Page 85 of The Wish List
“I haven’t quite made it to the ending.” Trinity looked at the ground. “I have another book I’m trying to finish.”
Freya tried not to be hurt by that. She couldn’t imagine what would take precedence over hers. Trinity continued to avoid eye contact and made a show of rearranging the blanket to cover Thomas.
“Greer gave you Mom’s book,” Freya said as realization dawned on her.
“Freya, could you face the camera? Any chance of stopping at the bakery? We could use some footage inside one of the stores.”
For a moment, Freya had forgotten about the camera crew. They hadn’t gone for the idea of her touring solo around the streets of Magnolia for Christmas, so she’d convinced Trinity to join her for an outing. The producers had tried to persuade her to include her mother in some of the footage, but she’d flat-out refused.
She would do a lot of things for a paycheck but not give airtime to her once-famous mother. She figured it would give May too much satisfaction. Plus, Freya struggled to get a read on her mother now that May had returned home, monumentally improved both physically and mentally from where she’d been weeks earlier. Leave it to Mom to keep them on their toes.
“Sure,” she said with a fake smile that would easily fool the cameraman. “I could go for a coffee and afternoon treat.”
“I knew it!” Jennie, the assistant producer handling Freya’s shoot, jabbed a finger in the air. “You’ve gained weight since you’ve been home, haven’t you?”
Freya blinked and heard Trinity let out a soft snort of disbelief. Topics that were off-limits in normal conversation were run-of-the-mill in the industry. “I don’t think so. Why?”
Jennie looked perplexed. “I can’t come up with another reason for you to be dressed the way you are. I figured you were trying to hide something. Either an unfortunate spray tan or a few extra pounds. It’s not the end of the world, Freya. Once the holidays are over, you’ll come back to California for preproduction onLove at the Five and Dime. A few weeks in the gym plus a round or two of colonics. You’ll be right back where you need to be.”
Back where she needed to be, Freya thought. How was that possible when she had no idea? She’d worn the dress from Mariella’s shop and felt more comfortable—both in it and her own skin—than she had in years. So much for adopting a new look going forward.
“You look beautiful,” Trinity told her with a gentle arm squeeze. The new mother faced the cameraman and producer. “She could eat a half-dozen bear claws a day and would still look beautiful. Did you all not get the memo on the body positivity movement?”
Freya glanced with alarm at the green light flashing on top of the camera. “They’re recording,” she said under her breath.
Trinity shrugged, her earlier nerves forgotten. “Let them. It was a rude statement that needed to be called out. You are beautiful and talented in many ways.”
Go, little sister.“Let’s get that bear claw.” Freya offered the camera a conspiratorial wink, knowing she had to keep the potential audience in her corner during the clip. “When I’m in my hometown, calories do not count.”
Smile in place as they entered Sunnyside Bakery, she greeted Mary Ellen with a cheery wave.
She wished she would have warned some of the business owners about filming but had felt like that was trying too hard. Plus, she didn’t want to admit she was nervous about how the locals might respond.
She and Trinity ordered pastries and hot drinks while the two baristas working the counter gaped at the camera. Freya’s cheeks were beginning to ache as she did her best to look like she belonged in Magnolia. That this was truly her home.
Suddenly she felt as nervous as Trinity. Would the camera pick up on how out of place she was in the town where she was raised? Once again, she wished she had done more prep instead of letting nerves dissuade her from reaching out.
Mary Ellen caught her eye, winked and stepped forward to coo over Thomas. “He looks just like you when you were a baby,” she told Trinity and smiled at Freya.
The presence of the plump woman with the rosy cheeks and her graying hair up in a rhinestone clip did more to relax Freya than an entire row of drinks. “You were so excited to be a big sister,” Mary Ellen revealed.
Freya had no idea if she told the truth or if the woman had missed her calling as an actress. “That’s a bit far in the past for my memory, but I’m going to spoil my nephew like nobody’s business. I don’t even care that he’s too young to appreciate the joys of holiday shopping. I’ll make sure he appreciates the finer things.”
“He’ll appreciate having you to look after him,” Mary Ellen said. For some reason, the words made Freya’s throat clog with emotion.
“I’m going to take a load off,” Trinity said, hands gripping the stroller again. “Don’t forget the napkins, Freya.”
As Trinity moved away with the stroller, Mary Ellen stepped closer to Freya, darting a glance at the camera out of the corner of her eye. “We’re all looking forward to you announcing the winners of the holiday art contest. The kids have been working diligently on their projects. We can’t wait to celebrate them tonight.”
Freya blinked, well aware the camera was still rolling. She nodded even though she had no idea what the bakery owner was talking about. “I’m so happy to be a part of it.”
Mary Ellen beamed, her smile bordering on conniving. “Avery is at her sister’s art gallery right now. Weren’t you going to stop by to work out the details of your involvement? I can give her a call so she knows you’re coming.”
“I guess I was.” The barista handed her two drinks, and she held up one mock salute to the camera then gave the signal for them to stop filming.
“You didn’t mention you were taking place in a public event.” The producer nodded. “It’ll be a perfect final few moments to your segment. We were planning to head out after this bit, but we’ll stick around and get some footage from tonight. Local girl comes home famous and gives back to the community.”
“Perfect,” Freya repeated. “I’ll text you the details once I confirm everything. Right now, I’m going to bring this decaf to my sister. We’ve had the baby out long enough.”
