Page 42 of Wild Heart

Sure, I’d remained in contact with Ivy, but things weren’t the same. Our relationship was strained, not only because of the distance between us, but also because of my unwillingness to tell her where I’d gone. I was keeping secrets from the woman who was like a sister to me.

For a few days, I refused to consider my plan to return. I was scared, afraid they’d reject me after cutting them all out the way I had. But the longer I was gone, the worse my yearning for home became. It had taken me some time to work up the courage again, but now I was here—at Malcolm and Evelyn Westwood’s estate.

I took several deep breaths, trying to work through all the possible outcomes of me going inside. I wanted to see them all—God, I’d missed them—but I was terrified about how they might react.

“Ava?”

At the familiar masculine voice, I twisted my neck and looked toward the driveway, where I saw Liam approaching me. “Hi, Liam.” My voice was soft and small.

Without hesitating, he walked right up to me and wrapped his arms around me in a comforting embrace. “You’re back.”

The relief in his voice was unmistakable, and all I could bring myself to do was hold on to him tighter.

When we finally separated, he asked, “Does anyone know that you’re here?”

I shook my head. “No, I just got back into town, checked into the hotel, and came here. I’ve been trying to work up the courage to go inside.”

“You’re afraid?”

I swallowed hard and shot him a look that I hoped indicated my reason for being terrified was obvious.

“I get what happened, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen you scared to do anything,” he reasoned.

So, he knew. Or, well, he knew something happened. Obviously, I’d shared some specifics with Ivy, but I didn’t know how much she’d shared with anyone else besides Tate. Whenever she and I had talked to one another over the phone, she’d merely tell me things about individual members of her family and whatever was happening in their lives.

“I’m sorry I missed your birthday,” I told him. “I actually have your gift in my suitcase.”

He sent me a friendly smile, his features softening. “It’s okay. I’m just glad you’re back now. You do know what tonight is, right?”

I reached into my oversized handbag and pulled out the wrapped gift. “I do, but that’s another reason I’m not sure if I should go inside.”

Liam’s eyes shifted between the gift and my face. “Are you back here in Landing to stay?”

I hoped this went well so I wouldn’t have to consider leaving again. Shrugging, I shared, “No other place feels like home.”

The corners of his mouth tipped up slightly. “Then you should come inside.”

I tucked the gift back inside my handbag, and without giving me a chance to respond, Liam reached out to the side to open the front door to his parents’ home. I felt a bit more at ease knowing I had at least one ally entering Tate’s birthday party with me.

As much as I might have hoped that Liam and I would be able to sneak in and join the party without too much fuss, I didn’t get my wish.

No sooner had Liam pushed open the door, Malcom came striding by. He did a double take, clearly not believing his eyes, and when it finally hit him that I was standing there, he wasn’t quiet about it. “Evelyn!” he shouted. He moved toward me with his arms outstretched. “Oh, God, Ava. You’re back.” The relief in his voice was undeniable.

Do you know what you’ve done to this family?

Wrapping me up in his arms, he yelled for his wife once again. “Evelyn!”

“What, Malcolm? What’s wrong?”

His back was to her, my body covered by his, but once he realized she was there, he turned us slightly. Malcolm kept one arm firmly around my back, dropping the other so his wife could see me.

Just like her husband, Evelyn needed a moment to process what she was seeing. It took her just a touch longer than it did Malcolm, but once it happened, she let out a cry of relief and hurried toward me.

Malcolm released me into Evelyn’s arms, and once she had me there, she rasped, “We’ve missed you so much. Oh, I’m so happy you’re here.”

Do you even care?

My heart splintered. These people had been so good to me, and I’d devastated them by leaving the way I had.