Pages of Our Past (Wisteria Creek #1)
Chapter 1
Blair
The sign for Welcome to Wisteria Creek looked smaller than I remembered. The trees dusted with the familiar shades of orange and red, hinting that fall was approaching. My perspective may have changed. Years away would do that, shrink the place you ran from until it barely resembled the memory.
I tightened my grip on the steering wheel and forced myself to breathe. The hum of tires on asphalt, the steady pulse of my heart, the GPS gently announcing, “You’ve arrived”. All of it was real now. No more hiding behind deadlines or temporary sublets or half-finished novels. I was home.
My best friend Madison’s house sits at the end of a quiet cul-de-sac, porch light glowing like an open invitation.
I cut the engine and sat briefly, letting the silence settle around me.
A new chapter, I told myself. Not the old one.
This wasn’t the same story. The door opened before I could knock.
“Finally!” Madison, very pregnant and barefoot, stood with arms wide and a grin full of warmth.
I melted into the hug. “God, I missed you.”
“I missed you more. Come in. The baby’s kicking like she knows her honorary aunt has arrived.”
Inside smelled like lavender and fresh cookies. Madison had always made things feel safe.
As I dropped my duffel bag in the entryway, Madison observed me. “You okay?”
I smiled too quickly. “I’m fine.”
Madison didn’t push. She offered tea and gossip, and I let myself breathe again for the first time in weeks.
Later that night, restless and curious, I slipped out for a walk. The streets felt familiar in a ghostly way. My feet led me toward downtown before I even realized it.
The glow of The Hollow Tap lit up the corner. New name. Old building.
I pushed open the door and the past crashed into me in the form of broad shoulders, warm brown eyes, unkempt chestnut hair and a voice I hadn’t heard in eight years.
“Blair Cunningham?”
Greyson Shaw.
I swallowed. “Hey, Grey.”
He blinked like he didn’t believe it. Then slowly, like molasses and moonlight, he smiled.