Page 22 of Harmony Island Gazette
She appeared in the doorway a few minutes later. My gaze snapped right to her, and I watched as she flipped off the light, closed the office door, and locked it before dropping her keychain into her purse.
“Ready?” she asked as she met my gaze.
I nodded.
She led the way through the hall to the back door. When she paused at the door, I leaned forward to push it open for her. Her startled gaze met mine.
“Thanks,” she whispered.
“Of course.” I waited for her to pass through before I followed.
The outer door slammed behind me. I unlocked my truck with the key fob and hurried to the passenger door to open it for her. Once again, her gaze snapped to me. Her eyes were wide. “Thanks,” she said.
I just nodded this time while I waited for her to get into the truck. Once she was in and situated, I shut the door and jogged around the hood of the truck. My chest brushed her shoulder as I twisted to put my bag of groceries in the back seat.
I prayed she couldn’t hear my pounding heart as I turned to face the steering wheel. In an effort to distract myself, I shoved my car key into the ignition and turned the engine on. I threw my truck into reverse and pulled out of the parking spot.
We were headed down Main Street when I felt Juniper’s gaze on me. I wanted to turn to look at her but decided against it. Instead, I just kept my focus on the road. When I got to the stoplight, I took a second to pull my phone from my back pocket and set it into the cupholder. It had been jabbing me.
“Fun plans for tonight?” I asked as I squeezed the steering wheel and waited for the light to turn green. When she didn’t respond, I turned to see if she’d heard me. Her cheeks were pink and she was staring at her hands in her lap. Her lips were pulled together in a line. I leaned forward to catch her gaze so I could give her a comforting smile. “Everything okay?” I asked for what felt like the millionth time today.
She sighed and glanced out the window before turning her attention to me. “I just have that dinner I have to go to.” Her smile was small and there was an intense pain in her gaze. “So I wouldn’t sayfun.” She grew quiet for a moment as her gaze drifted outside. “It’s just necessary.”
“Oh.” The light turned green so I pressed on the gas. She wasn’t saying much, and it made me wonder if it was because she was seeing Kevin. Was he still in town? “Aren’t you going out with Shelby?”
Juniper glanced over at me before she folded her arms across her chest. “Listen, Boone, I’m grateful for your help at the store and everything. But I think it’s okay if we don’t know everything about each other.” She smiled at me. “You live your life, and I’ll live mine.”
Her words hit me like a ton of bricks and made me feel like an idiot. Of course she felt that way. I’d stepped into her territory, and I didn’t belong. Maybe I’d deluded myself into thinking that we were friends. It was clear that she wasn’t interested in even being that.
“Gotcha,” I said as I stared hard at the road in front of me. “I won’t pry.”
I could tell from the few times she glanced over at me that she wanted to say something. I wondered if she felt like she’d been too harsh but didn’t know what to say to fix it. Truth was, I’d needed her words like a glass of ice-cold water dumped over my head. They had been the wake-up call I needed. I’d overstepped, and she had every right to slap my hand.
I was grateful that she did.
I pulled into the Godwins’ driveway and turned off the engine. Juniper lingered in her seat, so I stayed put as well in case she had something she wanted to say to me. We sat in silence until the loud, shrill sound of my phone ringing pierced the air. Both of our gazes snapped to the screen.
Collin Bakerflashed under the phone number. I shook my head as I reached out to hang up. I wasn’t going to talk to him now or ever. I kept my phone in my hand as I opened the driver’s door and climbed out.
Juniper beat me to opening her door, so I focused on grabbing my dinner fixings from the back seat. By the time I turned toward the house, she’d disappeared inside. I took a moment to stare at the door. For a moment, I allowed myself to wonder if she was standing on the other side before I shook my head and crossed the space between my car and the house.
Of course, she wasn’t standing there. Only an idiot would think that. And once again, I was proving to myself how much of an idiot I was. Juniper wasn’t my friend. She certainly wasn’t my girlfriend. I was nothing to her, and I would do well to remember that. Now and in the future.
I came to Harmony to settle Mom’s estate and bury the past. It was time I started working on that.
9
JUNIPER
I felt bad as I walked away from Boone. He really was the nicest guy, and I didn’t know what to do with that. I just knew that I wanted to keep Boone as far away from Kevin as possible. The last thing I wanted was for him to get entrenched in my messy marriage. The less he knew the better.
It was healthier for everyone to keep Boone on the outskirts of my life rather than draw him in. I’d already entangled him in my mess. The least I could do was keep him from being drawn further into the natural disaster that was my marriage.
I leaned against the door after I’d shut it. The image of Boone standing by his car holding a grocery bag in one hand with his dark gaze focused on me felt forever burned into my retinas. I felt guilty for leaving him in the dark. The truth was, Iwantedto tell him. I liked him knowing things about me. Talking to him felt as easy as breathing.
But I wanted to keep him safe, and with Kevin still in Harmony, Boone was anything but safe. Distance was good. Distance was necessary.
My phone chimed, causing my watch to vibrate. I glanced down to see that Kevin had texted me. It was an address and time. Seven o’clock. It was currently six. I still needed to shower and get dressed.
