Page 74 of Rainshadow Road

“You’re actually not the main subject of conversation around here,” Lucy said, more sharply than she had intended.

Alice closed her mouth and looked affronted.

After a brittle silence, Lucy asked, “Did Mom ask you to check on me?”

“No. This was my idea. I still care about you, Lucy. I don’t always behave in ways you’d like me to, but I am your sister.”

Lucy bit back an acid comment. Realizing that she had gone tense from head to toe, she tried to relax. A series of protesting twinges progressed along her spine.

Why in heaven’s name was Alice there? Lucy wanted to believe that she was motivated by concern, or at least that there was some genuine sisterly feeling left between them. But apparently it was going to require more than a blood tie to reestablish a connection between them. Because the unfortunate truth was, if Alice weren’t her sister, she was the kind of person Lucy wouldn’t have anything to do with.

“How’s it going with you and Kevin?” Lucy asked. “Are you still planning the wedding?”

“Yes. Mom and Dad are both coming out tomorrow to talk about wedding plans.”

“So they are going to pay for it?”

“I think so.”

“I thought they would,” Lucy said darkly, before she could stop herself. No matter what they said to the contrary, her parents were never going to hold Alice accountable for anything.

“You don’t think they should?” Alice asked.

“And you do?” Lucy countered.

“Of course I do. I’m their daughter.” Alice’s eyes turned hard. “There’s something you need to understand, Lucy. I never planned to hurt you. Neither did Kevin. It was never about you. You were just…”

“Collateral damage?”

“I guess that’s one way to put it.”

“Neither of you bothered to think about anything beyond what you wanted right then.”

“Well, love is like that,” Alice replied with no trace of guilt.

“Is it?” Settling deeper into the corner of the sofa, Lucy wrapped her arms around herself. “Did you ever think that when Kevin realized he wanted to end his relationship with me, you might have seemed like the easiest way out?”

“No,” Alice shot back. “I had the incredible ego to think that maybe he actually fell in love with me, and that—impossible as this may be to believe—someone might actually prefer me over you.”

Lucy held up a staying hand and tried to think over a rush of anger. A fight was brewing, and she knew she couldn’t handle it. The stress of simply being near Alice had been enough to set off a headache that wrapped around her forehead. “Let’s not go there. Let’s try to figure out how we go on from here.”

“What is there to figure out? I’m getting married. We’re all moving on. So should you.”

“It’s a little more complicated than that,” Lucy said. “This isn’t soap opera land, where people conveniently forget the past and everything magically turns out okay.” As she saw Alice stiffen, Lucy remembered too late that she’d lost her job writing forWhat the Heart Knows. “Sorry,” she muttered. “I didn’t mean to remind you of that.”

“Right,” Alice said sourly.

They were both quiet for a moment. “Are you looking for a new job?” Lucy dared to ask.

“That’s my business. You don’t have to worry about it.”

“I’m not worried, I just…” Lucy let out a frustrated breath. “A conversation with you is a minefield.”

“Not everything is my fault. I can’t help it if Kevin wanted me more than he wanted you. He was going to leave you anyway. What was I supposed to do? I just wanted to be happy.”

Did Alice truly not understand the pitfalls of trying to be happy at someone else’s expense? And did she have any goals beyond that? Ironically, Alice had never lookedlesscontent than she did now. The problem with chasing after happiness was that it wasn’t a destination you could reach. It was something that happened along the way. And what Alice was doing now—grabbing at every available pleasure, throwing aside every scruple so she could do whatever she wanted… that was practically a guarantee that she would end up miserable.

But all Lucy said was, “I want you to be happy too.”

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