And doing so brought up a mountain of sadness and regret. Because coming back meant running the risk of seeinghimagain.
Maverick Storm.
After all, Maverick never made any secret of his desire to live out his entire life on the farm his family owned in Gracemont.
Returning was bringing up a lot of painful emotions she thought she’d overcome years ago.
“Still waiting for your bag?” Manny asked.
“Yep. With my luck, it’s probably still back in Idaho.”
Manny grinned. “If it is, we’ll hit a store on the way to Gracemont to buy you some new clothes.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
Ella breathed a sigh of relief when she turned back to the carousel just as her suitcase made its arrival. “Oh, there it is.”
Manny beat her to the conveyor belt, lifting it off for her.
“Thanks,” she said. “You didn’t have to walk all the way in,” she added, as the two of them headed toward the exit to the parking lot. “I could have met you outside.”
Manny shrugged. “I don’t mind. I got here half an hour ago because I like the energy of an airport, like to watch as folks arrive and greet each other. Plus, it beats working.”
“I like people watching too,” Ella confessed. “I swear I’ve watchedLove Actuallya thousand times, and I still tear up at the beginning and the end, when it shows all those clips of people hugging at the arrivals gate.”
“That part gets me too.”
Ella drew in a deep breath when they stepped out into the bright, yet not-too-hot June sunshine. She knew from experience that the summers in Virginia could get very muggy, the humidity thick enough to cut with a knife. Fortunately, that weather typically didn’t arrive until July or August, and she’d be long gone before then.
June, on the other hand, had always been one of her favorite months when her family lived in Virginia. One, for the weather, and two, because school was out and she could spend her days volunteering at the public library.
And by volunteering, she meant finding a quiet corner in the stacks and reading everything she could get her hands on.
God. She couldn’t believe she was here, that she’d agreed to this trip.
Not because she didn’t love Gracemont.
In truth, it had always felt more like home than her hometown of Meridian, Idaho.
“My car is just over here.” She followed Manny as he popped the trunk on his car and stowed her suitcase inside. “I have to tell you, my aunt hasn’t talked of anything except this visit since you agreed to come.”
Ella smiled as she climbed into the passenger seat, buckling her seat belt. “It was nice of her to invite me, though I have to admit, I was shocked when she emailed me a couple of months ago. I didn’t expect…” Ella paused, uncertain how to finish that sentence.
“You didn’t expect to learn that my eighty-two-year-old aunt was reading your steamy romance novels?”
Ella laughed. “Yeah. That.”
“Aunt Edith has always been a huge reader, and there aren’t many genres shedoesn’tenjoy. She went through a Stephen King phase about five years ago, and I’m pretty damn sure she’s read every single mystery our local library has. The romance thing started more recently, back in the fall, when she took in a boarder, Gretchen Banks. Gretchen was the romance fan, and she turned my aunt on to the steamy novels.”
“And it was the two of them who started the romance book club?” Ella hadn’t understated her surprise when Edith reached out to her via her author website. Ella used a pen name for her books, but she didn’t try to hide her identity. Her photo was right there on the “about me” section, along with her bio that mentioned she’d lived in Virginia for a time. Edith had somehow happened upon the website after reading one of her books, and she recognized Ella from her picture, despite the fact she hadn’t been in Gracemont since she was seventeen years old.
Manny nodded. “Yep. Edith and Gretchen have been reading and discussing books together since October. After the holidays, they decided to increase their membership and make it a true romance book club, complete with lots of wine and snacks.” He grinned. “The food’s good enough they’ve almost convincedmeto start reading romance just to join them.”
Ella sort of hoped Manny held off on his membership until after the next meeting, when they discussed one of her books. Because how embarrassing would that be?
The book club was the reason she was here. Because Edith was a determined woman when she set her mind to something, and, despite Ella’s initial reluctance over attending the meeting as a visiting author, Edith had worn her down.
Returning to Gracemont had always been an idea that hovered in the back of Ella’s mind, something she’d wanted to do pretty much since leaving the lovely small town. However, life—and a healthy dose of Maverick regret—had kept her from making the journey.
