Page 73 of Shift the Tide

No, she’s a chicken.

Izzy

Correction: She’s chicken royalty.

Kiera

I’m not convinced they feel emotion.

Izzy

I’m pretty sure I’ve seen an enraged chicken before.

Kiera

A valid point. How’s Maggie?

Izzy

Well, she showered today.

Kiera

That’s a start! How’s Gwen?

Izzy

I’m pretty sure she slept on the couch in the family room downstairs?

Kiera

I wish I could be there for both of them. And you.

Izzy

Me too. I wish you were still here.

A soft flutter sparked in Kiera’s chest, a hopeful, terrifying little beat she wasn’t ready for but couldn’t ignore. She stared at the message longer than she should have, her fingertips hovering above the screen, trying to decide if she shouldrespond. Instead, she set the phone down and curled into her blanket, pulling it tight around her shoulders.

The connection was still there — palpable and undeniable, hiding beneath the surface of everything left unsaid.

As she stared up at the ceiling, the memories of Austin pressed in — the loss, the heartbreak, the tenderness of holding Izzy in her arms. Despite the sorrow, it wasn’t Maggie’s pain that lingered in her mind. It was Izzy’s voice from last night, soft and hesitant:"I’ll miss you."

She should tell Izzy about her job offer. Well, maybe first she should figure out what she was going to do about the job offer. She knew she shouldn’t let the idea of what might happen with Izzy hold her back from providing for her family, but she couldn’t help but shake the feeling that going back to Nebraska was just that — a step backwards.

She picked her phone back up and typed a reply before she could overthink it.

Kiera

I wish you were here, too.

The pole studiosmelled faintly of coconut and old wood, the mood light with the sound of pop music pulsing through the speakers. The polished floors gleamed under the glow of the overhead lights, and the scattered mirrors lining the walls reflected flashes of bodies in motion — women of all shapes and sizes spinning, climbing, moving with a kind of confidence Kiera still wasn’t sure she could possess.

She stood near the back of the room, clutching the metal pole in front of her like a life raft, its cool surface grounding her in the moment. Her palms were already slick with sweat, though she’d been coming to class for a couple of weeks now.

She exhaled slowly, rolling out her shoulders and flexing her fingers, trying to shake the tension from her body. But her nerves weren’t just about the class, not really. She had spent too long feeling like she was waiting for something. Now, she had Izzy’s affection and a job offer and it felt like all the right pieces were falling into the wrong places.

The instructor’s voice cut through her melancholy. “Remember, this is for you. There’s no wrong way to move your body here.”

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