Chapter Two
~Willa~
Rolling green hills still shining with dew from the crisp morning weather and leafy trees greeted Willa as she pushed her car from one county to the next. The drive from Florida had been a long and sometimes arduous one. She knew going in that a solo, forty-six hour trip wasn’t going to be all fun and games, but she didn’t expect the seemingly permanent numbness in her ass and the crick in her lower back from sitting almost all day over the last week.
Apparently, all it took was a few hours on the road to turn her body, strong and lithe from a steady routine of yoga and Pilates, into one of an octogenarian. Stretching her neck and shoulders as much as she could while keeping a firm grip on the steering wheel, Willa tried to remind herself why the aches and pains that had accompanied her on the almost week-long journey were worth it.
Leaving Florida had been crucial to Willa’s survival. While she had been physically safe from harm in the sunshine state, her mental health was almost always in danger. Jeff, her ex and one of the biggest assholes known to man, still lived in Orlando where, up until last week, Willa had also resided. Though they had been broken up for more than a year, there were still traces of him all over the city, acting as little landmines that would blow up in Willa’s face when she least expected them to.
Boom! A memory of getting told she looked “cheap” in her dress whenever she walked past her former favorite night club would throw her for a loop. Bam! Being called “ridiculous” for accidentally leaving her phone on the kitchen counter had her stumbling at the sight of the same color granite at the home improvement store. Kablooey! Arriving at one of her favorite eateries would turn into her staving off a panic attack when everything on the menu screamed at her about calories, fat content, and how much exercise she would have to do to “earn it.” Toxic remnants of her old relationship were sprinkled all over the place. No amount of therapy, meditation, or breathing exercises could get Willa to unsee them.
The relationship with Jeff hadn’t always been so awful, but Willa should have realized that it wasn’t healthy a lot sooner. It started off as normally as any other relationship would have, with the two of them having met at the gym. Jeff had set up his stretching mat next to Willa’s and struck up a conversation about Disney World when he noticed the faded cartoon mouse on her workout shirt. When she had mentioned that she hadn’t once visited the theme park despite having lived in Orlando for the better part of five years, Jeff claimed it was an egregious mistake that he would fix immediately. Two days later, he took her there on their first date.
The whole place had been as magical as the commercials claimed it to be, and the entire day had felt like her very own fairy tale come true. An attractive, successful guy was on Willa’s arm the entire time, using his connections as a hedge fund manager to get them into the nicest restaurants at the resort when normally they were booked out for months in advance, spoiling her with big purchases at the gift shops, and not once paying attention to anyone else. He’d only had eyes for her, and when the kiss they’d shared at the end of the night knocked her socks off, Willa thought it was the beginning of something wonderful.
From that first date, things progressed simply enough. They saw each other more often, and time seemed to fly by with Jeff taking her out on more elaborate dates as more of Willa’s belongings started to find a home in his lavish apartment. She’d even met his parents. The older couple had seemed pleasant at first, though Willa never felt at ease in their presence with Jeff’s father always seeming a little too controlling of his mother. He would order his wife to refill his drink and she would wait until he started eating before taking a bite for herself.
The odd behavior never sat right with Willa, but she hadn’t thought more on it. In hindsight, it was the first of many red flags that she’d chosen to ignore, either out of fear of making a mistake by leaving when Jeff seemed so good for her or maybe what it said about her if she stayed despite seeing things for what they really were. Willa would later come to realize that Jeff’s parents were probably why her relationship with their son eventually evolved to look eerily similar, because he’d only had them as an example growing up, letting it mold how he viewed love and women.
After dating for six months, Jeff moved her into his apartment, his logic that they spent most of their time together anyway making sense to Willa despite her still wanting to have her own space. Any unease she felt was pushed aside because it was a smart move financially and more than that, it would be stupid to pass on such a great guy, right? Everyone told her how lucky she had been to land him and what a great catch her boyfriend was due to his money and connections, so she moved in. Two months later when she lost her job as an administrative assistant, Jeff told her to just work for him. He worked from home most days. This way, they could spend more time together. Again, it had sounded like a good idea at the time, logical even, so Willa went along with it, not knowing it was the start of a slow slide into something very unhealthy.
Soon Jeff chose Willa’s clothes to make her look more “professional” whenever she would accompany him to the office or to dinner, insisting that the two of them only workout in his apartment gym and not the one they’d met at because it was “more private,” and ordering meal kits instead of eating at their favorite restaurants to “keep themselves slim.” All of the changes had been made incrementally, so Willa didn’t truly notice any of it until she had been talking to her good friend Lottie, who had mentioned her recent trip to Seattle to go see a musical.
It had been an innocent statement, Lottie filling her in on something notable that had occurred since the last time they had talked, but it shook something loose in Willa’s brain. Other than going to the office with Jeff and another trip to Disney World, she hadn’t left his apartment in almost a month. He ordered groceries and called a housekeeper to tidy the space. Meanwhile, Willa would stay home and do nothing more than serve his coffee, iron his shirts, and praise him for all of his hard work.
As Lottie continued to tell Willa about her short vacation, she tried to remember when she had last been outside, felt the sun on her face and breathed in the ocean air, recalling all the times she mentioned wanting to go out only for Jeff to make some excuse as to why she had to stay, why the world outside his apartment was no good for her unless he could be there for protection. He had framed it as being in Willa’s best interest, but really it had been about controlling her. Willa had slipped into her new role as submissive, doting partner slowly. Yet the realization that she had become a shadow of her former self hit her like a ton of bricks.
Willa had dropped the phone while Lottie was still talking, remembering the call only after eventually hearing the panic in her friend’s voice reaching out through the speaker as Willa sobbed into her hands. Once she’d calmed down enough to talk, she told Lottie what she had discovered about herself and jumped to her feet when Lottie told her to pack up her things and leave immediately. Willa had kept Lottie on the line as she rushed around the apartment, trying to grab whatever was hers and throw it in a bag, only to discover that most of the “pre-Jeff” belongings she’d owned had either been donated or disposed of without her knowledge or consent.
Grateful that she at least had the good sense to always keep a stash of cash on hand for emergencies in her dresser, Willa grabbed the money, enough clothes to get her through however long she needed until she could find a new job, and left. To say that the weeks and months after her departure had been rough would be an understatement. There had been a lot of arguing with Jeff, him trying to convince her that she was making a mistake and harassing her with phone calls and unannounced visits to the point of Willa taking out a restraining order against him, and a lot of struggling to find a job as she slept in her childhood bedroom.
It didn’t help that Willa’s mom pestered her every day about why she left such a great guy. Willa had gone from one bad situation to another, albeit slightly better one. Only when she got a job with a temp agency and started going to therapy did Willa start to feel better. Getting out and into the real world again did wonders for her. Her therapist helped her realize that, while there may have been some red flags that Willa had ignored, what happened with Jeff wasn’t her fault and she could move past it. She had started to, but after living with her parents in the same city that held a lot of awful memories and very few good ones, Willa decided she needed a fresh start.
It only took one phone call to Lottie and mention of wanting a change for her friend to offer up one of her spare rooms to Willa. She and Lottie had been roommates during their freshman year in college. They became best friends instantly, and stayed that way, despite Lottie moving back home to her small town during their sophomore year, and Willa staying at Florida State to finish her degree. Willa was so glad that they had kept in touch, even more so when she realized that she could start fresh with a friend by her side. Washington was going to be a big change from sun-drenched Florida, but she was ready to say bon voyage to warm weather and embrace the dampness of the Pacific Northwest if it meant getting to start over. As a bonus, she had gotten to see a lot of the country along the way.
The drive had taken Willa through major cities she had never visited before, past huge landmarks like the St. Louis Arch and Mt. Rushmore, things she had only seen in pictures, but more impressive than any of those had been the sheer amount of beautiful landscape that she had driven through. Grasslands, prairies, mountains, forests, rivers, and lakes. It had all been gorgeous. The time it took to move across the country had been exactly what she needed to clear her head of all the mess that was left behind from the time she and Jeff were together.
Willa knew the work of accepting what happened and moving past it would never really be done, but she had come a long way. There were still the occasional triggers for her, but she navigated them much more easily now. Of course, she hadn’t even been on a date since the end of that relationship, too nervous about falling back into something toxic, but Willa was sure she would get there eventually . Hopefully eventually came soon because, while she wasn’t sure she was ready for a real relationship, she had started to feel a bit lonely. Company of the male variety was something she sorely missed.
Willa’s phone chimed just as she approached the border of Applewood, the small town she would now call home. Chuckling at her best friend’s always impeccable timing, Willa accepted the call she knew was from Lottie without a single glance away from the road. “Do you have a tracker on my car or what?”
An excited gasp preceded the smoky voice of her best friend. “Why? Are you close? Oh my God, Willa, I cannot even begin to tell you how excited I am that you’re going to be my roommate again. I love my house and I love my town, but it will be so much more fun having you here with me.”
Willa steered around a gentle curve, noting that the evergreens that lined the main road created a thick wall and obstructed her view of the town. “Not sure how much fun I’ll be,” she scoffed. “Until I find a job, most of my time will be spent hitting the streets, not having pajama parties and painting my nails like in those movies you love so much.” Lottie loved romances from the 1940s and 50s, which was fitting since she looked like a pinup from that same era, but Willa needed to be practical and get a source of income before she started relaxing with her friend.
Lottie grumbled on the other end. “Don’t knock a pajama party until we’ve had one. Though I maintain that you don’t need a job to stay with me, I happen to have made some headway on that front for you. If you’re interested, that is.”
Smiling, Willa turned off the interstate and followed the bright green sign with a cartoon apple that was pointing her toward the center of Applewood. As it flashed past the corner of her eye, Willa felt like she hadn’t just been transported to another town, but maybe even another time where people were kinder to one another. It might have been one of the more whimsical notions she’d had of late, but Willa could use a little of that small-town magic after the last few years of turmoil.
“I’m not interested in mooching off of you, so yes, I am still interested.” Even though Lottie may be able to cover her rent for her and would never use that fact against her, Willa didn’t want to feel like anyone held anything over her ever again. “Is it legit, or did you get this from your gossip network?” In addition to tending bar at a local brewery, Lottie put together the town newsletter and seemed to have connections with just about everyone in the area.
A strangled garble came through the speaker. “I am offended that you would reduce my contacts to mere gossipmongers. Yes, I did get it from them, but I checked and it is legitimate.” She clucked her tongue disapprovingly. “I’m not sure how much fun it will be to work for Mayor Kemp, but this town is small. Beggars can’t be choosers.”
The last name she mentioned niggled at the back of Willa’s brain until it triggered an epiphany. “Isn’t that the guy you’re always complaining about?”
“Yes,” Lottie replied immediately and emphatically. Willa could practically hear the steam coming out of her friend’s ears anytime she mentioned the man, but she could also hear the wistfulness in her tone. Whatever was going on between Lottie and the mayor was definitely a story that needed to be told, but it was also one her friend refused to talk about. “But I seem to be the only person in town he has an actual problem with. He’s friendly to everyone else, though I guess as the mayor, he kind of has to be.” A thoughtful beat passed before Lottie spoke again. “Would you be okay doing admin work again? I know you were taking a break after you-know-who.”
Willa hummed in reply, wondering if maybe it wasn’t the best idea to be someone’s assistant again, but she really enjoyed the work before Jeff had tainted the experience with his toxicity, and she hadn’t done much actual work for him beyond being his gopher. Go for my coffee, Willa. Go get me those copies, Willa. She shuddered slightly at the memory of it. That had been hard, but getting to help someone keep their day organized and being at the hub of activity had always been fun for her, and helping the mayor would allow her to meet so many new people, something she’d missed dearly over the last few years.
“I think that sounds like a great idea, actually,” Willa replied, willing to at least try in that arena again. “Let’s talk more when I get there. I’m just approaching downtown right now.”
“Yay! See you soon,” Lottie squealed.
Willa’s mouth pulled into a wide grin at her friend’s enthusiasm. After she clicked off the call, she switched her phone over to start pumping her hype music through the car speakers. She’d always loved listening to different types of music and singing along as loudly as possible, but she also needed to for her recovery. Hearing lyrics about moving on, getting better day by day, and becoming her own person again had helped Willa immensely. After thinking about Jeff so much over the last part of the drive, she could use a refresher.
Rolling down her windows, Willa took her first breath of fresh air in hours as a gritty bass line blared throughout the car, signaling the beginning of Britney Spears’s Stronger. As other instruments and a melodious voice joined it, Willa slapped the wheel rhythmically to the girl power anthem as she took in the sights of Main Street. Small shops stood among tree-lined streets, like the quaint little town Lottie always described it as. People scattered among the sidewalks, stopping to greet one another and probably share a little gossip as well.
Soon enough, Willa got too lost in the music to notice anything else, her voice straining as she belted out lyrics that boasted about being stronger than yesterday and her loneliness no longer killing her as she pulled up to a stoplight. As she waited for it to change back to green, her body joined in on the fun, twisting and moving along with the beat. Her complete lack of coordination and grace were a concern for another time as Willa let her arms flail around and her head bob wildly, stands of golden hair falling over her face like a curtain.
Only when the song ended and she heard clapping did Willa realize that she had an audience. Reluctantly, she brushed aside her now tangled locks and peeked through her open window. Her eyes widened at the sight of an incredibly handsome man giving her a nod of appreciation as he brought his manly hands together in applause. Light brown hair fell in his eyes and a warm expression painted his face as he gazed back at her. He could easily have been mocking Willa, but despite her rather embarrassing display, his smile was genuine.
Still, Willa’s cheeks flushed, the warmth spreading down her neck at the attention, but she had enough bravery left to give a mock bow. The man’s mouth opened as if to speak to her, but a horn honking behind the two of them signaled the light change. It was time to get moving. With a shrug at the attractive stranger and one last wistful glance in his direction, Willa drove off toward her new home as she giggled at herself, idly wondering if she would ever see the man again.