Chapter 32
CHAPTER 32
KIKI EMERSON
E llie pats my arm. “That’s perfect, dear.”
I finish hanging the string lights that Tobias and I bought at the craft store and climb down from the ladder. I take a step back to look at it. “It’s not crooked?”
Ellie shakes her head. She’s wearing a bright pink dress with a massive hat that matches. It totally suits her personality. I’m wearing the sunflower dress and sandals Tobias bought me, which makes me feel beautiful, even though I don’t deserve to feel that way. I’m a terrible person.
“No,” Ellie says, “it looks great. Come help me set up the classroom now.”
I walk into the other room with her. The tables and chairs are stacked at the back wall. “We had an event in here last night, so we need to re-assemble the room. Can you start unfolding the tables?”
“Of course.”
She beams at me. “You’re the sweetest thing, Miss Kiki. I’m so glad you moved to Willow Shade. Will you help me decorate for the Fourth of July? The island goes all out, and I need ideas for the gallery.”
I bite the inside of my cheek. I won’t be here for Fourth of July. “Sure,” I force out as I try not to fall apart.
Ellie and I walk to the back of the room, and she tugs on a table. “You and Tobias seem to be getting along well. I know you said you’re just friends, but I can’t help but think how nice you two look together.” She gives me the side-eye.
I knew this line of questioning would come. Ellie and Josephine are the town matchmakers. “He’s a really nice man.”
“And what a sweetheart of a child he has. A ready-made family for you.” She waggles her eyebrows. She has no idea she’s ripping my heart out as she speaks.
“Yes,” I manage to say while focusing on unfolding the table legs. Is this how Ellie has been approaching other young women on Willow Shade Island? Is this what she’ll do after I’m gone? Will she convince someone else to step into the role of mother for my little girl, and gain a ready-made family?
My fingers shake as I help Ellie pull the table upright. The thought of Tobias with another woman breaks my heart into a million pieces. I want that ready-made family so badly I bite my cheek until I taste blood.
“Are you okay, Miss Kiki?” Ellie asks. “You’re crying.”
I quickly wipe at my cheeks. “I am? I’m sorry. I was thinking about something sad.”
“Good gracious. What were you thinking about, darlin’?”
I wrack my brain trying to think of something sad that I can tell Ellie I was thinking about. Nothing comes to mind. All I can think about is Tobias and Skyler with someone else getting my ready-made family. “A dog that died,” I lie.
“Oh, sweetheart. That is sad.” Ellie picks up her end of the table and we move it across the room. “Was it your dog?”
“Yes. But that was a long time ago.” I never had a dog. I’m lying to a sweet old lady. I’m definitely sinking to a new low point.
We finish setting up the classroom and putting out all the table decorations I made. I walk to the front of the gallery and pull back the window shade to peek out. There’s a massive crowd outside. I’m sure everyone is hoping to catch a glimpse of Dustin Sawyer and Mackenzie Davenport. “Wow, do you see all these people?”
Ellie comes up behind me. “Goodness, are they all here for this event?”
I nod. “Looks like it.”
Ellie claps her hands. “You’re a genius!”
I laugh and shake my head. “It was all you, Miss Ellie.”
At about ten minutes to the hour Ellie opens the front door. She takes the tickets from all the people who signed up for the watercolor class with Mackenzie Davenport, and she lets them come in and take their seats. Everyone else crowds in to taste the wine that Savannah’s aunt made and to look at Mackenzie’s artwork. Ellie serves her cucumber sandwiches and other hors d’oeuvres, which are a big hit. At the top of the hour Josephine arrives in her red convertible, Mackenzie and Dustin in the backseat.
Josephine is a force to be reckoned with, pushing through the crowd to get to the car door to open it. They step out, and I’m delighted to see Mackenzie carrying a purse with a little dog inside. He’s the sweetest looking Chihuahua. He simply takes in all the people, staying inside Mackenzie’s purse. She pets the little dog and waves at the people. Her blonde hair is pulled back in a ponytail, and she’s wearing a simple blouse and jeans.
Josephine pushes her way through the crowd, parting the sea of people, so our guests of honor can come inside the gallery. Everyone has their cellphones out, taking pictures and videos as Mackenzie and Dustin make their way through the people to the classroom. Dustin doesn’t take his arm off Mackenzie, shielding her from the ruckus. It’s sweet how protective of her he is.
“Thank you all for coming,” Dustin says to the crowd, his movie star smile in place.
Ellie gave me a seat up front in the classroom, and I get a bit starstruck as Mackenzie starts her class. Dustin holds her dog as she teaches, and it is seriously making me swoon.
Mackenzie and her twin sister Jera have been in the celebrity news quite a bit over this last year, since they traded places, and Dustin Sawyer fell in love with Mackenzie thinking she was Jera. My heart warms to see how down-to-earth Mackenzie is, and how well she teaches watercolors.
She quickly runs through the basics, then shows us the painting we’re going to attempt. It’s a seaside landscape, much like what we’d see on Willow Shade Island. I wonder if she created it just for us.
I follow along as she shows how to paint the sky and the rocky shore. I’m amazed at how good mine looks when she finishes her instructions. Mackenzie comes up to me and assesses my finished painting. “Wow, you’re talented,” she says.
Heat rises to my cheeks. “Thank you.”
“What’s your name?”
“Kiki…Anderson.”
“Have you painted before?”
I shake my head. “No.”
“You should keep up with it.” She hands me a business card. “This code will get you into my online watercolor course for free. There are thirty classes in the course, and it covers all the basics into intermediate techniques. I can’t wait to see what you create.”
“Thank you.” My throat tightens as I look at the card she gave me. Mackenzie Davenport thinks I have talent. I’m flattered.
Mackenzie and Dustin spend another hour signing autographs and talking with the crowd. After the signing, they take their little dog and leave with Josephine. I check my phone, and I have thirty minutes before Tobias will come get me.
I help by cleaning up the classroom while Ellie sells paintings and sculptures in the other room. When we get a few minutes to chat, Ellie grabs my arm, grinning. “We’ve sold more today than we have the entire time we’ve been open! You were indispensable today. Thank you for all your help.”
My throat tightens and I hug her. “I was happy to do it.”
Ellie pulls out an envelope and hands it to me. “I wanted to give you a little something for all you’ve done for the gallery.”
I open the flap and peek inside. There are several hundred-dollar bills inside, probably around seven or eight of them. Guilt rises in my throat. I’ve been lying to this nice woman. I press the envelope back into Ellie’s hand. “I can’t take this.”
She shoves it back at me. “Of course you can, Miss Kiki. You worked hard today, and this is a small commission from what we’ve sold this morning.”
I bite the inside of my cheek. I don’t deserve this money. I don’t deserve her friendship, or anything else I’ve received on this island. The bitter realization comes to me. Everyone on this island will hate me when they find out who I am. All I’m doing is hurting them more the longer I stay.
The front door to the gallery opens, and Tobias walks in with Skyler. He’s wearing his jeans again. They must be designer, because they hug him in all the right places.
“Kiki!” Skyler yells and runs to me, grabbing my legs. “I rode a pony!”
“A real one?”
Tobias chuckles. “It was a merry-go-round pony.”
I slide the envelope in my dress pocket and give Skyler a hug. “That’s awesome.”
“Can you come to the boat race with us?” She looks up at me with her large, blue eyes. The trust in them takes me aback. This is who I will hurt when I leave. My own daughter. When I disappear Tobias will search for me. He will find out who I am. That means someday Skyler will know her mother abandoned her…twice.
“Yes,” I manage to say as the emotions surge in my throat. I have to get off this island before I do even more damage.
“Yippee!” Skyler claps her hands. “Can we go now?”
I glance at Ellie, who shoos me toward the door. “Of course,” Ellie says. “Go have fun.”
Skyler grabs my hand, and we walk out of the gallery, Tobias on our heels. We climb into the car, and Tobias drives us to the marina. Crowds of people are already there, staking claim to their small piece of the marina to watch the race.
Skyler tugs me to the spot she thinks is best. “Let’s watch it here,” she says as Tobias pulls out three camping chairs from the trunk of his car.
He walks over to us and places the chairs on the dock. I sit down and Skyler climbs on my lap. Tobias chuckles. “You don’t want your own chair?”
Skyler shakes her head. “No. I want to sit on Kiki’s lap.”
“All right.” He sits down next to me. As we wait for the race to start, Tobias puts his hand on my arm and gently squeezes it. “Thanks for coming to the race with us. It’s all Sky’s been talking about.”
I nod and hug Skyler close, breathing in the scent of her hair. This will be the last time I hold her. I have to memorize everything about her tonight. I’ll get up early and leave in the morning, before Tobias and the rest of the Barrett clan wake up.
“Kat, you okay?” Tobias asks softly.
“I’m fine,” I say, but even I can hear the lie. At least I’m not crying, like I did in front of Ellie.
“Let’s talk. Tonight. After Skyler goes to bed. Okay?” He squeezes my arm again, and my insides melt with his touch.
“Okay,” I say, even though talking with Tobias is the last thing I should be doing.
I reach into my pocket to pull out my phone, but it’s not there. All I have is the envelope of money Ellie gave me. I must have left it at the gallery. I’ll tell Tobias to swing by there on the way home. I want to leave it with all the clothes he bought me so he can return them or at least sell them to get some of his money back.
We watch the race together, like a family. I do what I can to burn the memories into my brain so I can carry them with me after everything evaporates. I know they ’ll all be hurt when I leave, but I’ve only been here for two weeks. They’ll forget about me.
They. Will. Forget. Me.
The thought rips my heart into a million pieces.