I smile. “Give us five minutes.”
Amelia and I are ready in three. Allie hooks her elbow around mine and we walk next door like two best friends heading out on the town, my daughter in tow. It makes me sad to think that when I leave, Carter might not be the only person I’m going to miss.
~ ~ ~
After a long afternoon at the winery, Amelia is asleep in the back of the car as we head back into Calloway Creek.
I absolutely loved seeing the winery and meeting Allie’s family. What surprised me most is how normal they all seem. Her parents especially. They’re billionaires, yet they acted the same way Carter does—like people who work for a living and take nothing for granted.
I really like Allie. Even more so than I previously thought. She might just be the one person I know who would never ask me for anything.
“I have a question for you.”
“Shoot,” Allie says, her eyes focused on the road.
“You seem so normal and grounded for someone who comes from so much wealth. Don’t people always want to take advantage of you?”
“What do you mean?”
“Like asking you for money. Things. Trips. Cars. I don’t know. It just seems like everyone would have a sob story or a reason you should be generous toward them.”
“Oh. Well, I won’t say it’sneverhappened. But it’s rare. Maybe it’s because Calloway Creek is such a small town and everyone knows everyone and has grown up together.” She spares a glance at me. “You know, I’m not sure anyone’s ever asked me that before.” When I’m silent, she asks, “Kenna, are you in trouble? Do you need money?”
“Oh, gosh, no. Not at all. I didn’t mean to make you feel—”
She reaches over and touches my leg. “It’s okay. You didn’t make me feel anything.”
“I was just being curious. You live in a middle-class neighborhood, and your best friend is an auto mechanic. That just seems…different to me.”
“Different than what?”
I shrug. “Than how I pictured rich people, I guess.”
She laughs. “People with money aren’t any different than everyone else. They just have larger bank accounts is all. Believeme, we go through shit the same as everyone else. Don’t be fooled, there’s plenty of tragedy and trauma behind all those greenbacks.” Her eyes close briefly before she stares straight ahead, unblinking, like she’s having a flashback to one or more of those tragedies and traumas.
“I’m sorry. Of course there is.”
I don’t pry. It’s not my place to. But I do offer a friendly smile. “Well, I’m always up for drowning our sorrows over a bottle of wine.”
“A girls’ night? I might hold you to that. It’s my turn for a question.”
“Okay.”
“I know I said before that I wouldn’t meddle. But dang, Kenna. The way you two looked at each other Saturday night. It was just… Well, it reminded me of how Asher and I used to look at each other. How westilllook at each other.”
I feared this might come up, and I stare out the windshield, avoiding even the hint of eye contact. “Was there a question in there?”
She giggles. “Carter hasn’t told us much about you.”
I don’t reiterate that she still hasn’t asked a question. “He doesn’t know much about me. I’m just his temporary tenant.”
We stop at a red light, and she glares over at me in ayou’re full of shitkind of way. “Justhis tenant, huh?”
“Like I told you earlier, I’m just waiting for my car to be fixed.”
“But do you have to leave once it is? Are you going somewhere for a job? Because if you need one… Look, I might be overstepping, but our receptionist just gave notice, so we’re going to be needing a new one soon.” She squints at the road. “Then again, for all I know, you’re a CPA or a molecular biologist and I just insulted you with the offer.”
I laugh, but it’s not really that genuine. “I’m not a molecular biologist. In fact, I used to be a receptionist for a law firm.”
