ROSIE:Oh, what’s she learning? What’s happening? Can I bug someone’s phone?
ME:excuse me, what?
PENNY:Rosie’s just being dramatic.
ME:Oh, well nothing happened really. My arms hurt. Walker is nowhere to be found, but the cottage windows are cleaner than ever.
PENNY:I don’t think that’s going to lead to answers about what’s going on with Mom or the farm.
ROSIE:Your mother is currently sitting at my bar having dinner with the Liberty Ladies. Then they’re probably going to play pool at Wicked Wine and Cheese.
ME:What?
PENNY:I told you she’s been weird.
ME:Yeah, for real. Okay, well, I need food.
PENNY:Want me to pick something up when I close the shop? Or you could come here?
ME:I’m too tired to move. I’m just sitting on the porch of one of the cottages out in the fields. Do you think there’s some peanut butter leftover from when we were kids?
PENNY:Maybe a snickers bar.
ROSIE:ew. Just come here. I’ll feed you.
ME:can’t move.
ROSIE:I forgot how dramatic you are.
ME:It’s fine, I’ll scrounge something up from the kitchen. I want to get a shower in before Walker returns so I can get to bed early. Maybe if I wake up before he does tomorrow I can get some real snooping done.
ROSIE:Oh yes, check the fireplace.
ME:the fireplace?
PENNY:Pretty sure that thing hasn’t worked in at least a decade.
ROSIE:Exactly. It’s a great hiding spot.
I stare at that last sentence and wonder how I got here. How is my dad gone, my mom acting diabolically different, and a man we don’t know controlling our family business?
PENNY:they don’t really get naked while they play pool. They just think it sounds more scandalous. Mom’s acting weird but not that weird.
I slowly blink at the phone and then decide I’m not going to touch that. I don’t want to think about my mom and the wordnakedin the same sentence. It’s bad enough that I’ve already had visions of her with Walker.
ME:I’ll talk to you guys tomorrow.
I shove my phone in my pocket and push up to stand, letting out the loudest of sighs, and then head down the path leading back to the house. The sun is setting over the meadow, and I’m reminded just how vast this land is. At the bottom of the wildflower-covered hills, the bay sparkles as though it’s covered in a pink sequined blanket. Across the harbor, down-town Hope Harbor sits proudly.
Of all the places I’ve traveled, none has held a candle to Hope Harbor. As much as I fought coming back, and as much of a pain in the ass as Jesse Walker is, it sure is nice to be home.
CHAPTER 9
Walker
“Question.”
I grip the kitchen counter to find some damn strength before turning around to deal with the current bane of my existence. Even her voice has me on edge. Soft and melodic, with a hint of sass. How she’s able to do all of those things with only one word must be some fucking talent.
