Apple Blossom Bride

All she really wanted was to run. Which was sad when she’d spent so much time and effort dealing with her panic attacks, making this her safe haven. The accident with Kent had only proven what she already knew—there was no safe place. As if to emphasize that point, the fear that had assailed her in the elevator a few moments ago now ballooned and wouldn’t let go.

The phone rang.

“Ash?” Piper’s familiar voice soothed her fractured nerves. “I thought you’d be coming home today. How are you feeling?”

“Battered and bruised, Pip. My ankle’s weak so I’m on crutches for a couple of days. But I’m okay.” Would she ever be okay again?

“And Kent?”

“Walked away without a scratch. It was my side of the sportscar that was hit.” She debated whether to explain, then decided there was no point in pretending. “He kept going faster, though I begged him to stop. He told me he could handle it, that he knew what he was doing with such a powerful car. He lied about that. He lied about everything.”

“Oh, Ashley. I’m so sorry.”

She couldn’t handle the rush of sympathy. Not now. Not today.

“I’m not,” she said steeling herself against the pain she knew would follow the words. “It wasn’t me he really wanted. It was the money. It’s better it happened now, before we’re married, than finding out two years down the road.”

“Yes, it is,” Piper agreed quietly. “When do you go back to work?”

“I don’t. Ferris let me go when I had to cancel out of the exhibition.”

“The rat! You couldn’t help the accident.”

“I should never have believed Kent when he said he knew how to drive a race car. He admitted at the hospital that he’d never even been inside one before.”

“Yes, but—”

“Ferris was in a tight spot with the gallery expansion and he was depending on me to help. Being in the hospital because I was stupid and let myself get talked into something isn’t an excuse.”

“I suppose Kent left the bill for that car for you to pay, too, didn’t he?” Piper waited a second then groaned. “Oh, Ash. The greedy—”

“Believe me, it was a cheap escape. Anyway I don’t want to talk about him, Pip. I’m tired.” Ashley leaned against the wall, rubbed the throbbing spot at the side of her head. “I guess I need to rest.”

“Then as soon as you feel up to it, you should come here. The autumn colors are always gorgeous around the Bay.” Piper’s voice changed, softened. “Cathcart House is made for visitors. You know that. Think of it—you could sleep in every morning, take long walks when you’re better, think about your next move. You could even help me plan my wedding. Or you can just relax if you want. Please say you’ll come.”

Piper sounded so happy, so at peace with her world. Ashley swallowed a tinge of envy.

“I should really be looking for a job, Pip.”

“Don’t tell me you’ve emptied your grandfather’s trust account already? You were supposed to be recuperating in that hospital, not buying stuff online.”

Piper and Rowena were the only two people Ashley would allow to tease about her recent inheritance. Piper’s taunt brought back happy memories of other times they’d shared in Serenity Bay.

“You’re awfully quiet, Ash. You’d better fess up. Just how many pairs of shoes can one woman buy?” Piper demanded.

“Since you’re the queen of shoes, you tell me.” Ashley glanced down at the scuffed and dirty sneakers she’d worn home from the hospital. Looked like she’d have to go shopping. She wanted no lingering memories—of Kent or the accident.

“Ash?”

“I’m here,” she murmured. “Just thinking.”

“Why not come visit me?” Piper pushed.

Ashley could picture exactly how Serenity Bay would look. The water always seemed darker, deeper in autumn. The sky switched to a richer shade of cerulean. The hills cloaked their rolling sides in the finest burnt orange, fiery red and forest green.

And the people—she doubted many of them would know about her broken engagement, even though Serenity Bay was so small everybody knew everyone else’s business.

“Rowena’s coming down for the Labor Day long weekend,” Piper wheedled. “We’d have a chance to reconnect.”

The last weekend of summer. It was too tempting.

“Okay I’ll come,” Ashley agreed. “But just for a few weeks. I want to work, Pip. I don’t want to be one of the idle rich.”

The snort of disbelief carried clearly down the line.

“Like that would happen, Ms. ‘Frenetic Pace’ Adams. When can I expect you?”

Ashley glanced around. There was nothing to hold her here.

“A week—no, two. The doctor said I’ll need a few days for my ankle to strengthen. It will take me about five days to drive there. Say…two weeks from today?” she suggested.

“Yes!” Piper cheered. “I can hardly wait.”

“Listen, I know you’re busy. I don’t want to interfere with your work there, or get in your way.”

“You won’t. The busiest part of the summer is over. It went better than we could have imagined. Now if I could just get my winter plans to work.”

“Winter plans?” Ashley yawned, suddenly tired.

“You’re exhausted. I can tell.” Piper chuckled. “Never mind my brilliant ideas. I’ll tell you all about it when you get here. Go rest, Ash. Dream of all the things we’ll do together once you get here.”

“Yes. It’ll be great.” But she didn’t hang up. Instead Ashley clung to the phone, needing to share what lay so heavily on her heart. “What’s wrong with me, Pip?” she finally whispered.

“Absolutely nothing,” her friend stoutly insisted. “You just made a mistake.”

“Two of them. I thought I knew Parker. And yet I had no idea that he was in love with someone else.”

“He should have said something earlier.” Piper’s voice wasn’t forgiving.

“I should have listened better.”

“Does it matter now? Your engagement to Parker only lasted a couple of days before you learned the truth and corrected things. It’s not your fault. He wasn’t honest about his feelings for someone else.”

“Maybe. But what about Kent? I thought I could trust him. I thought he was everything I wanted in a husband.” She hated saying it out loud. It sounded so silly, but why deny the truth when Piper knew it anyway. “All he wanted was my money, Pip.”

“I’m sure that isn’t so. But even if it is, he’s gone now. You’re starting over.”

“Yes.” She chewed her bottom lip. “Don’t tell anyone, okay, Piper?”