When Harlow had tried to talk to her mom, Robyn had said she needed to be alone, and that was the last Harlow had seen her. She’d left before anyone was up.
By early evening, she was done with laundry and was looking at the remains of her sad wardrobe. She would have to do a little shopping before she moved, she thought. Just casual stuff and a few dresses. Maybe two or three pairs of shoes.
Her mom had told her to go through the house and take what she wanted. Harlow and Austin planned to rent a truck and cart her stuff down to Key West after she got an apartment. Places down there were tiny and expensive, so the less she took, the better.
She had a small sofa in her bedroom that would work, and her bedroom set was fine. She’d take the TV on the dresser. All she needed was a small table and a couple of chairs for an eating area and maybe a handful of end tables. There were plenty of those in the house.
She texted with Enid, then watched Netflix until close to midnight, when she heard a car in the driveway. She went outside and saw her mom and Austin getting their bags out of the trunk of the Uber.
“Welcome back,” she said brightly, looking toward her brother, who shook his head.
“Harlow.” Her mother sounded exhausted and looked worse. “How are you doing?”
“I’m fine, Mom. I have food in the house, if you’re hungry, and I put fresh sheets on everyone’s bed.”
“Thank you.” Her mother gave her a smile that trembled at the corners. “I’m tired, so if no one minds, I’m going to bed.”
She rolled her suitcase down the hall and disappeared into her room. Harlow and Austin went in the opposite direction. She followed him into his room.
“How was the flight?” she asked.
“Okay. Long. She didn’t say anything.” He tossed his suitcase on the bed. “She was quiet the whole time. She didn’t cry, she didn’t read, she just sat there, looking out the window. It was scary.”
“She’ll be okay. She just has to figure out a few things. It’s been a lot, Austin. Too much has happened. She has to take it all in.”
He stared at her. “What about Mason? The man is shattered. Whatever they said to each other, it broke him. I think he’s in love with her.”
“He is.”
“Does she love him back?”
Most of the time she thought of her brother as grown-up, but every now and then she remembered he was still a teenager. Now, with the worry and questioning in his tone, he sounded more like a little boy than an adult.
“I don’t know,” she admitted. “I hope so. He would be good for her.”
“Love sucks.”
She smiled. “You say that now, but one day you’re going to meet a woman who changes your mind.”
“Naw. I’m going to play the field. I’m never getting serious about anyone.”
“Famous last words.”
thirty-three
ROBYN WOKE UP a little after six—which would have been impressive, except she was now in Florida, and it was three in the morning back in Santa Barbara, so not exactly a full night’s sleep. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d felt rested—probably before Lillian had died. Regardless, life waited for no one, so she got up and headed for the shower. She stood under the hot spray until she felt human again, then dressed and prepared to start her day.
She thought maybe the routine would help, but she’d been gone so long, the house barely felt familiar. She’d lived here for years, yet nothing about the place was right. This wasn’t home anymore. It probably hadn’t been for longer than she’d realized.
She made the bed, then unpacked. She carried her dirty clothes to the laundry room, where she found a pile of Austin’s clothes waiting for her. While Austin knew how to do laundry, it wasn’t his favorite. She smiled. He’d have to take on the task when he moved in with Mason.
Just thinking the name stabbed her in the heart, but she ignored the sensation. She wasn’t ready to deal with him just yet. When she felt stronger, she would do the deep dive into her feelings, first to figure out what had gone wrong and second to decide what she wanted enough to fight for.
Once the laundry was started, she went through the stack of mail, mostly junk. After that was done, she took a pad of paper and walked through the house. Some of the furniture would need to stay for staging. Some of it could be sold. She doubted there was much Harlow would be interested in, and Austin would stare at her in confusion if she asked him if he wanted to keep anything.
There were a few art pieces she knew Cord loved, along with the dining room table he’d bought without talking to her. It wouldn’t fit in his current place, but if he and Zafina were going to have a kid together, they would need a house. His penthouse condo was too small for a baby, and there wasn’t any backyard or...
She came to a stop in the middle of the dining room as an idea formed. It was insane, really. Twisted and strange, but it felt right. Okay, maybe that was the lack of sleep talking, but maybe not.
She pulled out her phone.
You have a second to talk?
Three dots appeared almost instantly.
Do you have any idea what time it is?
Yes, but so what? You get up early.
It’s not even four in the morning where you are.
I’m back.
She pushed the button to call him.
“When did you get back?” her ex-husband asked when he answered.
“Last night. Cord, are you going to marry Zafina?”
He swore. “There’s a question.”
“Yes, it is. Are you answering it?”
“It’s awkward talking about this with you.”
She smiled. “Why? Come on, we’ve been done for years. I hope you two work it out. Are you going to marry her and be a dad to that baby?”
“I’m thinking about it.” He sighed. “I haven’t proposed or anything, and she keeps saying she doesn’t have to be married, but we both know that’s not true. What do you think?”
“My opinion shouldn’t matter,” she told him. “But for what it’s worth, doing the right thing can feel really good. Maybe it’s time to grow up.”
“Low blow.”
“But the truth.”
“Did you call to tell me I shouldn’t do it?”
“No, I called to say you should buy me out of the house.”
His end of the call went silent, so she kept talking.