Page 47 of The Weight Of Falling
She shakes her head. “No. And I never asked.”
“I would definitely ask,” Tess pipes up.
“We know,” the three of us chorus, and she grins.
“What about Joel’s friends?” I ask.
Kate’s brow creases. “I don’t know. He’s never mentioned any, and I’ve never met anyone he’s close to. He mostly keeps to himself.” She pauses, considering. “I asked him once if he stayed in touch with anyone from his past, but he looked so uncomfortable I didn’t press.”
I reach instinctively for my pendant, curling my fingers around its familiar shape, like it might steady the unease stirring in my chest. Joel has lived in Brown Oaks for nearly three years, but no one really knows him. He rents a cabin on the edge of town and only shows up to local events if he’s been hired to photograph them. If he has close friends, he keeps them well hidden.
I used to think it was the town holding him at arm’s length. But now, I’m not so sure. Now it seems like he’s the one keeping his distance. As if he doesn’t trust anyone. As if he’s already preparing to leave one day and doesn’t want anyone to give him a reason to stay.
“You and Joel suit each other,” Tess declares, humor dancing in her eyes. “You like to fix people and he likes to push them away. It should make for an interesting dynamic.”
“Honestly, you’re the last person I ever expected to end up fake engaged,” Sofia says. “You’re kind to a fault. You give people the benefit of the doubt, sometimes more than they deserve. And that’s exactly why we’re scared you’re the one who’s going to get hurt.”
There’s something both comforting and disconcerting having friends who know you so well. But sometimes, I wonder if I act the way I do because it’s truly who I am or because it’s who they expect me to be. It’s hard to know the difference sometimes.
I gesture to the pop of bright red on top of the brie. “What’s this?” I ask, seizing the chance to change the subject.
Sofia’s eyes light up. “Homemade cranberry salsa.”
I try a spoonful. “It’s amazing.”
“My aunt’s recipe,” she says, with a mischievous grin. “Mean as a snake and guarded that recipe like it was the crown jewels. So one night, I waited until she was fast asleep and stole it.”
Just then, Kate’s phone rings. “It’s Gideon,” she says, tapping the screen. “Hi, honey.”
The rest of us immediately lean in, helping ourselves to more food while shamelessly eavesdropping.
“No,” Kate says into the phone. “I did not promise she could have a bowl of ice cream before bed.” A pause. “Oh, now she says it wastwobowls? Nice try. Do not give in, no matter how much she bats those pleading brown eyes at you.”
She hangs up and stares at the phone for a beat, lips twitching. “Lisset’s totally getting that ice cream. Gideon doesn’t stand a chance.”
“That’s my niece,” Tess declares proudly, waving a breadstick for emphasis. “Future CEO. Crushing negotiations at bedtime.”
Sofia turns to me, eyes narrowed. “So, what exactly is the plan with this fake engagement?”
I had a feeling she’d circle back eventually. “We’re keeping it low-key. No drama.”
She arches a skeptical eyebrow. “In essence, the opposite of all the attention you drew to yourself Saturday night?”
I shift uncomfortably. “That was a one-time thing. It won’t happen again.”
“And then what?” Kate chimes in. “You two quietly break up?”
“Exactly,” I say, nodding. “Amicable parting. We remain good friends. And ideally, the town stops casting him as the villain.”
“Just...be careful,” Tess says softly. “Please.”
Something in her voice makes me sit up straighter. “What are you trying to say?”
She hesitates for a second too long and I immediately know something’s up.
“Tess?” I press, catching the glance she exchanges with Sofia. The look that says they’ve already talked about this.
Tess crosses and uncrosses her legs, like she wishes she could take the words back. “Sometimes, I catch this look on Joel’s face,” she says at last. “It reminds me of Aaron, when he was still hiding everything. That haunted expression Sofia noticed first, before any of us realized what he was fighting.”
