Page 49 of Vacation Friends

“It’s one of my favorite things to do on my days off.”

She chuckled again. “I like that. Only I would be eating Cinnamon Toast Crunch instead. It’s clearly the best cereal ever created.”

“I think we need to have a face-off or take a poll before we can determine the winner on this.”

They laughed again. She pictured the two of them eating cereal in a showdown. The image filled her chest with warmth.

She liked that idea.

A few seconds of silence passed before Brody asked, “This may seem like a weird question, but I’m curious why you moved to New York—if you don’t mind me asking.”

“Not at all.” She slowed her steps again, this time on purpose. She wanted to draw out their conversation and for their walk not to be over too soon. “It was my Poppy’s influence—Poppy was my granddad. He’d always wanted to live in New York but never could. He made me promise him before he died that I would live there for at least a year so I could experience it for him.”

“And you kept your promise.”

She nodded slowly. “I did.”

“What about your parents?”

“My dad died when I was young, and my mom had to work a lot to make ends meet. That’s how I got so close to my Poppy—he babysat. Then he became ill. Around that time, my mom remarried and seemed preoccupied with her new life. So I would sit with my granddad, and we’d watch movies together.”

“Sounds like you had a strong bond.”

“For sure.”

“You even moved to New York for him.”

She frowned at that part of the memory. “I did—though part of me dreaded it. One month before my time in the city was up, I met Josh and ended up staying.”

Something flickered in his gaze when she said Josh’s name.

“You miss the Midwest?” he asked.

Brody’s change of subject didn’t go unnoticed.

“Terribly.” Maddie glanced at him. “You miss Texas?”

He shrugged, still looking laid-back with his hands tucked into his pockets. “I moved there because it’s where I could find the most business doing private security. But my goal has always been to move somewhere with a slower pace one day.”

They reached the market and paused.

“Thanks for walking with me,” she told him. “It was fun.”

“It was. I hope you find some of that tasty fruit you want.”

She grinned and watched him walk into the market.

As she did, a TV blaring inside one of the resort’s bars caught her eye.

A commercial that was a spoof of an old movie—Urban Legends—was on the screen.

She froze as her brain signaled some kind of realization in her.

I know what you did that summer.

Maddie hadn’t been able to stop thinking about that note and what it might mean. And why the peculiar wording?

She closed her eyes.