Delaney takes a steadying breath before turning back. “Do you want to come with us, Judith?”
“Do I want to come with you to be part of the retreat that I paid for? Hmm. Let me think about that one for a second . . .”
Delaney pinches the bridge of her nose. “I am sorry, again, that I asked you to keep an eye on the cookies while I answered the door. Now, will you please come with us to the living room? I can set a timer to take the cookies out myself.”
My eyes widen as the truth of Delaney’s slight towards Judith comes to light.
“You two go ahead,” Judith says, looking distrustfully between the two of us. “I’ll come out when this batch is finished.”
“Thanks. We’ll be in the living room.”
Judith’s tone makes me uneasy, but Delaney is clearly relieved as she turns to lead me out of the kitchen. I take one last look back at Judith, who shoots me a smile that can only be described as sinister. I open my mouth to warn Delaney, but she is already a good distance ahead of me, having practically run out of the kitchen. I take it as a sign that the other women are more pleasant than the one we just left and hurry to catch up.
Chapter sixteen
TO DIE FOR
Ibarelyhavetimeto appreciate the modern yet cozy decor in the house as I chase after Delaney, which is probably for the best, because that would only lead to thinking about the person who owns it. And I am definitely not trying to think about Cameron, and how his lips curved around his perfect smile when he said he hoped he’d run into me again. Our time together was totally awkward and wildly embarrassing in retrospect, yet for some reason, a small part of me is hopeful around every turn that he’ll be there.
“Here’s the living room,” Delaney says, finally slowing down enough for me to catch up. “And there are the other two guests. Let me introduce you to them.”
My thoughts about Cameron are overshadowed by the sheer beauty of the space. The living room is so grand Architectural Digest would be lucky to feature it. The far wall is floor-to-ceiling glass, just like the front of the house that surrounds the entry. It also spans two stories, with an enormous chandelier hangingfrom the wood-patterned ceiling that bathes the room with its warm, flickering light. The view of the trees outside is blurred into a wash of green and gray by the rain, reminiscent of a moody watercolor painting.
The real showstopper, though, is the dark stone fireplace that cuts up the middle of the glass wall. The base is at least twelve feet wide, and if I stood next to it, I am pretty sure I would be at eye level with the mantle.
The two women sitting on a sofa next to the fire turn at our approach. Delaney gestures for me to take a seat in one of the empty oversized chairs at the head of the grouping, while she takes the other. I do as I am told and sink into the cushion like it’s an oversized marshmallow. Delaney perches on the edge of her seat and crosses one leg over the other, so I use my elbows to fight my way up out of the chair and copy her strategy to keep from being swallowed whole again.
“Ladies, this is Drew. She just got here a few minutes ago. How about we do a quick introduction so that she can get ready before we have to leave for our wine tasting reservation?”
The woman closest to the fire perks up and tosses her wild, red curls over her shoulder. “Sounds good. Hi, Drew! My name is Leah. I’m so excited you’re here.”
“Nice to meet you, Leah,” I say, and can’t help but smile back at her sunny disposition.
“My name is Valentina,” the other woman says, and I am momentarily stunned by the perfect symmetry of her face. Her black hair is pulled back in a sleek bun that puts her deep brown eyes and high cheekbones on display.
She looks away under my gaze just as Judith reemerges from the kitchen, sauntering over with a fresh glass of champagne in hand.
“Perfect timing, Judith,” Delaney says, managing to flash her a genuine-looking smile. “I was just about to have everyone share where they were from and what they do.”
Judith walks past us to sit on the empty couch across from Leah and Valentina. “Perfect timing indeed. The cookies just finished baking.”
“Excellent. Thank you. How about you go first? Tell us what you do, where you’re from, and what brought you here.”
Judith takes a leisurely sip from her champagne glass before speaking. “As you all already know, my name is Judith. I have lived all over the United States but have settled here in Charlotte to be close to my kids and grandkids. I just retired after thirty-two years in retail as a store manager, and I am here as a gift to myself for sticking to my morals and making an honest living.” She shoots Valentina a pointed look with the last comment, but Valentina just blinks back, seemingly unaffected.
“Thank you, Judith,” Delaney jumps in, cutting her off before she can air out any other grievances. “How about you, Leah?”
Leah’s kind eyes darken as they narrow at Judith for her blatant rudeness towards Valentina, and the only sound in the room is the crackling fire while they engage in their standoff, which, much to my surprise, Judith backs down from first. Leah lifts her chin a fraction at her victory and purposefully directs her introduction to me, Delaney, and Valentina.
“Again, my name is Leah. I’m from New Jersey, I’m a third-grade teacher, and I’m looking forward to analyzing this book with people who actually enjoy reading, instead of tiny humans that I have to bribe to read with candy.”
“Right? Who knew we would grow up one day and assign ourselves book reports for fun?” Delaney says with a laugh. “Evelyn Graves’s book will be a great one to discuss. I am very much looking forward to leading our first discussion tomorrow morning at brunch. Has everyone finished reading it?” Everyonenods, so she continues. “Excellent. Valentina, you’re next for introductions.”
We all turn our attention to the dark-haired beauty, and she takes a deep breath. “I’m Valentina, but you can just call me Val,” she starts. “I’m from New Haven, Connecticut, and I’m a content creator, so I do a lot of different things, but my passion is my subscription-based fantasy, sci-fi, and video game cosplay modeling.” Judith takes a pointed sip of her champagne, cluing me in to the meaning behind thehonest livingcomment earlier. Val continues, completely unbothered. “And I am here to test a hypothesis.” We all wait for the punchline, but she just looks back stoically into all our waiting stares.
“Great, thanks, Val. Maybe you can tell us more about that hypothesis once we get to know each other better,” Delaney says, her ice-blue eyes lit with curiosity.
“Well, since I am next in the circle, I’ll go ahead. I’m your host, Delaney, and I have been leading bookish retreats for women here at the Ravenwood Manor for five years. We host bachelorette parties, birthday parties, and friend groups who want a relaxing getaway. My favorite groups to host, though, are solo travelers like you guys, who come to make new friends and be part of something unique. In fact, the first solo retreat I hosted just booked a weekend this summer for a reunion. They have remained close and are coming back as an established friend group now. It’s really special what a weekend of bonding over shared interests can do for building lifelong friendships.”
