My father was the one who'd been trying to destroy The Inn. How did he know Vanessa Sawyer? Had she hired him to do her dirty work?
Did it matter? I'd already learned my dad had a stupid grudge against Prentice Sawyer that he'd decided to extend to the whole family. Even if Vanessa was paying him, he'd seemed happy to jump in.
What did I do now?
Drive to the police department and ask to see West.
There it was. I knew the answer already.
My mother's face popped into my head, her eyes sad, accusing. What would happen to her if I told West everything? And Grams…
I'd been holding out hope that Grams would see the truth about my dad, kick him out, and things could go back to normal. If I was the reason her beloved son ended up in jail, she'd never forgive me.
If I turned my dad in, I'd lose my family.
And if I didn't, I'd lose Royal.
Finally reaching the waterfall, I climbed the last stretch of trail and slipped behind the narrow stream of water, taking refuge in the cool, damp shade of the rock overhang. Here I was hidden, the gentle spray masking the tears on my face.
It was a good place to think. One of the best. J.T. and I used to come here all the time in high school, to get away from home and adults and responsibilities. I hadn't come here alone in ages. It only made me miss J.T. more.
I settled back against the rock, damp soaking through my shorts and t-shirt, and tried to think. It was a waste of time. What was there to think about?
I had to choose: my family or Royal.
Right or wrong.
And when I lined it all up, it was so easy to see that there was really only one choice after all.
Easy to see and impossible to carry out. How could I do it and live with myself? How could I live with myself if I didn't?
And there was still the small matter of felony theft charges. If I turned my father in and he talked Grams into pressing charges, I'd be facing a future that included prison time at worst and a felony on my record at best.
I could be pissed at my dad all I wanted—for asking me to take the money, for never intending to pay it back, for threatening to press charges at all.
Except I was the one who'd taken the money. Me. My decision and my consequences.
And still, it all came back to one thing. What could I live with?
I'd made a bad decision in taking the money. No question there. But I couldn't fix that. The money was gone, and I wasn't going to get it back. I couldn't undo that bad decision, but I could avoid making a worse one.
My phone beeped with a text.
J.T.
Where the hell are you? Grams just got done crying all over my shoulder about you quitting the bakery. WTF?
Grams was crying? Ugh, that just made me feel worse. She was blind when it came to my dad, but she was still the woman who'd raised me when my own parents decided child-rearing was too boring for them. She'd given me a home. A trade. And love. She'd raised me with so much love.
One of our hearts was going to break. How could I choose to spare myself knowing the pain it would cause her? Could I ever be happy if it was at her expense?
I debated how to answer J.T. Unable to explain over text, I went for an interrogation instead.
Why are you home?
Classes were canceled. Power outage. Where are you?
At the waterfall. I had to think.
Do I need to come out there?
No. I'm headed home.
I might as well go back. Sitting under the waterfall hadn't solved anything. Now, I was wet on top of being heartbroken, confused, and angry. I dragged my ass back down the trail and let myself into Royal's car. The inside smelled of rich leather and Royal. I inhaled deeply, his scent a comfort.
Not a lot made sense right now, but I knew one thing.
I loved Royal. If I let him go, I'd regret it for the rest of my life.
I put the car in gear and headed back to town, no happier than I'd been when I'd left but a little closer to figuring out what I had to do. On the way back, Nelson's Farm Stand caught my eye, the baskets in the front full to bursting with summer berries.
Still turning over my troubles in my mind, I pulled in and bought pints of strawberries, blueberries, and blackberries. I couldn't resist popping a blackberry into my mouth after I pulled the car back on the road. Tart and sweet, the flavor of summer exploded over my tongue.
I still didn't know what I was going to do with my life, but I knew what I was going to do with the berries. I was going to bake a pie. I always thought best when I was baking and I still had some thinking to do.