Then I turn to whatever’s next.
Now what’s next is a historic house in Rockhaven, Massachusetts, and a boy named Archie.
The boy is a dog.
Literally.
“I don’t want you to leave,” Olivia says stubbornly. “Especially when Chase isn’t here to say goodbye.”
“I’ll only be pet sitting for a few months until I figure things out. You can’t get rid of me, even if we won’t be neighbors anymore. You’re my best friend, and you’re engaged to my brother.”
A car slows to a stop in the street in front of us.
“My Uber’s here,” I say. “Thanks for being my girl, Olivia.”
“Right back at you.” She gives me a fierce hug.
“Now help me with my luggage.”
“Your bags are bigger than you are. Do you think you packed enough?” Olivia asks dryly, looking pointedly at the half dozen pieces of designer luggage in varying sizes that surround me. I found the fifties-era Louis Vuitton bags for next to nothing at a church charity bazaar in a ritzy neighborhood. Maybe that’sanother reason my shop failed. I kept too many of my favorite finds for myself.
“My clothes would get sad and lonely in storage, so I have to take as much as I can.”
Olivia shakes her head while she, the Uber driver, and I load it all into the car.
When everything is set, I slide into the back seat and hang my head out the window, blowing my friend a giant kiss.
“Don’t get into too much trouble,” she says with a wave.
“Of course I will!” I yell back. “I live for trouble.”
As the car pulls away, I stare at my closed shop, at my old street, with its eclectic mix of historic houses and cute independent stores, and I let my fake smile fall.
“Goodbye,” I whisper. I tell myself that I’m only allowed one tear. Just one. And it must fall cinematically and prettily so it doesn’t mess with my eyeliner or smear my waterproof mascara. But my tear ducts, damn them, aren’t listening. So I ugly-cry on my way to the airport.
When I’m done, I slip on my sunglasses and turn resolutely forward, looking at the road ahead, watching where I’m headed. And not what I left behind.
A metaphor for my life.
The flight to Boston is uneventful. But by the time I rent a car and drive to the small coastal town a little over an hour away, it’s almost evening. I’m gritty-eyed, tired, and emotionally exhausted when I finally arrive at the base of a long, winding driveway and stare at the house that will be my home for the summer.
I know I’m lucky that Emma, Chase’s personal assistant, helped me land this plum pet-sitting job. I guess I’m still benefiting from his help, even though I don’t want to take more money from him.
But all I can think about as I make my way to the top of the drive, where the old mansion is perched on an ocean-side cliff, is how I have to figure out what’s next. It’s June, and I have the whole summer to do just that.
At twenty-six, I never imagined pet-sitting would be my vocation. But now, my future is wide open.
CHAPTER 2
Daisy
(TEN YEARS AGO)
Dear Diary,
We moved again. My mom’s new boyfriend creeps me out even more than the others. At least it’s only a few blocks away, so I don’t have to quit my part-time sewing job or switch schools this time.
On a happier note—I did research on Chase. At only nineteen, he lives in a fancy Malibu mansion with fellow movie star Sebastian Blake and, get this, Ryder Black, who just left the band Future Shock to go solo. I’m not saying I’m a Ryder fangirl. I don’t kiss his photo before I go to sleep at night. But he’s ridiculously hot and talented, and I can’t believe my former foster brother lives with him.
