Page 28 of Butterfly Sisters
With a sigh, Leigh gathered up the glasses and took them to the table Mama had set up on the back porch. As she lined them along the center, Colton was down at the grill, laughing at something Meredith had said. Her sister was the picture of happiness in her gauzy sundress with the denim jacket on top, her long curls trailing down her back. Meredith reached down to pet Elvis and he darted away, making Leigh smile.
Suddenly, Leigh’s phone buzzed in her pocket, alerting her to a call. The caller unknown, she almost dismissed it, but the local area code prompted her to answer. “Hello?”
“Ms. Henderson?”
“Yes?” She set the last glass in its place and then went back into the kitchen, rooting around in Nan’s cabinets for the silver champagne bucket she’d used at Christmastime.
“This is Jimbo Peterson of Greystone Properties.”
“Oh, hello.” She perked up, pausing at an open cabinet.
“I’m not agreeing to anything,” he said, “but I’ll hear you out. Meet me down at the building site at four o’clock?”
She looked at her watch. That was in an hour. “Is there any way we could meet tomorrow?”
An audible sigh hit her ear. “I can’t. I’ll be out of town. I leave tomorrow and come back Thursday morning. It’s four or forget it.”
This was Meredith’s celebration—and while Mama had literally thrown it upon them, Leigh needed to be there. They’d probably notice if she went missing for an hour or two… But with Jimbo out of pocket, who knew if he’d come back to her until well after she’d gone home. She needed to get the ball rolling and start setting up meetings if she wanted to make this happen before it began to significantly impact any interviews she could get in New York.
She chewed on the inside of her lip, deliberating, her gaze on her sister. Meredith had hardly looked for her all night long. The only time she’d called on her was for the champagne. And Mama was too busy trying to hide from her real feelings to want to talk to Leigh. She’d already pulled up a chair next to Luella and had settled in, legs crossed, arms resting on the sides of the chair, laughing politely at something the woman was saying. Maybe Leigh actually could slip out without anyone spotting and then slide right back into the party…
“Meet you there,” she said, before ending the call and joining the party to be sure she was seen for the next hour.
“Oh, my stars!” Colton’s mother Ruby said as she threw her arms around Mama, right after giving Leigh a big squeeze. “It’s been too long!” She reached over and held Leigh’s hands out. “You look fantastic! But I always knew you’d grow up to be a stunner.” She leaned in and gave her a kiss on the cheek. Ruby adjusted her cotton button-down and fiddled with the rolls on her sleeves, her salt-and-pepper hair tucked behind her ears to show off her matching denim button earrings. She’d clearly dressed up for the day.
Colton’s father Paul walked out into the yard. He put his hands on his lower back to stretch and then straightened, his tall frame towering over all of them. Then he produced the same warm smile that he’d offered them when they were all kids. “Good to see y’all,” he said with a nod.
“And Meredith!” Ruby continued. “You don’t look a day over twenty! You and Leigh are just positively gorgeous young ladies.” She threw a hand to her chest adoringly before fluttering off to say hello to the others.
“This is a delightful party,” Rose Thompson, their neighbor and the town veterinarian said, standing next to Ruby after coming up to say hello. Her silver bracelets that matched the shine in her gray hair jingled against her wrist as she held up her plate of fruit salad and a cheeseburger. “And the food is delicious, although we know how Colton likes to cook.” She broke into a large grin.
“Colton likes to cook?” Leigh asked, the comment distracting her from her attempts to leave the group, her mind entirely now on Colton. How much he’d changed from the young boy who lived on chocolate Moon Pies and Dr. Pepper from Leon’s.
“Oh, yes. You didn’t know? His dinner parties are incredible.”
Leigh had to keep her mouth from hanging open. “Dinner parties?” She waited for the punchline that never came. As she peered across the yard at Colton leaning over the grill, a bottle of beer in one hand, a pair of tongs in the other, that old T-shirt falling just right on his hips, she couldn’t imagine him having any sort of formal dinner party.
“Everyone, get your glass,” Mama called out to the group of people who’d assembled on the lawn and the screened-in porch. “Let’s do a toast to Meredith.”
The crowd buzzed around, gathering up their glasses and happily turning their attention to the woman of the day.
Leigh sneaked a peek at her watch. 3:45. She sucked in a breath. She needed to be pulling out of the driveway right now if she wanted to get to the main road, through town, and over the bridge to the other side of the lake by four o’clock. She raised her glass, backing away, but Colton noticed and came over to her.
“I have to go,” she whispered. “Distract Meredith until I get back.”
His brows pulled together, a look of interest blanketing his face. “Why? Do you have some sort of surprise for her or something?”
“No,” she replied, “it’s something for work. I couldn’t get out of it.”
His grin faded, his disappointment showing. “Aren’t you on vacation?”
“Sort of. But sort of not.” She took another step back, but he followed.
“What in the world could you have to do at the lake? You know there’s no internet out here. If you’re trying to get a connection somewhere, you’re better off attempting to send something from the cabin.”
She looked at her watch again: 3:49. “I have to go,” she said, her tone apologetic. “Try to keep her from knowing that I’m gone.”
His jaw clenched as she tried to leave once more.
