Harmony Island Gazette

11. Ella

I slid my key into the door handle and turned. My entire body felt heavy from exhaustion as I pushed into my apartment and let the door swing shut behind me. I let my purse and computer bag slide off my shoulder into a pile at my feet.

After I got back from Harmony Cove, Gloria had me write up the article and then proceeded to spend the rest of the afternoon correcting it for me. I’d never had her so involved in a story of mine in the past. By the time 5 o’clock rolled around, I was physically and emotionally drained.

I was ready to change into my pajamas and curl up on the couch with a bag of chips and a fuzzy blanket while I binge-watched FRIENDS.

I yawned as I kicked off my heels at the door and then padded through the living room to my bedroom. I unzipped my pencil skirt and let it fall to the floor. I didn’t bother picking it up as I unbuttoned my blouse and slid it off my shoulders before tossing it on the armchair in the corner of my room.

Thankfully, I’d done laundry over the weekend. I pulled my pink silk pajama bottom and top from the basket and dressed.

My body was already relaxing as I made my way into my bathroom and grabbed a scrunchie from the top drawer. I fashioned my hair into a messy bun at the top of my head before turning on the faucet so the water could warm up.

With my hair up and my face washed, I was beginning to feel more awake. I flipped off my bedroom light and headed into the kitchen. My watch vibrated on my wrist, and I glanced down to see that Asher had just texted me.

My stomach tightened at the sight of his name. Everything about the Harmony Cove deal, Gloria’s refusal to let me write the article by myself, and the mystery man who told me to watch out for the Proctors was weighing on me. I couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling I got when I was around anyone connected to Marcus Proctor. I was frustrated that my best friend—my only friend in Harmony—had aligned himself with that man.

I knew I couldn’t ignore Asher’s texts. He’d send a search party to come find me, and then I would have to explain myself to him. I’d have to tell him why I didn’t answer when I was not dead in a ditch somewhere.

I didn’t fully understand what was wrong with me, and there was no way I would be able to articulate how I was feeling to him.

I walked over to the door where I’d left my purse. I fished out my phone and swiped it on.

Asher:Are you still at work, or did you slay the dragon?

He ended his question with a few emojis. I smiled. If he were here, he’d be pretending to draw his sword from its sheath and cut an imaginary dragon.

My friend was a dork and I loved it. But at the same time, I hated that Marcus Proctor was making me doubt the one constant man in my life. And I hated even more that I couldn’t talk to Asher about it.

Me:The dragon has been conquered, and I am now at home, enjoying my spoils.

Asher only took seconds to respond.

Asher:Chinese. Fifteen minutes. We need to celebrate.

I parted my lips to complain, but then I closed them and shook my head. Even if I told Asher that I was tired, he wouldn’t listen. He was coming over whether I wanted him to or not. So I just sent him a thumbs-up emoji and made my way back into the kitchen, where I set my phone on the counter and opened the fridge.

I was sitting on the couch with my fuzzy blanket wrapped around me like a tortilla, watching a FRIENDS rerun, when there were three knocks on the door. I tipped my face toward it and started to yell, “Come in,” but the door opened before I finished.

Asher appeared in the doorway, carrying a drink tray and a white plastic bag full of Mr. Cheng’s Chinese cuisine—our favorite.

“Hey,” he said, his smile so wide that it made me angry at myself for being skeptical about his association with Marcus Proctor.

If his client had been anyone else, I would be jumping for joy. I wanted only good things for my friend. But I couldn’t shake this nagging feeling in the back of my mind that something wasn’t right.

And I hated myself for it.

Asher shut the door behind him and then turned. He crossed the space between us and set the bag of food and the drink tray down on the coffee table in front of me. “I got honey shrimp, chicken lo mein, egg rolls, and fried rice,” he said when he turned to meet my gaze.

My salivary glands instantly activated. Asher was eyeing me, waiting for a response before a smile slowly spread across his lips. “If we’re celebrating your success, why did you get everything that I love?” I asked as I untangled myself from my blanket before tossing it to the side and standing. The smell of the food made my stomach growl as I made my way into the kitchen to get plates and utensils.

Asher shrugged. “It all sounded good when I got there, so I just went with it.”

I eyed him as I pulled two plates down from the cupboard and then slid open a drawer and found two sets of chopsticks.

“So, what are we celebrating?” I asked as I bumped the drawer closed with my hip.

Asher studied me for a moment as if he were trying to figure me out. “The sale with Ms. McDonnell earlier today. You know, the one you came to.”

I plopped down on the couch before setting a pair of chopsticks down on one of the plates and handing it over to Asher. “That’s what I figured, but I was just making sure.” I forced a smile. “So it really happened, huh?”

Asher dropped down on the couch next to me. I’d already pulled the little white boxes from the bag and was in the process of opening the honey shrimp. After I’d dumped some onto my plate, I realized that Asher hadn’t moved, so I turned to see him sitting there, watching me.

I frowned as I licked some of the sauce from my fingertips. “You okay?” I asked.

He blinked a few times as he straightened as if he hadn’t noticed that he’d been staring at me. “Yep, mm-hmm,” he said as he leaned forward, resting his elbows on his thighs. “Sorry, I just zoned out there for a second.” He yawned. “I’m wiped.”

I nodded in agreement. “Me too.”

“Gloria kept you that long?”

I shook my head. “Not longer than normal, but she was over my shoulder the whole afternoon. You’d think I was writing a piece on the president of the United States.” I leaned forward and opened the next container. I dumped some of the chicken lo mein onto my plate and then set the container back down on the coffee table.

Asher picked it up as soon as I set it down and grabbed his chopsticks before he settled back on the couch. He proceeded to eat from the container, and I returned to opening the rest of the boxes. I had so many things I wanted to say to him. Questions I wanted to ask. But I wasn’t sure how to say any of them without coming across as critical of my best friend’s success.

“Barbara seemed excited,” I finally said after I’d finished filling my plate. I grabbed the plate and chopsticks and leaned back on the couch.

I could feel Asher’s gaze on me. “Yeah, she did.”

I slipped some honey shrimp into my mouth, wondering what I was going to say next. Thankfully, Asher picked up the conversation. “It’s a good thing. Ms. McDonnell sells her property for over market value, and the community gets a facelift. It’s a win-win.”

I pushed the fried rice around on my plate. “Why would the Proctors offer so much? Why not just offer market value?” From what I’d heard of the Proctor family, they weren’t generous. I couldn’t imagine they were out offering more than market value because they wanted the residents of Harmony to be wealthy. A business like that would get shut down so fast.

Asher didn’t respond right away, and I paused before I glanced over at him. He was studying me, his gaze darker than I’d expected. He was chewing thoughtfully until he sighed, leaned forward, and placed the container of food on the coffee table.

“You know, I really didn’t think it was my place to ask Mr. Proctor why he’s doing what he’s doing with his business.”

There was a bite to his tone that surprised me. I’d struck a nerve. I hadn’t meant to, but I’d made my friend upset. I needed to backtrack and fast.

“I’m sorry,” I said, offering him a soft smile. “I guess never-ending questions is a hazard of the trade.” I reached out and rested my hand on his arm. I never wanted to upset him. I wanted to be happy for him, I just couldn’t shake the feeling that something weird was going on. I was worried about my friend and the community around me.

There was something wrong with the Proctors, and even though I told myself not to care, I couldn’t stop myself. From the look on Asher’s face, he knew that as well.

“This a good thing for me, Ella,” he said as he straightened. “I wish you would just be happy for me.”

I set my plate down and nodded. “I am,” I said quickly. “I am happy for you. I want you to have success. You’re my friend.”

His gaze snapped down at me, and for a moment, I saw frustration flash in his eyes. Then he sighed. “Then be my friend.”

I nodded. “I’m trying. I just…”

There was a battle going on inside of me. Should I say what was truly on my mind, or say what I knew would salvage my friendship with Asher? I didn’t want to lose him, but I also couldn’t lie. That wasn’t who I was.

“I don’t trust the Proctor family. Something doesn’t feel right, and I think you know that too.” The truth tumbled from my lips before I could stop it. The man in front of me wasn’t the Asher I knew. I couldn’t understand why he wasn’t even a little bit skeptical about all of this.

Sure, Ms. McDonnell had a nice house in a nice location, but for Mr. Proctor to come in and offer over its worth seemed strange. Why wasn’t Asher seeing that?

“I gotta go,” Asher said, suddenly standing. He grabbed the chopsticks that were sticking out of his lo mein and headed into the kitchen.

“Asher,” I said as I hurried to follow after him, ““don’t be mad at me.” I could feel the dam of our friendship breaking, and I was worried that nothing I could say or do would stop that from happening.

“I’m not mad at you,” he said as he dropped the chopsticks into the sink and turned.

I hadn’t anticipated him turning around, and suddenly I was running straight into him. My hands sprawled across his chest in an effort to catch myself. Asher’s arms went around my body, and his low voice whispered, “Whoa,” so close to my ear that it sent shivers across my skin.

We stood there, frozen, in that embrace. The seconds seemed to slow as I tipped my gaze up to meet his. He was staring down at me with a dark, stormy gaze. I hated that I’d hurt my friend. I should have been supportive. I should have kept my mouth shut about my suspicions. That was how a true friend acted.

“I’m sorry,” I said as I drew my eyebrows together so he could see that I felt bad.

He studied me before he sighed, dropped his arms, and took a step back. “I know.” He pushed his hand through his hair. “I’m sorry, too.” He shrugged. “I guess I just wanted you to be as excited as I was.” In that moment, I hated myself. I hated that I couldn’t turn off the reporter part of my brain. Not everything was a story. Not everything weird was untoward. For all I knew, the man who confronted me a few days ago was a disgruntled ex-employee who wanted revenge on the family. I had too big of an imagination sometimes, and I let stories run wild.

“I am excited,” I said as I reached out and rested my hand on his forearm.

His gaze snapped down to where I was touching him before he slowly brought it up to meet mine. He looked conflicted, but I wanted him to know that I was still his friend. That I would support him no matter what. My issues weren’t with him, they were with the Proctor family.

I pulled my hand away and snapped my fingers. “I have an idea,” I said as I turned and started walking toward my bedroom.

“What?” Asher called after me.

I raised my hand and waved away his question. “I’m going to get ready,” I said as I shut my bedroom door and headed straight into my closet to pull on a black crop top and a pair of high-waisted jeans. Once I was dressed, I put on a bit of makeup and pulled my hair out of the bun and brushed it before I pulled it back into a ponytail at the base of my neck. Then I slipped on a pair of Converse and headed out of my room.

Asher’s eyebrows went up when I entered the living room. He was sitting on the couch with his arm draped across the back, scrolling on his phone. “You look nice,” he said.

I warmed under his approving gaze. “Obviously,” I said as I struck a pose and then walked over to where I’d dumped my purse. “Come on, let’s go to Harmony Pub. We’re going to celebrate the huge deal you closed.” I turned the door handle and pulled the door open.

Asher looked skeptical before his smile widened and he moved to stand. “I could go for a drink,” he said as he slipped his phone into his back pocket.

“Yeah you could!” I cheered and patted his back as he walked through the door.

I joined him in the hallway and then turned and locked my apartment door. I threaded my arm through his and held tight as we started walking toward the parking lot together.

I pushed all thoughts of Harmony Cove, the Proctors, and the legit deals they may or may not be making with the residents of this small island town from my mind. I felt my body relax when I laughed at Asher’s jokes as he drove to the pub. Our conversation felt familiar as he pulled into the parking lot and turned his car engine off.

We walked side by side across the gravel. The music and conversations were equally loud as I followed Asher into the pub. We spent the evening laughing with Abigail and Shelby who’d come in for a girls’ night out then I bought a drink for everyone in the pub and toasted to Asher.

He beamed at me as I raised my glass, and for the first time in a long time, I smiled. It was genuine because I was truly happy for my friend. I was going to enjoy this night of pure support because I knew tomorrow, no matter how much I tried to fight it, that nagging feeling at the back of my mind was going to return.

Tonight, I was celebrating Asher because I loved him. He was my best friend and he deserved to have this night. But tomorrow I would be back on the case. I was never going to forget about the mystery man or what he said about the Proctors. I was going to figure out the story behind that family, and I wasn’t going to stop until I got answers.

I just hoped it wouldn’t ruin my friendship with Asher in the process.