“It’s stupid.”
“I love hearing stupid things.”
“I got a text from Jane White.”
“Dean’s mother?”
“Yeah. She said something stupid about me not having a future with Zane or in this town. That I ruin families and can’t be loved.”
“That bitch.”
“I was overthinking it, letting it bother me. Then, like clockwork, I overheard Zane say something that I wasn’t supposed to hear.”
“What did he say?”
She nibbled her bottom lip. “That he’d never love me.”
Indie’s frown deepened. “And that hurt because…”
“I’m falling in love with him. I probably alreadyamin love.”
Indie was quiet for a moment. “Do you want to know what I think?”
Did she? She wasn’t sure. Running and hiding out in the mountains felt safer than receiving advice she might not like.
“Tough luck, you’re getting it,” Indie said when Bonnie took too long to answer. “There is no way that man couldnotlove you.”
She laughed. “I don’t know if that’s true. Besides, you have to say that, you’re my sister.”
“Not true. If I didn’t believe it, I would give you some fluffy ‘there are more fish in the sea’ crap.” Indie tilted her head. “You should talk to him. He’s worried. So is Noah.”
“My phone died.” It was a weak excuse, and she knew it. There was a charging cable in the car. But when the world got loud, quiet became her solitude.
“Is that all?” Indie asked quietly.
She wished that was all. “Living in this town just feels…like a lot right now. Some days I think I can handle it. Other days, not so much.”
“There’s only a couple of people who are jerks. The rest of them love you.”
“Love might be a stretch.” But Indie was right. The hate and abuse was mostly coming from the same few people. But God, it felt like more. “I need you to know something.”
Emotion flickered in Indie’s eyes. “Okay.”
“I didn’t want to leave you. I just…I wanted to exist without hurting, and I couldn’t here. Everywhere I looked, I was reminded of who I’d lost. Dean. Mom. Dad.”
“I know.” Indie slipped a piece of hair behind Bonnie’s ear. “I just thought you’d come back sooner.”
“I wanted to. I should have.”
“Why didn’t you take my calls?”
“Because I was eighteen and scared, and I thought it had to be all or nothing.” Tears pressed at her eyes. “And the guilt…God, it felt like chains around my neck. Mom and Dad died going to pick me up that night.”
“Bonnie, look at me.” She forced her gaze back to her sister. “That doesn’t make it your fault.”
“It felt like it did. It all felt like my fault.”
Indie swiped a tear from Bonnie’s face before cupping her cheek. “None of those deaths were your fault. Do you understand? Not Mom’s. Not Dad’s. And not Dean’s.”
