Deeper than I’d planned.
Deeper than I’d wanted.
Deeper than was safe.
And Sienna Harper, the woman I wasn’t supposed to fall for, was twitchy for a reason.
The question that kept echoing in my skull as I watched her walk ahead was simple and terrifying:
Was she twitchy because she felt nothing…
Or because she felt too much?
And I still couldn’t fall asleep.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Sienna
There were many things in life I considered myself good at, like trail navigation, improvised wilderness first aid, choosing the perfect marshmallow stick, and avoiding emotional vulnerability like it carried the plague.
Butdeception?
Not one of my strengths.
Which became painfully obvious the moment my sisters caught me staring—frowning—scowling?—at the guide assignment calendar pinned to the Honey Leaf Lodge kitchen corkboard.
I wasn’t even trying to make a face. It just… happened.
Unfortunately, Violet was a bloodhound for facial expressions.
“What,” she said, leaning against the counter while stirring her tea, “is happening on your face?”
“Nothing.” I waved her off.
Fifi walked in behind her, arms filled with linen napkins and the energy of a woman who had already alphabetized the spice rack twice this morning. “Oh no. No, no, no. That is not a nothing face. That is asomethingface.”
“It’s not a something.”
“Really?” Violet asked, squinting at me. “Because that’s the exact look you made when you set your hair on fire, roasting marshmallows in ninth grade.”
“That was one time,” I muttered. “And it was a light singe.”
“What’s going on?” Fifi asked, setting the napkins down in suspicious slow motion. “And no lying. You’re bad at it.”
I opened my mouth to deny everything again, but Violet leaned forward, eyes narrowing like a wildlife predator.
“Something happened with Carson.” Her brows lifted.
My entire soul froze.
“I, what, who…Carson? I barely know… that man…” I cleared my throat.
“Oh wow, that was convincing,” Fifi deadpanned. “Truly Oscar-worthy.”
“I just… I was…we—”
“Youstuttered,” Violet announced to the kitchen. “Sienna is stuttering. That’s it. Something definitely happened.”
