"I heard they were building luxury apartments there." Bane tugged at his collar as he spoke with her.
"Well, anything would be better than that dump. I lived there before I married Ian, did you know that? That’s why I was curious what was going on with the building."
"Really?" I sat up, interested in the turn of conversation.
Bane looked at me with alarm and hurried to open the front door. "If I hear anything else, I’ll let you know."
Tori waved goodbye and left the house.
"You didn’t have to hurry her out, even if she knew the truth, she wouldn’t tell anyone."
"Maybe not on purpose, but have you heard how fast that woman talks? Something would come out unintentionally. We have such a great track record I don’t want to ruin it now." He sighed and sat down in the space Tori had occupied moments before.
"I think it would be nice to have someone who knew. I mean, it’s not like we’re doing anything wrong, right?"
His incredulous look would have made me laugh if I wasn’t in a contemplative mood. "You mean other than the fact we’re pretending to be married, we don’t own this house, and I’m now the president of the HOA?"
I nudged him with my good foot. "Fine. You have a point. I won’t tell her."
He nodded and leaned his head back against the couch. I watched his face relax as he closed his eyes.
"I might have messed up big time," I whispered.
He turned to face me. "Whatever it was, it can’t be that bad."
"It’s pretty bad," I said softly. "I haven’t been speaking to my dad."
He nodded slowly. "All right."
"I know I’ve mentioned my friend Riley before, and that she disappeared the last week of college. I keep trying to find her on the internet, texting her old numbers. Sometimes when I’m feeling especially morbid, I check the obituaries."
Bane watched me thoughtfully.
"My dad, he didn’t do anything about it. He didn’t try to help find her. It wasn’t really a case for the police. I spoke with an officer and there was no sign of foul play. She just up and left. Dad didn’t help me find her. I begged. He just told me some things happen for a reason. My brother Nate and I couldn’t believe he was being so relaxed and didn’t want to help find our best friend.
"That was around the time he stopped helping other people in the community. And I just couldn’t stand to be around someone so selfish anymore. Someone who didn’t care that Riley disappeared completely. I tried to talk with him about it, but he refused to say anything about it. So, instead of going home and staying with them after college while I looked for a job, I moved back to Riverly. This is where Riley lived during middle school and high school. I guess I keep hoping I’ll bump into her at the grocery store or something like that."
Bane cleared his throat. "I’m still not sure how this makes you a bad person."
I crinkled my burning nose and stared at the ceiling, hoping my watering eyes wouldn’t turn into faucets. "Nate just texted me and told me we were wrong about Dad. He wouldn’t tell me why. He simply said I needed to talk it out with Dad."
"But you tried to do that before it sounds like."
"True. But he is my dad. So on one hand, I feel like I should ignore it. Then on the other, he hurt me by his actions—or lack of action—and I want to know why."
"Whatever it is that happened, I don’t think you have anything to worry about. Even if he can explain the situation to you, it won’t change the fact that he refused to speak with you about it when it happened." He reached out and patted my hand awkwardly. It was a strangely comforting gesture.
"You’re right. I asked. I tried to talk with him." I clenched my fists. "But lately he’s been trying to reach out to me. I don’t answer anything because I’m so angry. I have spent so much time worried sick about my best friend, and he’s just over there happily hoarding his money."
Bane raised his eyebrows at that but didn’t comment.
"I guess I wonder if there is a way that it could be explained."
"There’s only one way to find out."
I steepled my fingers as I stared at him. "You’re not wrong. Unfortunately. But right now, I’d rather binge on Netflix and ignore my existential crisis."
Bane smiled. "Fair enough. Just know that I’m here if you need to talk."
"Thanks, hubby."
CHAPTER TWENTY
Homeowners Association Rule #79:
All foods must be clearly labeled at block parties.
"Everyone is coming at six."
"So?"
"So we haven't done anything to get ready for it."
She reached out and squeezed my arm. "Don't worry about it—that's why I made sure to get home early. I didn't want you to have to get ready all by yourself."
I glanced at the stove clock. "Nola, it's five o'clock. We only have an hour to get ready."
"How long is it going to take to throw hamburgers on a grill and set drinks in a cooler?"
"What about chairs? And tables?"
Feeling as though I were only a spectator of our conversation, I watched as she reached into my jeans pocket and pulled out my phone. She opened my messages app. "Is this the HOA group text?"
She flipped the phone around to show me.
"Yes..."
She began typing quickly, then passed my phone back to me.
It immediately began chiming.
Bane: BYOC. Bring your own chairs everyone and come hungry!
Fredrick: K
Speedy little texter, that man. Although 'K' wasn't exactly a lengthy response.
Carol: Sounds wonderful, sweetie!
I wasn't sure if I should feel good about the fact that Carol was trying to take on a matronly role in my life, or just frightened.
Several more agreeing texts came through.
Nola smiled. "See? Nothing to worry about. Now what else are you worried about?"
Her
