“It would’ve been nice if you remembered her while she was still alive.”
A hardness slipped into Grant’s eyes. “I wasn’t sure I would be welcome.”
The assessment was fair enough. He’d been back once since he left for Boston that summer so long ago. He and his parents had come to visit a few weeks after Harriet had been diagnosed with heart disease. I’d stayed with Caelyn and the kids for the few days they were on the island. I went to work, and that was it, not wanting to risk running into any member of the immediate Abbot clan.
“And whose fault would that be?”
Grant’s expression softened, but everything about it was false, practiced. “I was a kid. You can’t exactly blame me for not being ready to be a dad.”
I hadn’t blamed Grant for being scared. Hell, I’d been terrified. But I could blame him for everything that followed. Legal paperwork demanding a paternity test. A cease and desist letter accusing me of slander. But the worst were the words I’d overheard when Harriet had called Grant and his parents from my hospital room in Seattle. She’d thought I’d been asleep and hadn’t wanted to leave me. But even over the beeping of machines, I could hear Grant’s response clear as day on the other end of the line. “Serves her right for lying about me.”
The words rang over and over in my head. Serves her right. How could anyone be that cruel? To wish that kind of pain on another human being. Tearing. That was the only word that could describe it. There had been a bone-deep tearing sensation in my womb, where my baby had been ripped away. Worse, there had been a soul-deep tearing sensation in my chest, where my heart was, where it would never be the same again. But I wore those scars proudly. They were warrior marks, evidence of the battle I’d fought for my daughter. I might have lost, but I’d never stopped fighting.
“Get out.”
“Excuse me?”
The flustered expression on Grant’s face almost made me laugh. Only he would have the amount of arrogance required to think he could rip someone’s world apart and believe he would still be welcome when he returned. I kept my voice even. “You heard me. Get out. You’re on private property, and you need to leave.”
Grant’s lip quivered, and I knew he was fighting a sneer, that same twist of lips that always appeared when someone didn’t do as he wanted. “This is our family home. It’s belonged to the Abbot bloodline for almost as long as this island has existed. If you think this last-minute will is going to stand up in court, you are sorely mistaken.”
I met Grant’s gaze but didn’t say a word. He wouldn’t get an outburst out of me. He didn’t deserve even one single flicker of emotion.
Heat rose to Grant’s cheeks at my dismissal. “I was trying to be kind about this. My parents want to generously offer you one hundred grand if you sign over The Gables.”
I gave a snort of amusement. I couldn’t help it. The Gables would sell for at least five million, more if a petition for rezoning went through. I said nothing, just kept meeting Grant’s gaze.
A muscle in his cheek fluttered. “Here’s my card. Call me when you’ve reconsidered. One hundred thousand dollars is a hell of a lot more than nothing. And it could go a long way for someone like you.”
He extended the card. Even at a distance, I could tell the paper was thick, the letters and numbers embossed into the cardstock. I didn’t take it. Grant let it slip from his fingers, and it landed on the threshold. “You’re going to want to pick that up.”
My muscles tightened as I watched Grant turn and walk away. I stood stock-still as he climbed into his sports car and drove off. I didn’t move even an inch until the vehicle disappeared from sight. Until the threat was well and truly gone.
I didn’t bend to pick up the card, I simply shut the door over it and flipped the lock. But my hands trembled with every movement.
10
Kenna
I slid the hair straightener over that one troublesome spot. The mahogany lock that always seemed to want to spring back into a curl. Steam rose, and finally, it lay flat. Every strand in place.
Put together. Perfect. That was my armor. I knew it wasn’t the most balanced reaction to life, but it was better than using alcohol to numb the pain the way my mother had, or running away from my problems the way— No. I wouldn’t even think his name. He didn’t deserve space in my head.
But that hadn’t stopped Grant from traipsing around in my mind for the past few days as if he had every right to be there. I leaned closer to the mirror, tilting my head so I could check to see if the dark circles under my eyes were thoroughly disguised. Dark blue patches from three nights of barely sleeping. My brain had been running away with itself, on a track that cycled in a spiral, revisiting all the things I never wanted to think about, and always coming back to its starting position, never making any real progress. When sleep did find me, it was quickly interrupted by dreams that always turned into nightmares.
I blinked rapidly, clearing the image in the mirror. I reached down and plucked up a pearl stud, slipping it into one ear and fastening the back. I repeated the process on the other side. My fingers halted on the beautiful, flawless surface. My Harriet pearls. I’d watched her get ready for years and always loved it when she donned these. They were classic, timeless, and seemed so very elegant.
When I graduated from college, Harriet had given them to me. I didn’t cry often, but I’d burst into tears right in the hotel suite. She had known me so well. Gifts with a story always meant the most.
I inhaled deeply, my breath stuttering as it moved. I would face today, my head held high, for Harriet. I would pretend that Grant, Clark, and Annabelle weren’t even there. I locked eyes with my reflection and made a vow to never once let my armor slip.
A knock sounded on the door, breaking my trance. I quickly grabbed my purse and slipped on my black wedge heels. I flicked off light switches as I moved from room to room, this place that had become my sanctuary. It called me to stay—safe within its walls. But I couldn’t.
I tugged open the door, and Bell immediately pulled me into a hug. “Are you sure you want to do this?”
I gave her a quick squeeze and then straightened. “They don’t get to steal this moment from me. They don’t get to ruin it with their hate. I’m going to say goodbye to Harriet.”
The Abbot family hadn’t even bothered to let me know when they’d scheduled the memorial. The pastor of Harriet’s church had informed me. They would’ve put Harriet to rest, not even giving a second thought to the fact that I wouldn’t have been able to say goodbye.
“That’s my girl.” Bell bumped my shoulder with hers. “You ready?”
“As I’ll ever be.”
Ford was waiting at the front of his SUV. As we approached, he stepped forward, wrapping me in a gentle hug. I don’t think I’d ever hugged him before. I’d known the man for almost my entire life, and he’d never wrapped his arms around me. The tenderness of the gesture almost broke me.
“I’m so sorry. We’re here for you. Whatever you need.”
I swallowed back the swirling ball of emotions gathering in my throat. “Thank you.”