Page 30 of Harmony Island Gazette
“I gotta go,” Asher said, suddenly standing. He grabbed the chopsticks that were sticking out of his lo mein and headed into the kitchen.
“Asher,” I said as I hurried to follow after him, ““don’t be mad at me.” I could feel the dam of our friendship breaking, and I was worried that nothing I could say or do would stop that from happening.
“I’m not mad at you,” he said as he dropped the chopsticks into the sink and turned.
I hadn’t anticipated him turning around, and suddenly I was running straight into him. My hands sprawled across his chest in an effort to catch myself. Asher’s arms went around my body, and his low voice whispered, “Whoa,” so close to my ear that it sent shivers across my skin.
We stood there, frozen, in that embrace. The seconds seemed to slow as I tipped my gaze up to meet his. He was staring down at me with a dark, stormy gaze. I hated that I’d hurt my friend. I should have been supportive. I should have kept my mouth shut about my suspicions.Thatwas how a true friend acted.
“I’m sorry,” I said as I drew my eyebrows together so he could see that I felt bad.
He studied me before he sighed, dropped his arms, and took a step back. “I know.” He pushed his hand through his hair. “I’m sorry, too.” He shrugged. “I guess I just wanted you to be as excited as I was.” In that moment, I hated myself. I hated that I couldn’t turn off the reporter part of my brain. Not everything was a story. Not everything weird was untoward. For all I knew, the man who confronted me a few days ago was a disgruntled ex-employee who wanted revenge on the family. I had too big of an imagination sometimes, and I let stories run wild.
“I am excited,” I said as I reached out and rested my hand on his forearm.
His gaze snapped down to where I was touching him before he slowly brought it up to meet mine. He looked conflicted, but I wanted him to know that I was still his friend. That I would support him no matter what. My issues weren’t with him, they were with the Proctor family.
I pulled my hand away and snapped my fingers. “I have an idea,” I said as I turned and started walking toward my bedroom.
“What?” Asher called after me.
I raised my hand and waved away his question. “I’m going to get ready,” I said as I shut my bedroom door and headed straight into my closet to pull on a black crop top and a pair of high-waisted jeans. Once I was dressed, I put on a bit of makeup and pulled my hair out of the bun and brushed it before I pulled it back into a ponytail at the base of my neck. Then I slipped on a pair of Converse and headed out of my room.
Asher’s eyebrows went up when I entered the living room. He was sitting on the couch with his arm draped across the back, scrolling on his phone. “You look nice,” he said.
I warmed under his approving gaze. “Obviously,” I said as I struck a pose and then walked over to where I’d dumped my purse. “Come on, let’s go to Harmony Pub. We’re going to celebrate the huge deal you closed.” I turned the door handle and pulled the door open.
Asher looked skeptical before his smile widened and he moved to stand. “I could go for a drink,” he said as he slipped his phone into his back pocket.
“Yeah you could!” I cheered and patted his back as he walked through the door.
I joined him in the hallway and then turned and locked my apartment door. I threaded my arm through his and held tight as we started walking toward the parking lot together.
I pushed all thoughts of Harmony Cove, the Proctors, and the legit deals they may or may not be making with the residents of this small island town from my mind. I felt my body relax when I laughed at Asher’s jokes as he drove to the pub. Our conversation felt familiar as he pulled into the parking lot and turned his car engine off.
We walked side by side across the gravel. The music and conversations were equally loud as I followed Asher into the pub. We spent the evening laughing with Abigail and Shelby who’d come in for a girls’ night out then I bought a drink for everyone in the pub and toasted to Asher.
He beamed at me as I raised my glass, and for the first time in a long time, I smiled. It was genuine because I was truly happy for my friend. I was going to enjoy this night of pure support because I knew tomorrow, no matter how much I tried to fight it, that nagging feeling at the back of my mind was going to return.
Tonight, I was celebrating Asher because I loved him. He was my best friend and he deserved to have this night. But tomorrow I would be back on the case. I was never going to forget about the mystery man or what he said about the Proctors. I was going to figure out the story behind that family, and I wasn’t going to stop until I got answers.
I just hoped it wouldn’t ruin my friendship with Asher in the process.
12
JUNIPER
I didn’t know what to say to Boone when I woke up the next morning. I didn’t know what to say while we both sat at the table eating breakfast. And I didn’t know what to say while he drove us to the store.
Thankfully, he didn’t try to talk to me and just let us sit in silence. I offered him a few soft smiles here and there, but that was the extent of our morning conversation.
When we got to the store, I focused on opening the registers, and Boone kept to himself as he went in and out of the back room gathering things to stock the shelves. Today we needed to go through the produce and get rid of anything that was expired. I was glad that he had a busy task ahead of him. It meant the chances of us needing to talk went down significantly.
It wasn’t that I thought he’d done anything wrong. In fact, it was the opposite.Ifelt embarrassed for how Kevin acted last night. I was embarrassed that I’d allowed Kevin to barge into my parents’ house like that. I felt embarrassed that I was standing next to the man Boone knew I was upset with. If I’d been stronger, Kevin wouldn’t have walked all over me.
Last night was just another representation of how weak I was, and Boone got a front-row seat to that show.
I wanted Boone to think I could take care of myself. But last night when Kevin stepped up to him like he was looking for a fight, Boone had studied me, and I could see in his gaze the understanding that I was never going to be able to walk away from Kevin. That had been hard to see. I wanted my family and friends—and Boone was rapidly becoming a friend—to have confidence that I could make the right choice.
