Everything was going smoothly until I heard a gasp take place. “Oh my gosh!”
I looked up to see a woman staring directly our way, and my chest tightened at the idea of being recognized. That feeling settled away pretty quickly when the woman clapped her hands together. “Emery Taylor, as I live and breathe!”
For the first time ever, it wasn’t me who was being recognized—it was Emery.
The woman darted over to Emery and pulled her into a tight embrace. “Jeez, how long has it been? Five years or longer?” she said.
“Eve, hi. Oh gosh, it’s been so long. Since I left Randall, I guess. What are you doing here in California?”
Eve held up her hand, showing off her sparkling ring. “Kevin and I are honeymooning! We got married last week and came to California to do Universal and Disneyland. It’s a cheesy honeymoon, but it’s who we are. Wow. How have you been? What have you been up to? I cannot believe it. Emery, you look good! Real good.” Her eyes moved over to me and danced up and down my body before she nudged Emery. “You got a cute one on your arm, too, I see. Has anyone ever told you that you look just like Alex Smith? You two are an adorable couple.”
Emery nervously laughed. “Oh, no. We aren’t—”
Eve cut her off, and it was clear that she was one of those people who talked a lot and listened very little by the way she went on and on. “Oh my gosh, I gotta text Sammie and let her know that we ran into one another.”
Emery’s eyes widened. “Wait? You’ve been in touch with Sammie?”
“Are you kidding? Of course. I see her every week at Bible study. She even stood up in my wedding. I figured you knew. Anyway, I’d better get going before Kevin wonders why I’m still in this store. I was just meant to get a few snacks. If you ever make it back to Randall, let’s have a girls’ night! It’s been too long!” She paused and looked over to me and raised an eyebrow. She snapped her fingers. “No! Not Alex Smith. Michael B. Jordan. That’s it! You look like Michael B. Jordan. Well, okay, good seeing you, Emery! See you soon!” Eve hurried away as if she hadn’t rocked Emery’s world upside down with the information she’d just revealed.
I walked over to the pale-faced Emery, who was staring forward as if she’d seen a ghost. “Are you okay?”
“My sister’s been back in Randall all this time? No. That doesn’t make sense . . .”
The longer we stood in the store, the more I noticed people staring our way, and this time I knew they were staring at me, based on the cell phones in their hands as they snapped photographs.
I placed my arm around Emery’s and leaned in to whisper. “We need to get going.”
She didn’t say anything but simply took steps forward as we abandoned our cart in the store. I got her into the car and drove for a few blocks before pulling over to talk to her, to make sure we were far enough away from paparazzi or fans snapping pictures of us.
“It doesn’t make sense. She told me she was off finding herself. My mother said she hadn’t seen Sammie when I called. Why would they lie?”
I didn’t know what to say to her, because it was a messed-up situation.
“I have to go back to town,” she muttered to herself. “But I can’t take Reese to talk to them, and I definitely can’t leave her alone. But I need answers. Oh my gosh.” Her eyes watered over as she began to become overwhelmed with every word she spoke. “What does this even mean? Why would Sammie go back to Randall?”
“I can go with you, if you want. I can watch Reese in town as you confront the situation.”
“What? No way. I can’t ask you to do that, Oliver. Besides, you need to be focused on your album. I don’t want to take your time.”
“Emery, please.” I took her hand in mine and squeezed it lightly. “Take up my time. I want to do it for you. You deserve answers after all this time. I want you to get those answers. We can go as soon as possible.”
She hesitated for a moment before agreeing. “Okay, and I’ll head home tonight with Reese and pack our bags. Do you want to pick us up in about two hours from my place, and we can hit the freeway? I’ll book us two rooms at the bed-and-breakfast in town.”
“Sounds good.”
I drove us back to my place, Emery picked up her car, and then we went our separate ways.
As I packed, I felt like a damn fool for being somewhat excited about a weekend getaway with my girls.