Page 36 of Every Beautiful Mile

She folds her arms over her chest as she narrows her eyes. “Don’t be so sensitive, Penelope. You have stuck energy, and fear is a big part of that.”

I scoff. “I’m not scared.”

She shrugs. “You are. Scared of changing, scared of living life without Dad.” Her eyes drop to my black shirt. “Of color.”

Somehow, I’m both shocked and in agreement with what she says, but unless her rock can raise bodies from a watery grave, an argument over it is futile.

I press my lips between my teeth as I glare at her. She’s wearing a long skirt and a cropped tank top with a purple scarf tied in her hair and dangling beaded earrings. She fits into the aisles of rocks and dream catchers so perfectly it’s almost scary.

I sigh and shove my wallet at her. “I’m waiting with Finn outside.”

Since Marfa, Finn has stayed quiet, but his phone being in a dozen pieces has been an unexpected gift. Even if he doesn’t want to talk to me, at least he can’t hide behind a screen.

“You okay?” I ask, stepping beside him on the sidewalk.

“Other than the fact my sister thinks rocks are the answer to life’s problems? Just dandy.”

He shakes his head with a sigh as he scrubs the toe of his shoe against the ground.

I laugh under my breath. “She told me my rock will give me courage. For $9.95, maybe she just saved me a lot of money.”

His laugh is weak. “Maybe.”

For all the fighting Finn and I have done, I realize we aren’t so different at that moment. Both of us working to come to terms with the fact we have to forge ahead in a life that looks vastly different from the one we hoped for.

A billboard sign above us catches my eye at the same time Marin pushes the door of the store open and holds up the bag proudly. “Rocks for what ails you.”

I ignore her, not listening to what her and Finn start talking about.

Fear and excitement buzz through me as I make a decision without thinking. “Guys?”

They stop talking and look at me.

“Let’s watch the sunset from there tonight.”

I point to the sign; their eyes follow then widen.

Finn shakes his head with a disbelieving laugh. “Are you kidding? That’s everything you hate, Mom. You’ll have a heart attack.”

I smile. There’s a very good chance he’s right. “Well, that will make a good story, won’t it?”

I don’t let them respond before I punch the number in my phone with shaky hands.

Three hours later, with the roar of a flame and a jolt from the ground, we drift into the sky above the red rocks of Sedona by way of a rainbow-colored hot air balloon.

Marin takes an obscene number of pictures, Finn stares out quietly at the wild earth below us, and I smile through tears that feel like streams of triumph.

“I didn’t think you had it in you.”

Finn’s lips lift into a smile as he bumps his shoulder against mine.

I’m still terrified, but I lean into him.

“And you two thought those rocks were a scam,” Marin says, flicking a knowing look at me before pulling us together for a picture.

In it, Marin’s smile is wide, Finn’s expression is amused, and I’m mid-laugh with my mouth hanging open as tears drip down my face—my eyes on them.

It’s my new favorite picture.

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