Chapter 26 #2
Her mother released an impatient breath. What? She picked up the folio and shook it at her daughter. “Let’s go. Get copies printed.”
“You can go ahead and give that to Nate.”
Her mom’s expression didn’t change. For a moment, she simply studied Willa, as though waiting for her daughter to break.
But I’m not going to do that.
She’d never been surer about anything.
And her mother must’ve seen that because she reached for her phone. “Nate,” she said when the call connected. “You’re the lead on the AgriCore merger. Conference room in five minutes.”
She ended the call and set the phone down.
Then she picked up another document from the stack on her desk.
A flash of disappointment hit before Willa remembered she didn’t care. Not one bit.
Of course, her mom wouldn’t try to stop her from blowing up her career. The conversation was done.
So many years of wanting her mom, and it all ended in this moment.
She might never have the kind of mother she wanted, but she had the best dad in the world. She had friends. She had a whole community waiting for her two thousand miles away. “Bye, Mom.” She turned and walked out of the office.
The hallway outside buzzed with quiet urgency. Associates were moving quickly toward the conference room, murmuring over notes and briefing packets.
As she passed her office, she stopped to look in.
Did she need anything? Other than the sweater she bought in Paris slung across a chair, the Columbia University mug, and the Montblanc pen she got when she joined the firm, there wasn’t much.
Her gaze landed on the only photograph placed on her bookcase.
Flashing a big smile, she wore her cap and gown.
But what really stood out was that she was alone.
You know what? I was lonelier in this life with my mom than in my childhood without her.
When she hit the lobby, she took a few moments to say goodbye to Spencer. And then, it was time to go.
She had a world of planning to do—hire movers, update her mailing address, and let her landlord know she was leaving. But all of that would have to wait.
Because she had a pie-throwing competition to help organize.
And why did something that silly make her so excited?
Just as she neared the revolving door, she heard someone call her name.
She turned to see her sister hurrying toward her.
“Willa, wait.” Her heels clicked too fast against the marble.
Perfect, polished Kendall—except her hair was slightly off, like she’d just jogged over from Central Park.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “I didn’t know you’d been seeing him.
Not at first. And once I did, he and Mom made it clear you weren’t really into him. ”
So, we’re doing this? “No, I wasn’t.” And since we are… “But once you found out…why the hell would you keep seeing him? He lied to you.”
“He didn’t, though. As soon as we talked about being exclusive, he told me.”
“Again, why would you keep seeing a man I’ve slept with?”
“Because I love him. I want a future with him. But that doesn’t mean you have to quit. We can work this out.”
“There’s nothing to work out.” Willa realized it was true—she didn’t hold even a hint of anger or resentment toward her sister. “I promise I don’t care about any of that.”
Kendall stood there, confused. “Then why would you walk away from the opportunity to work on the biggest merger in history?”
“Because I just don’t care about it anymore.”
“I don’t understand. Have you lined up another job?” Kendall seemed almost panicked. “Because no other firm is going to give you the opportunity you’ve got here.”
Willa’s smile faded. Her sister was still in the sticky web their mom cast to keep them close. “I do have something lined up. I’m going to be the general manager of the Wild Rose.”
Kendall shook her head as if she wasn’t hearing her clearly. “But you’re a lawyer. And a damn good one.”
“I am, but I don’t want this life anymore.”
“What do you want?”
She didn’t feel any need to explain herself, to be understood. This world no longer mattered. Where she was going…that was the only place she cared to be.
But it had taken seeing her life from someone else’s perspective to shake her free, so it was worth giving the same advantage to her sister. “For three weeks in Calamity, I woke up happy and knowing I was loved. Every single morning. I’m not giving that up.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. What was the point of all this hard work if you’re just going to wear costumes and sing in a restaurant?”
“The point is figuring out who you are—and choosing that. Not who Mom wants you to be.”
“But then, you won’t have her in your life anymore. She’s not going to chase after you.”
It was a good opportunity to weigh how she felt about that.
And a great moment when she realized she didn’t care at all.
“If she decides to be my mom and not my boss or my life coach, then she can come to Calamity to spend time with me. And if she doesn’t?
I can live with that.” She reached out and squeezed her sister’s hand. “But you’re welcome to visit, okay?”
Kendall didn’t answer right away.
Willa didn’t wait for her to. She turned and walked toward the door.
She knew what was waiting on the other side and couldn’t wait to get there.