Page 16 of Fall for You
“How cool would it be to go out with someone who feeds you every once in a while?”
Now she saw Eric sitting across from her in the cozy, romantic glow of candlelight. The way he’d lean in to hear her speak, that crooked smile when she made him laugh.
April nudged her. “How nice would it be to have a partner in crime at family dinners, amiright? I mean, it must get old being surrounded by two ridiculously happy couples.”
The vivid daydream popped like a water balloon, and Willow was left blinking in horror at the turn her thoughts had taken.
“Hey.” April touched her shoulder, her expression buckling with concern. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you feel bad?—”
“Nope. You didn’t.” Willow’s smile was back, but she couldn’t meet her friend’s eyes.
If there was anyone she could talk to about her confusing feelings for her family’s archrival, it was April.
But she didn’t want to.
Willow reached for her whisk and aggressively went to town on her sauce.
She wouldn’t bring up Eric to April, or anyone else.
Because really, there was nothing to talk about.
Chapter Six
Ronnie felt her shoulders sink with every step she took away from her childhood home.
Main Street wasn’t exactly close, but she’d opted to walk so she could stretch her legs. She might not be training during her stay in Paradise Springs, but if she didn’t get some exercise every day, she’d go nuts.
Too late.
She squashed that voice. It wasn’t Margot’s fault. Weddings were stressful. Everyone knew that. And her sweet sister was far from a bridezilla, just…
Needy.
And that was to be expected. The problem was, the person she really needed wasn’t here.
Ronnie let her head tip back until the sunshine hit her face. She let out a long exhale. “We miss you, Mom. I’ve been doing my best to fill your shoes, but…”
She trailed off.
She wasn’t sure what she’d been waiting for. A sign? An answer of some sort?
Whatever she’d hoped to get in response, it didn’t come, and she let herself wallow in self-pity until she reached the Stop signat the end of the block. This was a trick she’d learned long ago. Around the time her mom had taken ill back in high school, actually.
It was a simple trick, but it helped. She let herself wallow in whatever grim emotion for a set period of time. When the time was up, she had to snap out of it and get into motion. Wallowing never solved any problem.
And self-pity doesn’t help pay the wedding bills.
She stretched her neck from side to side in a bid to rid herself of all this tension. Stress was never good for the body, but without her regular training regime to exhaust herself physically, she could feel it building up.
At the next block, she picked up her pace until she was jogging. Soon enough she was outright running.
Was it the best move considering she was supposed to be resting her knee this month?
Maybe not. But she didn’t have a weight room at home, and she’d risk a lecture from her physical therapist over an ulcer any day.
By the time she reached Main Street, she’d found her stride, so she kept going, ignoring the buzzing coming from the phone in her back pocket.
She waved to some people she recognized and darted left and right to pass slow walkers. Eventually, she circled back around until she reached the park just off Main Street, and then she stopped.
