista out in front of him. “My baby’s all grown up.” He kissed her cheek. “You look beautiful.”
“Thank you.” She paused. “Is Bettany here?”
“No. I cleared my calendar for a week, and I want to spend all that time with you.”
“Really?” She tried to be disappointed that Bettany was back in LA. That was the grown-up thing to do. But she couldn’t. She never had Daddy all to herself for so long. “Where are you staying?”
“The Clementine Inn.” He gestured to two rocking chairs on the other side of the room.
Where else would he stay?
“Can we talk for a few minutes?”
“Sure.”
They sat down, her father still smiling. “I’m so proud of you, honey,” he said. “Viv’s been keeping me apprised of what you’ve been doing, of course, but I can tell from our conversations that you’ve matured.” He pulled a cell phone from his suit jacket pocket. “I turned your phone back on and got you the latest model.” He held it out to her.
She looked at it. It was fancier and bigger than her other phone and had a larger screen. Nice. She shook her head. “I’ll get it later,” she said. “When I go back to LA.”
His brow arched in surprise, but he pocketed the phone. “About that.” His expression grew somber.
“What? I still can’t come home?”
“You can come home. I just want to know if you want to.”
“Of course I—” But she couldn’t say the rest. She’d just assumed she had to go back to California. That’s where she belonged, right?
“I have an idea,” Daddy said. “During one of my conversations with Viv, she mentioned thatThe Clementine Timeswas open to investment.”
