I walked down a sidewalk lined with maple trees. The leaves had just started turning colors. Fall was a season of magic, change, and possibilities. Plus, pumpkin-flavored everything was always a plus. I cringed as I imagined Scott’s pumpkin-flavored suit as well.
Whoops.
“Hey Marissa,” a sweet, quiet voice startled me from my thoughts. “How’s your grandma doing?”
Arlene smiled from under her floppy gardening hat. She wore her usual flannel over-shirt and worn gardening gloves. The old lady was as sweet as her voice. She was always welcoming, and I never heard her gossip, which, for Hillsdale, was saying a lot.
“She is doing much better. Thanks. Almost fully recovered.” I stopped near the white picket fence. “Got to keep her feet on the ground.”
Her eyelids crinkled. “I’m glad. I’ll try to visit her today while you’re at work.”
“Thanks, I’m sure she’d love that. And I’d love the added surveillance,” I laughed. “I locked the ladders in the shed, but I'm not sure that’ll stop her.”
She chuckled. “I think Bert is helping her take it easy . . .”
Bert.
My stomach felt uneasy. I couldn’t decide how I felt about him, or the way his infrequent visits had become . . . well, frequent. What would happen if that became more permanent?
“Okay, well, I need to go. Running late.”
“Have a great day, dear.” She eased over and picked up her metal watering can on the porch and turned back to the mums in her flower boxes. Nan had taught me about watching for angels on earth. I was pretty sure Arlene was one of them.
Two streets over, I crossed the road and saw Ashley waiting by her fence, and all thoughts of angels and kindness fled. Ashley's hair was in a tight ponytail and her makeup wasperfect. She had always reigned as the town princess throughout high school and clung to the title years later.
Why she had hated me from the start, I had no idea. Rose thinks it was because I was Jr. Princess my sophomore year at Homecoming, and I stole the spotlight with all my “orphan drama.” I would've given up either title. The princess garbage was just because the town felt sorry for me, anyway.
Ashley wore a pink floral dress, high heels, and was standing on her manicured lawn holding her awful cat. Was it too late to avoid her?
“Mar. How lucky that I caught you this morning!” Ashley grinned and called out to me. She waved me over. It was people like Ashley that made me want to run far away from Hillsdale and never return. Her third marriage was already down the drain if the rumor mill was to be believed. I had to assume not very many people could stand her or her cat.
No point running now. She would chase me down. The cat looked at me and hissed. Ashley always pretended to have a southern drawl. I knew it was fake. She had lived in Idaho all her life.
“Morning Ashley, I’m running late . . .”
“I heard you were in Clifton a few nights ago. How was the fall festival?” She leaned forward, but instead of a sweet tone, hers sounded like rotten milk.
How did she already know? “It was fun. Thanks.” I kept walking along the fence, with Ashley following in her yard beside me. Only a few more steps until Ashley would run out of real estate.
Ashley's lips pinched. “Now darlin’, I sure hope you weren’t leading some boy on. Dating in high school was one thing, but now they ought to know about,” she leaned in and whispered, “your condition.”
Whoa.
Nope. I stopped and faced her.
The whole town knowing about my infertility from the car accident was one thing. The way they felt they had a say in my future choices was quite another.
“I wasn’t there for a guy, and if I was, it would be none of your business.” I stood my ground.
“I know, but I’d hate for you to get hurt again. I know how much it must have hurt when Tyler’s mom?—”
“How about you worry about your own life, Ashley?” I challenged.
“Well, I never . . .” she gasped and put a hand to her Barbie-pink lips. Her eyes flew wide, her mouth dropped open, and she stepped back. She looked like a fish. Ashley glared, no longer hiding behind her beauty or southern charm. “I only meant it as a kindness,” she snarled.
“Spare me your kindness. I don’t need or want it. Have a nice day.” I stormed off, no longer feeling the autumn chill. I knew my Nan was going to hear from Ashley’s mother about my rudeness within the hour, but Nan would be on my side.I needed to get out of this town.
The front door chimed as I stepped into the office. “Sorry I’m late, Harry,” I called out to his closed office door. The office was small, with a little square foyer, a water cooler, a mini fridge, and a wall of filing cabinets.
