Page 19 of Return to Us
I came out here to handle the inn, not think about how to make her laugh so I can hear it again. Jessica wasn’t made to stay in this town. She had bigger dreams that couldn’t be contained.
She’ll heal, and when she does, she’ll leave.
Besides, I don’t care about her like that anyway.
I find Mateo, who is all clear on his instructions. The cottage isn’t great, but it’s fixable. With Stella at the helm of decorating, she’ll find a way to make the cracks part of the charm.
I head back to the office and look over to where Jessica was, but she’s gone, and I force myself to be relieved by that. We don’t need to see each other again. We got all that out of the way a few days ago.
“Grayson?” I hear her call out as I’m rounding the corner.
“Hey, Jess.”
She smiles. “You’re the only person who still calls me that.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, I don’t know where along the way I stopped being Jess and became Jessica. Maybe it was when I got to Massachusetts or maybe when I . . .”
“When you?”
She shakes her head. “Nothing.”
I’m not sure if this is another memory issue or she just doesn’t want to say. Either way, I decide not to push.
“What are you doing here?”
“Well, I was here because I was abducted by Stella and Winnie to go shopping today. Then Stella said she had to get here right away.”
I bob my head. “Ahh, I see.”
“But, I . . . well, I wanted to thank you.”
“For what?”
Her lower lip goes between her teeth and then slowly is released. “For hiring me. I know I’m still not at one hundred percent, but I think this is going to really help push me. I promise, I’ll work hard before I start. My doctor said I needed to return to living and . . .”
Awareness hits like a freight train.
My sister.
She hired Jessica. Without talking to me.
The air becomes hard to draw into my lungs, but I manage to keep a smile on my face. If I tell her that Stella can’t hire her because I’m going to kill my sister, then I look like there’s a problem with Jessica working here, which there’s not.
It’s fine because I don’t feel anything or care.
It’s fine because, like I told my sister, Jessica and I are nothing and have left the past in the past.
It’s fine because—well, I’m running out of reasons.
Mostly, though, the way she looks right now makes me want to give her the entire inn. She’s nervous, excited, and there’s a look of triumph that I don’t want to diminish.
But fuck me, this is going to be torture.
Jessica stares at me, and I know I need to say something. “Yeah, of course. I’m glad this is going to work out for all of us.”
The apprehension on her face disappears and she steps closer, her hand coming to my arm and squeezing slightly. “Thanks, Gray.”
