“ANOTHER FIGHT with Tom?” Gracie asked as she got out of her car and walked toward the front door.
Vivian actually looked shocked. “How did you guess?”
“Gee, I don’t know. I guess I took a stab in the dark.”
She figured her comment was sarcastic enough, although what she really wanted to say was “I knew something was wrong because the only time you ever bother with me is when you want something.”
Gracie opened the front door and led the way inside. While her rental was light and bright and more than served her needs, she couldn’t help remembering Riley’s amazing house. Ah, well. One day, if she was ever rich and willing to live in Los Lobos again. Of course she figured the odds of the latter happening were even more slim than winning the lottery.
“So,” she said as she filled the kettle with water, then set it on the stove. “What happened?”
Vivian sat at the kitchen table where she immediately poked at several decorative flowers drying there.
She picked up a rose and promptly crumbled it in her fingers.
“Sorry,” she said, and set the bigger pieces back on the table. She rubbed her fingers on her jeans. “It’s Tom, like you said. He’s graduating with his MBA and we’re getting married.”
“I think I knew that,” Gracie said as she pulled out a plastic container filled with loose tea and set it next to two mugs.
“He’s interviewed for a few jobs in L.A. and I thought he was going to take one, but I just found out he’s thinking about accepting a position at the bank.”
There were several banks in town-branches of large multinational conglomerates, but when a local referred to “the bank” there was only one. Riley’s.
“That’s interesting,” Gracie said, wondering if Riley knew. She doubted he worried about entry-level hiring, even in management, so he might not know about Tom.
“It’s not interesting, it’s horrible,” Vivian wailed. “I don’t want to stay here for the rest of my life. I want to leave and see other places. You got to go. Why can’t I? I can’t believe he would consider the job after all we’ve talked about.”
Vivian began to cry. Her sharp, high-pitched sobs competed with the whistle on the kettle and won.
Gracie didn’t bother pointing out that she hadn’t exactly wanted to leave Los Lobos, that instead she’d been sent away in disgrace. After all, Vivian wasn’t looking for logic.
Gracie scooped tea into two steeping spoons and dropped one in each mug. She carried them to the table and sat across from her sister.
“So call off the wedding,” she said, not all that interested in the outcome of the conversation.
Vivian dropped her hands to her side and stared at her. “What?”
“Call off the wedding. If you’re so unhappy, don’t marry Tom.”
“But I have to marry him. We’re engaged. We’ve ordered invitations. Do you know how much this is costing?”
Gracie had a good idea. “You’re still at the deposit stage. Most of it is refundable.”
Vivian looked at her as if she were a complete idiot. “I’m not canceling the wedding.”
“Then you need to talk to Tom about his plans. His job is about more than just him if it affects where you live.”
Her sister shrugged, then touched one of the roses. “Will you make flowers like this for my cake?”
“If you’d like. I haven’t decided. I’ll sketch up something in the next couple of days.”
“They’re really beautiful. You must be super talented.”
“I work hard.”
Vivian sipped her tea. “Tom says I don’t work hard enough. He says we both have to be saving to buy a house, but right now I’m saving to pay for my wedding dress. Teaching just doesn’t pay that much, which is why I’m working part-time in the hardware store.” She sighed as if life were too much for her.
“Would you teach if you moved to L.A.?” Gracie asked.
“I guess I’d have to. But if Tom got a good enough job, I could just stay home.”
“You’re going to start a family right away?”
“No. What does that have to do with anything?”
Gracie didn’t have an answer for that. In her world, husband and wife were partners, pulling equally toward a mutual goal. Obviously that wasn’t Vivian’s idea of a good time.
Maybe Gracie was old-fashioned and outdated. Maybe that was why Vivian and Alexis had men in their lives and she didn’t.
“I’m not the right person to come to for advice,” Gracie said.
“I guess I need to talk to one of my friends, then,” Vivian said. “Mom is completely crazed about the wedding and Alexis is so self-absorbed she can’t see anyone else but herself.” Her baby sister leaned close. “You’re not like that, Gracie. You think about other people.”
Gracie didn’t know what to say. “Gee, thanks. I’m so glad you think so.”
“I do.” Vivian patted her arm, then stood. “I gotta run. I still don’t have the shoes to go with my dress and I’m going into Santa Barbara to check out that new bridal shop. Don’t forget the family meeting tomorrow. We have a lot to discuss. Have a good one.”
She practically bounced out of the room.
Gracie collected the mugs and carried them to the sink.
What had just happened? How could Vivian go from fighting with Tom to shopping for their wedding in less than five minutes? Gracie might not be an expert on the subject, but she was willing to go out on a limb and say the girl wasn’t grown-up enough to be marrying anyone.
Not that it was her decision.
She returned to the table and carefully moved the flowers, then pulled out her sketch pad. She might as well get the cake design done. Even if the constant on-again, off-again wedding ended up being officially off, she could always put the design in her portfolio.
THE NEXT AFTERNOON Gracie drove to her mother’s house. She had sketches for several wedding cakes, along with some ideas about pretty but inexpensive centerpieces. As she pulled up in front of the house, she wondered if she was trying too hard. Should she continue to participate, even when it was clear she was only free labor, or should she walk away? Riley had said that family would screw her every time, but she didn’t want to believe it. With her aunt and uncle gone, her mom and her sisters were all the family she had. If she didn’t belong with them, she would be well and truly on her own.
She collected her portfolio and stepped out of the car. She’d barely started up the walkway when she heard someone call her name.
“Gracie! Oh, Gracie!” Eunice Baxter walked off her porch with a speed that belied her eighty-plus years. “I saw the picture in the paper the other day.”
Gracie’s shoulders slumped. Of course she had. “Hi, Mrs. Baxter.”
The old woman beamed. “You looked so pretty. And Riley, my oh my, he’s a fine male specimen. That earring.” The beam turned into a giggle. “Very sexy.”
Gracie blinked. Mrs. Baxter thought Riley was sexy? Gracie didn’t know if she should be impressed or completely grossed out. She figured she could decide later, and maybe use the information for ammunition.
“Are you going to listen to him talk?” Mrs. Baxter asked. “I’m thinking I will. Maybe go early and sit in the front row.” She winked. “That way I can look all I want.”
“He’s speaking somewhere?”
“At the high school later this afternoon. Something about civic responsibility, not that I care about what he’s saying. I generally vote for whoever is most attractive, and I have to say that Riley beats Franklin Yardley hands down.”
Gracie didn’t want to think about Eunice Baxter participating in their democratic system of government by voting based on looks, but there it was. The founding fathers would be so proud.
“You should stop by,” the older woman told her, then winked.
Gracie was tempted, although the reality of her showing up in the same place as Riley wasn’t something she wanted to consider. Talk about trouble.
“Thanks for the information,” she said and turned back to the house. “I need to get these designs for the cake to my sister.”
“That girl,” Mrs. Baxter said with a dismissive wave of her hand. “She and her boyfriend go at it like cats and dogs. I don’t give them a year. Alexis isn’t much better. Mark my words, Gracie, you’re the best of the lot.”
The compliment brightened Gracie’s morning. “I appreciate that, Mrs. Baxter.” Even if right now she didn’t feel all that special. She waved and hurried into the house.
Fifteen minutes later she was sorry she’d bothered. Vivian dismissed all her centerpiece ideas, saying they were too unimpressive and not one of the three cake designs had been approved.
“I like them,” Tom said. “They’re all beautiful.”
Obviously the bride and groom had made up, Gracie thought, liking Tom even more for liking her designs.
Vivian looked at him and rolled her eyes. “Honey, this is girl stuff. I know you want to be involved in the wedding, but I’ve been planning this since I was six.”
Gracie looked at Tom. He met her gaze and shrugged, as if to say, “I tried.”
Gracie felt more than a little sympathy for the man. If he really wanted to marry Vivian, he was going to have his hands full.
“The cakes are just so…I don’t know. Small, I guess,” Vivian said with a sigh as she touched the pages spread across the dining room table.
“These aren’t to scale,” Gracie told her, speaking between clenched teeth. “They’ll serve three hundred.”
Vivian pointed to a simple, but elegant design, with a cascade of orchids trailing down one side. “What if it was more like this, but all covered with flowers. Like a giant bouquet.”
“It’s not very defined. You want your guests to know there’s a cake buried under there.”
“Do they have to?”
“I like the one that looks like a present,” Alexis said, bending over the sketches. “What if there were flowers instead of bows?”
“I could do that,” Gracie said, reaching for her bottle of antacids.
She walked into the kitchen for a glass of water. Her mother followed.
“I’m sure Vivian will pick something,” she said. “I’m glad Tom wants to help.”
Gracie nodded and turned on the tap.
“It’s nice of you to do this for free. I read that article in People. I know your cakes are really expensive.”
Gracie felt some of her bad mood drain way. She smiled at her mother. “She’s my sister. I’m happy to help.”
“So we’re both running our own businesses. Who would have thought.”
Gracie wasn’t sure where her mother was going with this conversation. She wanted to believe that it was a slightly awkward peace offering, but she wasn’t sure.
“I think yours is more complicated than mine,” Gracie said. “You have employees and inventory, while I just have myself to worry about.”
“Still, you’ve made something of yourself. I’m not sure I understand how you can be so smart about everything else and so dumb about Riley.”
The arrow sailed straight and true, landing right in Gracie’s heart. She almost wasn’t surprised. “It’s probably best if we don’t talk about him. We’re going to have to agree to disagree.”
Her mother moved closer. “You’re not even trying. That’s what doesn’t make any sense. Your sister said you were over there last night.”
Gracie felt her mouth drop open. “Did Alexis mention she begged me to go with her so she could check on what Zeke was up to?”
Her mother ignored that. “Gracie, I only want what’s best for you. That’s what I’ve always wanted. I wish I could make you see what you’re doing. The whole town is laughing at you.”
“You know what, Mom? I think you’re wrong. I think the whole town is so busy with their own lives that they don’t have time for me. It’s been fourteen years and everyone needs to get over it.”
“You’re the one who can’t let go. You’ve never had any sense when it came to that boy.”
Gracie put down the water and crossed her arms over her chest. “Number one, he’s not a boy anymore. He’s a very successful man who’s made something of himself. I didn’t know him before, but I know him now. He’s great. He’s better than great. He’s amazing. He’s smart and sexy and fun to be with.”
Her mother flinched. “Oh, God. It’s worse than I thought.”
“It’s not anything,” Gracie told her flatly. “That’s my point. You’re upset about nothing. I’m not obsessed with Riley. I’m a completely different person. I’ve grown up, gotten a life. I’ve dated, had boyfriends and lovers and two years ago, I nearly got engaged. If anyone is lost in the past in this room, it’s you, not me.”
“You can’t see what’s happening,” her mother said, obviously distressed. “I don’t know how to help you.”
“Here’s a newsflash. I don’t need your help. Maybe I did, say fourteen years ago, but you weren’t interested. You sent me away. You were never there for me, even when I begged you to let me come home. You never cared about what I wanted, what I needed. I was desperate to be allowed to return to my family and you turned your back on me. So I got over it. I grew up, no thanks to you. So guess what? I don’t really care what you think about me or Riley or anyone else. The three of you asked me to come back for Vivian’s wedding. I said I would help and I will, but when this is all over, I’m leaving and I’m not coming back.”
Gracie walked out of the kitchen and back into the dining room.
“I think I know what I want,” Vivian said.
“Draw me a picture,” Gracie said as she grabbed her purse.
“Where are you going? Wait. I need to talk to you. I’ll tell you what I want and you can draw it. Gracie! Wait!”
But Gracie didn’t look back. She walked to her car, started it and drove away. Her heart pounded so hard she was afraid it would break. She felt shaky and sore, as if she’d just been run over.
Ever since she’d moved in with her aunt and uncle, she’d fantasized about what it would be like to come home. She’d waited and waited for her mother to call and say it had all been a mistake-that of course she was welcome to return. But the call had never come and eventually Gracie had stopped expecting it.
In time she’d told herself she’d stopped caring. She’d never come home for the holidays, instead meeting her family in L.A. or somewhere else. It had become a tradition.
Now Gracie wondered if the real reason she’d avoided Los Lobos, was the possibility of disappointment. If she came back, she would have to face what had happened. There wouldn’t be any room to hide.
Now that she was in the thick of it, she knew that staying away had been a fine idea.
She stopped at the red light and considered what to do next. There were several possibilities, including packing up her stuff and returning to L.A.
“I’m not going to run away,” she told herself, trying to sound fierce rather than broken.
She thought about going back to her rental house, but she didn’t want to be there, either. In the end, she found herself parking at the high school and walking into the auditorium to hear what Riley Whitefield had to say about civic responsibility and maybe join Eunice Baxter in ogling his earring.
INSTEAD OF HEADING for the front row, Gracie slipped in a side entrance and headed for a back corner. While she might want to convince her mother that no one in the town really cared what she did with her life or with Riley, she wasn’t willing to put that theory to the test.
She sat low in her seat and did her best to avoid eye contact. The strategy seemed to work and she didn’t even get a second look.
Thirty minutes later she found herself actually hanging on Riley’s every word. He spoke about the town and how each citizen was responsible for the direction it would go. How everyone could be an example, by supporting local businesses instead of chain stores, and throwing away trash instead of leaving it on the beach. He talked about how the tourists provided necessary income, but that they could not be allowed to define what the town would be.
Gracie found herself caught up in his words and actually wanting to get involved. She sat up straighter and applauded with her neighbors…right up until she heard someone whisper, “Is that Gracie Landon? The girl from the newspaper?”
She glanced around and saw several people looking in her direction. Wives nudged their husbands. Older people leaned in to neighbors, then turned back to her.
Gracie felt trapped and in the spotlight. Should she run out of the auditorium? Pretend she didn’t notice? Smile and wave?
Riley wrapped up his speech before she could decide and everyone stood to applaud. As the meeting broke up, Gracie tried to duck out a side door, but the crowd carried her down to the stage where she found herself in line to shake hands with the man himself. They were face-to-face before she could slip away.
“I shouldn’t have come,” she said when he turned to her and raised his eyebrows. “I didn’t think anyone would notice.”
“You’re welcome, as long as you promise to vote for me.”
“I’m not registered in this county.”
“We could change that.”
She was aware of several interested listeners moving close enough to overhear every word. She knew people would talk and report back to her mother. Maybe some of them were even silently laughing. But in her heart, at that second, she didn’t care.
“I liked what you had to say,” she told him honestly. “You’re right about the local citizens defining what Los Lobos will be rather than letting the tourists do it.”
“Thanks.”
She tried to figure out what he was thinking, but she couldn’t. Not with so many people trying to get his attention. She excused herself and stepped away, only to run into Zeke.
“What are you doing here?” he asked.
“Listening to your candidate.”
Her brother-in-law was a good-looking guy with an easy smile. He seemed nice and funny and she understood why Alexis had married him.
Zeke glanced around. “You’re making a bit of a splash. We should probably get you out of the way, so folks will concentrate on Riley and the campaign rather than your legendary past.”
She allowed him to lead her out a side door and into the parking lot. Gracie told herself none of this was her business, but she couldn’t help grabbing his arm before he went back inside.
“Why won’t you tell Alexis what you’re up to? She’s making everyone crazy with her concerns, and I’m guessing you’re getting the worst of it.”
“I’m not doing anything wrong.”
“But you are doing something.”
“Why is this your business?” he asked.
Gracie stared at him. “You’re kidding, right? Your wife has had me following you around town, sneaking around, taking pictures and showing up where I’m not wanted, just to find out what you’re up to.”
Zeke shuffled his feet. “Okay. Fair point. The thing is-” He shrugged, then turned away. “I’m not doing anything bad. I’m not cheating on her or trying to leave, or spending money or any of that. I just need a little more time. I swear I’ll tell her soon.”
It wasn’t good enough, but it would have to do. “I can’t make you tell me,” she admitted. “I wish I could.”
“Your sister is a little high-strung. I’m not saying I haven’t been acting weird in the past few weeks, but before that if I took an extra five minutes at the grocery store, she was convinced I’d run off with a checker.”
Not exactly Gracie’s idea of perfect happiness. “Does that worry come from her or from you?”
“I haven’t a clue. Honestly, I love your sister more than anything. She’s crazy, but she’s also sweet and caring and never boring. You know.”
His warm smile made Gracie feel better about the situation, even if his words made her uncomfortable. She didn’t know what Alexis was like. Not really.
“I gotta run and take care of my candidate,” Zeke said. He bent down and kissed her cheek. “Thanks.”
She wasn’t sure what he was thanking her for. She stared after him as she thought about all he’d said about her sister.
The sense of having lost her family was still there, but for the first time she considered that while she’d been sent away against her will, she had chosen to stay away. She could have come back, if she’d wanted to. Yes, she’d felt rejected by her family, but it wasn’t as if she’d bothered to reach out overly much.
Something to consider.
THE NEXT MORNING Gracie collected her various ingredients, baking pans and other supplies, loaded up her car and drove up to the bed-and-breakfast on the bluff.
She remembered this old place from when she’d been a kid. Rumors of an alien landing some time in the 1950s had made the location both irresistible and terrifying. Some of the high school kids used the place as a make-out point, while the younger ones tested their bravery by being willing to run up to the front door and knock.
In her youth, Gracie had made it all the way to the porch, which had been pretty darned impressive. Now she parked in back with the expectation of actually stepping inside and working. Aliens be damned, she had cakes to bake.
She knocked once as a courtesy, then used the key Pam had given her to let herself in.
As it had when she’d first seen the kitchen, her heart fluttered with all the foolishness of young love. This time, however, it wasn’t a man who got her blood to racing. Instead it was gleaming stainless steel appliances, yards and yards of counter space and big windows that let the morning light spill in.
Gracie mixed up her first cake batch and carefully poured everything into the pans. She added the heating core to the larger pans and slid them into the waiting oven.
As she set the timer, she heard another car pull up next to hers and looked out in time to see Pam stepping out of her Lexus.
Unable to escape due to cake-bakeage, she plastered a smile on her face and hoped for the best.
“Hi,” she said cheerfully as Pam entered. “How’s it going?”
“Great.” Pam dropped several books of wallpaper samples onto the counter. “I’m down to the details with the rooms, which is fun.”
Gracie had sort of dressed for her day. She wore a cotton blouse over black pants, but felt frumpy next to Pam’s Ultrasuede pants and matching jacket, with a little camisole underneath.
“I drove by the high school,” Pam said. “There was a crowd there for Riley’s speech.”
“Really?” Gracie pretended she hadn’t been there. “Is his campaign going well?”
“I hope so,” Pam told her.
Gracie tried not to react, but the surprise must have shown because Pam grinned.
“I mean it,” she said. “Hey, it’s been years and years. I was young and foolish and I sure don’t hold a grudge against Riley. Besides, Franklin Yardley gives me the creeps. He’d just been elected mayor when I was a senior and he was at graduation handing out some award. I swear he patted my butt when he gave it to me.”
Gracie pressed both her hands on the counter. She remembered Jill telling her a similar story. “You’re kidding! He did the same thing to a friend of mine. She was totally grossed out.”
“Do you blame her? He was old and it was just too disgusting. I wanted to say something, but I didn’t think anyone would believe me. So Riley gets my vote.”
She sounded sincere and Gracie sort of wanted to believe her, but she couldn’t. Not completely.
“You never remarried.”
Pam leaned against the counter. “I know. I thought about it, but I really prefer being single. I’m seeing someone now. He lives in Santa Barbara, which is pretty perfect. We’re close enough to get together on a regular basis, but he’s not in my face all the time. I like that. I’ve been on my own for so long, I don’t think I could get used to living with a man. What about you?”
Gracie was more than willing to get used to living with a man, but the only one who made her feel sparks wasn’t interested in her. Besides, he was the last guy on the planet she should be with. It made no sense. And they wanted really different things. He might find her attractive and kiss like a dream, but she knew he wasn’t the settling-down type.
She shook her head and realized Pam was staring at her. “I’m sorry. What did you ask me?”
Pam laughed. “Never mind. I can see you’re distracted. I’ll just grab my light reading and get out of your way.”
Pam picked up the wallpaper sample books and left the kitchen. Gracie stared after her and wondered if maybe she’d been wrong to judge Pam so harshly all those years ago.