Laney walks over the couch and takes a seat next to me. “That’s the post massage drug running through you. It’s normal.”
“Yvonne is a magician. Now I understand why people get massages regularly.”
“Yup.”
“Thank you again for that gift. I didn’t realize how much I needed it.”
Laney studies me for a beat. “Women are good at ignoring our basic needs to take care of others. You’re taking care of a grown man and his baby right now. I’d say you earned it.”
The sound of a cork popping turns my attention to the kitchen. Dilynne is shaking her hips to imaginary music as shetosses the cork in the trash, retrieves three wine glasses from a cupboard, and gives each of us a very generous pour. “So, Laney told me you needed to vent about my brother, and I’m the perfect person to help you plot revenge, so let’s hear it. What tool do I need to threaten him with?”
I chuckle as she carries two of the glasses over to Laney and me just as my stomach rumbles. “Guess I’m hungry.”
“Pizza’s on the way,” Dilynne says. “Now spill.”
I catch them up to speed on last night’s events, focusing on how quickly Henley bolted from his own house and how he couldn’t even be bothered to answer my texts to let me know he was alive. When I get to this morning and what I said to him, Laney and Dilynne are both clapping in appreciation.
“First of all, I’m glad you weren’t afraid to stand up to him and tell him how wrong he was,” Laney says. “But second of all, I think there’s one key factor that you’re missing in all of this.”
“What?”
“With men, it’s more about actions and less about what they say. Henley’s lack of words tells me everything I need to know.”
My eyes move between them. “Am I missing something?”
Laney and Dilynne share a look before Dilynne speaks this time. “Nothing that isn’t right in front of your face. Remember, I told you that my brother has issues.”
I snort before taking a sip of my wine. “Yes, we’ve established that.”
“Henley is a man of few words anyway, but in my professional opinion, I think he’s scared,” Laney elaborates.
“Scared of what?”
“You,” Dilynne replies as if the answeris so simple.
“Me?”
“Yup.” Dilynne pops the p before taking a drink from her glass. “And let’s just say that I know this firsthand because my brother and I had a conversation about it.”
“Well, your brother scares me too,” I mumble in response.
Dilynne’s brows draw together. “You don’t have to answer this if you don’t want to, but do you mind me asking why?”
Debating how much I should go into detail about everything that brought me to Blossom Peak, my gut tells me that Laney and Dilynne won’t judge me. “The last time jealousy got the best of me, I ended up in a situation with a man that sort of scarred me.”
“What do you mean?” Laney asks.
I stare down into the crisp, white wine as it moves in my glass, preparing myself to share the truth of why I needed to leave music behind for a while. “The music industry is cutthroat. Social media has changed the game, but I never got much traction. Honestly, writing songs is where my true passion lies. I can sing as well, but the idea of having my life plastered to the world for others to judge and invade doesn’t appeal to me.”
“Your voice is incredible though, Elodie. When you sang at The Charming Bull, I was blown away,” Dilynne replies.
“Thank you. Performing is fun, but I’m not sure that’s what I want anymore. I used to think it was.”
“You’re allowed to change your mind,” Laney interjects. “Hell, I’m the queen of changing my mind.”
Dilynne lifts her glass to her. “That you are.”
They share a laugh before I continue. “Well, this girl I was friends with who was also trying to start her career got discovered by this manager. His name was Liam, and as soon as I saw the attention she was getting, something in me snapped.”
