Page 29 of The Best I Never Had

Dennis is still laughing as he plucks a grape himself and tosses it up like he’s going to catch it in his mouth, only to nab it from the air before it can land. “Just a bit of hazing for the new family members.”

I know he means Addy and that my qualification as a family member is about my connection to her, but I can’t stop the small pang of longing. This will be her family soon, and I’ll be on the outside. Harrison wraps his arms around Addy from behind, nuzzling into her neck and whispering words for her ears only. She relaxes in his arms, her fake smile fading into something genuine and soft, and I turn away from the intimate moment. My eyes flick over to Owen, who’s watching me with a small smile of his own. He walks over and hands me his water bottle.

“Sorry,” he whispers as I tilt the bottle against my lips, steadily ignoring the fact that they’re touching the same place his did a few minutes ago.

I shake my head in mock outrage as I hand it back. “Is there no loyalty?”

“Did the baseball game teach you nothing? Every man for himself in the Ellises.”

His smile grows, and I notice a subtle indent in his cheek. Not a full dimple. A tease. I ignore the tug inside me that wants to poke and prod to see just how big he’d have to smile to give me the whole thing. He shifts another inch closer, and his scent wraps around me, something deep and earthy, but with a sweetness underlying it all. I can’t stop myself from taking in a lungful.

I step away to put some distance between us, a ball of guilt lodging in my throat. My heel catches on something, and I tip backward, my ass and my scraped elbow coming down hard on the path.

Addy rushes over. “Are you okay, Tia?”

I wince, brushing the dirt from the bandage on my elbow. “Can’t seem to keep my feet under me since I got here.”

A hand appears in my periphery, and I glance up to see Owen offering his help with a teasing tilt of his lips. I resist the urge to take it, pushing myself to stand. If this bothers him, I don’t look at him long enough to find out. I’m here to support Addy, not get caught up in Owen.

“I’m fine,” I say to Addy. “It won’t happen again.”

I mean it. No more. No shared smiles. No leaning to catch a whiff of Owen’s signature scent. It’s none of my business if Owen has a dimple when he smiles big enough. I won’t risk my relationship with Addy for anything.

Addy runs up to join Harrison near the front, and I watch as she turns to Diana and Dennis, the forced smile sliding into place. I want to pop into the group, tell ridiculous jokes until Addy’s facade breaks, revealing her true self below. I’m so focused on Addy that I don’t realize I’m by myself, a lone gazelle ready to be picked off by the lions.

“Hello, dear,” Owen’s grandmother says as she joins me at the back of the group.

“Hi, Cece,” I say with what I hope isn’t an awkward smile. The two of us haven’t spoken yet on this trip, but she was welcoming the first time I came up. “It’s good to see you again.”

“The feeling’s mutual. Do you mind taking a rest with me? There’s a lovely clearing around the corner of these vines, and my old bones struggle with these hikes.”

I watch in terror as the rest of the group heads up the mountain, leaving us behind. “Shouldn’t we keep up with them? Or at least let them know?”

“I already told them,” she says, tucking my arm through hers and towing me in the other direction. “Plus, I’d like some time to get to know my future granddaughter-in-law.”

“You’re thinking of my sister, not me,” I say, craning my head to see if I can call Addy over.

She waves a hand. “Oh, this old mind of mine. But you’ll do for now.”

Something tells me there’s nothing old about Cece Ellis’s mind, and my stomach churns. She leads me around the edge of the tall vines, and my feet falter.

There’s a cleared slope ahead of us, leaving nothing to interrupt the stunning view. It’s breathtaking, rolling green mountains with a few houses dotting them, a hint of life amid the wild. I want to teleport inside one, tucked away from the world. I can see myself, bundled up under a blanket in the early morning, nothing but me, a cup of coffee, and the mountains.

Cece plops down on the grass with an ease I’d expect from a teenager, not an octogenarian. Old bones, my ass. She pats the ground next to her, and I gingerly lower myself down. My nervous system goes on high alert, fortifying myself for a one-on-one I was so clearly manipulated into by the Ellis matriarch.

When she doesn’t speak, I panic, stewing in the silence. Finally, I break. “Your property is gorgeous.”

A smile curves half her mouth, but she keeps her eyes pinned to the horizon. “My slice of paradise.”

“I read the article your son hung up in the lobby. About you starting the vineyard all by yourself.”

She looks at me, and it’s like she can see right through me, into me. I don’t understand why, but I desperately want this woman’s approval. This must be how Addy feels about Diana.

Cece’s head tilts, like she’s weighing the words she’s going to choose next. “It was hard, leaving behind the life I’d been raised in and the person I’d been told I was. My father was a powerful man, which came with a lot of privilege but also meant I was supposed to fit a specific mold. And I was a hellion. I spent most of my life hearing that something—usually everything—was wrong with me.”

I understand that feeling. Everyone I’ve ever met has found something wrong with me. I was too combative or too closed off. I was never just enough of anything for anyone. But there’s a huge difference between someone being forced into a sexist box and someone who’s just too difficult by nature.

Cece continues. “I spent a lot of time thinking I was broken, but when he was gone and there was no more guilt or pressure, I found who I really was. Found this place. I let myself be healed by the love of this town.”