Page 30 of The Best of Friends
“I would think anticipating the time you’ll spend with me would fill your day.”
She laughed. “It does. More than it should.” She glanced at him, then drew in a breath. “If I tell you something, will you keep it to yourself? What I mean is, you can’t mention it to your parents or Rebecca. I know they’re family and I’m asking a lot, so it’s probably best if I don’t say anything.”
He raised his eyebrows. “Intriguing. Now I have to know.” He made anXon his chest. “I will take your secret to my grave. You have my word.”
“I doubt you’ll need to keep it that long.” She shifted in her seat. “I’m going to Dallas next week.”
“Okay,” he said slowly. “Is there a warrant for your arrest in Texas? Is that the reason you don’t want anyone to know?”
She laughed again. “No. I’m…” She cleared her throat. “It’s a job interview. I got a call a couple of days ago. I’ve been recommended by a friend. There’s a new breast center opening. It sounds amazing. They’re staffing now, with the idea that we’d all start in a couple of months. I’d be in charge of several nurses, which is exciting but scary. I’ve never lived anywhere but here, so there’s that to consider.”
David nodded slowly. “You’d also be getting away from my mother.”
“Oh. Well, that would be an unfortunate result of my move. Of course your family has been nothing but wonderful to me and I—”
David shook his head. “Don’t worry. I’m very clear on the thrill of being around Elizabeth Worden. She’s scary and difficult. Which could also describe my sister. Every baby bird has to leave the nest. Sounds like it’s your time to fly south. Or in this case, east.”
While she would never say that getting free of the Wordens was her primary motivation, she appreciated his understanding.
He smiled at her. “I think it’s a great idea. If it’s what you want, don’t let either of them talk you out of going.”
“I won’t.”
“Have you told Rebecca?”
“Not yet.” So far Rebecca hadn’t returned her call.
“She can be difficult,” he said.
“I know, but she’s also been really good to me.” She shifted so she was angled toward him. His profile was perfect. “My senior year of high school, I was a mess. I’d lost my mom—she died of breast cancer. I had no family, and I didn’t have anywhere to go. Elizabeth said I could stay with them. Honestly, I think it was Rebecca’s idea. Regardless, I moved into the bedroom across from hers. She was like the sister I’d never had.”
“She’s not a saint.”
“I know. I’m sure she appreciated me running interference. I understand that.” She hesitated. “Sometime in early April, I started to freak. I was missing my mom and worried about my future and college and being totally alone in the world.” If she thought about it too much, she could feel the panic growing inside of her. Instead, she looked past it to that day.
“One Saturday morning, Rebecca and I went shopping. Well, she went shopping, and I kept her company. We ended up in Worden’s. The salespeople were always nervous when she was around because she could be difficult.”
“My sister? Seriously?”
She smiled. “Amazing, but true. She insisted on trying on every necklace. They kept bringing out these stunningly beautiful diamond pieces. I had no idea how much they cost, but I remember how they sparkled. Somehow, one of them slipped onto the floor.”
She didn’t have to close her eyes to see the glittering diamonds winking up at her.
“While Rebecca was being demanding, I picked it up. I meant to put it on the counter, but I didn’t.” She swallowed. “And I probably shouldn’t be telling you this.”
He glanced at her. “You can’t stop now.”
“I know, but this isn’t a good story about me.”
“You took it.”
She nodded. “Yeah. I didn’t think—I just acted. One second it was in my hand; the next it was in my jacket pocket. I’ve tried to figure out what I was thinking. Was it about attention? Did I think if I was bad enough, my mom would come back to life and yell at me? Was I trying to steal something for financial security? Was it a mini-breakdown? I don’t know. I’ve never done anything like that before or since.”
She shifted so she was facing front again. “When we got home, I showed Rebecca the necklace. About thirty seconds later, the house phone rang. A few seconds after that, Elizabeth was screaming. Obviously someone at the store had called. Rebecca was still holding the necklace in her hand. She walked out onto the landing and tossed it to her mother. She said that she took it and that she was tired of all of the stupid rules. They had a huge fight. The next day, Rebecca took off.”
She stared at her cast. “She saved me. She could have told the truth. Elizabeth would have thrown me out onto the street. Or in my case, into the foster care system. Rebecca took the blame.”
“Good for her,” he said, sounding surprised. “I’m impressed my sister was so nice.”
