I wished I could be as free as she was, but I nodded anyway.
I smoothed a hand down my dress and felt the slight bump from the garters I wore underneath, a gift from my bestie.
“Too bad Matty didn’t show up,” she said absently.
I turned away, feeling a blush creep up my cheek. Her brother, Matt, was super hot and I’d crushed on him a long time.
She took a final look in the mirror after applying a little more lipstick. “Okay, it’s time to crush hearts.”
The place was packed, and I felt guarded and nervous. Lizzy went first to the bar and got us two shots each, which we downed before she pulled me onto the dance floor.
It wasn’t long before I let the beat dictate my movements. It was several shots later when I completely let loose. My hips as well as the rest of my body had their own mind.
It was one night. What could possibly happen in one night?
Him.
Sixteen
“Him?” Violet asked.
I nodded as if that was a good answer. “Like a dream, he just appeared. I couldn’t tell you what he said or even how I responded. But I let him lead me off the dance floor in a cataclysmic move that would forever change my life.”
Surprise filled her face and I realized I’d said too much.
“You slept with him?”
I shrugged. “Are you going to shame me for it?”
“No,” she said adamantly. “It just seems out of character even for you.”
It had been. I’d wrestled with it for days after. Thank God for Lizzy.
I continued and told her all about Scott, Kalen, and my job and how it landed me here. I even admitted that I still had lingering feelings for Kalen and that I still loved Turner. I just wasn’t sure yet if I was in love with him.
“So this Kalen lied to you?” she asked.
“It wasn’t like that,” I breathed and admitted what I had time to think about after my initial anger. “He was protecting himself. He’s rich and women would want that alone, but he’s also extremely handsome. He didn’t know me from anyone. In his own way, I think he wanted me to like him and not his money.”
She had sat down somewhere along the way of my telling. “If you’re in love with this Kalen, you need to let Turner go. He was a wreck after you left. Then he left and went to college too. He came home hopeful every holiday, only you never showed up.”
“I did come home once,” I said in my defense.
“And look how that turned out.” Her face held the expression that said need I say more? And no, she didn’t. “Margaret still thinks she has a shot. She’s not happy about your return.”
It looked like many people weren’t happy that I was here. It was looking like there wasn’t any saneness to my decision to come home as a safe haven.
“You’ve dodged the question. What happened between you and Turner?” I asked.
She exhaled a breath and avoided an answer. “It’s not like the pickings around here are plentiful. They don’t grow multiple Turners in this place. Most guys who are easy on the eyes like the backwards lifestyle of man beats his chest and woman listens.”
“Did you sleep with him?”
Her mouth opened in shock. “No. We had a moment. He was sad about you and it just happened.”
“What happened?”
“We kissed. But it was barely a brush on the mouth before we realized it was wrong. It felt like I was kissing my brother. Honestly, you have nothing to worry about. I love my husband. Turner is just a friend.”
There was a pregnant pause before she added, “You have to decide if Turner is just a friend too. He deserves an answer.”
I’d been wrong so many times. I wasn’t sure if I was capable of making a right decision. I thought it would be easy forgetting Kalen, and I’d been wrong.
Seventeen
Some say your life comes full circle. Sitting with my two younger sisters while we folded laundry, I thought that might be true.
At twelve and nine, their chatter was still filled with innocence. Rose, in the early stages of preteen, didn’t want to talk as much as Poppy. My youngest sister was still just a girl and kept steering the topic of conversation back to Christmas, when she wasn’t peppering me with other questions about my life. I didn’t mind. She barely knew who I was. She was really young when I left for college.
“Did you have a doll when you were little?” Poppy asked.
“I did.” I struggled to remember it. Dolls had been okay in my book, but I had much rather gone out and followed behind Turner. My conversation with Violet reminded me of that.
Out of nowhere, Rose politely said, “Are you going to kiss Turner?” I didn’t have time to be shocked before she continued. “Because I heard Father tell Mother that you and Turner should have gotten married.”