My happiness. My heart.
Where do I go from here?
“Laney,” I hear from what seems like a thousand miles away. I look up and find Shane standing on the other side of the table, watching me with a sad expression on his face. He tips his head to one side, a silent invitation for me to come around to him. On numb legs, with my mind elsewhere, I get up and maneuver my way out from behind the table and cross to him.
“What is it, Shane?” I can’t keep the irritation from my voice. A conversation with my ex, no matter how short, is the last thing I need right now. I want to strangle whoever it was that told him about my party to begin with.
“I wanted to tell you I’m sorry,” he begins.
“Shane, not now. I know what—”
“Not about that, although I’m sorry about that and I still wish you’d let me explain my side of the story. But that’s not what I meant. I just wanted you to know I’m sorry about what happened with that Jake guy. Nobody deserves to be treated the way he treated you.”
I frown. Shane has my full attention now.
“What do you mean?”
“I just talked to him at the bar. He was dreading coming in here to tell you good-bye. He was afraid you’d make a big scene. Try to follow him or something.”
I narrow my eyes on him. “What? That’s ridiculous! He would never say that.”
Or would he?
“If you don’t believe me, ask Harmony. She got a refill on her drink when we were talking.”
I turn to Harmony, who is sitting on the other side of the table, talking with a couple of our friends. “Harmony!” I call. She looks up and smiles. “Did you see Shane talking to Jake Theopolis a few minutes ago?”
“Is that who that hot guy was?” She laughs. “Yeah, I did, but I got your back, Laney. Don’t you worry.” She winks at me and raises her glass. My stomach squeezes into a tight knot, as if it’s shrinking away from the explosion that’s happening inside my chest.
I glance back at Shane. He looks genuinely sympathetic.
“I feel like this is all my fault, Laney. I should never have believed Tori when she said it was just a prank we were pulling. I—”
“What? Tori did not tell you that!”
“She did! Hand to God,” he says, holding up his hand as if he’s swearing.
I shake my head. It’s all just too much right now. “It doesn’t matter now, Shane. It’s done. Over. No hard feelings, okay?”
He looks down as he takes my left hand in his and begins fiddling with my ring finger. “Is there any chance my ring will ever find its way back here again?”
I pull my hand away. “Shane,” I say, backing away. From him. From the crowd. From the pain. From this place. “I just can’t do this right now.”
And with that, I run. I just run.
TWENTY-SIX: Jake
I can feel sweat running down my chest as I sit, perched on the edge of the big boulder, gulping down a bottle of water.
“You’re gonna puke if you don’t slow down,” a familiar voice says from behind me. I turn to see Jenna walking casually up the path toward me. “And, dude! There’s no puking on my rock.”
“This isn’t your rock,” I argue good-naturedly. “This is family rock.”
“Which, in this family, means it’s mine.”
I shrug. “Yeah, pretty much. Spoiled brat.”
“Arrogant dickweed.”
She climbs up the back of the rock and scoots down to sit beside me facing the river. We used to sit like this when we were little. When we’d help in the orchard on hot summer days, we’d come here to swim in the river and cool off, then we’d get up on the rock to dry. We weren’t allowed in the water without Dad around, but we did it anyway. I was the only one who ever got in trouble for it, though. Of course. Dad would always catch me in my room later to give me the big lecture on how my carelessness had already cost him one family member, that he wouldn’t allow it to happen again.
“What’re you doing here? Finally get up enough balls to come home?” I ask, pushing against her shoulder with my own.
“Something like that,” she answers vaguely. “How’re things going with the estate?”
“The inventory is complete. I guess now we just wait on the hearing.”
Jenna nods. “God, I hope she doesn’t get this place. It would kill Daddy.”
“She won’t get it, Jenna. I told you I’d take care of it. Stop worrying.”
I’ve already decided that I’d use every dime of my savings to pay off our aunt if need be. She’s a money whore. I think that would be like speaking her language. But if that didn’t work, my next step would be to threaten her, which I’m not above doing if it means saving this place from her. But Jenna doesn’t need to know the details. She just needs to know it’s taken care of. And it will be. One way or the other.
She’s quiet for a few minutes before she changes the subject. “So what are you still doing here? I figured you’d get Einie and be gone the instant the lawyer’s people left.”
I shrug. I don’t know how to answer that. “I’m not sure what my next move is just yet.”
“What do you mean? You go back to your life. You live it just like you planned. What’s not to know?”
I shrug again. “Maybe it’s time for something different.”
“Such as . . .”
I shrug yet again. “I don’t know. Where I was just doesn’t hold a lot of appeal for me right now.”
“So move. Find another job in another town. Some place where there’s skydiving. And lots of girls. That’s all you seem to need.” I look at Jenna. She’s grinning.
I smile back. “Yeah, I’m pretty easy to figure out, huh?”
“Hell yeah! As long as there’s a fire to fight, a few skirts to chase, and something to jump off of, you’re a happy camper.” I say nothing, so she nudges my shoulder. “Right?” I shrug. Yet again. “I swear to God, I’m gonna slap the shit out of you if you shrug one more time. What is wrong with you?”
“Did you drive all the way down here just to harass me?” I snap.
“No. I drove all the way down here to see my brother. I’m afraid that after you leave here, I won’t ever see you again.”
Surprised, I frown down into her face. “Why would you think that?”
I see her chin tremble. This isn’t like Jenna at all.
“You’ve never been really . . . into family. And now with both Mom and Dad gone, and this place up in the air, I’m just afraid you’ll travel off to parts unknown and I’ll never see you again.” Jenna turns her dark eyes up to mine. They’re so much like I remember Mom’s being, especially now, glistening with tears. And a lot of love. “Jake, you’re all I have left. Absentee grandparents don’t count.”
I wrap my arm around Jenna’s shoulders and pull her in for a hug. “You’re all I’ve got, too. And I promise you’ll see me again. Hell, who knows. I might even end up here. Stranger things have happened.”
Jenna leans back to look at me. “What? Why the hell would you wanna do that?”
I shrug, and she slaps my arm. “I don’t know. Maybe I’m just getting older, thinking about all the stuff I’ve missed out on all these years. Maybe it’s time to finally settle down. At least a little bit. I mean, it’s not like I can’t travel wherever I want to. You know, to jump off things.” I grin at her, and she grins back.
“As much as I’d never want to live here, it would make me really happy if you did. I won’t lie.”
“I’m not saying that’s gonna happen. I’m just telling you that, right now, I’m not sure where I’ll end up. But I promise to keep you in the loop, ’kay?”