by Zoe York
Rory didn’t let her get three steps before she wrapped her fingers around Willow’s arm and tugged her back. “Fine. But if I’m gonna be lyin’ to Daddy, then I better get somethin’ else outta this.”
It was probably too much to ask that her sister just do it out of the goodness of her heart. She’d participate in every fundraiser under the sun, be the first to pass around a get-well card or send a casserole over to a new momma, but she didn’t have quite the same generosity toward her sisters. Baby steps, and all that.
“Bonding with your sister isn’t enough?”
Rory rolled her eyes. “You know what I mean. Just…we can help each other, all right? Cover for each other, maybe, if we need to.”
Willow tried and failed to keep her mouth from dropping open. “You, Aurora Jane, first daughter of Mayor Richard Haven of Havenbrook, want to strike up…a lying bargain?”
“Well, you don’t have to make it sound so scandalous. I just thought—”
“Deal.” Willow grabbed Rory’s hand and shook it before she could offer any stipulations. “Fair warning: I’m telling Mac.”
“That’s not fair!”
“Why not? You’re going to tell Sean. I don’t have a husband, so Mac it is.”
Rory’s body language went cold as she snapped her mouth shut and averted her eyes.
Odd. “Hey, is everything—”
“Fine, you can tell Mac. But absolutely not Nat. I have to draw the line somewhere. Girl’s got a mouth bigger than an eighteen-wheeler, and she doesn’t care who knows her business—or ours.”
“Agreed.”
With a clipped nod, Rory stalked back toward the group waiting by the bar, immediately diving into a spiel about stone samples for the front of the bar surround and matching it with an accent wall to give it a nice pop.
Well, that was easier than she’d thought it’d be. Half of her expected Rory to recant on their agreement and run off midsentence, straight to their parents’ house, and spill everything that’d make Willow’s life a living hell. But she was going on a bit of blind faith here. This was a chance for her and Rory to grow closer, and she got the distinct feeling her sister needed it even more than she did.
As Rory spoke, Willow sidled up next to Finn, no longer able to deny the relief she felt whenever another person found out about the two of them. It made her giddy…and a little foolish. Reaching out, she hooked her finger around his pinkie. He slid her a look, his lips tipping up at the corners at what could be considered the subtlest touch by anyone’s definition. But to Willow, her pinkie hooked in his felt like a proclamation from a mountaintop.
She wasn’t quite ready for that. Wasn’t sure she’d ever be. Not when Finn was still leaving and heading back to California. But maybe it was okay in this small circle of people—people Finn trusted. And if Willow couldn’t trust her sister to have her back, she had more problems than the fury her daddy would rain down on her if he ever found out she was tangled up with one of the Thomas boys again.
Rory glanced over then, cutting off midsentence as her eyes dipped to where Willow’s finger was hooked in Finn’s. For the briefest moment, Willow swore she saw longing cross her sister’s face. A second later, the perfect Rory mask was back in place, and all was right in the world.
Willow sat on her parents’ back porch swing, her sisters flanking her. They’d gotten a bit of a reprieve from the heat wave, and a nice breeze—warm as it was—made the evening June air almost tolerable, especially with the chorus of cicadas singing and frogs croaking, the sounds of her childhood making her feel at home. Their weekly family dinners were as carved in stone as the girls’ lunches, and the four of them—three, now that Nat had left—had always sat outside after supper and cleanup. It’d been the one time they felt close, even if they weren’t.
After a few moments, Mac finally broke the silence. “Can’t quite figure it out, Rory.”
Rory stiffened but kept on her calm-as-a-cucumber mask. “What’s that?”
Mac leaned forward so she could see Rory around Willow. “Why you’re helpin’ the Thomas boys. And don’t worry—I’m not gonna rat you out.” Mac rolled her eyes as though the idea were ridiculous. Which it was, especially from Mac—she was the most loyal person Willow had ever known.
Rory was quiet for a minute, just the creaking of the porch swing filling the silence. “I’m… I’ve been thinkin’ about maybe using my degree.”
Willow snapped her head to stare at her sister in shock. Yes, Rory had gone off to college to get a degree, but Willow had always assumed it had just been for show. That her sister had no real desire to do anything but be the perfect wife and mother—something she was exceptionally good at. “You have? Since when?”
Rory shrugged, keeping her gaze straight ahead. “Couple years.”
“Years?” Mac asked, astonishment ringing in her voice.
“Since Ella started school and I didn’t need to be around as much. But I—” Rory snapped her mouth shut and shook her head.
Willow glanced back at Mac and gave her a what the hell look because you could about knock her over with a feather. She’d never in a million years dreamed her sister would actually be longing for something. Just went to show not everything was always as it seemed. Mac just shrugged and shook her head in response.
Willow turned back to her older sister. “Well, I think it’s…”
“Dumb,” Rory said. “It’s dumb.”
Willow reached out and placed her hand on her sister’s arm. “No, Rory. I don’t think it’s dumb at all. I think it’s great.”
Rory twisted her head in Willow’s direction, her mouth dropped open. “You do?”
“I really do. From what I’ve seen at Finn’s, you’re good at it—really good at it. And it’s about time you did something just for yourself.” Willow’d always thought Rory had felt completely fulfilled being a wife and mother, but maybe that hadn’t been it at all. Maybe her sister longed for things she didn’t think she could have…just like everyone else.
Mac leaned forward to peek around Willow. “Have you talked to Sean about it?”
Rory straightened, her lips pressing into a tight line. “No. Which is why I’d appreciate it if this could stay between the three of us.”
Willow and Mac exchanged another look—they’d definitely be talking about this once they got home. But for now, Mac answered for them both. “As long as you’ve got Willow’s back, we’ve got yours.”
That look of longing Willow swore she’d seen on Rory’s face at the bar swept over her features once again. “You two always were the closest, weren’t you? I know you think I’m impossible most of the time, but it was tough growin’ up as the oldest. Tryin’ so hard to please Daddy when he wanted somethin’ I could never be. No matter how many tests I aced or how many trophies I brought home, he’d never get his boy.” She kept her gaze on her leg as it pushed off the porch, gently rocking them back and forth. “Sometimes I wonder if I went from one overbearing, insensitive know-it-all to another.”
Without trying to give away how shocked she was, Willow slid Mac a look out of the corner of her eye. Her younger sister shrugged, clearly at a loss, same as Willow. She’d always assumed her sister and brother-in-law’s marriage was perfect, just like everything else in Rory’s life. But maybe Willow had been so busy wanting to see that perfection so she could hold a grudge that she hadn’t really paid attention to what was there.
“Is everything okay between you and Sean?”
Just as fast as the conversation started, it ended. “What? Of course. Everything’s just fine. You know who you should be worryin’ about is Trish Parkins. Poor girl’s workin’ three jobs just to keep a roof over their heads while her deadbeat husband drinks all day. Honestly—”
Willow tuned out as Rory expertly shifted the focus from herself to others who seemingly had more problems weighing them down. And now that Willow really thought about it, her older sister did that an awful lot. Maybe she wasn’t the annoying gossip
Willow assumed she was. Maybe she was just as confused and lost as the rest of them but was desperate not to show it to anyone.
Honestly, Willow was…relieved. For the first time in as long as she could remember, she finally felt a connection with her older sister. Rory didn’t have it all together? Welcome to the club. Willow might as well be president.
Willow sat in her office the following week, sorting through the mess of papers her daddy had piled on her head. Like she didn’t have enough to do, now that they were mere days away from the Fourth of July parade. But, like always, Willow took the extra load with a smile and shuffled everything else around so she could make it work. She always, always made it work.
A knock sounded at the outer office door, then the quiet rumbling of voices between Avery and whoever had come in, but Willow was too lost in her spreadsheet to pay much attention. She had a tight budget to work with for any and all events, and the parade was no exception. No matter how she crunched these numbers, she was still coming out in the red. Which meant she’d have to dip into her own money to foot the bill for some of the items. Again.
“Looks like someone has a secret admirer.” Avery strolled into Willow’s office, a gorgeous arrangement of Stargazer lilies hiding her face. She set the vase on the corner of Willow’s desk and raised her eyebrow. “You decide to go public?”
Willow’s heart skipped a beat before tumbling into a gallop, her stomach bottoming out over the prospect of her and Finn’s pseudo-relationship getting out. “What? No. No, we—” She shook her head and snatched the card from the arrangement.
It didn’t say anything—it was simply a rough sketch of a willow tree. And while there weren’t any words written on the white notecard to give away who the sender was, it might as well have been an ad in the newspaper for as loud as it screamed to her.
“Finn?” Avery asked, slipping around the side of Willow’s desk to peek at the card.
“Ohh…what a pretty arrangement!” Edna, their mail carrier, stepped into Willow’s office and handed Avery the stack of envelopes. “I didn’t know you were seein’ anyone, Miss Willow.”
“What? Oh, I’m not. It’s just—”
“Oh my heavens, that’s even better! A secret admirer. How lovely!” She braced her hand on Willow’s desk and leaned forward, her eyes sparkling with interest. “Do you know who it might be?”
If Rory was a gossip princess, then Edna was the queen. The woman spread it around their town like bees spread pollen. There was no way in hell Willow was giving her even an ounce of information. Thankfully, her best friend was well aware of the gossip title Edna held. She was also a master at diversion.
“That sounds like that Hallmark movie you were telling me about last week.” Avery stepped around the desk and placed her hands on Edna’s shoulders, turning her around and directing her out of the office. “What was the title of that one again? Maybe I’ll watch it tonight.”
Willow breathed out a sigh of relief as Avery diverted Edna’s attention. The gossip queen and Avery chatted for several minutes about some romantic comedy while Willow just sat and stared at the drawing on the card, her fingertip running over the slight indentation from the pen.
She’d thought she and Finn had a good thing going. While it wasn’t ideal, it worked for them. And it worked for her, which, to be honest, was her top priority after how their first relationship had ended. She didn’t think Finn had minded the sneaking around, but if this was anything to go by, he did. Or, worse, he just didn’t care that she cared. She’d told him point-blank they needed to be discreet if they were going to start something, and he’d readily agreed. So much for that promise.
The more she thought about it, the more hurt she got. It was like he was playing with her all over again. By the time Avery stepped back into Willow’s office, she was good and frustrated.
“I can’t believe he did this.”
Avery snorted. “Yeah, what an ass. Sending you flowers. You want me to key his car?”
Normally, Avery’s sense of humor could defuse even the tensest situations, but Willow didn’t want to hear it now. “You know that’s not what this is about. He’s not supposed to be spreadin’ it all around town.”
“I hardly think sending you flowers is spreading it all around town.”
“No? How do you think he got those flowers?” She held up the card with the sketched willow tree. “He drew this, Avery, which means he had to walk into the shop and order them. Give them my name for the delivery. And now Edna of all people knows about it. I’ll be lucky if I don’t have a line out my office by the end of the day, people wantin’ to know my business.”
“Honestly, Will, I think you’re overreacting just a bit.”
Before Willow could tell Avery exactly how much she wasn’t overreacting, her cell phone rang. Rory’s name and photo flashed on the screen. Willow wanted to believe it was about the bar reno, or maybe about their dinner they had scheduled for later in the week—something they’d never done before, but something Willow was actually kind of excited about. Since their talk on their parents’ back porch, things had shifted between the three of them—shifted for the better.
But even with all those possibilities, the probabilities weighed on her as she swiped to answer. “Hello?”
“You’ll never guess what I just heard.”
Willow swallowed, closing her eyes and saying a quick prayer it wasn’t what she feared. “What’s that?”
“Apparently you’ve got a secret admirer.”
She let out a gusty sigh. Dammit. She didn’t want to be right, just this once. “Who told you that?”
“Edna. Honestly, I don’t know how that woman gets any mail delivered. I swear she just speed-walks to the nearest warm body whenever she gets her hands on some juicy gossip. Mrs. Thompson stopped by while Edna was tellin’ the story, and now they’re talking about a pool as to who the possible suitor could be.”
“Oh my Lord.”
“Anyway, I just wanted to warn you about what they’re sayin’. In case you didn’t already know.”
“Thanks, Rory.”
“I thought y’all decided to keep this quiet?”
“I thought so too. Apparently Finn needs a reminder.”
Willow hung up with her sister and lifted her brow in Avery’s direction. “Still think I’m overreacting?” Without waiting for Avery to answer, Willow pressed Finn’s number on her phone and hit send.
He picked up after the second ring, a smile in his voice. “Hey, Willowtree. You get my delivery?”
She clamped her teeth together. He couldn’t even sound remorseful? She wasn’t sure which hurt worse—the fact that he’d ignored her wishes or that he didn’t seem to care that he did. She took a deep breath, attempting to keep the emotion from her voice. “Yes, I got it, and half the town already knows about it. There’s a bet going on about who my secret admirer is. You agreed we’d keep this quiet. You promised.”
Clanging came through the line, the far-off noise of a saw, before it quieted, like he’d walked to another room. “Wait…are you upset?”
So much for tamping down that emotion. “Yes, Finn, I’m upset. How did you think I was gonna react to you goin’ back on a promise, not to mention half the damn town discussing my love life?”
“I didn’t—shit, Willow, it wasn’t my intent to break the promise. I wanted to send you somethin’ nice, and I just thought—”
“I’m pretty sure you didn’t think. And that’s the issue. We had a deal. Keep this quiet, period. And you agreed to that.”
“Feels pretty damn quiet to me with you sneaking in and out of my apartment at all hours of the night.”
“Yeah? Well, it doesn't feel so quiet to me when half the town's placing bets on who I’m seeing. They’re going to find out.”
A noise of frustration came across the line. “And, apparently, that’d be the worst thing in the world. For the good people of Havenbrook to know Willow Haven is sullying herself with one of the Thomas b
oys. Again.”
“Don’t turn this back around on me, Finn. That’s not fair.”
“Seems pretty clear to me that’s exactly what it’s about. Doesn’t matter that I’ve made something of myself. Doesn’t matter that we’re takin’ a building no one else wanted and finishin’ the revitalization of your precious downtown. None of it means shit, isn’t that right? Not when I’ve got Thomas tacked on the end of my name.”
Willow’s ire died a little more with each word coming out of Finn’s mouth, reminding her of what he’d said in his apartment the other day. She’d mentioned it was just her daddy and sister who’d thought that, but was she really any better? Her once-heated temper cooled until it was nothing but steam, and she felt each of Finn’s accusations like a spear through the heart. While she was worrying about her daddy finding out about her and Finn, he was dealing with years of shit that’d been heaped on him because of his teenage rebellion, or worse, simply the stigma of being born with his last name.
“Finn, I’m—”
“I gotta go. I’ll talk to you later.”
“Wait—” But the line was already dead, so all Willow could do was stare at her phone, her stomach somehow churning more now at the thought of hurting Finn than it had when she’d thought the whole town would know her business.
“I take it that didn’t go over well?” Avery asked.
Willow stared at the phone and blew out a sigh. “I don’t know what to do. He wants something I’m not ready to give. Not after—” She swallowed, not quite ready to say the words aloud. Not after he left me all those years ago. Not when he’s going to leave me again.
“Look, I’m not going to pretend I understand what you went through back then. Your relationship with Finn is hella complicated, and your worries and concerns are completely valid.”
