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I had forgotten that Mom usually picked up Damon’s kids from summer camp and took them back to her place for a while.
“I saw them this morning,” I told them. “I was helping them in the garden.”
My siblings turned a curious look on me.
“What? You guys told me I need to help more, and I am.” I focused on my cards, ignoring the others at the table. Even the people who weren’t members of my family seemed to be in the know.
Kayla patted my back. “That’s cool, bro. Thanks for doing that. I’m usually the gardener.”
I shrugged and put down a card, taking a sip from my glass of water. “I’m here for the summer. You guys know this.”
Damon put his cards down and grunted. “Then I’ll plan on seeing you guys at family dinner on Sunday. And church.” He headed toward the door.
Canyon gave me a pointed look. “Am I gonna see you on Saturday, then? To recertify?”
I nodded. “I told you I would.”
The others at the table looked interested. One of them, a man named Kurt, said, “It’ll be good to have you back on the team.”
“Thanks,” I said. Kurt was older than me and had been with search and rescue for a long time. He was doing good work under Canyon.
The usual conversations resumed around the poker table, and I relished feeling connected again. Even though there was someone who wouldn’t let me connect with her, no matter how much I wanted to. The thought dampened my spirits.
Kayla elbowed me. “You okay?”
I jerked a bit and then nodded at her. “Of course. How are you?”
She sighed and leaned back in her chair. “I’m good. I’ve been doing some land deals. Part of me doesn’t want Refuge Falls to expand, you know? I want it to stay a small town.”
I nodded. It made sense. I had never really thought about the future of Refuge Falls, but over the past few days, I’d grown to appreciate that it was still a small town.
I leaned into her. “So are you dating?”
She scoffed and shoved my arm. “Believe me, if I was dating someone in this town, my brothers would be the last to know.”
McCrae shoved to his feet, staring at his phone. “Emergency. I have to go.” He looked at me, hesitated, and then turned for the door.
Alarm bells sounded in my head. “What’s up?”
He shook his head. “Nothing. Just a break-in.”
Every part of me knew the break-in had to do with Ella, the one person they didn’t want to discuss with me. I threw my cards down and followed him.
As I emerged into the parking lot, McCrae was already getting in his truck. “McCrae,” I called after him. “Is this about Ella?”
He started his truck but rolled down the window. “You know I can’t answer that.”
I smacked the side of his truck. “Just tell me.”
“I can’t tell you anything, but I couldn’t stop you from following me if you chose to.” He put the truck in drive and rolled away.
My heart raced. I threw myself into my Jeep and took off to follow my brother out of town, past my parents’ turnoff, toward the lake, and down the road that Ella and I now shared.
Chapter Fourteen
Ella
After work, I ate a bowl of soup. It was my staple these days. Mercy kept commenting that I needed to gain more weight, but food just wasn’t that important to me. Plus, I really loved to be sleek as I ran. Running felt good; it worked out all the stress in my life.
