She started up the car and drove back to the manor. It wasn’t a big surprise to see Will’s truck was still parked in the driveway. Taking a deep breath, Amy practiced a smile and tried to school her features into a pleasant expression. She gathered up her things and headed for the front door.
Silence greeted her as she walked into the foyer. She figured they were likely in the back yard, and took advantage of that to scoot up the stairs to her bedroom. After changing into something more comfortable, she went back downstairs. It wasn’t that shewantedto be around people right then, but she knew it would seem strange if she didn’t show up at some point.
Lance spotted her first and stood up. As she neared, he grabbed her in a big hug and then held her at arm’s length, a concerned expression on his face. “Okay, young lady, why didn’t you tell me about the school?”
And just like that, her wall dropped down. Her shoulders slumped as her gaze slipped from his. She shrugged. “I didn’t want to worry you.”
“Hey. We’re family. I’m supposed to worry about you.”Lance chucked her under the chin. “You don’t need to shoulder this kind of stuff on your own.”
“You already had so much on your plate. I didn’t want to add to it.” She looked up at him. “How did you find out?”
“Cami called. She’s been trying to get hold of you, but apparently you turned your phone off.”
“Oh.” Amy pulled her phone from the pocket of her shorts and pressed a button. “Oops. I forgot to turn it back on.”
“You might want to give her a call. She’s worried about you.”
“We all are,” Laurel said. She stood up and came to give Amy a hug. “You don’t need to keep stuff like this from us. We’re here for you.”
Amy felt tears prick at her eyes. “Thanks. I just didn’t want to worry anyone.”
“Well, call Cami so you can get her to stop worrying.”
With a smile, Amy tapped the screen to call Cami. She saw that her sister-in-law had called six times.
“Amelia Moyer, why aren’t you answering your phone?” Cami said in lieu of a greeting.
“I’m sorry, Cam. I needed to think things through. I just needed a little time.” Amy sank down into one of the lawn chairs.
“How are you doing?”
“I’m doing okay. Still trying to figure out what to do. They said they can’t see any way to run the school year. They made the decision quickly so that parents had time to find alternative schooling for their kids.”
“Are you going to be okay financially? You know Josh and I are more than willing to help you out.”
“I’d rather not go that route, but thank you for the offer. I’ll befine.”
“We’ll discuss it more when we come, but now tell mewhat’s going on with Will?”
“Will?” The word escaped before Amy could stop it. She glanced in his direction and found him watching her, his blue gaze unreadable. She looked away.
“Yes. My sisters were aware that something wasn’t right, but for some reason they thought it was Will’s fault. Were they right?”
“No, not at all.” Amy realized that Cami couldn’t know that Will was sitting just feet from her, but she didn’t really want to leave and give them the impression that she had something to hide.
“Why don’t I believe you?” Cami sighed. “I was worried this might happen. Are you feeling for him the way you did as a teenager?”
“Not really.” Amy let her gaze go to the structure where the kids were playing. She hoped that her cheeks weren’t flaming red.
“Not really? What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Just what I said. Not really. Things change. This is just another one of those things that I have to deal with.”
“Ah, sweetie.” Cami paused.
“It really doesn’t matter. Plans change, but that doesn’t mean I have to just settle for less than what I want.”
Cami didn’t say anything for a few seconds. “Okay, you’re being cryptic now. They’re all there, aren’t they?”
