Page 72 of Wine & Dine

“I’m leaving you, then,” he whispers, before pulling back and walking out of the diner.

“He really checked into the Lodge?” I ask even though Cora has already clarified this information, and Wally at my feet confirms it.

“Says he’ll be staying a while. We didn’t get into too many particulars. He told me to come check on you.”

Garrett.

“I’m fine,” I lie, and Mati’s eyes bore into the side of my head. Magnolia pats my hand either in sympathy or as if she knows better—I’m not fine. I’m dying inside with thoughts of my demolished diner, the improvements to Magnolia’s, and Garrett’s presence in Georgia.

“This guy looks like he needs something to eat,” Magnolia addresses Wally, who she reaches to give a tender pat, and he obliges her hand by moving toward her. Traitor. His tail begins to flop, flop, flop at the excitement in Magnolia’s voice. She stands on shaky legs, and my brow pinches. Has she always been so deliberate in her movements? She steadies herself with a hand on the table before shuffling toward the kitchen with the aid of her cane. Wally follows her like a trusty guard dog, sticking to her side with her slower pace.

“Is she okay?” I turn to Denton, worried the dramatic changes have taken a toll on her.

“She’s fine. She loves the improvements and has been a part of every decision we’ve made.”

“We?” I snort. “Well, at least she’s been offered the courtesy.”

Denton sighs. “I’ll set up a meeting with Griffin, and he can show you the plans for the diner. They’ve only done structural work. Updating plumbing and electricity so far.”

“How about if I call Griffin and take over from here?” My blood begins to boil again. I don’t need Denton giving me a rundown of what’s been done. What’s done is done. I need to salvage my diner.

“I only wanted to surprise you,” Denton says, his voice dropping as his arms cross over his chest. “If you had stayed in California a little longer, it would have all been finished.”

“And it wouldn’t have been mine,” I snap. “It would have been all your ideas. What you thought best, not me.” I have my own ideas for my restaurant. How I want it to look. What brand I want it to have. Where I want it to go next. Denton stares at me, and I feel the weight of Mati’s and Cora’s eyes at my back. “I know I should be grateful somehow, but I can’t find gratitude at the moment. You must see this is more than a surprise. This is a shock. Gross negligence of what I’d want. You didn’t consult me on anything.”

A tiny bit of guilt sparks inside. Magnolia gave me the diner. Not both of us. Me alone.

A woman’s place is in the kitchen as long as she owns it.

I fought the guilt for years until Denton made his millions, traveled the world, and did things I’d never do because I was the one with the diner, not him. I let the guilt go and owned my destiny: Dolores’s Diner. Which is all the more reason I’m angry. It’s mine, not his.

“I just wanted to offer you a little breathing room.” His voice remains apologetic, and I appreciate the thought. I do. But I can’t get over my irritation. It’s too much at once, and I can’t even consider the house and Magnolia’s land yet.

I’m suddenly tired, so very tired.

“Why don’t you go upstairs and lie down?” Cora suggests like she lives here and is part of the family. Mati and she have been visiting Magnolia regularly, and then my sick mother for the past year, so in many ways, Cora has blended in with us.

“I’m afraid what I’ll find upstairs.” I glare at Denton. We each have a room in the seven-bedroom home, albeit antiquated in many ways. Our mother moved in with her mother when our father died years ago. She returned to her childhood bedroom with minor updates and lived the remainder of her days in this house. I assumed I’d live my final days in this house as well, but Denton’s takeover has me questioning everything.

“Nothing upstairs has been touched yet,” Denton says, though I find his words less than reassuring.

“I think I’ll head upstairs for a while then.” I nod, dismissing my brother. We have nothing more to say at the moment, and when I exit the room, I find Wally at Magnolia’s feet as she sits in her corner chair in the front room. She waves a hand, swiping upward, directing me to my room, and I’m happy to oblige. I’m relieved to be at Magnolia’s because I don’t think I can face a night alone in my house. When I snuck in this morning for a quick shower, I already felt the familiar loneliness of living there. Being in Magnolia’s for a few days as I re-acclimate to Blue Ridge is just what I need.

I dismiss the yearning for someone else I might need.

Welcome back to Kansas, Dorothy.