Her Wilde Marines (Wilde, Nevada 4)

Andrea folded her arms over her chest. “Sure, Mom. Everything was better in the good old days, but what about now?”

“All I’m asking is for you girls to give it a chance.” Her grandparents came out on their porch. Their smiles and waves made her feel a little better inside. “Grab your bags, sweethearts. You know you love staying here. Grandma told me on the phone that she baked you each a pie.”

“Apple for me, I bet.” Autumn grinned from ear to ear. “And chocolate for you, Andrea.”

Even her quiet daughter seemed to brighten up some with that news.

Uprooting the girls would be hard on them but Emma didn’t feel like she had much of a choice.

A fresh start would do them all good. Andrea and Autumn had been to Wilde on visits and seemed to like the town, but didn’t know about living there permanently.

“How’re my two favorite angels today?” her grandfather asked her girls. They ran to him, nearly knocking his cane, which was his constant companion since his hip replacement surgery.

“We’re great, Grandpa.” Autumn held on tight.

“Yes, we are.” Andrea let go quickly. Her dour demeanor of disinterest returned, but Emma knew it was more act than reality. Andrea was crazy about her great-grandparents.

“Be careful, girls.” Her grandmother gave them both a kiss on their cheeks. “You don’t want to knock Grandpa down. I’m not sure we’d be able to get him back up on his feet again.”

“Helen, I’m as good as I’ve ever been.” Her grandfather rubbed his white beard. He’d played Santa in town for years and had stopped shaving it off after the New Year’s long ago. Father Christmas suited him just fine. “How about I take these little ladies in for some of your delicious pie?”

Andrea’s eyes lit up. “Yes. Please.”

“Okay, but only little pieces. I don’t want to ruin your dinner. We’re having fried chicken.”

Emma smiled. “Grandma, you shouldn’t spoil them so much.”

“Hush, Em. They’re my great-granddaughters and I love spoiling them rotten.” The dear woman turned to her husband. “Take them inside, Leland. It’ll give me and Em a chance to talk.”

“My pleasure, sweetheart.” Grandpa put his arms around her girls and walked into the home Emma’s father had grown up in.

“How about we take a load off, child.” Grandma walked over to the porch swing and sat down. She patted the seat next to her.

Oh boy. Here it comes.

They sat in silence for several minutes, taking in the view. North Dakota always looked beautiful, but in the winter, with a fresh layer of snow on the ground, it looked amazing.

She imagined what it was like when her dad had been a child playing in the yard. Much the same, no doubt. North Dakota didn’t change, but her fathe

r certainly had.

Dad.

Her memories of him were a mixed bag that was filled with happy times and terrible times. He’d suffered with schizophrenia for years. When he was on his meds he’d been amazing. The best times of her life had been in Wilde before her dad had left her mother and returned to North Dakota. His slippery slope had ended tragically. Her grandparents had tried to help him but his delusions had beaten him. He’d stolen a car and at nearly one hundred miles per hour had driven it into a tree in Oak Park, killing him instantly.

“Em, are you sure about moving back to Wilde?”

“Yes.” She hated to see tears welling up in her grandmother’s eyes.

“Why, honey? Your mom is gone now. Samantha and Lily are, too.” Her grandmother had suffered with her son and two granddaughters losing their battles to mental illness. “Family is what matters in these kind of situations. We need to pull together not apart, Em.”

“Grandma, I just have been so sad since Mom and Lily’s deaths. I miss home.”

“This is your home, too.”

“I know.”

“Please, baby, tell me why. Help me understand this.”