Chapter Three
It’s Amnesty Week at the library! You can return those overdue books with no fines!
And if you bring in a canned food or any other items for the local food pantry’s list on our website, any past fines will go away.
Remember, if you don’t have any overdue fines, you can still donate and the library staff will forgive the fines of your neighbors!
—Wayward Harbor Online Community Group
Lucy gave Nick the abridged version of how her life had fallen apart while they put the groceries away. She talked fast in a steady voice, just wanting to get through it.
She told him about meeting a nice guy and sharing a coffee and some conversation.
About her face being all over the tabloids and the internet the next day.
About being blamed for destroying a fairy-tale romance and making Faith Lincoln cry.
For costing a football team and their fans a fancy trophy.
About how the toxicity chipped away at everything until she had nothing left.
“Don’t these things blow over pretty fast?” he asked when she stopped talking. “Some other celebrity will get arrested for a DUI or one of them will say something they shouldn’t in an interview and you’re forgotten.”
“That’s what usually happens. I happened to get sucked into a drama with a very dedicated fanbase, so it hasn’t really died down. They’ll get distracted by something else eventually, I guess. I hope.”
“I can understand wanting to get away for a few days, but packing your life into your car seems extreme.”
“When everything blew up, I told myself the same thing you said—it’ll blow over soon.
But then the team lost and it blew up again.
And Faith Lincoln did interviews and it blew up again.
Even though I was one of the best servers he had, my boss fired me because crowds were coming in to get photos or videos of me.
My roommate threw me out. My friends tried to be supportive, but then they got caught up in the likes and the views and cared more about going viral talking about me than actually talking to me.
Once my mom let her boyfriend throw me out, I felt really alone. ”
“That sounds hard,” he said in a soft voice. “I’m sorry you didn’t have the support you should have.”
Tears blurred Lucy’s vision, and she blinked a few times.
“Thank you. I’m not trying to get sympathy, I promise.
I just wanted you to know that I didn’t come here to hide, really.
Sure, I wanted to hide for a few days and get some love and blueberry pancakes from my grandmother, but I brought everything I own because I know I don’t want to be in Las Vegas anymore. ”
“I went there once, for a friend’s bachelor party, and I don’t ever want to be in Las Vegas again, either.”
That made her laugh because she hadn’t known him long, but she could have guessed that about him. “I liked the city itself, honestly. I thought I had my mom and a lot of good friends, but then, when I really needed them, I found out my circle was quantity, and not quality.”
“So you’re not running away from anything. You’re running to something.”
She smiled, trying to pretend she didn’t have an escaped tear running down her cheek. “Thank you for understanding.”
“Also, Noonan’s a mediocre quarterback at best, but he’s got good receivers able to catch the junk passes he throws. And they wouldn’t even have made postseason if they didn’t have one of the best defenses in the league.”
“I don’t know what all of that means, but thank you for thinking he’s mediocre. That actually makes me feel better.”
Nick handed her a slip of paper with a phone number on it. “That wasn’t my brother who called while we were at Pete’s. It was Helen. She was worried about you and has been trying to reach you, so I told her why you hadn’t responded.”
“So she knows, then.”
“It seems so. She said you could video call her because they’re having a quiet day in today.”
“Thank you,” she whispered, looking at the digits on the paper. It wasn’t the way she’d wanted to be reunited with Gran, but it would have to do.
“I was going to do some work on the bedroom, but I can do some yard work so you have privacy.”
She shook her head. “You already know everything, anyway, but I appreciate the offer.”
Once he’d gone into the small bedroom and closed the door, Lucy sat on the couch and took a few deep breaths.
If Gran wanted her out of the cottage, Nick probably would have delivered the bad news on her behalf, but she couldn’t be sure.
Maybe her grandmother wanted to let her down gently, and not through a third party.
Before she could talk herself into burrowing back into her blanket cocoon and calling later, Lucy saved the number into her contacts and then hit the button for a video call.
Her grandmother’s smiling face filled the screen a moment later, getting a little blurry when tears shimmered in Lucy’s eyes.
“Lucy! How are you, honey?”
“Better now,” she said honestly.
“Look at you in my cottage! I’m sorry I’m not there to hug you, but it makes me so happy seeing you there. Are you settling in okay?”
Lucy shook off the dismay she’d felt at being recognized in town. “I am. Nick took me to breakfast at Pete’s and then we went to the market.”
Even though she deliberately kept her voice light, Helen peered closer at the screen. “Did it go okay? Are you and Nick getting on okay?”
“Yes. He’s great, actually.” If a little on the grumpy side. “One of the girls in town—Felicity, I think her name was—recognized me, but Nick didn’t let her take a picture or video. I’m afraid I’m going to bring all that toxicity here.”
“Don’t even worry about it. Word will get around town you’re my granddaughter and they’ll watch over you, and that mess will all blow over.”
Lucy had been telling herself that for weeks and it hadn’t yet, but she nodded. Then she heard voices in the background on Helen’s end, and her grandmother held up a finger to tell somebody off camera to wait.
“Sorry about that. We’re supposed to have an at-home day to relax after all that driving, but there’s a big flea market a couple of towns over, and you know how it is.”
“I won’t keep you. I just wanted to talk to you and make sure it’s really okay if I stay here while you’re gone.”
“Of course it is! I’ve missed you so much, honey. Video chats and phone calls aren’t the same, but coming to visit you or having you come here for a holiday would have meant maintaining a relationship with Iris, and…well, we’re not close.”
Lucy wasn’t sure why, exactly, but she didn’t push. “I’m here now, and I promise I’ll stay until you get back. But don’t cut your vacation short for me. I’m looking forward to relaxing in Wayward Harbor for a while.”
Once they’d disconnected, Lucy flopped against the back of the couch and blew out a long breath. Until she’d felt the warmth and love coming through the video call, she’d been afraid Gran would be upset by having a relative she hadn’t seen in over fifteen years just show up without invitation.
It was going to be okay.
Probably. A lot hinged on how quickly the Fairee debacle faded away and, if it flared up again, how much Nick was willing to tolerate.
“I’m done,” she called to him. “You know, just in case you were being quiet because I was on the phone.”
Rather than firing up a power tool, Nick left the bedroom and walked over to the fridge for a soda before turning to face her. “How’d it go?”
“Really good. I convinced her not to change her plans, but she said I could stay for as long as I need to, and she said you’d already agreed?”
He nodded, though he didn’t look all that happy about it. But Lucy couldn’t tell if he regretted agreeing or if it was just his Resting Grumpy Face.
“It’ll be fun,” she promised. “I know you haven’t seen me at my best, but I’m actually a very happy, positive person, and I’ll be an awesome roommate.”
“That’s great to hear.” He looked at her for a few seconds and then gestured back toward the bedroom. “I’m just going to go…pound nails with a hammer or something.”
“Okay, I’ll probably—” She looked around the cottage. She’d been about to say she’d clean something, but everything was already very tidy. “I should start going through the stuff in my car.”
“If you need a hand carrying anything in, just shout.”
She nodded and watched him disappear into the small bedroom, closing the door behind him. Then she poured herself a glass of water, leaning against the counter to drink it.
It was time to unpack her car and start sorting out a new life for herself.
She wasn’t sure what it would look like, but for now it was sleeping on the couch that belonged to her grandmother who wasn’t around.
And sharing the cottage with a very attractive, but also very grumpy, man who was barely tolerating her presence.
Maybe she’d go through the stuff in her car and bring in the things she needed for now, but she decided against totally unpacking.
That girl in town had recognized her. And Nick might have kept her from taking a picture, but she was going to tell all of her friends—and probably the entire internet—and word would spread.
Gran and Nick might claim they were willing to put up with it, but they didn’t know how bad it could actually get, and she wouldn’t do that to either of them.
She might have to leave, and the idea was so exhausting, Lucy decided to put off the car for now. Instead, she grabbed a random cozy mystery paperback from Gran’s bookshelf and curled up in a blanket on the couch.
Tomorrow she would unpack the car and find her passwords so she could put the apps back on her phone. She didn’t want to, but it was the only way to see if the world had finally moved on, or if the ugliness was going to follow her to Wayward Harbor.
Tomorrow, she thought, opening the book to chapter one.
* * *
It was too quiet.
Nick set the coping saw on his makeshift workbench and listened. A woman dragging bags and boxes into the house should lead to some screen door banging, if nothing else.