The Magnolia Sisters (Magnolia Sisters #1) - Michelle Major Page 0,93
She shook her head. “I didn’t come here to fall in love. Or to get involved with a man. When I drove past Magnolia’s water tower that first morning, I assumed it would be a onetime thing. I thought I was going to sign some documents, hopefully get a little money to restart my life and then actually restart my life.” A drop of liquor slid down the edge of the shot glass. She ran a finger across the rim. “It’s all too much, too soon.”
“You are starting over,” Carrie pointed out, her voice gentle.
“The plan wasn’t to stay,” Avery argued, the words bouncing off the walls of the dining room. Now that they’d cleaned out most of the house, she could understand how grand it might have been in Niall’s heyday. A crystal chandelier hung above the table, tiny pinpoints of light sparkling. The walls were papered in a heavy brocade print. The color had faded to a dingy beige, but the quality of what it must have been remained obvious. Niall had been a powerful force back in the day, cosmopolitan and intriguing in his eccentricity.
Of course he’d held court over this small town. In a place like New York City, he would have blended in, another charismatic artist in a sea of big-city talent. In Magnolia, he was a unicorn.
“I wish he were here,” she whispered, more to herself than to either of her sisters.
“Gray?” Meredith pulled her phone from the back pocket of her jeans. “Are you ready to profess your love? Want me to call him?”
“Our father,” Avery corrected, and Meredith placed the phone on the table with a sigh.
“Him,” she muttered. “All of this goes back to him.”
“He would have loved that part,” Carrie said with a sad laugh. “He reveled in being the center of attention. The depression hit hard once his commercial success faded. He couldn’t understand why people weren’t interested in him anymore. That’s why this town remained so important, and he wrecked his own finances to save face.”
“Most people didn’t like him despite how they act.” Meredith kept her gaze trained on the table as she spoke, like she was revealing some kind of terrible secret and didn’t want to see their reaction to the news.
Avery was shocked. “What do you mean? People around here idolized him. We all heard the mayor’s speech at Summer Fair. I’ve lost count of the number of stories I’ve heard about his largesse.”
“Memories often turn the past into a halcyon version of reality.” Carrie hefted a box onto the table. “Meredith’s right. Dad was an insufferable ass for most of his life. He could be charming when he needed to, and he never let anyone forget what they owed him. Most of the town owed him in some way.”
Meredith grabbed the bottle of scotch and drank directly from it, not bothering with a glass. She leveled a look at Avery. “How many times have you heard someone say ‘bless his heart’ when talking about Niall?”
“A few I guess.” Avery scrunched up her nose as she considered the conversations she’d had with regards to her biological father. “Actually, most of them. I figured it was some Southern way of expressing sympathy.”
“Sympathy for what an ass he was,” Meredith clarified.
Carrie giggled, then motioned for Meredith to hand her the whiskey. She wiped the opening with the end of her sleeve, then took a drink.
“Do you think I have cooties?” Meredith demanded.
Carrie looked genuinely surprised. “Of course not. I’ve spent too many hours cleaning out this house. I’m overly sensitive to germs.” She pushed the whiskey toward Avery. “Bless your heart,” she explained, “or bless his heart in this case, can mean several different things. It was probably meant as an insult to Dad without coming out and smearing his name. Did you hear anyone use ‘God love him’?”
Avery nodded as she tipped the bottle toward her lips. “Plenty.”
“Huh.” Carrie shrugged. “People around here must have hated him. I never realized.”
“Because you were his little princess,” Meredith reminded her.
“A..” Carrie’s smile was saccharine sweet. “Mer-Bear. I love it when you say that.”