a soft, humorless laugh. “I’m sure he doesn’t mean that Dad should leave me behind but...”
“It’s not your fault,” Carrie said. “The thing that we have to remember is we aren’t to blame for this situation.”
“But some of us are a living reminder of being hurt,” Meredith countered.
Avery stepped closer to her youngest sister, feeling a strangely reassuring kinship at their shared feelings of being outsiders. “We’re going to be the center of attention around here today.”
“This sucks,” Meredith whispered.
“That pretty much sums it up.” Avery ran a hand through her hair, wishing she had a hair tie to hold it back. She typically wore it in a tight ponytail at work, when she wanted to be taken seriously. How would the people in Magnolia react to her? She’d met plenty of them since she’d arrived, but today was different. An image of Gray’s gentle green eyes flitted through her mind. Would he be there today? He’d mentioned something about a fire truck in the parade. It was silly to take comfort in the presence of a man she barely knew, but she couldn’t seem to ignore the spark that flamed to life when they were together.
“Everyone has known about the three of us for a few weeks now. People know Meredith and they’ve seen Avery around town.” Carrie’s smile was purposefully bright. “Maybe it won’t be as bad as we think.”
Meredith snorted but when she would have argued, Carrie held up a hand. “Or maybe we walk out there with our heads held high,” she continued. “And screw anyone who wants to judge us for the mistakes Dad made.”
“I like the sound of that,” Avery said with a choked laugh. Just when she thought she had Carrie pegged as the dutiful daughter, willfully blind to the sins of their father, the other woman surprised her.
“I can deal with giving the one-finger salute to the Nosy Nellies around here,” Meredith said, holding up a middle finger toward the bank of windows along the front of the gallery.
Carrie quickly stepped in front of the smaller woman. “It’s a metaphorical salute,” she said. “Remember, this is still your home.”
Meredith turned to Avery. “Are you interested in actually flashing that manicured middle finger at the town today?”
“Hmm...” Avery tapped her chin as if considering the question. “Not today. But thanks for offering.”
“Chicken,” Meredith mumbled under her breath.
“It’s a farm theme to make my cow dog feel more secure.” She picked up Spot and straightened the animal’s sweater. “It’s all about her socialization.”
Carrie and Meredith both burst out laughing, and that was how they walked out of the gallery. The three of them laughed and smiled as if they were in on the kind of private joke only sisters could share.
CHAPTER NINE
WITHIN FIVE MINUTES, Avery craved a hot bath, a stiff drink and a pound of chocolate in equal measure. Not that anyone watching would have guessed at her anxiety. She’d always been a master at keeping her feelings hidden. Even when Tony’s wife had been hurling insults at her in the lobby of her office and Avery had felt as though she was dying of humiliation and shame on the inside, she’d managed to remain outwardly calm.
Mayor Malcolm had insisted the three of them join him on the podium, where he’d honor Niall Reed as part of his opening remarks for Summer Fair. That meant they were at once part of the action and somewhat removed from the throng of people who’d gathered at the center of town.
“Take a flippin’ breath and try to smile,” Meredith muttered, nudging Avery’s shoulder. “This is a small-town parade, not the prelude to a firing squad.”
“I’m breathing,” Avery countered, the fact that she wasn’t fooling her half sister disconcerting. “It’s part of the automatic nervous system. People breathe without conscious effort.”
Carrie placed a gentle hand on Avery’s arm. “You could try to enjoy the morning.”
“Are you having fun?” Avery looked around at the crowd, many of whom alternated between watching the parade action and studying the sisters. Avery felt a sudden kinship with the goldfish who’d been her third-grade class pet. They were on