Chapter 1 Zandra
ONE
Zandra
Present Day
The moment I crossed over into Hart County, I felt it in my gut. It wasn’t just the sign proclaiming “Welcome to the Hart of Colorado,” though that was certainly a major clue.
With every mile that took me closer to my hometown, it felt like layers of skin were peeling away. Years from my past stripped bare.
Sixteen. It had been sixteen years since the last time I’d called Silver Ridge, Colorado, home.
Of course, I’d visited here and there over the years for holidays, but never more than two or three nights at a time. I hadn’t brought Ian here much, though we were together for six years. That probably said more about our relationship than anything else.
The last time I had called Silver Ridge home, my best friend had still been alive.
A disgruntled meow came from the backseat, as if Chloe had sensed the morbid turn of my thoughts. Or maybe she just wanted to get free of her cat carrier. I couldn’t blame her.
“We’re almost there, Coco. I promise. Just a little further.”
We were both grumpy after an endless day of driving.
At least mid-July in Hart County was just as beautiful as I’d remembered.
The meadows and hillsides were vibrant green, dotted with colorful grasses and wildflowers.
Fireweed, columbines, yarrow. I smiled, surprised I still recalled those names from my childhood.
A slow drive down Main Street brought more familiar sights.
The coffee shop, which was now called Silver Linings and owned by Piper Landry, or so I’d heard.
Except her last name was different now, wasn’t it?
Auntie Rosie had mentioned Piper getting married and then divorced. I was really behind the times.
I’d heard about Piper’s older brother Teller dating a pop star, too. Silver Ridge had been in the media a lot lately, which had been surreal. Ian had joked about it. Hey, isn’t that your town they’re talking about?
But Silver Ridge hadn’t been my town for a long, long time.
There was Main Street Market, where I’d run through the aisles as a kid after school, getting into mischief because Auntie Rosie let me get away with it.
And of course, Hearthstone Brewing, the origin of the Alvarez family business empire. My heart twisted as I thought of Grandpa Manny’s booming laugh as he welcomed customers. Nana Julia’s warm smile and open arms.
Memories of my past running headlong into my present.
And then I caught sight of the creek, sunlight glinting on the water down below the bridge as I drove across. My stomach roiled.
Nope. I couldn’t let my mind go there. My memories of that night were strictly off-limits.
My phone rang, and the caller ID displayed Ian’s name. For safety’s sake, I pulled off to the shoulder, letting the engine idle. “Hello?”
“Zan,” he said in a syrupy tone. “How are you?”
At the start of our relationship, I would’ve fallen for that tone instantly. But I was smarter now. The fact I’d answered him at all just showed how much I wanted to get my mind on something else. Even my obnoxious ex.
“What do you want, Ian?”
A beleaguered sigh came through the phone speaker. “Business-like, as usual. Not even going to pretend we can be friends?”
“No, because we can’t. We were nothing but roommates for the last few months, and now we’re not even that.”
I’d been fooled by his shiny shoes, impeccable haircut, and old-money pedigree. Such a contrast to my background in small-town Colorado. I’d made the mistake of believing in Ian’s aura of success. When really, it was just his trust fund.
He dropped the act.
“I’m looking for my tie with the houndstooth pattern,” Ian said. “Have you seen it? You didn’t accidentally take it with you, did you?”
Un-fucking-believable.
“No, I didn’t take anything of yours with me. You were standing over my shoulder while I packed, remember? I don’t know where you put your shit. I’m not your secretary.”
He scoffed. “Believe me, I know. My secretary would never have stocked my pantry and freezer with this gluten-free, vegan crap.”
“Then throw it away! Buy your own groceries!”
“I really wish you would do something about your anger issues, Zandra. More than anything, that’s what came between us.”
“Really?”
I’d put years of my life into launching a startup with him. I’d been all-in. Then I found out Ian had been lying to me and to our investors. Because of Ian, my credibility had been destroyed when the startup went south.
But I was the bad guy. I was the bitch with anger issues.
“Ian, don’t call me ever again.” I hit End, tossing my phone onto the passenger seat. Chloe meowed.
“I agree. What a dipshit. What did I ever see in him?”
My eyes closed as I rested my forehead against the top of the steering wheel, trying not to cry. Chloe meowed sympathetically.
I’d known for months that I had to start over.
I’d been stuck living in Ian’s guestroom in Chicago because I couldn’t afford to move out.
No job despite searching, and no prospects.
My former friends had lost interest in me once I didn’t have money to go out anymore.
Ian was in debt too. But unlike him, I didn’t have a trust-fund cushion.
I’d been a good roommate, though. I’d cleaned and paid for groceries, not that Ian seemed to appreciate it.
Then I’d gotten word. My grandpa Manny had fallen in the storage room at Hearthstone, shattering his hip and fracturing his femur. A week later, he was still at Hart County General, and I was home to offer my help.
But I was also here to make a fresh start.
Unfortunately, that meant facing my parents. The very reason I hadn’t run home to Silver Ridge before now.
“Give me strength, Coco,” I said. “We’re gonna need it.”
I pulled back onto the road and steered toward my parents’ house. I hadn’t told them I was coming. Between Ian and packing up my life in Chicago, I just hadn’t been able to deal with Mom and Dad too.
Now, there was no more delaying. Time to rip off this bandage, possibly reopening the old wounds hidden beneath.
Or maybe I was just being dramatic, as Ian had often accused me of being.
My tires crunched over the driveway. It was half a mile long, twisting through pine trees. A huge clearing opened at the end with a sprawling house of red stone, manicured planting beds, and a carefully trimmed lawn. A slice of upscale suburbia in the middle of the mountains.
While our family’s business empire had started with Nana and Grandpa’s brewery, my parents had taken it to the next level.
Mom and Dad had started their company Elevated Adventures when I was a kid.
An outdoor excursion company for the elite set.
After a few years, they’d expanded their operations all over the region.
Their success had really taken off after I graduated and moved away.
Now, Javier and Eliza Alvarez were enjoying their retirement in luxurious style, leaving the day-to-day operations of their business to their employees.
For Mom, that meant an active social life among the higher reaches of the Silver Ridge community.
Dad had traded his former love of the outdoors for an obsession with playing the stock market.
My parents had never wanted me to move away from Silver Ridge.
Even while I was in business school pursuing my dreams, they’d bugged me about coming home.
Until I’d introduced them to Ian. Since then, Mom had been salivating for a wedding to plan.
Or at least an IPO to brag about to her friends at the Hart County Golf Club.
But now, after all these years pursuing my fortune in Chicago, I was slinking home with nothing.
I knocked on the door. The housekeeper, Gladys, answered. Her eyes widened.
“Gladys, tell them we’re not interested in whatever they’re selling,” Mom’s voice called from somewhere inside. “Javi must’ve left the gate open again.”
My face heated. “It’s me,” I called out. Then lowered my voice. “Hey, Gladys. Sorry. They weren’t expecting me. It’s good to see you.”
Gladys squeezed my arm affectionately. “You too. Please come in, come in.”
As I crossed the threshold, Mom’s heels clicked rapidly across the hardwood floors. Then she appeared, practically shoving Gladys aside.
“Zandra! What on earth?” Mom’s face was smoother than the last time I’d seen her, especially for a woman in her sixties. But her dark eyes were the same, sharp and assessing. Judging.
“Hey, Mom.”
She looked over my shoulder toward the driveway. “Why didn’t you tell us you were on your way? Where’s Ian?”
Before I could answer, she was bustling me into the living room, where Dad sat in his leather chair, scrolling through a tablet that probably contained the latest market reports.
He’d gotten softer around the middle over the years, but he was still handsome with his silver-streaked hair and a neatly trimmed goatee.
“Zan!” Dad jumped up to give me a hug. “Where’s Ian?”
“Well, he’s—”
“Is that cat hair?” Mom eyed my blouse. “You know your father’s allergic. Come wash your hands. Gladys, get the lint roller! She’s covered in dander.”
“Good to see you guys too,” I muttered.
While Gladys lint-rolled me, Mom launched into an update about the chaos since Grandpa’s injury. “We just got back a little while ago from visiting hours at the hospital. Thank goodness Manny’s in a better mood.”
“That’s partly why I’m here,” I said. “To see Grandpa. But also, the thing is—”
Mom went on like I hadn’t spoken. “I was just about to head off to bingo. At the club, not that rec-center bingo Dixie Haines frequents. They serve corn dogs there.” She shuddered. “You can come along with me this afternoon. The ladies will be thrilled to see you and hear about Chicago.”
“But Mom—”
“When is Ian getting here?” Dad asked eagerly. “I’ve got some stocks I’m eyeing that I’d love to get his thoughts on.”
“Yes, Ian,” Mom gushed. “We can’t wait to see him.”
“Would you both please let me speak?” I shouted.
And of course, they looked at me like I was a zoo animal who’d just thundered into their home.
I took a deep breath. “Ian and I broke up. Months ago, in fact. Our company failed.”
The silence that followed was deafening. Mom’s too-smooth face was hard to read, but her disapproval oozed from her pores. Dad just looked confused.
“What do you mean, failed?” he asked. Like it wasn’t possible.
“I mean, we lost everything.” I didn’t mention that Ian had lied to me, and I’d been too trusting to see it.
The concept behind our company had been my idea. I’d made a personal pitch to every investor. When it all blew up, my reputation blew up with it.
“Well,” Mom said after a long pause. Very long. “These things happen in business. But breaking up with Ian? Zandra, you can’t just throw away six years because of one setback.”
“It wasn’t just the business, Mom. We were wrong for each other. It’s over, okay? All of it. I packed up Chloe and my stuff, and we came home. I’ll need to find a new job and a new place to live. It’s going to be hard, but I can do it. You don’t need to worry.”
More uncomfortable silence.
Mom nodded slowly. “Maybe a few days away will be just what you two need. I’m sure you and Ian can work this out.”
“Did you not hear a single thing I said?”
“Gladys will get you set up in the guestroom,” she continued. “Though you’ll have to board your cat at a kennel.”
“That won’t be necessary,” I said firmly. “We’re not staying here.”
“Then where will you stay?”
“I was thinking a hotel for a few nights until I figure out something else. First thing I have to do is see Grandpa. Then I’ll look for work. Somebody’s got to be hiring, right? I can flip a burger if I have to.”
“Don’t be absurd,” Mom said. “You’ll stay here. And I’ll have a list of appropriate positions for you on Monday. I could’ve had it ready before now if you’d given me notice.”
“That’s not what I want, Mom. I’m doing this myself.”
Dad perked up. “We could put you in the Elevated Adventures main office.”
“Yes, Javi. That’s perfect. Fire that new receptionist. She’s useless—”
“Absolutely not!” I stood up. “Mom, you’re not firing someone because of me. I’m going to handle this myself, and I’ll find my own place too.”
Mom’s gaze went cold. “Then I don’t even see why you stopped by, Zandra. You didn’t bother to tell us about Ian or warn us you were on your way. You’ve made it clear you don’t need us. You never do.”
The familiar guilt trip hit right where it was supposed to. But I was too tired and emotionally raw to play this game today.
“I guess I’ll see you both later.”
Chloe meowed as I got back in the car. “Well, that went about as expected,” I told her, starting the engine.
Right now, what I really needed was a drink.