Chapter 2 #2
“Every single day. Even when he’s driving me crazy, even when we fight, even when he’s being an absolute boob about something, my gut still says I made the right choice. Underneath all that armor, he’s a good man, and I love him with all my heart.”
Despite the heaviness of their discussion, Jewel found herself smiling. “How do you do it? How do you navigate his relationship with his mother, with Cole, and all that family history?”
Sylvie chuckled. “Very carefully. And with a lot of patience. Conrad’s got wounds that still haven’t healed. Maybe they never will completely. The best I can do is love him through it and not take it personally when he lashes out.”
“That sounds exhausting.”
“Sometimes it is. But it’s also worth it. Because when he lets his guard down, when it’s just us, Della, and the ranch, that’s when I see who he really is. And that man is worth fighting for.”
For a moment, they sat silently, letting the background hum of other conversations fill the space around them.
Then Sylvie picked up her cup and peered over the rim at her. “Can I give you some advice?”
“Sure. I could use some.”
“You should trust your gut about Cole. But at the same time, protect yourself. Keep your eyes open. And if your gut ever changes its mind, if you ever feel like something’s off, then listen to that, too. Being in love doesn’t mean being reckless about it.”
She smiled wryly. “Is that what I am? In love?”
Sylvie’s returning smile was knowing. “Oh, honey, I’ve seen the way you look at him when you think no one’s watching. And the way he looks at you, too. Whatever it is, it’s sure as heck not casual.”
Before she could respond, the bell over the door chimed, and a familiar figure walked in.
Ashley Meyers was dressed in her usual style—Wranglers, boots, and a fitted western shirt, with her reddish-blond hair pulled back in a ponytail. She spotted them immediately, her face breaking into a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes.
As she approached their table, her eyes briefly flicked to Sylvie with curiosity. “Jewel! I thought that was you. Where have you been hiding? I’ve been trying to call you.”
Her phone had been showing missed calls from Ashley all week, but she ignored them, not ready to face whatever new accusations or theories Ashley wanted to bring up.
She smiled back, maintaining a neutral tone. “I’ve just been busy with Beckett and Susan.”
Ashley’s expression changed to what looked like genuine concern. “Right, Susan’s surgery must be coming up soon. How’s she doing?”
“As well as can be expected.”
Turning her attention to Sylvie, Ashley offered her hand. “Hi, I’m Ashley. Friend of the family.”
The handshake was brief. “Sylvie. Cole’s brother’s wife.”
Ashley’s eyebrows rose. “Cole’s brother? I didn’t know he was in town.”
Jewel chose to steer the conversation before Ashley began asking too many questions. “They just arrived yesterday. Conrad’s here to help with his mother’s recovery.”
Ashley pulled out a chair and plopped into it uninvited. “That’s good. The family should stick together during times like this. Especially with everything that’s happened.”
She felt her stomach tighten. Here it comes.
Leaning forward, Ashley lowered her voice to a conspiratorial whisper. “Have you found out anything new? About Vivian?”
“Nothing concrete. I’m just following up on a few leads.” The lie slipped out surprisingly easily.
“Like, what kind of leads?”
“I don’t want to discuss this right now. There’s still a lot to investigate.” She took a sip of her latte, using the movement to avoid Ashley’s intense gaze.
“So you’re still investigating? You haven’t given up?”
“No, I haven’t given up.”
Ashley nodded, seemingly satisfied. “Good. Because someone needs to find out what really happened to her. Someone needs to make sure Cole doesn’t just get away with—”
“Stop! I’m not going to have this conversation. Not here, not now.” Her voice was deliberately sharp.
The other woman leaned back, hurt evident on her face. “I’m just trying to help. Viv was my best friend. I owe it to her to do what I can.”
“I know. And I appreciate that you care, but I need you to let me do my job.”
An uncomfortable silence fell over the table. Sylvie sipped her coffee with a neutral expression, but Jewel could feel the woman’s sharp focus taking in every detail of the exchange.
Finally, Ashley stood. “Okay. I get it. But please, Jewel, if you find anything, you’ll tell me, right? I have a right to know what happened to my friend.”
“If I find something I can share, I will. I promise.”
Ashley nodded, but her face showed she wasn’t fully convinced. “Keep in touch, okay? Don’t be a stranger.”
“I won’t.”
Ashley walked over to the counter, ordered her coffee to go, and then left, the bell ringing behind her.
Sylvie watched the retreating figure. “Friend of yours?”
Jewel rubbed her temples, feeling a headache coming on. She’d had a faint hope that she and Ashley might start a friendship, but now she wasn’t so sure. “She’s more like a complication. That’s Ashley Meyers, Vivian’s best friend. She’s convinced that Cole is responsible for her disappearance.”
“I noticed you didn’t tell her what you found out about Trevor.”
“No.”
Sylvie tilted her head. “Why not?”
She thought about the question. “Because she’d find a way to use it against him. She’d twist it somehow to prove that he drove Vivian away, that he was controlling or abusive or something. She wouldn’t see it for what it is. Evidence that Vivian made her own choice to leave.”
Sylvie nodded slowly. “That was smart of you.”
“You think so?”
Sylvie’s somber eyes met hers. “I do. Because my gut is telling me there’s something about that woman I don’t trust. I can’t put my finger on it, but she sets off warning bells in my head.”
“She’s just protective of Vivian’s memory.”
Sylvie leaned forward, her voice serious. “Maybe. Or maybe she’s got her own agenda. Either way, watch your back around her. A woman who’s that determined to prove someone is guilty won’t take kindly to evidence that points the other way.”
Jewel felt a chill run down her spine because Sylvie was right.
Ashley was so fixated on Cole being the villain that she refused to consider any other possibility.
And if she could prove that Vivian had left of her own free will—that she’d abandoned her son for another man—well, Ashley wouldn’t just be angry at being wrong.
She’d be devastated that her best friend had lied to her, making her an unwitting accomplice in a deception.
And people in pain did unpredictable things.
“I will. Watch my back, I mean.”
“Good.” Sylvie finished her coffee and got up. “Now come on. Let’s get the groceries back before Conrad starts wondering if we’ve run off to Mexico together.”
As they got back into the car, Jewel started thinking about what Sylvie had said—about trusting her gut, about staying open to love while still protecting herself, and about the difference between being cautious and paranoid.
When she looked up, she saw Ashley watching them from across the parking lot through her truck window, her phone pressed to her ear, her expression unreadable.
She started the engine and pulled onto the main road, but couldn’t shake the feeling that something had changed. That by not telling Ashley what she’d discovered, she might have just made an enemy.
Or maybe the enemy had been there all along.
Sylvie finished buckling her seatbelt. “You okay?”
“Yeah. Just thinking.”
“About?”
“About how three days suddenly feels like a very long time.”
Sylvie looked back toward town, at where Ashley’s truck was still parked. “Yeah. It does.”
They drove back to Susan’s house in silence, each lost in their own thoughts.
Neither of them noticed the dark sedan that pulled out two cars behind them, following at a cautious distance.