AllFreeNovel
Share Us
For a while, I forget why I didn’t let him kiss me. I forget the horrible way my mother treated me, even in her death, and I just let myself dive into the conversation without judgment or presumptions.
By the time I make it upstairs, after my third beer, I’m tipsy and happy. Honestly, I feel lighter than I have in months, and tonight is definitely the highlight of my week. Especially when Evan lingers on the other side of the hall, just outside his door, and bids me good night.
I walk into my temporary room and grin like the schoolgirl I was all those years ago, getting giddy over a boy who finally knows a little something about her.
13
AUGUST
Midweek, and with no luck on the decision-making front, Alana invites me over to meet the new baby.
As the door swings open, I’m greeted by a bunch of little running feet that make me break into a smile.
“Phoebe and Rebecca, if you two don’t stop running around, one of you is going to smack your head into something!” Alana hollers behind her, the newborn in her arms. “Hi, Auggy, come in!”
She kisses me on the cheek as I pass, and I grin as two toddler girls come into view. They’re racing around the house, pushing doll strollers in front of them, pretending to be little mommies. They both have some kind of cheese doodle smeared around their lips and look way too smitten to be up to something good.
“Having a fun morning?” I ask sarcastically.
Alana rolls her eyes. “These two are going to make Cass and me get some early gray hairs.”
“That’s for sure,” Patrick’s wife, Cassandra, says as I walk into Alana’s kitchen. “Hey, August, you look so grown up. Oh my goodness, it’s been too long since we saw you!”
She envelops me in a hug, her expensive perfume swathing me. I still can’t believe Patrick married one of the most famous Hollywood actresses on the planet; I used to watch her movies when I was a teenager.
“I know, that’s my fault.”
“You’re out there living your life rather than spending time with us old broads, no one blames you for that at all.” Alana chuckles.
“Who you calling old?” Gabrielle, Liam’s wife, raises her eyebrows as she nurses her son, Lucas, at the kitchen table. “Hey, August.”
Setting down the store-bought cookies I showed up with, I try not to feel like I’m intruding.
They’re all so close, even if not related by blood. The Ashton family has grown even more since I left, and I’m happy for them, but I feel even more left out than when I worked at Hope Pizza in high school.
“Hey.” I wave at them, not sure where to sit.
“Come on, let’s gather round the table. Share with us your travels and young ways while we chase after babies,” Alana jokes, looking so happy she could burst.
The little guy nuzzled on her chest looks pretty content for the moment, too.
Pulling out a chair, I snort out a sarcastic laugh. “Well, there isn’t really much to tell.”
“No guy back at college still pining for you?” Gabrielle asks.
I shrug. “I was so busy with work and school that the fun night out was a rare occasion.”
“You were always so dedicated, August. I admire that, it makes me think of myself when I was starting out. You have this singular focus. So then, where does that lead you next?”
They all look so expectant, so anxious that I’m about to tell them good news. These women want the best for me. Meanwhile, I’ve been hiding my pain from everyone who is just looking out for me.
“I’m not sure. I’m actually going to be here for a while, it looks like.”
While Gabrielle and Cass still have that bated breath look on their face, Alana’s expression turns stormy.
“What did she do?” she asks.
I sigh, knowing that she knows me too well. Out of the whole clan, Alana and Warren have always been my biggest supporters. They understand what went on in my life more than any of the other Ashtons, so, of course, Alana is worried about me. She probably already conferenced with Warren about me going to see the lawyer about the will this week.
